Sunday, December 26, 2010
Ugh
Our flight to Boston was cancelled today, and only three of us - Mom will have to return to work - will fly out later in the week instead. Booooooo!
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Merry Christmas everyone!
Was yours a white one, like ours? We had fresh snow on the ground this morning, and we even went sledding in the afternoon. Do you think the kids had fun today or what?
Santa was good to them, from flashlights ("get that out of my face!") ...
... to Toy Story and Disney princesses.
Mom and Dad were good to each other, be it a Michael Kors "MK" scarf...
... or Northwestern basketball tickets.
Kids were good to us, too. Here's a piece Lincoln made in his art class and wanted to give to Mom.
And there was a reminder of a great achievement from the past year - one that some of you were able to witness, we're happy to say.
And for those of you who we won't be seeing, thanks for everything and merry Christmas from us all!
Santa was good to them, from flashlights ("get that out of my face!") ... 
... to Toy Story and Disney princesses. 
Mom and Dad were good to each other, be it a Michael Kors "MK" scarf...
... or Northwestern basketball tickets.
Kids were good to us, too. Here's a piece Lincoln made in his art class and wanted to give to Mom.
And there was a reminder of a great achievement from the past year - one that some of you were able to witness, we're happy to say. And for those of you who we won't be seeing, thanks for everything and merry Christmas from us all!
Friday, December 24, 2010
Yes, Levynn, there is a Santa
Levynn made Dad nervous this morning when she declared, shortly before we made our annual Christmas season pilgrimage to the Hancock Observatory, that (gasp!) we were not going to see the real Santa. She wouldn't even allow that he is an authorized representative or legitimate in any way, shape or form!
But how we forget. This is not a man to doubt.
When Santa appeared ho-ho-ho-ing, ringing sleigh bells and warmly welcoming each child in wait, Levynn turned to us and said, "He is the real Santa!"
Now that's the spirit!
Real or not, he is the very same Santa we've seen there each of the four Christmas seasons we've lived in Chicago. So he's as real as it gets!
And he sure likes to chat.
Per tradition, we also took photos outside the building and in front of the holiday train set and ate lunch at the Cheesecake Factory on the premises.
We didn't blog about the first year's visit, in 2007, but here are quick links to 2008 and 2009 if you want to compare.
And you will notice that he is, indeed, the very same (and very real?) Santa Claus.
But how we forget. This is not a man to doubt.
When Santa appeared ho-ho-ho-ing, ringing sleigh bells and warmly welcoming each child in wait, Levynn turned to us and said, "He is the real Santa!"
Now that's the spirit!
Real or not, he is the very same Santa we've seen there each of the four Christmas seasons we've lived in Chicago. So he's as real as it gets!
And he sure likes to chat.
Per tradition, we also took photos outside the building and in front of the holiday train set and ate lunch at the Cheesecake Factory on the premises.
We didn't blog about the first year's visit, in 2007, but here are quick links to 2008 and 2009 if you want to compare. And you will notice that he is, indeed, the very same (and very real?) Santa Claus.
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Make new friends
But keep the old!
And Levynn says this old friend is gold.
One of her kindergarten classmates became the closest friend she has had in her six years, but we hadn't been in contact with her or her family since the summer. Then, out of the blue, her mom e-mailed Mom asking about a playdate last Friday - exactly one week after giving birth to her third child, not to mention in the middle of holiday hectic-ness. And she wanted Levynn to go to their house. What timing!
But if it was OK with her, it was OK with us!
So today was the day. And when they came to get Levynn this morning, the girls ran to each other, hugged, held it, and didn't say a word. It was the sweetest thing to see. Then, when they came back here, Levynn's friend had a goody bag for "Lingkin."
Best of all, they had a great time together.
And Levynn says this old friend is gold.
One of her kindergarten classmates became the closest friend she has had in her six years, but we hadn't been in contact with her or her family since the summer. Then, out of the blue, her mom e-mailed Mom asking about a playdate last Friday - exactly one week after giving birth to her third child, not to mention in the middle of holiday hectic-ness. And she wanted Levynn to go to their house. What timing!
But if it was OK with her, it was OK with us!
So today was the day. And when they came to get Levynn this morning, the girls ran to each other, hugged, held it, and didn't say a word. It was the sweetest thing to see. Then, when they came back here, Levynn's friend had a goody bag for "Lingkin."
