Chicago Part 2: Exploring, Jonas' Graduation, & Dad's 60th Birthday

The week after the wedding was a relaxing one, dedicated to exploring the city and hanging out with the family.  Memorial Day we headed downtown to check out the Sears Tower (now renamed the Willis Tower).  It was Gunilla's last day before heading back to Sweden so she decided to meet up with us.

For $17.50 you can ride an elevator up 109 stories to the observation deck.  They crammed us in like sardines, but the view was awesome.

The boys especially liked the all glass observation box, where you can look down below.

One of the perks of staying with family is that the kids get to form tight bonds with family members they don't get to see very often.  This definitely happened with Gustav, who the boys adored.  Linus is convinced he is a super hero, and volunteered him on multiple nights to read the bedtime stories.

One afternoon Mattias won "Father of the Year" by causing the huge goose egg on Magnus' forehead.  The little booger was falling off a short concrete wall, and in addition to catching him in the nick of time, propelled him forward into the wall.  Good job, pappa.

We spent one morning at the famed Bean at Millenium Park.

It's a great place for a stroll.

But the highlight for the boys was the fountain with a huge splash pool.

We took the L around everywhere, and made a point to appreciate the architecture and with a river walk.

The Navy Pier was overcrowded with school field trips, but we managed to get on the ferris wheel which gave some nice views.

The Children's Museum was great, with building and dinosaur excavation exhibits.

Then came big even #2: Jonas' graduation from surgery residency.  The University of Illinois, Chicago hosted a swank party at the Trump Tower.  Check out these views!

 

We Karlssons clean up pretty well, if you ask me.

 

Each graduate was presented by a mentor, who had kind words to share about each graduate.  Then each graduate got to show appreciation for those who supported them in the residency process.  It was very clear that each of the seven made huge sacrifices and paid a huge personal toll to complete the program.  In thanking his parents, Jonas said "Mom and dad, growing up all you really wanted me to be was happy.  I was so fortunate to have grown up in such an awesome family."  True that!                                                                                                           

On our last full day in Chicago we celebrated my dad, as he turned the big 6-0.  Most people I tell that to say, "Wow, your parents are still pretty young."  I'm sure they'll be glad to hear that.  We sent my dad off to the park with the kids and while he was away decorated the apartment and busted out the cake.

He was genuinely surprised and the kids loved that we had birthday essentials: hats, balloons, and noisemakers.

Linus volunteered to "help" open his Lolo's gifts.  It was a sweet end to a wonderful week with family.  Thanks for the memories, Chicago!

Chicago Part 1: Jonas' Wedding

At the end of May we jetted off to Chicago for a smorgasbord of celebrations, the biggest being Jonas and Lauren's wedding.  Kerstin found an awesome multi-unit house in Lincoln Park, where our big ole Swedipino family rented out 2 flats for the week.  Our first day was used for general exploration, where spent much of the day walking to and from the Lincoln Park Zoo.  As you can tell from Linus' posture, he was ready to take on Chicago.

 

Yes, I did put them in matchy-matchy outfits :)

The polar bear was a highlight for Linus.

For Magnus, it was giraffe mania.  He has been obsessed with the long necked creature since his first birthday, when Uncle Alvin sent him a card with a giraffe on it.  We took it to another level by getting him his very own stuff giraffe.  "Aff" as he calls it, rarely leaves his side.

The following day we rehearsed for the ceremony, where Linus had a very special job: ringbearer.  He knew that he had a "special mission" to deliver the rings to Mattias (the best man) and that the couple couldn't get married without the rings.  Lauren & Shannon gave Linus a short pep talk, then he practiced his walk down the aisle alone.

The whole family was pleasantly surprised a few weeks back, when we found out that Alvin would be officiating the ceremony.  That's right, you can add minister to his list of many talents! 

The rehearsal was short and sweet, and we had a few minutes at the end to snap a few pictures of the Karlssons.

The day of the wedding was forecast to be 97 degrees, and it was easily 80 degrees after breakfast.  So we packed the kids in the car and took them to the Foster Avenue beach.  Not much interest in the water itself, the kids preferred sand castle building and treasure hunting with Lolo.

Then it was time for the main event, and we all gathered at Bartelme Park for the ceremony. 

Father & son, getting ready to walk down the aisle.

The ceremony was sincere and honest and mature, a great start to a beautiful marriage.

The newlyweds, with the Sears Tower in the background.

 

It was so hot that the boys exchanged their pants after the ceremony for play shorts.

 

Then we headed down to the reception at Catalyst Ranch, a funky vintage inspired event hall.  The guys are smiling because there are M&Ms on the table.

We really wish we had taken more photos during the reception.  Mattias did a great best man speech, the kids danced and played (and were generally well behaved), and everyone had a relaxed and fun time.