Big trip!

This weekend was the big trip to Chicago. Our hosts, Mariah & Linda & Shane, were fabulous. They really rolled out the red carpet and made us feel welcome. I love the area surrounding Chicago and this trip just confirmed it. Plus the weather was fantastic on Saturday which we don't see in NE at all lately.
The flight from Logan was initially delayed by about 1.5 hrs. so we (me, Carol, Mom) were all freaking out that we'd miss our connection in Pittsburgh but there were about 15 other people on our flight who had to make it so they "held" the plane. We got on at the estimated take off time and really didn't delay the plane at all. Stressful though. The whole time I was on the phone with Karen trying to keep her up to date but she was in transit so I had to leave messages. She was in charge of the car so we needed to make sure she knew what was going on.
Once we got to Chicago it was pretty much a breeze. We went to Avis and waited for Karen for about 10 minutes and then drove to the hotel without any problems.
The hotel was decent, not terrific, but free and that's fine with me! We got to change and check out the hotel for a few minutes and then off to the shower. The house was in a cute neighborhood that reminded us all of Clifton in Marblehead. The inside of the house and the backyard were astounding! The house had been renovated and added on to include a cathedral ceilinged great room that was setup with two beautifully appointed tables that appeared to have been decorated by Martha Stewart.
The women at the shower were well to do ladies, a few of Mariah's friends from home, her college roomate and her sister. Everyone was very nice and her sister, Shane, had put together a great video montage that practically made me cry (cold hearted B*ch that I am). The food was also Martha Stewart like. She served chicken salad in a hollowed out half pineapple. Very cute. There was dessert in a martini glass and M&M's in little plastic baking cups. And wine. A great time!
Around 3:30 we headed back to the hotel where Carol and Karen decided to nap while Mom & I went down to (shocking I know!) the pool. I took a dip and then went in the hot tub (which was a little funky). A couple of down home girls joined me in the hot tub and I had a nice chat with them about MA and trucking (don't ask). I went out on the patio to join Mom and we sunbathed for a while until we had to go up to get dressed. As we walked back through the pool area they were draining the hot tub. They said it needed to be changed. Yuck! So I got first dibs on the shower.
As we were heading out the door I got the frantic call from John that Lexi's temp had rised to 104 and he was FREAKING out. He wants to fire the pediatrician, he can't believe there's nothing we can do, he doesn't know if she should sleep, eat or breathe, HELP! He was really upset so I, of course, freaked out too. Very helpful in this situation. Anyway, we had our normal calm cool collected screaming match and after I hung up I had my mother call him to calm him down which worked. In all fairness his mother would have helped too but she has shingles and he didn't want to wake her up.
Once that was somewhat settled we went off to a BBQ at Mariah's mothers house. I had hoped to go out to dinner if just to wear the silly dress I bought for the event but Linda, Mariah's mother, had gone out of her way to prepare a ton of food and I'm so glad we got to see her house and just relax. The group was a bunch of the same people plus Shane's husband, Alex, and Katie's husband Bob. Alex was a godsend, he cooked, served, cleaned up and was just wonderful with all the women. Bob was a riot and told a lot of good Mariah/Shane stories. It was strange for me to be in a group of people that know each other so well and tell their own stories. I'm so sheltered lately that I only hear the same Vallier/Hicks/Brown stories over and over. It was fun but by this point our whole contingent had been up since 3:30am-ish and it was now 10:30pm and we had to wake at 6am so off we went.
Overall a good trip but very tiring. I was surprised at how much I missed my silly little girls in 36 hours. I couldn't wait to see them when I got back.
Today I'm off to have my dress fitted after work. I've decided to wear the black shoes I already have (I know everyone is relieved) since after seeing these women I've decided I can't compete so what's the point. Each one was better looking than the next and more intelligent than I've ever hoped to be. I feel priveleged to be included in this fabulous group. My list of aspirations for the wedding are not to trip, not to say anything completely idiotic and to have some fun. I think I can do it!!
n.b. Pictures will be added as soon as I have a chance to download them.