Homeward bound

Here we are, back in Chicago. The weather seems a little cooler; not so humid. We are all in the Main Hall, which is 4 or 5 stories high with marble floors and long walnut benches, like church pews on steroids. The fearsome four are playing another game of Egyptian Rat Killer, as are the high schoolers. We took over one end of the lounge car from DC to CHI yesterday and played cards and Bananagrams all afternoon and into the night. The little girls collected some new friends as other travelling kids migrated to where they were and joined in the card games. I stuck it out until 1230 am, then called it quits and headed for my seat. We hit Chicago just after 8 am CST and we are here until 3 pm when we board our last train for Newton. We have had a wonderful time. Overall, everybody has gotten along good. I have received compliments on the kids' behavior. None of our group was with the 9 who got stuck in an elevator at the hotel for a half hour. (They had to call the fire department). We mostly stayed awake during the final 3 hour session when the awards were handed out, and those who didn't will have their picture loaded on this blog after we get home. We learned that we never want to sit near New Horizons Middle School from Florida, because they SCREAM every time one of their members was called up on stage. We learned about how to avoid panhandlers, to always cross with the "walking man," and that M and H mean Marriot and Hilton, not middle school and high school. We learned your roommates appreciate you more when you bathe everyday, and Fabreeze is your friend when they don't. If we had worn pedometers, they would have maxed out after the third day, but the weather cooled down to the 80's, so we didn't mind the mileage as much. Thanks for the pleasure of your children, young men and women. It's been grea!

Dear Readers:
Sorry it has been so long since I added to this blog. Two reasons: first, we have been busy, busy, busy; second, the free wi fi here at the hotel is actually slower than my dial up at home!!!!! It took me nearly 30 minutes just to get logged in to do this entry. We are going to have to wait until we get back to upload the pictures.
Went to an Orioles ball game tonight. The weather was awesome! Around 70, light breeze, clear skies, and the Orioles won! 9 to 6 over the Oakland A's. Several home runs, high balls into the outfield caught on the run, strike outs; it was great. I enjoyed watching Ryley and Kelci, who both had a blast. I thought Kelci was going to get up and start doing cheers.
The stadium was amazing to see. All around us were TSA delegates and advisors. 2000 kids and adults from all over the US in their orange Leadership Academy tshirts, cheering for the Orioles. A big group hiked over to an empty area of the stands and spread out to make a giant orange T S A in the seats. We all started chanting "TSA, TSA, TSA." Like I said, it was amazing!
Tomorrow is our last day of competition. Of my middle schoolers, Kelci, Grayson and Ryley have two events, and Taylor is in semi-finals for photography. Some of their events don't have semis, so we won't know until Friday is they placed or not. Grayson and Ryley did bridges today, Techno Talk (Grayson and Kelci) tomorrow, and Grayson and Ryley in Problem Solving. Genny and Seth are in the running for top 10 in Medical Technology and had their interview today. Jason had some amazing flights with his glider and we hope to see him on stage Friday as well. Michael's CO2 car was in the top 16 and was run in the finals races today. Jaci, Madison, and Emily competed but did not make semi-finals. They still have racked up some good experience points though.
I am really proud of all the Middle School delegation. They have gotten along (minor squabbles only) and been helpful to me and each other. They have represented themselves, their school, and TSA in a very positive manner. Tomorrow night we pack up all our stuff, check under the beds for lost socks and get ready to hit the dusty trail as soon as awards are over. We check out Friday morning and catch the light rail about 11:30 am to catch the train for DC. I'm guessing it will be pretty quiet on the train the first few hours. It has been a great time, but home, your own bed, your own space and home cooking will be a welcome respite.

Travel Pix

Seth and Grayson waiting for the light rail in Baltimore.

Newton train station. Our train was an hour late arriving. Pictured are 3 of the fearless foursome.

Picture of the girls on the wooden bench is in the main hall at the Chicago train station.

Sorry this is taking a while. The WiFi is kinda slow here at the hotel.

Travel Images

Katlyne and Bruce waiting at the Newton train station.

WE ARE HERE!!!!! We are in our hotel and getting our stuff organized. Now that we have free internet we are going to get all our pictures loaded tonight. It is nice to sit on something that does not sway back and forth! We are taking power showers and heading downstairs for our first pre-conference powwow. No plans for tonight, but lots of fun stuff going on tomorrow, including the National Aquarium. Our time here is 1 hour later than you, so it is 6:30 pm here now. More later, the shower is mine now!

Good Morning!
We are in Pennsylvania, not sure what city. I woke up to fog in the mountains and a beautiful view of the Ohio River out my window. PA is definitely one of my favorite states for scenery. We just went into a tunnel, so nothing but black out there right now. Most of the kids are still sleeping. Em and Jaci are bright eyed, so we are going to get breakfast. It is 5:30 EST.

3:50 am. Finally on the train. It was an hour late arriving at Newton. This is pretty wild. The train car is two levels and I am on the upper level. Since it was so late(early) the cars are dark and most people were sleeping. I know all the kids are on the train, but I only know where Mark, Mr. and Mrs. B, Bruce and myself are at. Part of us are downstairs and part on the upper level. It's pretty comfortable--good leg room (yay!) Everything is quiet except for the gentle thump of the wheels on the rails and a soft clatter from the connector between the cars. It sways quite a bit up here, so I hope Genny remembered her motion pills. We pass through empty, streetlight lit towns, then back to the country. I'm looking forward to daylight so we can start seeing some of the country. I think we get to Chicago around 3 pm today, change trains, then on to DC and Baltimore. Hope all the kids are catching some Zs. More later. No worries, Moms and Dads.