Our Home

Everyone has been curious about the house we are trying buy.  Here it is!  Yes, the closing date has fallen through again, and again, and again.  When you try to buy a foreclosure, it takes a long time and is never certain until the papers are signed.  

Les Madeleines

8/20/08

While visiting Utah, we went to Les Madeleines for lunch.  I had heard a lot of good things about the pastry chef here.  I had also been wanting to take Madeline here because she shares the name.

I ordered the Genoa sandwich and the Limeade.  Mmmmm.  The french pastry selection was nice too.  It's my new favorite place, even though I don't live nearby.

 

We stopped at Rockpick Legend Rock Shop so that my tired Maddie could check out the place. She found a few cool rocks to take home.

Dave's Down to Earth Rock Shop

8/20/08

Maddie is my scientific smarty and lover of all things nature.  She really loves rock shops.  In Evanston we found Dave's Down to Earth Rock Shop.  It is a great little place with a nice selection of rocks, fossils, minerals and all manner of cool things.  There is also a small rock museum downstairs.  There is a Math Start book about this shop.  While we were there, Dave signed the book for Madeline.

McDowell Forest Preserve

8/15/08

We have driven past the entrance to the McDowell Forest Preserve every day since we moved into the vacation home in Naperville.  Today, on a whim, we decided to pull in and check it out.  The kids were excited to take a nature hike with me.

Max was singing this song to the ducks:

Five little ducks went out to play,

Over the hills and far away.

Mama Duck said, "Quack! Quack! Quack!

Four little duckies came running back.

It was a nice, peaceful summer day.

School Clothes for the Kids

School Clothes
Originally uploaded by redefinecloud9

A new school year quickly approaches, and I am having fun picking school clothes for Maddie and Max. No uniform this year! Yay!

Fire Zone

8/8/08

What a cool date!

We visited the Fire Zone in Glenview today.  I especially wanted to bring Max here because he looooves firefighters.  He had a blast dressing up and learning how to be a fireman.

Maddie had a great time too. She was really brave and volunteered to help save Timmy, the pretend boy in the smoky room.

The Zoo and a Nap

8/7/08

Today we went to Brookfield Zoo.  Here are the kids chatting with a zoo helper.

Isn't he sweet... when he's asleep?

Venetian Carousel at Fox Valley Mall

8/4/08

We have ridden a lot of different carousels this summer.  Today we went to the Fox Valley Mall in Aurora to ride the beautiful Venetian carousel.  It's double decker!  With Mermaid Horses!  And spinning cars!  Need I say more?

Kaleidoscope Family Day at the Art Institute

8/2/08

We took a trip into the city today. It was the kids and my first ride on the Metra. Maddie and Max were impressed with the double decker train. When we got into town, we took a water taxi down the river. That was pretty fun. We ended up at the Art Institute of Chicago for the Kaleidoscope Family Fun Day. We met the Claus Family there for a day of artsy crafty fun.

                                             

Some people were snapping pictures of Max wearing the coattails because he was hamming it up  conducting and bowing to everyone.  It was pretty funny.  

Naperville Riverwalk

8/1/08

We had an amazing day on the Riverwalk today.  We started out at the Carrillon tower.  We took the stairs all the way to the top and were able to see the bells up close.  The observation area offers a great view of the area.

Next we walked over to Centennial Beach where they offer a sand beach, swimming and fun water play features.

We ended the day at the Paddle Boats. The kids enjoyed the boat and the scenery while I paddled them all around the lake.

Museum of Contemporary Art

7/31/08

Today we met Maddie's BFF Brendan and family for a trip to the Museum of Contemporary Art.

1.  Maddie and Max on the front steps of the MCA. 2.  Maddie and Brendan looking around.  3. Brendan, Max, Maddie pouting and Aiden with a Jeff Koons blue heart hanging in the background. 4. Maddie and Max with an Alexander Calder mobile.

So, taking the kids to a contemporary art museum was probably not the best idea ever.  The collection was too provocative for our little group.  We ended up wandering down Michigan Avenue to play at the Lego store afterwards. All in all, it was a fun adventure down town.

Exploring Elmhurst

On 7/30/08, we spent the day exploring Elmhurst.  Our first stop was the historic York Theatre where they  have a Wednesday Morning Movies Series for kids.  We saw the Pirate's Who Don't Do Anything.

Elmhurst has a very quaint downtown area with a lot of cute shops.

Our next stop was the Lizzadro Museum of Lapidary Art.  The Lizzadro Museum displays gemstone treasures created by ancient craftsmen as well as by contemporary artists. The building itself was designed to resemble a jewel box in a park setting.

I thought my  mom would like to see these bowls.

The museum features many dioramas, each one a small scene populated by gemstone creatures native to that environment. This polar bear diorama was Max's favorite.

Maddie was in heaven here.  She loved the famous Castle Lizzadro.

Of course no visit to a museum is complete without a stop at the gift shop!  

Since the museum is located in Wilder Park, the kids were able to play and swing outside for a while after we finished inside.  

We ended the day at Jim's Hamburger Heaven.  This local favorite is only open for a few months out of the year.  They are famous for their made-in-the-barrel root beer, and their signature burgers which are strangely similar to the McDonalds Big Mac.  We like their angelic hamburger mascot.