Fake Thanksgiving/Chicago

The Pascoal Family has been hopping this past week with activity! We hosted our Fake Thanksgiving feast here at the house on Wednesday. There was quite a turn-out! We had the whole Thanksgiving spread - Turkey, Potatoes, Stuffing, Sweet Potatoes, Veggies, Pies...the whole nine yards! The only thing missing was the Portuguese touch of Shay. But we figured we already had that covered with our Fake Thanksgiving in Arkansas. So we let it slide. But we more than made up for it in pie! Banana Cream, Double Cream Blueberry, Razzleberry, Chocolate, and best of all - Vito's Pumpkin Cheesecake! Yum!



The house was full with friends and family alike. Maria's family was there in spirit - we got to talk to them over the phone. It was Maria's mom's birthday that day. Happy Birthday, Mom! We also celebrated Angela's birthday on the 4th. So happy birthday to you too, Angela. :-)

Happy Fake Thanksgiving!

Cousin Playtime

Maria left on Friday for a conference in Chicago for Recovery International (RI). RI is a self-help mental health organization that offers cognative techiques for managing anxiety, temper and fears. Maria has been practicing the RI method for close to 3 years now. She began attending group meetings after experiencing panic attacks and anxiety a few years back. She is now an assistant leader at her meeting and on the Area Leadership Team, helping others to spread the tools and techniques and offering support.

The conference was very rewarding. It was held in a hotel near Chicago O'Hare. She was gone for two nights. But since the conference ended early on Sunday, she had time to take in a couple of Chicago sights before departing.

After the conference closed, Maria took the "L" Train to downtown Chicago, where she had authentic Deep Dish Pizza at Giordano's, then saw Wicked the Musical.

Chicago is a HUGE city. Riding the train from the hotel to downtown took an hour. And that was only taking HALF the distance of ONE of the subway lines. It's really amazing just how big it is there. It snowed a little bit too, so that also added a little excitement. It was really quite pleasant because there wasn't much walking involved, and Maria was all bundled up. Plus since it was Sunday, downtown wasn't terribly crowded. Also, a large portion of the population seemed to be too busy watching the Bears game to crowd up the streets. :-)

Wicked was so great. It was quite different than the novel, but still equally enjoyable. Glinda was a crack-up, and the show was much more family-friendly than the book. You'll never watch Wizard of Oz the same again.

Maria @ Wicked

Maria eating authentic Chicago Deep Dish Stuffed Pizza:

a local said that people come from other states to buy these pizzas, freeze them and take them home with them!