Chicago: Family Style

2 Parents

2 Kids

2 Nights in downtown Chicago

On Monday, we packed up our car and headed to Chicago to spend a few days before driving to Omaha for the summer for John's internship.

We didn't arrive in Chicago until about 6pm on Monday, so we didn't do too much besides check in to our hotel, and go out to eat at The Grand Lux Cafe. Which is actually a big deal, because the food there is DELICIOUS! (Think Cheesecake Factory but better...I would HIGHLY recommend the Beignets!)

On Tuesday, we walked to the Lincoln Park Zoo (which is free btw), where we spent the morning looking at animals, riding the train and carousel, climbing, and otherwise enjoying the beautiful weather.

Makenna really wanted to hold the baby gorilla, but for some reason couldn't get it out of it's mom's arms.

They had this great indoor climbing area that Makenna loved. She spent a good 45 mins. climbing in this thing.
The carousel
A view of downtown Chicago from Lincoln Park.
After a stop at our hotel where we all took naps, we walked down to the Children's Museum at Navy Pier (we did A LOT of walking). We got in free because of our membership to the Children's museum in Bloomington, so that was a plus. Makenna and Hudson both had so much fun at the Museum. There were tons of different, fun areas to explore.

Here are a few pictures:


The museum had these great areas for non-walkers that Hudson just loved. Here he is trying to kiss himself in the mirror. He did this for about 15 minutes...it was pretty funny to watch.
We actually had a really great time in Chicago. There is so much to do there, and a lot of it is very family-friendly. On Wednesday we headed up to 6 Flags for the day(...post to come).

Swagger Wagon

I saw this video on a friend's blog and thought it was hilarious. I've been kinda anti-van, but this video makes me think maybe it wouldn't be so bad.

Check it out here:

The Swagger Wagon

Turkey Run State Park

Rain, Potty Accidents, and Bugs

Those are just a few of the things that I thought might await me when we went camping on Friday night. However, I was really excited about the chance to go with some friends, and figured that since it was just for one night, it would be okay.

Well, I am happy to report that it was more than okay, it was a blast! None of the things that I worried about were even a little bit of a problem. It didn't rain at all while we were there (even though it had been raining all week). There were no mosquitoes to be found, and Makenna did not have a single potty accident. We enjoyed a beautiful day of hiking, playing with friends, roasting hot dogs and marshmallows, and telling lots of fun stories around the fire.

Setting up our little tent that barely fit the 4 of us.

Hudson hung out in the back of the car while we worked.

All of the kids getting ready for our hike.

Our hike through the State Park was absolutely beautiful. The majority of it was in water that ran through limestone canyons.

After our hike, we played by the side of the river throwing rocks, and playing in the sand

We were all pretty wiped out by the end of our hike, and actually didn't sleep too bad in our tent. Although at one point during the middle of the night, I thought I heard a raccoon scratching at the outside of our tent. It took me a few minutes to realize that it was Hudson, who having woken up without a peep, was just trying to grab the side of the tent!

Half a Year

Hudson was 6 months on Mother's Day, and although I don't have long to post tonight (...getting ready for a fun adventure tomorrow), I just wanted to post a couple of pictures of this sweet baby boy. He is such a happy, easy-going baby, and we are so lucky and blessed to have him in our family.

These next two pictures were taken tonight. After Hudson's bath, I sat him on the couch next to John and started picking up the house a little bit. One minute Hudson was happily playing with the lotion bottle, and then the next minute he was out.

John's Brand

Can you tell what ConAgra Foods brand John will be working on for his summer internship?

(I've never seen John SO excited to go grocery shopping.)

Success (so far)!!

Today was Makenna's first day of potty training, and she did SO awesome. She went all day without a diaper (with the exception of her nap) and did not have a single accident! I brought her little potty downstairs to the dining room, and she went by herself on her potty all day long. We even went outside and played, and she would come inside to go potty. Why didn't I do this sooner?

If you look closely, you will see 16 stickers on Makenna's Potty Chart. (The Mickey Mouse is a big sticker that was well earned).

Sibling Talk

When talking about Hudson, Makenna usually refers to him as "Baby Hudson", and says things such as:

“Baby Hudson smiled at me!”

“Baby Hudson likes me!”

“Mom, Baby Hudson my friend!”

"Mom, Baby Hudson crying."

“Mommy, I hold Baby Hudson no fall off” (When she wants to hold him)

However, when she talks to him, she usually calls him "Boy" (I guess she picked it up from me saying things like "Hudson, you're such a good boy.") and she usually repeats everyhing at least twice.

Here are some of the things she says to her "Boy":

“No cry Boy, no cry”
“Good boy baby, good boy”
“I got you Boy, I got you Boy” (while holding him)
When trying to calm a fussy Hudson she first asks,

"What's that matter Boy, what's the matter?"

and then in her most sympathetic voice,

“I right here baby Hudson, I right here” or “I know Boy, I know”

and my favorite

“I love you Boy”