Let's take off the training wheels and ride the bike!
Levynn also hopped on the scooter today and showed more improvement.
Being six is just so cool!
Seriously, it is. Or at least, from the parent's point of view, having one is.
Oh, and Dad caught another concert today. He should have brought Levynn again, as you'll see on stage, but he didn't know it would be so kid-friendly. This is Michael Franti and Spearhead, playing a free show outside the Hancock Center.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Look at these beautiful rooms
Where could we have seen them?Well, the next photo should give you a hint about what they are...
... miniatures. That's Levynn, peering into one of the 68 rooms in The Art Institute's Thorne Miniature Rooms exhibit. We hadn't seen this section of the museum in any of our previous visits. Only recently did we learn that it's very popular, and Dad and Levynn have been reading a new novel called "The Sixty-Eight Rooms" about two kids who take a magical adventure into the exhibit and that has stirred Levynn's intense interest in it.
So Dad and Levynn got a first look today. We'll be more prepared next time, with notes about each of the rooms the kids enter in the story.
We also saw a short concert - Mazes - across the street at Millenium Park and bought our advance tickets for Taste of Chicago, which starts tomorrow.Wednesday, June 23, 2010
More baseball
Dad, Levynn and Lincoln returned to the gym for baseball tonight, braving a storm we will not detail here, and Dad was able to get more video.
There also is the game schedule to share: Levynn's team will play on Mondays through July 26 (but not July 5, the observed holiday; sorry, Gram!). So Mom will be able to see them all and Dad can coach if need be. Yay!
There also is the game schedule to share: Levynn's team will play on Mondays through July 26 (but not July 5, the observed holiday; sorry, Gram!). So Mom will be able to see them all and Dad can coach if need be. Yay!
Monday, June 21, 2010
Our six-year-old ballplayer
Levynn started the Chicago Park District Cubs Care baseball program tonight, and she made us proud (not that she wouldn't have anyway) in the mayhem that we're learning is typical of the CPD experience.
After the coach's long-winded oratory about the realities of the program (in short, there are so many kids that, as of next week, we'll only get one day per rather than the two we signed up for), Levynn went to work - er, play.
The kids warmed up first, including this run back and forth across the gym (the field was a mud pie).
Then they went to stations: hitting (off a tee), running bases, catching (big soft) ground balls (with bare hands), and throwing (wiffle balls). Levynn looked like a veteran at each one.
Check out the positioning and footwork here!
And this form!
Levynn didn't get any of that from the coach, who wandered from station to station giving encouragement most of the time. And Dad didn't have to tell her or show her much, either, to be honest. She just did it!
There will be another "instructional" night Wednesday, at which time we'll be told whether to come Mondays or Wednesdays in future weeks. The kids will be divided into four teams, and two teams will be assigned to each night and will play against each other over and over again.
If tonight was any indication, Levynn will make the best of it.
After the coach's long-winded oratory about the realities of the program (in short, there are so many kids that, as of next week, we'll only get one day per rather than the two we signed up for), Levynn went to work - er, play.
The kids warmed up first, including this run back and forth across the gym (the field was a mud pie).
Then they went to stations: hitting (off a tee), running bases, catching (big soft) ground balls (with bare hands), and throwing (wiffle balls). Levynn looked like a veteran at each one.
Check out the positioning and footwork here!
And this form!
Levynn didn't get any of that from the coach, who wandered from station to station giving encouragement most of the time. And Dad didn't have to tell her or show her much, either, to be honest. She just did it!There will be another "instructional" night Wednesday, at which time we'll be told whether to come Mondays or Wednesdays in future weeks. The kids will be divided into four teams, and two teams will be assigned to each night and will play against each other over and over again.
If tonight was any indication, Levynn will make the best of it.
Sunday, June 20, 2010
We have a six-year-old!
Can you believe that?
And, like the day Levynn was born, it came to be on Father's Day, making it a special day indeed. (It won't happen again until 2021!)
The big emphases of the day were this scooter, which she rode much of the time she was outside, and movies.
She rode the scooter to the restaurant where we had brunch, she rode it from there to the park and back home, and she rode it again later in the afternoon. She made a lot of progress, as you can see below.
After brunch, Dad and Levynn went to the movie theater to see "Toy Story 3" - without the 3D - and it's terrific, if you're wondering. That's one of two movies the two of them had been planning to see with great anticipation today.
