Chicago's open again. Phase V. It's definitely weird being fully vaccinated and having things seem back to normal. We went to a party last month, and we hosted a small party last weekend, all maskless. We even went to the Old Town Art Fair on Sunday, and it was like nothing happened. Super crowded. Crazy. Will be nice when the kids can finally get vaccinated too. Gotta recap May since I forgot to post my monthly update. Finally setup standing playdates with Hudson for Jackson on in school days (Thursdays and Fridays). His parents and us alternate which place they go to, so only 1 parent has to pick them both up. Lucy had a pretty low key birthday. Made her a Milk Bar carrot layer cake which was pretty good, and got Publican delivered. She really liked the steak. Trying to keep up with home workouts. Added in an oblique workout, along with the pyramid workout and plank workout. Finally finished The Maze Runner series. Jackson plays in the AYSO Region 418 Spring season with his same team. He likes it. He even tried out and made Northwinds SC, the AYSO Region 418 travel team (not sure which level). That was a bit of a surprise, since he hasn't been playing for that long. Started making cocktail mixers. Made a Rhubarb cocktail that's been a favorite (brought it to the party). Made a couple batches for friends (at cost) for their Memorial day plans. Maybe a side business? Also got a bottle cutter, trying to make vases for Tracy's plants. Not quite as easy as it looks. Not quite even all the time. Finally ordered food from Cho Sun Ok Restaurant, the korean BBQ place on Lincoln that always has a line out the door (found out because they're tiny on the inside, not that many tables). It's good. Had the car serviced (couple of recall services), ended up taking too long so I got a rental (Forester) for the day. Big car, but same cockpit, so the UI felt small. Went on our first camping trip of the year, and first time at Buckhorn State Park in Wisconsin, just north of the Dells. Delayed it by a day, because temp at the site dropped to 35 on what would have been the first night. Used the Rhino Rack cargo box for the first time. Max speed of 70 meant I camped out in the right lane. Definitely weird to do that. Campsite had water access, so Tracy rented kayaks for us. Getting them from the rental place to the site was a little difficult since we didn't have J racks for the car, but we hacked something together so it worked. Only had to return one because Tracy and Lucy kayaked across the lake to return one. Used a sleeping bag, so didn't get too cold. Having the cargo box at the site was nice, didn't have to trek back to the car to store food and trash. Bugs weren't too bad either. I got an inflatable pillow at Cabela's on the way up, since we also had to get a fishing rod since we forgot the kids rods). Much easier packing compared to the full size pillows everyone else had. Hoping we all have smaller ones for the next trip. Instead of Arby's, stopped at Culver's on the way home. Might be the 2021 place to stop on camping trips. Best onion rings I've had in a while. Went to our Cubs game for the year. Pretty nice day for it. Moved my desk off the kitchen table and over to the kitchen desk area, which I finally cleaned and organized. Been ordering a lot from Amazon lately. The hanging shelf works well for the cushions, and worked well enough that I ordered another one for the cargo box (better than the pulley system which hangs down too low. Starting to see the appeal of Tik Tok. It's super easy to get sucked into it. Lucy's started posting (making her own pop its (which is another fad I don't understand) or of Banana our leopard gecko). For the hosted party made more cocktail mixes, including a watermelon basil for margaritas, and a blueberry/mint to go along with the blackberry/sage (which I had previously made for the camping trip), for bourbon or gin fizzes or spritzes, and the rhubarb/rosemary from before. Watched a bunch of stuff including Beartown, Girls5eva, For All Mankind Season 2. Finally watched Knives Out and Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn). And just today figured out how to get the back door from sticking (the hinges have adjustment screws on them) as well as figuring out why the sliding door wasn't smooth (besides the rails being dirty, one set of rollers were rusted, so ordered a replacement set). So I guess I've been busy. Kids got a week of school left. And then summer begins. Lucy's got a couple swim camps, and she's gonna be a junior lifeguard. Jackson has a soccer camp and a week at Blaine summer camp. And we have a surprising amount of vacation planned. Should be a good summer (which hopefully won't be marred by any resurgence of COVID). Fingers crossed.