Chicago...warning: a few too many pictures

Here is a rundown of Chicago + Kids...something new for us. All of the kids want to go to Chicago with us. For years, we have promised "when you're older" (translation...when we don't need car seats, strollers, or sippy cups, when you learn not to whine, complain or gripe and can walk for blocks and blocks and blocks impervious to the cold).





Six and a half years later, Forrest and Hannah reached the point where they fit most of the criteria..if we held out for all of the criteria, I doubt any of five would ever make the cut.





It was snowing heavily when we landed, which excited the kids to no end. Unfortunately, it hadn't been cold enough, long enough and it melted as soon as it hit the ground.





After checking in, we decided to go see this: http://www.beemovie.com/





The theatre is HUGE and along the halls are really cool murals. Here's the fam...saying cheese...














We ended up canceling our reservations at Fulton's when Mark found out that their had been a cancellation at one of our favorite Chicago restaraunts. Still, this is as close as we came to a turkey:
































We had pasta instead...magnifico pasta. We'll have turkey at Christmas.





Friday morning, we started off by checking out the Lego store. The dinosaur, buildings and camera are made completely out of Legos.

And then, we headed here:


http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/eurptg/index.php





I couldn't believe that photography was allowed inside the museum. You could also walk right up to the paintings...they were not enclosed in glass. Yes, we had to stop Forrest from touching this Monet and Hannah tried to touch a 500 year old bronze statue...hey, nobody's perfect, right?














I have this print hanging in my breakfast room. The original is breathtaking and makes my "reproduction" look, well, like a flea-market knock off. I tried to talk Mark into aquiring the original for my Christmas present. Unfortunately Cezanne originals... are a bit pricey.











After the Art Institute, we walked to Marshall Fields on State (it's actually Macy's now, but it had been Fields since 1907 and there was a public backlash when Macy's bought the store and promptly changed the name. The granite cornerstones of the building are still engraved with their original name, so haha to Macy's...not that I have anything against Macy's. Anyhoo, the windows are decorated with a different them each year. This year the theme is The Nutcraker. Afterwards, we had lunch here:

Hannah refused to order this because she didn't want to say the name. Forrest wanted to order just so he could say the name.

After Lunch, Mark had to head to the convention center to oversee the booth set up. The kids and I headed back to the hotel for a nap. Hannah and I had reservations for dinner here:

http://www.americangirl.com/stores/experience_bistro.php

and tickets to see this:

http://www.americangirl.com/stores/experience_theater.php#holiday

We had planned on dropping her doll off here:

http://www.americangirl.com/stores/experience_salon.php

while we had dinner. Hannah had also been saving up to buy "Jamie" (that's her doll) a new outfit.

Due to a slight unforeseen wardrobe malfunction, Hannah needed a new outfit too. We ended up buying her this:

http://store.americangirl.com/agshop/html/MultiProductPage.jsf/itemId/572/itemType/DISPLAYGROUP/webTemplateId/4/uniqueId/217/saleGroupId/269

And Jamie got the matching outfit. Man, do I hate wardrobe malfunctions (that was for my husband who is suspicious that new girl/doll matching outfits were being plotted months ago...seriously, would I plot...no, don't answer that).

Unfortunately, due to the very real outfit crisis we experienced just before walking out of the hotel room, I forgot my camera. Oh. My. Good. Lord. I cannot believe I did that. Fortunately the very nice people at the store gave me a disposable camera to capture the big night. Love those people. Hopefully, they will turn out, I can save them to a disk and then upload...hopefully.

While we were having our girls night, Mark and Forrest went out for seafood...Forrest's favorite.

Saturday morning, we headed to Lou Mitchell's for breakfast. Here's what Fodor's has to say about Lou's... http://www.fodors.com/world/north%20america/usa/illinois/chicago/entity_134252.html

And then, we went to Union Station. This is where the part of The Untouhables was filmed. Remember the scene where Elliot Ness is at the bottom of the stairs and Al Capone is at the top and the baby carriage goes bouncing down the steps?

