1st trip back to Chicago!

After 9 months in Portland, we finally made a much overdue trip back to Chicago. Our excuse was to go for my graduation, however, we spent most of the weekend visiting with friends and family (and skipped 2 out of 3 graduation ceremonies).
I finished my PhD and defended my thesis way back in September, however, Northwestern only has the graduation ceremony once a year in June, so I had to wait to walk in the ceremony.

Here I am getting hooded by my PhD advisor, Tom Meade. I decided only to attend the hooding ceremony, as this is the most memorable and important for grad students. The other ceremonies were outside, and the weather was prone to storms. Besides, I was ready to get out of this gown and go visit some friends and family.

My Mom and Dad always stressed the importance of education. I am not sure I fully appreciated this when I was growing up, but I sure do now. Thanks Mom and Dad for helping to teach me that education is the key to success.
(I dedicated my thesis to my Mom and Dad for this very reason.)

Coincidently, I got to attend Brandon's defense during the afternoon on Friday in between grad receptions, etc. It was good to stop by the labs and see some old cronies (sorry, forgot to take pics - but the love is out there!). While I was there, Em went out to her old company's new office space to check it out. Later that night, it was time for the real fun to begin this weekend. We met up with Pauline, her brother Brian, Amanda, and Christal for some good eats at Smoke Daddy's. Very, very good bbq in Wicker Park. Later we headed out for some celebratory drinks in honor of Pauline's birthday. I also met up with Ian, Evan, Etrana, and some other former NU buddies. Em and I crashed at Pauline's pad in Lincoln Park (she graciously donated her bed and took the couch herself....thank you generous host). The next morning, we met up with Em's former coworker Liz and her boyfriend Joe. We had brunch with them at our favorite brunch place in Lincoln Park, called Nookies Too.

This is why Nookies is our favorite brunch place in Chicago. I had the "trio", which consisted of (L to R): mango coconut pancakes, french toast with berries and yogurt, and peach almond pancakes with honey. They also have the freshest real squeezed orange juice. Yum.

Later that afternoon, we made the trek out to the suburbs to Batavia to visit Em's uncle Jack (JoJo) and Linda, and their son Nick. Also visiting JoJo's beautiful new home were Em's parents and brother Chris from St Louis and her Grandma from Toronto. It was really great getting to see everyone and spending time hanging out with the family!!

Everytime we visit JoJo's place, he fixes a feast which usually includes filet mignon, shrimp, and other goodies from the grill. This time was no exception. He treats us so well and we are always grateful for his amazing cooking! Thanks again!!

Mojitos and Mahjong. After dinner, we learned how to play Mahjong, a Chinese game sorta like a cross between dominoes and rummie. Em and I have had a Mahjong set for awhile, but struggled with learning the many complex rules. We got a little practice with some expert coaching from Em's Mom and Grandma. Linda kept us refreshed on this hot day with some homemade Mojitos. Life is good.

We spent the night at JoJo's then got up in the morning and reluctantly said our goodbyes to the family. We headed back in the city for brunch at our second favorite spot, Toast, in Lincoln Park.

Brunch at Toast with Christal, Matt, Amanda, and Pauline.

After brunch, we headed down to the South Side to hang out with Kristy and Pat and my Mom and Dad a little more before our flight. Their deck is always a nice place to relax and enjoy the summer breeze. Of course, more food was consumed.

After eating too much (again), we went for a walk around the neighborhood. There are some impressive houses in the Hyde Park area including many oversized brick Victorians and a few Frank Lloyd Wright designs. Of special note is the home of our current president, Obama. Yes, my sister lives only a few blocks from Obama's house!!

Here's Pat, Kristy, Em, and I outside Obama's house (in background). This is about as close as the security would let us get. Notice the cement barricades put up all around the block. Sorry, it's not a great pic of the house, but there are lot of trees and even more police to obstruct the view. Kristy is about a week or two from delivering their first child, so we were hoping that it might come while we were in town. She is still waiting.....and so are we to welcome our 9th niece/nephew. We are anticipating her call any day now.

Well, the weekend seemed to fly by and we only wish we could've had more time to spend with everyone. We would like to thank everyone for their hospitality (Kristy and Pat even let us use their car all weekend) and taking time out of their busy schedules to visit with us while we were in town. We welcome all of you to Portland....and we will try to get back to Chicago before another 9 months passes! -Love, Brad and Em

Silver Falls State Park, OR

We had a Sunday with nothing to do, so we decided to drive down for some hiking in Silver Falls State Park. It's a little over an hour drive south of Portland, but well worth it. Along the way, we saw a strawberry farm so we stopped to pick a few (too many).
Let me start out by saying that, growing up in the Midwest, strawberries were OK. That's it, just OK. You had to cut them up and put sugar on them to make them good. The problem with most strawberries is that they are bred for shelf life and size (farmers are often paid by weight), not flavor. What you get is a large, watered down strawberry that is too firm, lacks flavor, and is actually white in the center.
However, if you come to Oregon, and try some of the local strawberries, you will be pleasantly surprised. Yes, they are smaller, but your first bite will tell you that these are extraordinarily great. They are sweet, deep red in color throughout, and full of delicious flavor. We first tried some at a local farmers market, and vowed to buy more when given the chance. Well, my friends, here was our chance. (My strawberry rant is over now). So we pulled over at a local strawberry farm where you can pick your own for only 75 cents a pound!!

Our bountiful harvest filled the trunk of the car....for only $16!!

"Strawberry Fields Forever"
Here we are, down on the farm, picking the best strawberries you will ever taste. The farmer even encouraged us to "sample" while picking the different varieties....sure!

OK, now that we were all fueled up on natural sugars, we headed to the main attraction....Silver Falls. We did the "Trail of Ten Falls" which is a 7 mile loop hike through lush forests. Along are the usual suspects: Matt, Kristina, Zoe, Em, and I. Here are some of our favorite falls on the hike:

South Falls - 177 ft. There is a trail that wraps behind the falls, you can see people walking behind the falls in this pic.

Lower South Falls - 93 ft, also with a trail behind the falls.

Em strikes a pose behind Lower South Falls

Lower North Falls - 30 ft.

Double Falls - 178 ft.

North Falls - 136 ft.
(see person at top for size comparison)

When the trails are this lush and the waterfalls are this plentiful, you tend to appreciate all the rain we get out here.

The view of North Falls from a clearing about a mile away.

After snacking on strawberries every day and every meal, we still had enough left to make 5 jars of homemade strawberry jam. If you are real nice, we might let you try some..... :)