As soon as they got home from the theater, Levynn blew out the candles on her second birthday cake (again from Bleeding Heart bakery) before Mom had to hurry to work.
To finish the day, Dad and Levynn watched "E.T." - it was her first time! - late into the night.
It was a great ending.
And, like the day Levynn was born, it came to be on Father's Day, making it a special day indeed. (It won't happen again until 2021!)
The big emphases of the day were this scooter, which she rode much of the time she was outside, and movies.
She rode the scooter to the restaurant where we had brunch, she rode it from there to the park and back home, and she rode it again later in the afternoon. She made a lot of progress, as you can see below.
After brunch, Dad and Levynn went to the movie theater to see "Toy Story 3" - without the 3D - and it's terrific, if you're wondering. That's one of two movies the two of them had been planning to see with great anticipation today.As soon as they got home from the theater, Levynn blew out the candles on her second birthday cake (again from Bleeding Heart bakery) before Mom had to hurry to work.
To finish the day, Dad and Levynn watched "E.T." - it was her first time! - late into the night.
It was a great ending.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
A birthday party!
This was an exciting day in our household. We celebrated Levynn's sixth birthday with her first kids party!
We hosted seven other girls for a "pixie party" around lunchtime. It was a success, and Dad says Mom knocked it out of the park.
While the girls gathered in the lobby of our building (outfitted with homemade crowns Levynn models below), Dad hid pixie treasures in a group of trees in the park across the street. After that hunt, we all came back to the building and went to the community room.
The girls went on another hunt, this time in the room, for fairy charms. Then they used the treasures, charms and assorted paper and stickers to decorate birdhouses-turned-pixie homes that Mom and Dad had put together earlier in the week.
After the girls got cleaned up - lots of glue! - they ran around the room while waiting for the pizza to arrive. And the pizza, homemade vanilla ice cream with cherries jubilee, and organic vanilla-vanilla cake from Bleeding Heart Bakery took us right to the end.
But the fun's not done yet. Tomorrow's the real big day - and on Father's Day, just like the day she was born!
We hosted seven other girls for a "pixie party" around lunchtime. It was a success, and Dad says Mom knocked it out of the park.
While the girls gathered in the lobby of our building (outfitted with homemade crowns Levynn models below), Dad hid pixie treasures in a group of trees in the park across the street. After that hunt, we all came back to the building and went to the community room.
The girls went on another hunt, this time in the room, for fairy charms. Then they used the treasures, charms and assorted paper and stickers to decorate birdhouses-turned-pixie homes that Mom and Dad had put together earlier in the week.
After the girls got cleaned up - lots of glue! - they ran around the room while waiting for the pizza to arrive. And the pizza, homemade vanilla ice cream with cherries jubilee, and organic vanilla-vanilla cake from Bleeding Heart Bakery took us right to the end.
But the fun's not done yet. Tomorrow's the real big day - and on Father's Day, just like the day she was born!
Thursday, June 17, 2010
How to start your summer vacation
We're writing the book on it.
In the first 24 hours or so after Levynn left school yesterday afternoon, she went to a playground; ate dinner on Millenium Park's grass while listening to Grant Park Orchestra's season-opening concert; played around the park's attractions, like Crown Fountain and Cloud Gate (The Bean); slept late; ate breakfast in our building's community room; played at Oak Street Beach; stood next to the Stanley Cup; and registered for Chicago Public Library's summer reading program, "Reading is Art-rageous."
And you know we've got busy days ahead, too.
For those of you who are curious about the Stanley Cup moment:
Mom received a tip that it would be not just in Tribune Tower but on the stage next to her desk, for only a half hour this afternoon, and we decided that she had to get Levynn in there. Here's a little peak at the scene.
Levynn's got her priorities straight!
Mom and Levynn also visited strolled along the Riverwalk and met this fella.
In the first 24 hours or so after Levynn left school yesterday afternoon, she went to a playground; ate dinner on Millenium Park's grass while listening to Grant Park Orchestra's season-opening concert; played around the park's attractions, like Crown Fountain and Cloud Gate (The Bean); slept late; ate breakfast in our building's community room; played at Oak Street Beach; stood next to the Stanley Cup; and registered for Chicago Public Library's summer reading program, "Reading is Art-rageous."
And you know we've got busy days ahead, too.