Next up was the Field Museum. Oh, how I love the Field Museum. First, we did the audio tour of MAPS. Sorry, no pics inside the exhibit which was very interesting. Instead, here's one from the entrance to the exhibit, and a link to the info on it... http://www.fieldmuseum.org/maps/

In order to go through the next exhibit...http://www.fieldmuseum.org/undergroundadventure/flash/VirtualTour.swf

...we had to go through a shrinking process. Here we are...being shrunk (Hannah and I didn't take very long):



This is one of the things we found Underground:











The kids loved the Egyptian exhibit...







And what would a trip to the Field be without visiting Sue? This is Sue's head:

The rest of sue is on display in the lobby. She is the most complete Tyrannasaurus Rex fossil. You can read more about her and find out why her head is not with the rest of her body, by looking here:

http://www.fieldmuseum.org/sue/index.html

After saying farewell to Sue, we walked to the Adler Planetarium. This is the one museum that Mark and I have never visited.

After the Planetarium, we had dinner at the Bubba Gump Shrimp Factory. Hannah wanted to bring this tag home with her:

Yes, we are still on Saturday...and we have one more stop before bed.

We went up to the SkyDeck on the Hancock Building. It was the tallest building in Chicago until the Sears tower was built. Here's a pic of the night sky...the tallest building in the pic is the Sears tower.

Sunday morning, Mark had to work the show, so the kids and I went to the Shedd Aquarium before our flight.

We all loved the lizards.

Hannah's favorite was the Dolphin show.

My favorite was the Sea Dragons...I tried to add them to my Christmas list too, but was told to erase them along with the Cezanne.

Oh Christmas Tree...

The matchy-matchy tree has been trimmed. Yes, I know the suspense has been killing you. Believe me, it was killing me to have to wait to put it up.





I am happy to report that I am almost over my faux-tree phobia. If I close my eyes and inhale, the bonus room almost smells like pine. Okay, no it doesn't. I'm thinking about buying a pine-scented candle...or hiding a bough from our "big" tree under the bonus room tree skirt to help trick my senses into believing that a faux (doesn't faux sound so much classier than fake) tree is indeed as good as a real tree.




Also, I am proud of the fact that I assembled the tree all by myself. (That just sounds weird... up until now, I thought that God was the only one who assembled trees). After fluffing each branch, after standing back one hundred and ten times to make sure that there were no "holes", after asking Forrest (who is a 13 year old boy and could really care less) if he noticed any holes, or if he thought it was leaning a little to the left, and after making sure that it was secure enough that no one would yell "TIM-berrr" out of fear that they were about to be felled by a faux tree...I was happy.

Here are the pics in all their frou-frou glory:



I love, love, love the black glittery star and the red frou-frou fringe...yum!


The little guy above makes me smile every time I see him. Lovin' the curvy hat.

And there you have it. A snowman themed, matchy-matchy, frou-frou tree.

Now, I am off to bed. We have to be at the airport at early o'clock in the morning. We are headed to Chicago. Forrest and Hannah are making their first trip to Chi-town with us. Unfortunately there was not a turkey to be found in all of the Windy City, so we will be having dinner at Fulton's...a seafood restraunt. I am looking on the bright side and focusing on the fact that while we won't be dining on traditional Thanksgiving fare, we will be eating something other than $4 M&M's and $7 peanuts out of the mini-bar.

Christmas Tree talk...

This morning, Cammie's teacher was running a few minutes late. Another mom and I were waiting with the kids and of course, I initiated small talk. (I can and will talk to anyone...something that baffles my husband. He's more of the "small talk is a waste of breath and energy why would I strike up a conversation with someone I don't know speak to strangers only when necessary" sort).



Where was I? Small talk, yes...so we began talking about Christmas Trees. I said that I was in the market for a fake tree for the bonus room. She said that her family has always put up a fake tree. I have always had a real tree. My mom always bought a real tree (a tiny scraggly real tree, but real nonetheless). Her parents put up a fake one. Hmmm. Interesting.



This led to the compromises we made with our husbands when merging our Christmas traditions.



Mark thought that a fake tree with mismatched ornaments and colored lights were required. (EEEK).



