Road Trip: Day Five (Home With My Crew).

All good things must come to and end...that's a saying, right? This little road trip was just what I needed (and as it turns out, just what the doctor ordered). But it was time to come home, my crew missed me and I missed them. We celebrated my return with burgers and corn at Nana & Bumpa's. That's how we do: Cam thought her dad was being a little stingy with the butter: Looks like she approves:We got home and I found out that the A/C is flat busted. Ugh. Of course it is. Max decided that he was going to hang out with me while I watched the basketball game instead of going to bed. I figure that's okay:I opened up the bottle of wine I bought at Target. It was on sale, and it has a creative label. Tastes pretty good too, for a sauvignon blanc. It's good to be home.

Road Trip: Day Three & Four (I'm Thinking of a Person).

I've spent the last 2 days bumming around, driving, thinking, wandering...it's been good. Oh yeah, and sleeping. Consistently. It's a wonder what that will do for a person. I swear being horizontal is one of my favourite hobbies. That, and embracing the fact that I have the sense of humour of a 12-year-old boy:Driving right before a holiday weekend is interesting. Folks seem like they have left their brains at home, the police are out in full force, and the roads are flooded with RV's...so I opted to hug the slow lane and take it all in:The only thing better than this is the pussy wagon: I love how each state announces itself on the interstate. I think we should do the same in Canada. It would be so much more fun than those boring brown and white signs:
The only part about this trip that kind of sucked was that I had nobody to make jokes with while I was driving. I ended up taking pictures and tweeting them to Scott instead. Normally we'd both start yelling out a string of fast food items when we drive under an overpass like this (inside joke), but since it was just me, all I did was smirk and think that if Scott was here, we'd be shouting "big mac! large fries, chocolate shake! cooooooooooooooooooke!!"):
I knew it was officially time to start heading home when I went to Target (for the second time) and I spent all my time looking at stuff for the kids and Scott. I even thought the little kids screaming with boredom while their moms shopped were endearing. Yeah...:
When I hit Kalamazoo, I ordered a pizza from Erbelli's (highly recommended by the guy at the hotel check-in). I also made myself a wine spritzer in my "Keep Calm & Carry On" mug that Jennifer got me for my birthday. Hey, I'm all class:
The perfect end to this day was Orlando losing to Boston in the Eastern conference final. So long Vince Carter! Looks good on ya! I'm looking forward to an NBA final of competitive basketball! Go Boston! Tomorrow - home! I miss my family. That's a good thing.

Road Trip: Day Two (Is That You In There?).