Best of all, they had a great time together.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
This week - so far
But, much to the kids' chagrin, there's more of the week to go! We're trying to stay busy to make it easier.
We went to Lincoln Park Conservatory on Monday to see the holiday flowers and trains, and we took a detour through a short part of the abutting Lincoln Park Zoo on the way back to the bus stop.
Dad and the kids played in the snow (a little new, mostly old) for a while this afternoon and had a great snowball fight.
Here's Levynn hiding from Dad's wrath.
We went to Lincoln Park Conservatory on Monday to see the holiday flowers and trains, and we took a detour through a short part of the abutting Lincoln Park Zoo on the way back to the bus stop.
Dad and the kids played in the snow (a little new, mostly old) for a while this afternoon and had a great snowball fight.
Here's Levynn hiding from Dad's wrath.Saturday, December 18, 2010
School vacation begins!
Levynn had a half day yesterday to get it started, and after school we all went to Navy Pier to spend the afternoon at its Winter WonderFest, our third time there in our four Christmas seasons in Chicago.
The kids had a blast together. As you can see from this similar Jan. 1, 2009, shot, Lincoln was a lot smaller the last time we went.
And it just so happened that we ran into one of Mom's friends from work. She was there with her daughter, who's between the ages of our kids and is friendly with them, and relatives. So Levynn and Lincoln had fun with them, too, like on this train.
Today we stayed home, with the exception of Mom's early trip to Target for baking supplies. What did we do? Well, what do you think we did? Mom just loves to bake at this time of year!
The kids had a blast together. As you can see from this similar Jan. 1, 2009, shot, Lincoln was a lot smaller the last time we went.And it just so happened that we ran into one of Mom's friends from work. She was there with her daughter, who's between the ages of our kids and is friendly with them, and relatives. So Levynn and Lincoln had fun with them, too, like on this train.
Today we stayed home, with the exception of Mom's early trip to Target for baking supplies. What did we do? Well, what do you think we did? Mom just loves to bake at this time of year!
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Another busy weekend
Saturday, it rained.
Sunday, it snowed.
Both days, it was miserably cold and windy.
So what did we do? We went out!
Dad and the kids ventured back to the Chicago Cultural Center on Saturday afternoon for a Cricket Magazine make-your-own-magazine event. That make-your-own part didn't interest the kids much. But the science table - where, among other things, the kids made square(!) bubbles - and the magazine illustrator held their attention.
The illustrator, John Sandford, drew anything the kids wanted - as long as it was a fictional beast consisting of familiar animal features. For Levynn, he drew one with a unicorn's head and tail, a giraffe's neck and legs, and a cat's body. For Lincoln, he drew a cow's head, an ant's body, a giraffe's legs, and a horse's tail. Yikes!
All four of us braved the storm on Sunday, against Mom's better judgement. If you watched any of the Patriots-Bears game at Soldier Field on TV that afternoon, you might have some idea about how bad it was. But you had to be in it to really know. And we got in it!
This is a view of it from inside Adler Planetarium, our destination that morning.
And would you believe Bears fans nonetheless were tailgating hours and hours before the game started? (The stadium is on the "museum campus" with Adler, Field, and Shedd).
Dad had checked out a library pass for Adler and wanted Levynn to see the new children's area, Planet Explorers, that only Lincoln had seen so far.
But, unlike the day Dad and Lincoln had been there, staffers - including an "astronaut" - were walking around the exhibit explaining, demonstrating and even playing along, and these vehicles were there for the kids to drive.
Would it surprise you that the kids didn't want to leave?
Sunday, it snowed.
Both days, it was miserably cold and windy.
So what did we do? We went out!
Dad and the kids ventured back to the Chicago Cultural Center on Saturday afternoon for a Cricket Magazine make-your-own-magazine event. That make-your-own part didn't interest the kids much. But the science table - where, among other things, the kids made square(!) bubbles - and the magazine illustrator held their attention.
