Hello from Illinois!

Well, here I am in southern Illinois, Vandalia, to be exact. My cousin Carl is getting married on Friday, and my parents, brother and I have come down to join the revelry. My dad grew up in this area (St. Elmo - ish) and several of his ten brothers and sisters still live around here. Of the siblings who live in different areas, those who are able have come or are coming for the wedding, so it's also a bit of a family reunion. I'm so happy to see my family again, as it's been ten years since I've been down, and I get to meet some cousins I've never met before. It's good times!

We started the trip yesterday with a flight out of Seattle around noon. Switched planes in Salt Lake City (they had snow - a record for them this late in the season) and arrived in St. Louis at around 10pm local time. Our luggage arrived at the same place, which was fantastic. :) We had some pretty funky turbulence, reminiscent of a roller coaster. So naturally I threw my hands in the air and went "Weeeee!" Another neat thing about our flight was the thunderclouds we got to watch lightning dance in on our approach to St. Louis. Pretty nifty. After getting the rental car and driving out to the Days Inn in Vandalia, we went to sleep to the rumbling sound of thunder.

Today, we drove through the town of Vandalia before heading over to Aunt Linda and Uncle Steve's house in Brownstown. It's so great to see them and I'm looking forward to spending more time with them this week. Their sons Carl and Dave came by and we got to meet Carl's wife-to-be Brandy, as well as her little nephew. Carl and Dave went to pick up their sister Kandi and her family from the airport and we left so they could have some family time. Kandi lives in Japan, where she is a quasi-famous singer. Her husband is Japanese and her kids barely speak English, so it will be fun when we get to meet them tomorrow! We went to dinner and then to Walmart. Everything is so cheap in American Walmart! I spent fifty bucks and got a watch, two shirts, two pairs of shorts, Spanx, and a pair of earrings. Very exciting, I know.

Some random Illinois facts:
Illinois has the second-highest state deficit at $12 billion, next to California.
Vandalia is the original Illinois state capitol; Abe Lincoln served here.
Vandalia has a nuclear fallout shelter in the sherriff's building.
St. Elmo has nothing to do with St. Elmo's fire.
Abraham Lincoln is buried in Springfield (which is not next to Shelbyville, you Simpson's fans).

That's all for tonight.