I left Chelsea at the crack of 10, and pointed my car towards Chicago. It was a fairly easy drive, except for my full bladder and the unexpected traffic right at the end. Oof! If I was a guy, I would have totally peed in my vitamin water bottle. Thankfully for the folks stalled in traffic next to me, I'm not and I didn't. Once I located my desired target - Quiltology - I suddenly realized that I was really hungry, and still needed to go to the washroom. Lucky for me, Edwardo's Natural Pizza Restaurant was close by, and being in Chicago, there is a certain expectation that one is going to have pizza, right? I asked my friendly waiter Mike what was so famous about their pizza, and he informed me that it was the stuffed crust. Turns out, you can get it stuffed with cheese, spinach or sausage, but Mike's favourite was spinach, topped with sausage and mushroom. Done and done. And a beer please and thank you. Hey, it was hot out and I was thirsty! Mike and I shot the shit about health care, the pros and cons of the Canadian system, and then my pizza came. And it was magnificent. I ate all of it.
Once I was done stuffing my face, I headed down the street to Quiltology, a quilting shop I have been wanting to visit for ages (actually, for about 5 days - that's when I started researching my trip). All I can really say is it is a good thing that I don't live in Chicago, because I would have to harass the owners night and day until they hired me to work there. The fabrics are stunning, prices are great, and the kits...the kits make me want to hole up with my sewing machine and piece until my sewing machine bites the dust. Susan, who works at Quiltology, helped me pick out fabric for the 3 baby boy quilts I have on my roster. She has a great eye for colour and was enthusiastic about my requests for fun and bright fabrics. I don't think she wanted me to take her picture, but she relented (reluctantly).
Look at the front window! Don't you just want to get a cup of tea and a good magazine and sit and people watch all day? Me too...
While Susan cut my fabric for me I wandered around and lusted after all of the patterns, books, kits and quilts on display. I behaved myself though, reminding myself that if I bought too much fabric I wouldn't have an excuse to come back for a long time. That's no good - Jennifer and my mom definitely need me to personally introduce them to this shop!
I didn't get a very clear picture of this pink and red lion they had on display, but it vibrates when you squeeze its paw and it is super soft. Unfortunately it wasn't for sale. Not even when I told her how much Max would like it. Ah well.
Once I was done at Quiltology, I hopped back into my car for what I thought would be an easy drive to the Hyatt Regency in downtown Chicago. Turns out that all those bridges and tall skyscrapers are not so GPS friendly. As in, my tomtom was telling me to drive the wrong way on one way streets and had me driving in circles. I had to kick it old school and pull over and get directions. Yay communicating with real human beings (#technology #fail)! Thank gawd I didn't have screaming kids in the car! I finally checked in, had a bath, and then headed out to Trader Joe's. Getting my America on full throttle!!
Upon my return to my room, stocked up with my favourite lavendar hand wash, I flipped the tv on and low and behold, the movie Sex In the City was on! Except it's the 4:3 version forced into widescreen mode, so all those skinny bitches look like they have fat arms. Hah! Love it. Time for another bath, and then sleep.

Road Trip: Day One (of Finding My Way Back to Me).

Depending on how often you read my blog, or how well you know me, you may have figured out how down I've been lately. I started to really worry when I came to the realization that overall, things are getting better, but I'm feeling worse. I went to the doctor to see if he could help me out, figuring maybe my vitamin B was low, or he could prescribe something to help me get some sleep. I pulled myself together, did my hair, makeup, made myself look good, or so I thought...he listened to what I had to say, and told me I looked exhausted. That I was suffering from complete burn out. That I was treating Max's Autism like it was a sprint, not a marathon, and that I had been doing that for two years, ever since we suspected something was up with Max. He also said that while I thought I was being selfless by trying to take responsibility for directing all of Max's therapy myself, I was being incredibly selfish and making a tactical error. I hadn't thought of it that way, but he is right. If I crack, and let myself get to the point of a breakdown, that doesn't help anyone, especially not my family.

So, Scott and I had a heart-to-heart, he took a week off work to watch the kids, and I hit the road, hoping to rest and get some time to remember what makes me happy, external to my family. I did some research on quilting stores, loosely mapped out a plan (give or take where the wind blows me) and pointed my car south.

First stop: a small quilting store in Jackson, Michigan named Regalitos Quilting. They are currently getting a new site up. The owner Cindie specializes in long arm quilting and she even demonstrated how it works for me! She is a total sweetheart, and it was nice to talk with an experienced quilter (my people!).
I spotted this beautiful Christmas tree skirt laid out on the table, and commented on how much I liked it. It turns out Cindie had a kit made up, so you guessed it, I couldn't leave it there. And yes, I know that it is May and Christmas is 7 months away. But maybe that's a good sign...I used to love Christmas, and the past few years, I haven't been into it at all.This beautiful quilt on display (which Cindie made) is on sale for $600. Just so you know, that barely covers the cost of the fabric! This is why you quilt for love and not money.After visiting with Cindie, I stumbled upon a Mexican restaurant named Los Tres Amigos (careful - the site has music). The waitress twisted my arm and made me order a margarita. She even ID'd me (bless her heart). I ordered the burrito/enchilada combo, read the latest Vanity Fair magazine, all the while being serenaded by JLo in Spanish. Awesome.I closed the day out by going to Target (they sell wine there!!), then checked into the hotel. When I turned the tv on, an episode of The Gilmore Girls was playing (so perfect). Bath, pjs, 24 finale, quilting, Glee, Parenthood, and of course blogging. Tomorrow? Chicago!