He thought that my "matchy-matchy" ornaments were too frou-frou, the white lights were too boring and that going out in the cold/haggling over the price/tying to the top of the vehicle/wrestling down from the top of the vehicle/sawing off the bottom of the trunk when it was invariably too tall/getting slathered with sap and looking like he'd been in a cat fight due to all of the pine needle scratches... was entirely too much effort to put into a Christmas tree.



So, we compromised. He agreed to a real tree and white lights...I gave into mismatched ornaments. (Honestly, I think I came out with the better end of the deal).



The first year, I had serious difficulty buying ornaments. My OCD driven brain could not comprehend it. I went to the store several times to buy ornaments and left empty handed. Until, a friend of mine (who understood my compulsion for ornaments that "made sense") suggested that each member of our family get a different kind of ornament. Ah ha. A theme for each person, genius. This gave my OCD brain not one theme, but seven. Seriously, could it get any better?



Mark has Santa ornaments, I have Nutcrackers, Forrest gets Gingerbread people, Hannah has Angel ornaments, Sophie has Snowmen, Chloe gets the Reindeer and Cammie, Bears.



We have co-existed in Christmas Tree merriment ever since. Mostly. Although I have conquered my ornament-buying-block, I still get googly eyed over the sumptuous matchy-matchy trees at 'Tis The Season, and I still feel a sense of calm when wandering through the themed ornament sections of Target.



This year, my ever indulgent husband agreed to let me put up a second tree in the bonus room. A MATCHY-MATCHY tree. Yes, I know, he is too good to me.



I have poured over magazines, catalogues and websites, looking for inspiration. I don't think that there is a Christmas tree aisle within a 20 mile radius that I haven't walked down. Finally I fell in love with a collection at Target. Chocolate, bronze, burnished gold = elegant. Sigh. I bought a tub of each color and the copper sprays to match.



All of the ornaments that I bought were solid. Hmmm. Need some pattern, some texture. A trip to Hobby Lobby should solve the problem.



Many an ornament was placed into the buggy. I spent 20 minutes digging through bins of "spray picks" to find the 15 needed to tuck into the branches. After 2 and a half hours of amassing the "perfect" ornaments, sprays and tree topper, my cart was full. And then, I put it all back. Yes, I did. Because, I just wasn't "feeling" it.



You see, the tree is going in our bonus room. Which, don't get me wrong, is a nice bonus room. But, trying to pull off a tree of the type I was envisioning would be a bit like putting on a ballgown and then dining at Shoney's. I mean, it's not the formal living room after all... it's the room where the kids play XBox and restaurant, where puzzles are assembled and the girls take turns being "the teacher".



Feeling a bit let down, berating myself for all of the time I had wasted, thinking about how this whole OCD thing can be a pain in the you know what, an inch from deciding that this second tree was not such a great idea, heading towards the checkout with my two nutcrackers and three gingerbread people, I found it. The PERFECT theme for the bonus room tree. I refilled my cart... in 15 minutes. Isn't it amazing what happens when genuine inspiration hits.


I am so excited to get this tree UP!



Oh, what is theme you ask? Well, you'll have to wait until it's up.

Confessions of a non-culinary sort...

I have come to realize something about myself. Something I have been in denial about for quite awhile. A thing that I have tried to convince myself could and should be changed... I do not like to cook.

I don't like the prep work, I don't like the clean up. I don't like trying new culinary trends, and I don't like wondering whether or not my "delish" dish is going to be as "delish" as Rachel Ray (who means well, I'm sure) promises.

Now, I am ready to admit, that it's not worth it to me to try out things that may or may not taste as good as I hope. That my family may or may not eat.

It's okay for me to admit that I am fresh out of ideas when it comes to creating a healthy meal in the limited amount of time I have before karate, church or scouts in the evening.

Don't get me wrong, sometimes cooking is pleasurable. I actually enjoy laboring over lasagna...and I do find pleasure in mixing up a hearty pot of chili (maybe that's because those are two things that I have actually mastered). Unfortunately, man cannot live by chili and lasagna alone.

Luckily for me, I am now saved from the anguish and frustration that I have been tormenting myself with. No more guilt over entirely too many dinners out. No more wondering what all of the preservatives we have been inhaling are going to do to our bodies. No more sacrificing half of the food pyramid in favor of speed and ease. Most of all, no more beating myself up over not being enough like Rachel, Paula, Martha or Sandra.

