Back in April we headed to Chicago for a week for family, baseball, and friends. It was a whirlwind trip but we fit quite a few things in and got to show the kids around the city that Nick and I both love.
We flew out on a Saturday, bright and early...which meant that the kids slept in the car on the way to the airport and not at all on the flight. It was a long flight made worse by Calvin being a typical 2-year-old. But he did use the airplane toilet, which was exciting for him, and so we spent a bit of time in there.
We spent the weekend visiting with family and friends. Ellie was very excited to see her friend, Alex the son of close college friends.
On Monday, Nick and I headed downtown (without kids) for Opening Day at Wrigley. We spent the day in Wrigleyville, met up with friends, and then saw a ballgame. It was cold, likely really cold, but we survived and had fun.
Tuesday we took the train back out to the 'burbs to spend time with family. Ellie taught Great-Grandma Kost how to take a selfie and then Ellie and Cal got to show Tristan what life with a sibling is like.
We got a hotel downtown in Lakeview where it was centrally located to things of interest and a donut shop. We decided to spend all day Wednesday at the Museum of Science and Industry. We got there right as it opened. It was a great day. We saw chicks hatch from eggs. The kids stood in a tornado. Calvin got to see big trains. Ellie saw the fairy house. And we all saw a coal mine. They climbed in an airplane engine and made it through a mirror maze. There was some water play and in a pre-school area Calvin was at home. There was so much more that the kids saw and did.
Wednesday night Nick went to a game at Wrigley while the kids and I went to dinner with a college friend and her two sons who were between Ellie and Calvin in age. It was a great dinner. While we were walking home (her to their house and us to our hotel) she and I both yelled "Red Light!" to our older kids as they were running down the sidewalk approaching a street corner. It was a reminder of why we became such fast friends back in college on one of the first days of bandcamp my freshman year. Of course the kids looked at us like there was some mom-conspiracy going on. It was so much fun, but of course we were having too much fun and didn't take any photos.
Thursday was spend down in the loop and at Millennium Park. We got the required pictures at the bean, there was playing at the new Maggie Daly playground (with fantastic views of the skyline).
We also spent time at the Art Institute. Ellie has been studying Van Gogh at school and when she heard that there was a Van Gogh exhibit in Chicago she asked to go. She knew about some of his paintings, including the one with the chair and his bedroom...good thing the exhibit was all about his bedroom. We also saw some other great works of art. Although it was a little boring and tough for the kids (as all art museums can be). At one time I was enjoying the craftsman furniture on exhibit when Ellie, who I thought was enjoying some fine Greene and Greene work, said, "mom, we came to Chicago to see chairs which are from Pasadena?". Well, yeah, actually we did. At least she was reading the placards. She did really seem to enjoy the miniature rooms and we both really liked the paperweight display.
And of course after the Art Institute the kids needed time to run around and make noise. We also walked to Navy Pier so the kids got to spend some time on Michigan Ave.
I had read earlier that the Chicago Children's Museum was free on Thursday evenings and so while Nick, again, headed to a baseball game the kids and I spent the evening at Navy Pier for deep dish and then time at the museum. The kids, up way past their bedtime, had fun exploring all sorts of stuff at the museum. There was pretend play, water play, dinosaurs, and Ellie even spent time with a hammer.
Friday we went to the Lincoln Park Zoo. Nick and Ellie spent some time with me and Calvin before they headed off to a day game at Wrigley.
Cal and I got to spend time with my good friend and her son. Again, we talked and had so much fun that we forgot to take photos (of course, most of the time the boys were napping and we walked along the lake).
Later that afternoon, Calvin and I headed down to the loop...on a bus. He was so excited. Given that he loves trains and buses so much (he is a 2-year-old boy). The fact that he could almost always see a train or a bus when we were in Chicago made him so happy...and then that he could ride on them...now that was the best. I'm just proud that I dug deep down and found my urban-mom skills and navigated the Chicago buses to get downtown with a stroller and a toddler. Of course, we were going downtown to visit some of my co-workers in the Chicago office. Calvin immediately made friends with people who let him borrow their hardhat, played catch, and even found some scrap bubble wrap for him to play with. Then we took the train back up to Lakeview to meet Ellie and Nick for dinner.
Ellie and Nick had a great time at the game...although they lost. But Ellie had a blast eating cotton candy and all the other ballpark junk food her dad would let her eat.
Saturday, Cindy, Mike and Tristan came into the city. Mike and Nick went to a game and Cindy and I took the kids to the zoo. We met them down at Union Station and we all rode the bus back up (using my new knowledge about the buses) to the zoo. Of course, there was plenty of me taking pictures of kids in front of tall buildings. Its actually really hard to get a picture of a kid standing in front of one of the world's tallest buildings.
At the zoo the cousins had a blast with each other. It was some real bonding and quality time for the kids. Ellie also got to introduce Tristan to Yogurtland.
Later on Saturday I had to head up to Milwaukee for a work conference which started on Sunday. Nick had the kids to himself that evening in the hotel. And then he got to fly home with them. Grandma Pam was able to coordinate her travel plans to share a flight back to LA with Nick and the kids. Apparently the flight home was smoother than the flight out, and Ellie got to watch Jurassic Park.
It was an amazing trip. The kids had so much fun and are still talking about it. Calvin remembered the tornado from the Museum of Science and Industry and was talking about it last week. Of course, every now and then he will blurt out, "All done Chicago...". Yes, all done with Chicago for now.