For those of you who are curious about the Stanley Cup moment: Mom received a tip that it would be not just in Tribune Tower but on the stage next to her desk, for only a half hour this afternoon, and we decided that she had to get Levynn in there. Here's a little peak at the scene.
Levynn's got her priorities straight!
Mom and Levynn also visited strolled along the Riverwalk and met this fella.Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Another boys outing
Mom and Levynn visited Shedd Aquarium on a class fieldtrip earlier in the school year, and they saw the new (and overblown) dolphin (et al.) show. Since Lincoln still gets in there free and this is a discount week, Dad decided the boys should check it out.
Here are two snippets from the show:
But the really cool new addition to the aquarium is a section of the kids play zone that looks like it's deep in the ocean:
And this being a big city, you can see something new every day. And this was new to us, as we walked from museum campus to Michigan Ave. Headless, armless bodies?
Here are two snippets from the show:
But the really cool new addition to the aquarium is a section of the kids play zone that looks like it's deep in the ocean:
And this being a big city, you can see something new every day. And this was new to us, as we walked from museum campus to Michigan Ave. Headless, armless bodies?Monday, June 14, 2010
All over but the cryin'
That's not to say there were no tears this afternoon - the start of a very exciting week for Levynn - when Mom, Dad, Lincoln and other students' families crowded into her classroom for a "kindergarten celebration" to mark the end of a special school year.
The kids sang songs, received "diplomas," ate treats and mingled. There still are two more full days of school left - and a strange one-hour session Friday, after an off day Thursday - but, sniff sniff, they're ready to move on!
Blurry, daggonit! Each kid mentioned something learned during this school year, and Levynn said, "In kindergarten, I learned how to tie my shoes." She also was the only kid to give the teacher a hug!
Still to come: a class party for summer birthdays tomorrow; final goodbyes for Miss Brandt and the kids Friday; Levynn's birthday party with friends Saturday; her actual birthday on Father's Day; and her first baseball practice Monday night.
Whew!
The kids sang songs, received "diplomas," ate treats and mingled. There still are two more full days of school left - and a strange one-hour session Friday, after an off day Thursday - but, sniff sniff, they're ready to move on!
Blurry, daggonit! Each kid mentioned something learned during this school year, and Levynn said, "In kindergarten, I learned how to tie my shoes." She also was the only kid to give the teacher a hug!
Still to come: a class party for summer birthdays tomorrow; final goodbyes for Miss Brandt and the kids Friday; Levynn's birthday party with friends Saturday; her actual birthday on Father's Day; and her first baseball practice Monday night. Whew!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
More fun
Dad and Lincoln went right back to Family Fun Festival and Lit Fest today - so Levynn could experience both with us. This was the last day for the nature theme at the former, and Justin Roberts and his Not Ready for Naptime Players were performing at the latter.
Chicago Wilderness and Lurie Garden both brought "A" games to the family fest, providing better activities by far than we had seen over the previous two summers. The live repiles Dad and Lincoln saw Saturday were gone today, and in their place was a picnic table full of interesting skins and furs the kids could touch.
Lincoln particularly liked the skunk!
There also were little tanks with critters like crayfish that kids could catch and examine under a magnifying glass.
Lurie Garden had old brochures for kids to make into notebooks - you can bet Levynn was all over that - and helped kids pot herb plants to bring home. So now we've got a hyssop!
Justin Roberts was entertaining, at least while he lasted. Rain threatened several times before it finally started coming down hard and forced the band off the stage. But he did provide us with a new anthem we can't stop repeating: "There's room enough to share UP IN HENRIETTA'S HAIR!"
Chicago Wilderness and Lurie Garden both brought "A" games to the family fest, providing better activities by far than we had seen over the previous two summers. The live repiles Dad and Lincoln saw Saturday were gone today, and in their place was a picnic table full of interesting skins and furs the kids could touch. 
Lincoln particularly liked the skunk!
There also were little tanks with critters like crayfish that kids could catch and examine under a magnifying glass.
Lurie Garden had old brochures for kids to make into notebooks - you can bet Levynn was all over that - and helped kids pot herb plants to bring home. So now we've got a hyssop! Justin Roberts was entertaining, at least while he lasted. Rain threatened several times before it finally started coming down hard and forced the band off the stage. But he did provide us with a new anthem we can't stop repeating: "There's room enough to share UP IN HENRIETTA'S HAIR!"
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