I have found something to soothe not only my poor spatula beaten ego, but also my nutritional guilt. I have found: http://www.supperthymeusa.com/index.jsp

(Cue the choir of heavenly voices singing "hallelujah, hallelujah, hal-le-lu-jahhhh").

The lovely people at SupperThyme will prepare my entrees for me. Family friendly fare made with fresh ingredients, in a variety of tastes and all I have to do is call in my choices, swing by and pick them up, thaw, heat, and serve. Oh yes, now we're cookin'.

The last few weeks have been a bit of a blur... Isn't it funny how we are constantly looking to some milestone that marks when "things will slow down", only to pass the marker at 100mph and tell ourselves that surely, things will quiet down after the next marker?

I just knew that life would slow down when school started back, after we got through September, after the Fall festivities on October...and now, I am resigned to the fact that it will be January before I can savor a taste of boredom.

So, what has been keeping us so busy you ask (or maybe you don't)?

After the dual Pumpkin Patch visits and the Social Security office fun, there was the tour of JP2. We are almost through the application process, we have toured the building, met the headmaster (umm...glorified term for principal, but it does have a nice ring to it, no?), researched electives and began the rough draft of the required "Why I Want To Go To JP2" essay. Forrest tests on the 17th. Wish him and us luck (I've threatened to homeschool him if he doesn't get in...not sure who is more traumatized by that thought...him or me).

Mark and I went on a staff retreat with the leadership of our church. Wow. It was AMAZING. The seminars that were presented, the teaching by Bro. Black from Memphis, planning for next year, updates on the progress of our building program and hearing the vision of our church set forth, all led up to the revealing of our "theme" for next year...Living Beyond Yourself.

One of the cool things that happened was a secret contest. Everyone was given a badge on a lanyard to wear at the beginning of retreat. Four women had stars that they would place on the badges seemingly at random. Mark and I had a bit of a friendly competion going to see which of us would get the most stars. Right before we were dismissed, the ladies revealed what the starts were for...they gave you one when they "caught" you living beyond yourself by being, kind, selfless or thoughtful. The winner received a $50.00 gift card to Outback. Mark came in 3rd, I came in 2nd and a truly deserving guy came in 1st.

Next came Autumn Adventure at church. I headed up the decorating comittee. Lots of work...lots of fun. The theme this year was "At The Circus". Mark, Chloe and I dressed up like clowns, Cammie was our leopard and Forrest decorated a trunk with two of his friends. It was a blast. The best part...seeing my 6'4 husband in an inflatable clown costume. Can you say hillarious?

Forrest and his friends did an awesome job on their trunk. They went with a "Revenge of the Nerds" theme. They were so incredibly funny. People would stand in front of their trunk for 10 or 15 minutes just watching them interact with everyone. I wish I would have taped them. Everytime someone would touch them, they would wash their hands with hand-sanitizer, one of them would get so excited, he'd have to use his inhaler...too funny.

The biggest news...

Chloe, turned six. Unbelievable. Impossible. Unreal. I can't believe that my little Ladybug is big enough to earn her gold belt, to be a Brownie, to have a report card (all E's, shameless bragging, I know), to read, to have sight words, to have a life outside of me, to grow up and begin to pull away. I'm so proud of the big girl she is, but so sad to have lost the little girl she has been for so long. Sigh. Sniff.

She did say however, that she will not "get bigger than 7, and won't ever get married and leave our house". When I asked "You don't want a husband or a baby one day", she replied "Well, I could grow up, get married, have a baby and we could all live here with you and daddy". Um...no.

Since it was her birthday, she got bring home Harry the bear. Harry gets to spend the weekend with a different classmate each week. Chloe loved having Harry at her party (even though he was scared by all of the excitement and hid under the present table) and Harry loved hanging out with her. Other than finding him with an open bag of marshamallows and a guilty look on his snout, he was a good bear.

And all of that (plus other non-noteworthy things) my friends, is why I have neglected the blog for almost three weeks.