Another calm morning. You can almost hear the quiet.
The perfect morning to “catch”the red lights…

And then the sun crested the horizon and a golden glow crept into the sky.

Yesterday we all “played hookie” and spent the day at Six Flags Great America. A wonderful day of roller coasters, ear-piercing screams and theme park food. This was our third “annual” excursion with my niece Taylor. Each year she gets a free ticket for reading a certain number of books in school. And with the new school year right around the corner, we needed to squeeze this in quickly. So Monday was the day!!!

Taylor is now tall enough to go on EVERYTHING!!! Once she was measured and given the coveted red wristband, she was ready to tackle everything… first up, the “Superman” roller coaster. They hook you into you seat and then rotate it forward so you’re “flying” face down just like Superman. So yes, the track is above you so you can’t really see it while you’re riding it. And yes, Taylor was quite the trooper… a few hysterical ear-piercing screams along the way… but all smiles at the end.

Then we calmed it down a bit with a spinning, rotating “lobster” ride. The perfect time for a quick photo shoot of Taylor and her mom Jen… my sister. But once the ride got started, my cousin Kim wasn’t quite so calm any more?!!!

Sure, who am I to pass up a foolish photo-op?!!!

Next up it was the “Batman” roller coaster. Taylor started out a bit more determined… kind of enjoying the fact that this is a regular sitting roller coaster. Okay, sure there’s no floor and your feet kinda dangle over nothing, but still better than flying face down!!!

Whew… made it… bottom lip still quivering just a little…

Next a quiet ride along a lazy river in the “Logger’s Run” boat ride. We got a little wet when we made the big splash – and it felt great as the day was warming up as the sun kept popping out more & more.

And then “Goliath.” The newest roller coaster at Six Flags Great America. Hyped as the tallest, steepest & faster wooden roller coaster. I’d say it was good, but not great. Always fun the first time, but I doubt it will hold up to the test of time. And I must admit… I expected taller. I expected steeper. I expected faster. What I DIDN’T expect was so many upside-down flips!!! Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE flipping upside-down. I just didn’t expect it.

Then we tackled a few more rides like “The Revolution” and “American Eagle.” Taylor conquered The Eagle two years ago, so this time it was no big deal. A little more rickety than any of us remember, but still a lot of fun. Followed by lunch and a little relaxed time eating in the Pavilion.

Next up was “The Viper” – another older wooden roller coaster wit a lot of pop-out-of-your-seat-hills. Which I love. And quickly enough, “The Viper” became Taylor’s favorite roller coaster of the day!!!

Mom & Taylor both enjoyed their trip on “The Viper”… a little exhausted, but fun.

A little post-ride selfie with my cousin Kim.

Looming on the horizon was my FAVORITE – “The Raging Bull.”

Locked in and ready to go… clickety-clacking up that first big hill approaching the big drop. It was at this point that we saw Taylor having a little melt-down. A little anxiety kicking in as she was trapped, go upwards and not too pleased with it… as a single tear ran down her cheek. We were all concerned that maybe we had taken her one step too far??? But she knew it was “may favorite” and I think she knew that she just “had to” go on it!!!

Soon enough the ear-piercing screeches began again… shrieking over every hill & twist…

Relieved that she made it to the end…

Whew…

Thumbs up if you liked the ride!!!

And yet “The Viper” was still Taylor’s favorite… so why not do it again?…

This time she was ready. She knew what to expect. She was ready…

And then the screaming kicked in once again…

But still lovin’ “The Viper.”

Our last ride was “The Condor” as our day was all too quickly drawing to a close. We all assumed the park was open until 10:00pm. We were all surprised to find out it closed at 7:00pm. So a fond farewell from Kim…

And some “glamour shots” of the park as the sun was hitting everything just right.

And there it is, another year under out belts. Another great trip to Six Flags Great America. And Taylor was a trooper… as was her Mom. The deal was that Jen would go on any roller coaster that Taylor went on. And I think this was probably the most roller coasters that Jen has EVER done in one day!!! It was a great day for everyone.

