Toadfrogs and Elephants

Alex and I are always happy to be the “Plus 1″ on Amber’s Zoo Pass. Today the boys wanted to run around much more than they wanted to be in their strollers (and I can’t blame them).

Although they enjoy looking at the animals (and feeding the goats), I think they really love the outside playground and the milking play area.

A ride on the train is usually included in a trip to the zoo, but this time Alex realized he was on the “choo choo”.

I already knew this, but am finally admitting I am addicted to 1154 Lill purses. Amy hosted a party a few weeks ago and I couldn’t come home without a new bag. My newest bag, the Susan, arrived last week. It’s a wonderful bag in general, but a fantastic diaper bag. The inside lining is nylon so it’s easy to wipe down. There are four large pockets inside and six pockets on the outside. The strap is adjustable for hanging on the stroller, carried on the shoulder, or messenger-style. Because diaper bags get put down everywhere, I decided to have a heavy canvas (or maybe it’s nylon) on the bottom. I’ve carried it a few times and love it. I only wish I had bought it sooner.

Wade has played fantasy football for the last few years with friends in Atlanta. This year he decided to play with some local guys. He organized the group and planned a party tonight at our house for the draft. I requested that wives and kids tag along so I wouldn’t be too lonely. Alex and Wade helped me get the house ready:

We had a full house and thankfully the kids seemed to enjoy the backyard:

Then there was the serious business of eating and drafting:

Amber and Abram came by to say goodnight to Nick. The boys got a couple of good laughs and hugs in before bedtime:

We started the day with a trip to Chicago. First stop was Grant Park to see the Buckingham Fountain:

Then we walked to Millennium Park to see Cloud Gate (otherwise known as The Bean). This was actually the reason for the trip.

We also stumbled on a children’s play exhibit and tried out all the areas.

Then we headed for our recommended lunch at Bob Chin’s Crabhouse. You have to love a seafood restaurant with eggrolls on the appetizer menu. The food was absolutely amazing. Wade had yummy lobster fried rice and I had grouper. I’m not a big fish person (in fact I probably only eat it only once or twice a year), but I’m already trying to plan a second trip so that I can get more.

That sounds like enough for a day, right? Not during Adventure Month! We came home for naps (Alex took his afternoon nap at 3 pm) and to move Hazel (our neighbor’s dog) in for the night. She and Madison are getting along great.

Then we headed to the Butlers for a cookout. Alex only lasted an hour, but considering we have been running all day that’s not too bad.

Bath time was full of giggles tonight. Hazel was obviously fascinated and I think would have happily jumped in with Alex.

Alex started today a little early, but was content to play while I tried to wake up:

Then we both took a morning nap and Alex woke up super happy:

We did our usual morning run to the gym and grocery before lunch and afternoon nap. Then we took a trip to the park. Alex demanded to wear his hat and off we went:

Amber and Abram joined us before too long and we played till the dads got home.

I love to read – fiction. I’m not a big fan of non-fiction, self-help, or even parenting books. I read the pregnancy, baby, parenting books I was given (I read anything if it ends up in my pile). I’m a really laid-back parent who deals with things as they come. I’m of the opinion that Alex has to learn by trying and will eventually fall and then get back up (not that I would let him jump off the roof). Imagine my surprise when Wade came home with a book for us to read – Free-Range Kids. Even crazier is that I loved the book. The author is the woman from the news that let her 9 year old boy ride the NY subway by himself. There was a huge outcry so she wrote a book. Her point being, if you feel your child is ready for some independence then you should decide when to give it to them. Society sometimes makes that hard.

The writer/mother takes common issues and provides statistics and then proceeds to poke fun at how society has reacted and/or changed over the years. For instance, the original Sesame Street episodes from the 70’s were released on DVD and had to contain the warning “For Adults Only”. What was acceptable then is not now. Gasp. Cookie Monster ate something other than a cookie – choking hazard! She talks about child abduction (by strangers) statistics and how they have actually decreased in the last few decades. It’s the news that focuses so much on the bad.

My favorite was the Halloween Candy discussion. Halloween in our town is held on the Sunday afternoon before Halloween. I remember what fun Halloween was because it didn’t matter that it was a school night. We still got to run around (in the dark) and ring doorbells for candy. The author discusses in detail the news stories and the actual crime statistics. There has never been a confirmed Halloween candy poisoning. The few reported were actually specific targeting of individual children (one was a child that got into his uncle’s drugs and the parents sprinkled his candy to protect the uncle). I figured it couldn’t hurt to verify the author’s findings so I did a google search and found this at Snopes. Wikipedia provides the same information.

This book is definitely not for everyone. I would hesitate to recommend it to anybody, but I loved it.

First taste all ingredients (He tried to go back for seconds with the butter).

Then the mixing. Alex quickly figured out how to change the speed and I couldn’t leave it going to take a picture. Here he is still trying to figure out why it stopped:

Then one last taste to make sure nothing is missing:

Lastly, is the clean-up. Alex excelled at this.

Alex was quite upset when the beater was taken away. I didn’t want to dip out the cookie dough where he could see it so baking will wait till he’s in bed.

Happy Birthday Kate!