Since you Asked.

I had Grand Plans for Sunday night. I had planned on spending an hour or two with a glass of wine, sitting at the table and quietly writing up the next two weeks of school work. Instead, we spent it at my parents' house where I happily did a jigsaw puzzle with my mom and dad, chatting and laughing over a glass of Creme Soda. Sometimes unplanned plans are the best ones of all...

So here I sit, on Monday MORNING without a plan in the world for school today. Ah well. It'll be a checklist day of pages and reviews and such. No biggie. Especially since I am EXHAUSTED from our weekend!

"What did you do, Tracey? Why are you so EXHAUSTED?!?"

Glad you asked.

Saturday morning found me literally rolling Justin from bed to travel into Chicago for a Mom Date. I had tickets to MacBeth at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater* on Navy Pier.I exist! In a photograph!!

I am STILL THERE! With my Son!!

We were so excited to see these when we drove into the Navy Pier circle:
Native Chief in Chicago smiling even though his land is now covered in asphalt. Really? Do we really think he'd be cheerful? Especially when he's decapitated and made from frozen water?

Captain America is looking PISSED! It's no surprise as they haven't yet given him the horny things for his head. (Heh. Horny Things. I am sooooo going to let that lie. Heh heh)

Apparently it was also the Snow Days in Chicago and, had I known how cool it would be, I might have dragged the whole family to see it. I highly recommend this FREE event for all families next year. We were utterly amazed! I wonder what they do with the sculptures post-event? I'd assume they're still in place at Navy Pier. Wouldn't you? Destroying them seems kinda cruel...
We settled into our seats at the lovely Chicago Shakespeare Theater and I gave Justin another run-down of the play's storyline. He was ready for it and just happy to be out with only me. (Awwww.... He still likes me!) The initial battle and first few scenes were AWESOME. Incredible percussion, lighting and prop usage had me actually smiling in the dark. Not so much for Justin. He finally leaned over and said "I have NO CLUE what's going on!" I continued to try and keep him updated but somewhere around Lady MacBeth's breakdown Justin shook his head and said "Never mind. I don't want to know anymore."

Sigh. I guess MacBeth was just a touch too complicated for his first Shakespeare. I blame myself. I think Romeo and Juliet would have been an easier storyline to follow for him. Or maybe A Midsummer's Night Dream. The thing is, I LOVE Shakespeare! I love the rhythm and plots and crazy language that could take hours to truly dissect. I even took a Shakespeare class in college just for KICKS, even though it didn't count towards any degree.

Ah, me. (heh) Perhaps in a few years we can try again? In the meantime, you can go see MacBeth for free at my giveaway because I ADORED this show. If you've never been to Shakespeare, here's your chance to try it out!

After the play we decided to go to Justin's all-time favorite restaurant for what he declares is the BEST STEAK IN THE WORLD. What restaurant holds this title of high esteem?

TGI Friday's.

:)

I made that kid's day and we ate at Friday's all by ourselves and he ordered a steak WELL DONE (because pink is apparently disgusting when you're 11) and we talked and laughed and watched the NHL All Stars draft and he said that he didn't mind that MacBeth was "weird" because we got to do something together.

And I smiled and was happy and glowing inside because my pre-teen still likes his mom.


"But Tracey!" you say. "That's only Saturday! That couldn't possibly exhaust you! What else did you do? Tell me! Tell me!! I MUST KNOW!! I am obsessed by your life!!"

Good Lord. Take a CHILL. PILL. I'm getting there. Damn.

Stalker.

Cracks her knuckles....

On Sunday I woke up to the sound of children laughing and a husband making breakfast. I nearly wept at the sheer magic that that sentence held while I SHOWERED (Holy moly) and then Pat and I dropped the kids off at my parents (Ta-ta!) so that we could go see Cirque du Soleil: Dralion!!

Awe. Some.

I hadn't been to see any Cirque show since I was pregnant with Justin and it is just as amazing today as it was then. I can NOT figure out how people can be so in TUNE with each other!! How long does one work on a 30 second section before it's flawless? Everyone from the actors and acrobats to the light men and musicians must be 100% in sync for this to be pulled off so well. If you've never seen a Cirque show, I recommend making it a "Must Do". It's an experience unlike anything you've ever had and ALL live. You just don't see that anymore!

Patrick and I were giddy without kids in tow so we drove through fancy-schmancy neighborhoods and pretended to be looking for houses by pulling the listing sheets and holding our jaws up when the "reduced prices" were still close to 1 mill. Isn't there an economic crisis going on?? I'm sure we totally fooled the home owners into believing we were actual clients as we cruised around in our 1998 Grand Prix with a dent in the front bumper.

We then gorged on enchiladas at On The Border and felt completely stuffed with our meals which is why we ordered chocolate turtle empanadas with ice cream to share. Obviously.

I am still recovering from that calorie overload!

I then had to break the weekend down for my Mom and Dad over a puzzle with too many brown and boring horses and not enough butterflies. We straggled home around 10:00 pm and crashed into a cozy heap on the couch. A whole mess of arms and legs and pigtails and cuddly bears...

And that is why I am unprepared for Monday's lessons at 7:30 in the morning. And that is why I am not going to fret over their school work but will continue to digest that Mexican food with a cup of HOT Coffee as I browse a few blogs and read a few emails....

...Since you asked.


* I still have 4 tickets for a giveaway! NO ENTRIES!!