The illustrator, John Sandford, drew anything the kids wanted - as long as it was a fictional beast consisting of familiar animal features. For Levynn, he drew one with a unicorn's head and tail, a giraffe's neck and legs, and a cat's body. For Lincoln, he drew a cow's head, an ant's body, a giraffe's legs, and a horse's tail. Yikes!All four of us braved the storm on Sunday, against Mom's better judgement. If you watched any of the Patriots-Bears game at Soldier Field on TV that afternoon, you might have some idea about how bad it was. But you had to be in it to really know. And we got in it!
This is a view of it from inside Adler Planetarium, our destination that morning.
And would you believe Bears fans nonetheless were tailgating hours and hours before the game started? (The stadium is on the "museum campus" with Adler, Field, and Shedd).Dad had checked out a library pass for Adler and wanted Levynn to see the new children's area, Planet Explorers, that only Lincoln had seen so far.
But, unlike the day Dad and Lincoln had been there, staffers - including an "astronaut" - were walking around the exhibit explaining, demonstrating and even playing along, and these vehicles were there for the kids to drive. Would it surprise you that the kids didn't want to leave?
Friday, December 10, 2010
Speaking of Lincoln and class...
We registered him for the Lakeview YMCA's preschool program beginning the first week of January, the same place Levynn went after we moved to Chicago at just about the same time in her life.
He's excited about it, and he's more than ready. Thanks largely (at the very least) to Levynn's influence, he's sounding out words, spelling words, adding with his fingers, committing some of that addition to memory, and doing things like this:
It's Kentucky. Lincoln "sewed" it all by himself, just by looking at his floor map.
We asked him why he made Kentucky, of all things: "Because me and Levynn were born there and it was fun!"
He's excited about it, and he's more than ready. Thanks largely (at the very least) to Levynn's influence, he's sounding out words, spelling words, adding with his fingers, committing some of that addition to memory, and doing things like this:
It's Kentucky. Lincoln "sewed" it all by himself, just by looking at his floor map.We asked him why he made Kentucky, of all things: "Because me and Levynn were born there and it was fun!"
Monday, December 6, 2010
It's that time of year!
So we've been busy!
Late Saturday morning, Dad and the kids went to another storytime at that same hotel from two weeks ago, this time to see someone from the esteemed Joffrey Ballet read "The Nutcracker."
From there, we crossed the street to Macy's to look at the window displays relating the "Yes, Virginia" story.
And then we played in the freshly-fallen snow in what was our grassy park.
Late Sunday morning, we all went back to the Loop for a dance-along performance of "The Nutcracker" at the Chicago Cultural Center. Our kids didn't want to dance along, though!
Then, in the early evening, we got out the Christmas decorations and went to work.
We saved the Christmas tree for Monday evening.
And it was Lincoln's turn to add the star.
He also made a new ornament, complete with his name and the year, in his art class and put that on the tree.
Then there is this bit of silliness. If you need interpreting: Levynn is Andy, the boy in the "Toy Story" movies, and Lincoln is Andy's toy cowboy, Woody. They concocted this all on their own.
Late Saturday morning, Dad and the kids went to another storytime at that same hotel from two weeks ago, this time to see someone from the esteemed Joffrey Ballet read "The Nutcracker."
From there, we crossed the street to Macy's to look at the window displays relating the "Yes, Virginia" story.
And then we played in the freshly-fallen snow in what was our grassy park.
Late Sunday morning, we all went back to the Loop for a dance-along performance of "The Nutcracker" at the Chicago Cultural Center. Our kids didn't want to dance along, though!
Then, in the early evening, we got out the Christmas decorations and went to work.
We saved the Christmas tree for Monday evening.
And it was Lincoln's turn to add the star.
He also made a new ornament, complete with his name and the year, in his art class and put that on the tree.
Then there is this bit of silliness. If you need interpreting: Levynn is Andy, the boy in the "Toy Story" movies, and Lincoln is Andy's toy cowboy, Woody. They concocted this all on their own.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Grandy's visit and more
Just a few hours before Grandy's train arrived, The Art Institute wreathed its lions Friday morning as it does every year. Inside one of those balls is a wish Levynn wrote on another recent visit to the museum. 
Two days later, Mom and the kids went back - this time with Grandy - to make a gingerbread house.
And the kids introduced Grandy to the museum's awesome stained-glass collection.
Meanwhile, Dad was with his friend John in the suburbs fetching this classy desk for Levynn. It's from Granddaddy and Susan, who sent it this way with friends who were visiting in the area. She loves it!
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