The final installment of our Costly Commute series follow Erica Urteaga of Bolingbrook, a busy 33-year-old mom who totes her four children around to various activities on the weekends, then visits family and friends in Chicago on the weekends. The cost of gas is something always on Urteaga's mind, so she relies on advance planning and car smarts to keep a tight budget.

Our complete series of stories and multimedia on the "Costly Commute," a multi-part series about the effects of rising gas prices on suburban residents.

The U.S. Department of Energy provides the following tips and suggestions for drivers so they can get as far as possible per gallon of gas.

Although the primary protest against NATO occurred early Sunday afternoon and evening, traffic restrictions will still be in effect Monday.

When Patricia Withers left home Sunday morning, she also left her dependent 29-year-old autistic son behind with her husband, who had to fly back from his home in England. "Just in the event I get arrested," Withers said, "someone has to be here for him."

Adler Planeterium, the Art Institute of Chicago and the Shedd Aquarium are some of the many museums closing their doors for the NATO summit.

Although NATO has dampened many people's plans, children at Montrose Harbor flew kites without fear during the somewhat controversial weekend.

The Riverside Arts Weekend — also known as RAW — will return this weekend for its fifth year of showcasing local artists, musicians, designers and architects. RAW will run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday in downtown Riverside in front of the train station, on Bloomingbank Road and in Guthrie Park.

When Jacqueline Vasan bakes, she tries to use all-organic, locally grown ingredients in her products — but not because that’s the trend right now. The Western Springs resident is owner of Bread from the Heart, a small company incorporated just two years ago that sells various types of breads, flour and other baked treats.

Dave Hubinek spent several years driving a truck for FedEx, worked as a driver for contractors for two years and owned five trucks of his own for eight. But the difficult schedule left the 33-year-old Carol Stream resident wanting to spend more time with his family, so he sold his routes. His “entrepreneurial spirit” led him to start a taxi service, he said, which he currently still owns — but it didn’t turn out as well as he expected.

As of April 1, Illinois ranked as the fifth-highest state in the country for gasoline motor fuel taxes. A spokeswoman with the Illinois Policy Institute said customers are taking the hit from these taxes when they pay at the pump, and that business owners are not — the same way if you were purchasing clothing and a tax on the clothing increased, the customer’s bill would reflect that and it would come out of their pocket.

On Aug. 20, Hinsdale’s Nurturing Wisdom Academy will open its inaugural doors to 36 fifth- through eighth-grade students at Zion Lutheran Church. The year-round school will feature exceptionally small class sizes, curriculum customized to student needs, time-independent projects and, one unique catch — no homework.

When gas prices are high, pizza delivery driver Morrtelouis Carson has to do a quick bit of pizza algebra with every trip across town. Each $1 delivery fee goes almost entirely toward gas. He usually puts $20 worth into his 1999 Chevy Malibu’s tank at the beginning of the night — so he hopes to make about 20 trips during his six-hour shift. With gas regularly priced at more than $4 a gallon, it's become even more important to take as many deliveries, per trip, as possible.

As part of our Costly Commute series, we debunk the cheapest time to buy gas and explain the difference between E-85 and regular fuel.

With gas prices at well more than $4 a gallon recently, Robert Cabeen of Geneva has no regrets about buying his Volt last year — and being able to bypass the pump almost every time he drives. He’s among a growing population that thinks electric vehicles will soon become more common as prices drop and more charging stations are installed.

For more than a decade, 88-year-old Florence Schubert has been using Pace’s Dial-a-Ride service through Downers Grove Township. Because of her limited, Social Security-based income, Schubert only rides once a week to pick up groceries at $10 a trip.

With gas prices at more than $4 per gallon, some commuters may opt to utilize public transportation to avoid the large hit to their pocketbooks to fill their vehicles’ tanks.

Students who travel abroad to learn a language are usually college-aged, or at least in their last years of high school. But a handful of eighth-graders and recent graduates of Park Junior High broke that norm at the end of March by taking a trip to Paris to sharpen their French skills.

Names for Ogden Avenue — a road that was once the main connection between the heart of Chicago and the western suburbs — came and went over the years.

Caffe Palermo looks like it could be straight out of Ogden Avenue's hay day in the mid-20th century. A weathered front door opens to reveal aged wooden floors, an antique tin ceiling and posters of singers and movie stars from the 1940s through ‘60s.