So Taylor… keep reading so we can go again next summer!!!

 

This morning was all gray. No sunrise ANYWHERE to be seen?
It’s supposed to clear up later… which I hope is correct… as I have BIG plans for a LOT of fun later today!!! But until then, my ride was pretty gloomy, except for some pretty cool sights as the tops of many skyscrapers disappeared into the clouds.

Tonight we spent the night singing our ABBA favorites from The Eighties.
Yes, those of us old enough to remember know all of the words to all of the ABBA songs. Sure, the original members of ABBA are no longer together, but luckily we have a great cover band “Arrival From Sweden” to fill the void. We had a great night, albeit unusually chilly, at the Ravinia Festival in Highland Park. A fun night with Pam & Susan snacking, chatting, singing & dancing under the stars. Oh… Mamma Mia… here we go again…

Part of the fun of Ravinia is the “fun in the park” & picnic time prior to the show. And what better way to makeour time a little “brighter” with some special blinking LED bling I brought with for the girls! Pam & Susan never looked so sparkly!!!

Beautiful reflections across the rippled water.

Today my Summer Camps kicked it in gear and finished their sculptures. We worked on painting final details and adding metallic accents. A Hershey’s Kiss just isn’t a Kiss without an aluminum foil wrapper, right?!

And here they are… our finished sculptures ready for their Gallery showing!!! I wish…

Baseball Hat & Baseball Bat – by Samara

Frozen Yogurt Cup – by Cecilia

Rainbow Coca-Cola Can – by Stella

Hershey’s Kiss – by Greta

Converse Hightop Shoe & Basketball – by Hannah

Bowl of Cheerios – by Dierdre

Starburst Fruit Chews – by Isabel

No. 2 Pencil – by Nicole

Hershey’s Chocolate Bar – by Rebecca

Starbuck’s Iced Coffee – by Isabella

Traditional Parking Meter – by Isaac

Dr. Who Dalek – by Sophie… or at least that’s what she “told me” it was?!!!

Sophie also made this Dr. Who Tardis… at least I recognized THIS one.

Hershey’s Kiss – by Natalie... and I especially LOVE the mis-spelling!

Movie Popcorn – by Audrey

Green Gummi Bear – by Ainslie

Converse Hightop – by Emma

And there it is… the end of our “Pop Art Sculptures” Summer Camp…
as well as the end of my “Tour of Duty” as this was my last Camp for the Summer!

Beautifully dramatic colors this morning. Rich, saturated hues. Layers of color.

 

Tonight was the annual “Elvis Is Alive” 5K Race down in Lincoln Park. It was my first time doing it. I love Elvis… and I need to get some more miles in… so why not combine them for a night of fun?! The park  in front of The Nature Museum was set up for the race, and started to fill in with a lot of people dressed for the occasion – adults & kids alike!!!

A little less conversation… and a little pre-race music by Elvis himself!!!

It’s a quick 5K race… so it’s more about fun, and less about endurance. Can’t wait to see those hairdos running down the path!!!

The starting “wave” of the race is the All-Elvis Wave!!! Instead of the professional “Elite” runners starting it off… it’s all about ELVIS!!!

My friend Tracy was in full stride AND full costume… including her very own version of her “Blue Suede Shoes.”

At the Finish Line, it was still fun to seem more & more Elvises… or would that be Elvii?!

Another Finish Line delicacy… Elvis’ favorite Peanut Butter & Banana Sandwiches!!!

After the race, I had some time to hangout with my “favorite” Elvis… and me with my gold sunglasses and Elvis sideburns!!!

Another Elvis sighting… and a fun Concert Encore with Elvis in the park.
A fun race… with a fun theme… with fun friends… and fun music!!!

Headed toward Diversey Harbor for an evening run… crossing at Fullerton with one of the most beautiful views of Downtown Chicago. Looks like a great night for a fun run!!!