Vacation de amor

After being away from home for almost two weeks, I was wagging nearly as exuberantly as our puppy greeters after crossing the threshold of our home. This was our post-summer season vacation/Matt's only real break from swimming during the year.

We kicked it off with two swim clinics, one in Kansas City then one in St. Louis. I was a tad anxious before the first clinic because I had not given my motivational spiel in a while. But the further removed from swimming I get, the more insight and appreciation I have to share, so talking to the kids was a pleasure. I feel honored first, that they listen to me, and second, that I have the opportunity to put the lessons I've extracted into words. Talking about my personal journey leaves me feeling good about the path I chose and seeing the kids oooo and ahhh over Matt reminds me what an exceptional platform we have been given to impact these kids. I know MG is the main attraction at these clinics, but by association, his sidekick gets to try to leave an impression on lives as well. Both clinics were packed full of great kids and we left with a post-clinic buzz. The kids come to learn, but their charisma leaves our cheeks sore after those events, grinning and loving the fact that there are so many passionate young athletes out there.

A stop at Ozarkland, a barn full of everything, on our way to St. Louis.

The clinics were the "work" and the remainder of our trip was all play. We spent three days at Matt's brother Andrew's new lake house in Columbia, MO. I love spending time with Andy and getting glimpses into his and Matty's evolved relationship. They're another sibling success story...rivals turned best friends. This was an especially fun time with the Grevers boys because Andy was preparing to propose to his gorgeous gal Harriet. Matt and I got in on the planning and I gave the stamp of approval on his ring choice. I loved getting to be part of the stage crew for such a perfect pair's big moment.

Andy's sweet doodle dude, Kodi bear.

From Columbia, we flew to Chicago, then drove to Door County, Wisconsin. My first and only airplane trip for the first ten years of my life was to Green Bay en route to my Grandma's log cabin on Lake Michigan. Mom used to buy us "airplane gifts" which were revealed during take-off. I usually got something to use in Wisconsin, something to keep me occupied on the flight, and my brothers and I worked through a huge bag of Starbursts (surely Mom's genius ploy to keep the pressure from getting to our ears). After landing in Green Bay we would drive a suspenseful hour and a half northeast to Door County. Mom and Dad made sure to point out each landmark, indicating the shrinking distance between our car and Grandma's cherry pies. Our first glimpse of Lake Michigan always drew gasps from our excited carload of Texas kids. Never would I ever believe that was a lake and not a vast sea. I was scared of sharks in Lake Michigan until I was seven or eight.

View from the Cabin's porch

Nostalgia. The word is alive and well in that little log cabin my Grandma left to our family. I have vivid memories from every summer in each cozy room and every square foot of the softest grass in the world. As I've grown older, traditions revolving around food have replaced must-do activities, like hours of truck jams in the sand box. My Grandma's parents were Swedish immigrants, so when we get to the upper peninsula of Wisconsin, our Swedish pride swells. A famous Swedish restaurant called Al Johnson's sits at the base of the town of Sister Bay. It's easy to spot. The only pitched rooftop covered with grass grazed upon by goats. Other spots have popped up on the big hill in Sister Bay. This year we discovered the Creamery, serving up the most decadently delicious gelato (made from goat's milk...maybe from Al's rooftop?) we've ever consumed.

Grass roof of Al Johnson's. Goats, not pictured. Photo cred: M Grevers

Sveeeedish and proud

A few stores up from the Creamery is a business the Chandler women have made a huge investment in called Spot. Spot is a retail shop filled with some of the funkiest, coolest pieces of wearable art you ever did see. Jennie (pronounced Yennie) is a Swede who has worked everywhere in Sister Bay and decided to open her own shop last year. As far as we see, it's been a roaring success. We Chandler girls cannot seem to spend less than two hours per stop in the narrow, colorful Spot.

Mama, with her adopted daughter Jennie in our favorite Spot

The weather was cold and drizzly during Matt's and my two days in the Door, so shopping and eating seemed the best ways to spend our days. Matt and I did a couples workout with my mom and dad at the local YMCA fueled by donuts and Swedish pancakes. Our engines were sputtering, but we made it through our sweat session uninjured.

Eerie & spectacular moonrise over the lake

Vacation mode is real and we were fully shifted into it while in Wisconsin. We had ice cream at the legendary Ice Cream Factory our first two nights, then had that creamy manna called gelato on day three.

100 percent relaxed with mi amor.

We drove back to Chicago after logging some edifying hours of conversation with ma and pa and collecting some not-so-edifying calories at our various eateries. That night we hung out downtown with some of MG's college buddies and proceeded to get 2 a.m. "slices" of Bucci's pizza. Slices is in quotations because these slices equate to an entire small pizza from Pizza Hut. I, of course, like one of the dudes, ate the whole thing and regretted it when we got up at 8 the next morning.

As soon as we rolled out of bed, we had our game faces on. Today was the day Andy would pop the big question. We were part of the lure to get Harriet to arrive at the Lincoln Park Conservatory at 9:15 a.m. on a Sunday morning. My job was to text her and beg her to give me, my brother and sis-in-law a tour because she used to work there. The Conservatory is a massive greenhouse filled with lush vegetation...flowers, ferns, orchids. Andy sat on a bench around a bend in the curving indoor trail and awaited his girlfriend. Harriet had no clue her man was even in Chicago, so his presence was going to be a shock for her. The ring popping out of his pocket might send her into cardiac arrest. We, the family, waited for news at a closeby Dunkin Donuts. As soon as my mother-in-law read the text: She said yes! We all squealed and jumped to our feet in Dunkin Donuts simultaneously, then hurriedly paraded to meet the newly engaged pair.

The venue.

Pensive prior to proposal. Not really, Andy was cool as David Blaine's voice.

The beautiful aftermath.

The day was ideal. We could tell Andy and Harriet were overflowing with joy and their genuine, steadfast smiles put us all in the clouds with them. These two are "incandescently" happy to steal a Jane Austen adjective. I love their love and think they were undoubtedly created for one another. Cheers to you, Andy and Harriet! Please don't be mad that I shared your story with my readership, which is only slightly larger than that of the Wall Street Journal ;)