KS Cousin in IL

We're definitely a bit behind in updating, but there is lots to talk about!

A couple weekends back, one of Heath's cousins from Kansas, Sterling, came to spend a long weekend with us. It was a definite full urban immersion experience which included culture, food and general merry-making.

CULINARY EXPLORATION

Chinese

Indian

Deep Dish

Huck Finn's
[the best diner in Brighton Park]

CHI-TOWN ADVENTURES

In addition to a stop at Second City (not pictured), we had an awesome day rolling around downtown and Millennium Park with the full Carter fam...











...as well as an afternoon spent kayaking the Chicago river...




...and even taking in a Chicago Slaughter arena football game.




Heath was exhausted after the fact, but it was a fantastic trip.

Mommy Dearest

One of the best parts of coming out to Virginia for Tiara's graduation was the chance to spend Mother's Day with my mom and grandmother. Separate from our other graduation-related festivities, we took Sunday to have an early, leisurely dinner at a fantastic restaurant inside the Joshua Wilton House in Harrisonburg.

It was a beautiful, delicious, prix fixe menu with fantastic wine pairings. We learned that mom loves port, which is a nugget of information that will come in handy on future occasions, I'm sure.









Back at the ranch, we played a rousing game of Apples to Apples and watched the Yankees game. All in all, a nice way to spend the day.

Tiara Graduates!

It makes me feel very, very old (and very, very happy) to report that my baby sister graduated from James Madison University this weekend. The whole fam came down to Harrisonburg, Virginia for the occasion. Here are some pictures from graduation itself...







Here are some pictures from the BBQ that followed, catered by the mother of one of Tiara's roomies.

[tiara's roomies, amanda and kate]

On Monday, we visit the Cross Keys Vineyard for wine tasting, a nice capstone to our weekend together.





That night, Heath and I got to see Celeste and John for dinner — an added bonus!


You can view the full album on Facebook. I've saved the Mother's Day photos for a separate post.

Georgetown Softball Weekend!

I already posted the complete photo set on Facebook, but I wanted to update you all on our wonderful weekend with the Hoyas (yes, Luke and Georgetown softball in one weekend!).

Heath's aunt Cherie (Clyde's sister) came into town on Friday night and we all went to Feed (a southern comfort food joint) for dinner and then downtown for dessert at Ghiradelli and a walk through Millennium Park and down the Mag Mile.

[feed]

[walking downtown]

Saturday was games 1 and 2 of Georgetown v. DePaul. Cacciatore Stadium was great — very Chicago with the El rumbling in the background. Mackensey helped the Hoyas hang tough in the first game. It was a real treat getting to watch her play.

[mac on the mound]

[small thing, but I thought it was cool to see her name on the scoreboard]

After the games, we went to Piece for pizza before heading back to Francisco to prepare for the next day. After Sunday's game, we had the softball team, coaches, a couple parents and some of our friends over for a Mexican feast that put our kitchen and backyard to good use. No pictures, but trust me when I say it was a blast. We couldn't have done it without Jacque's help during the week and even sleeping over on Saturday night. Clyde and Cherie also came in big with a lot of stuff the day of.

While we wish Georgetown played in the midwest more often, we're just psyched that Mackensey will officially be a resident of Chicago in just a month or so!

Welcome, Luke!

Last night, we got to meet Luke LePeau Decostanza. After hanging out a few days past his due date, he finally arrived. We couldn't be happier for Susan, John and Lina.

[already crazy about his godson]