Cincinnati

We had a very nice weekend in Cincinnati to visit Liz and Van in their new home. The house is lovely, but I seem to not have any photos of it. I have lots of pictures of cute kids, though! Here are Henry and Clara having their first Cracker Barrel experience on the way to Ohio.

 We got to spend a little time with Vivian Friday night when we first got in, and then she was ready to play the next morning when we all got up.

 Vivian was very interested in what these big kids were doing in her house.

 On Saturday, after breakfast, we went to a fun little pumpkin patch/amusement place. There was a corny (excuse the pun) puppet show. (Carrie- you can kind of see the ex-Showbiz puppets in the corner here!)

There were also some rides, the kids and Liz and I tried out this monkey one. Clara thought it was creepy and hilarious that we were inside the monkey. 

 We tried to get some pictures of the cousins together. It was a challenge to get them all looking in the same direction at the same time, but this one is pretty cute.

And here's a nice picture of our charming hosts.

After some disappointing football we went out for a fun dinner at Joe's Crab Shack.

 

It was a late night and we all tried to sleep in a little the next morning. Liz made sure I saw this sweet little sleeper before she awoke, though. It was a struggle not to pick her up and just snuggle her.

Sunday morning we had another first for Henry and Clara- their first breakfast at Big Boy!! I don't know if I've been to a Big Boy since I was a kid in California.

  
After breakfast we went to the Cincinnati zoo, which was really nice. 

 I'm not actually reaching out to rub this man's belly. I was petting the snake.

 We didn't get a picture of the naked mole rats, which were our favorite moment at the zoo, but these manatees were a close second. They were monching on some lettuce. It was mesmerizing.

 After a long afternoon at the zoo (and a long weekend of hosting her cousins!) Vivian was getting pretty worn out, so we said goodbye to them and then we made a couple more stops that Liz guided us to. We loved this guy in the night hunters house. The insect building was very cool too.

 

It just didn't feel right to leave Cincinnati without going to Graeter's, so we went a bit out of our way and stopped for some ice cream before we finally got on the road to head home. It was a long, late drive, but the ice cream helped.

Thanks to Liz, Van and Vivian for a fun weekend!

Field Trip

Before we were rained out at Northbrook Days last night little Vivian got to enjoy some of the fun. She makes this hilarious face. It doesn't look as cute on me.

 

When it started clouding over (the first time) we ran for home and enjoyed a little play time while we sat out the rain. 

 

 Clara really enjoys playing with her little cousin.

 And Vivi seemed to enjoy meeting Franklin as well.

 This morning we were supposed to have a visit from the carpenter to start fixing our family room wall. There was apparently a miscommunication, which left the kids and I with a full day free. I mean, we could have done some work around the house, but it seemed a field trip was in order. I gave them the option of driving about an hour to check out a small zoo, or hopping on the train, riding to the end of the line, and seeing what we could find in Fox Lake. They opted for the zoo.

 It was a tiny little place, but an accredited zoo, so it was very nicely kept.

 Most of the animals were local, but I really liked this little burro.

 This guy was cracking me up. He kept kicking out one leg to dig a little spot for himself in the dirt. A lady near me wondered aloud if he must be sitting on eggs. I didn't go into a definition of the term "cock" but I did mention that I was pretty sure he was a he.

 I also loved the foxes.

 We almost missed the coyote, but went back to find him. He was very sweet. The kids really seemed to enjoy seeing him.

 Maybe tomorrow we'll hop the train.

This Week

Mom was in town, so on Sunday we took a spontaneous trip to Lincoln Park Zoo. Mom and Clara enjoyed watching the young turtles push each other around.
Clara and Henry enjoyed acting like apes.


And we said Hello to the giraffe.
Then we started camp at the Botanic Garden. Clara's camp is one where I get to attend with her. It's supposed to be art and music, but so far there hasn't been any music.
Henry's been spending lots of time crafting marble machines out of various toys.
Yesterday Dad and Kathie arrived for a couple of days and the two Grandpas put together a sandbox for the kids.
Henry helped. He went along to the sand and gravel place too and watched the big backhoe put the sand into Grandpa's truck. Sounds like it was a pretty fun experience for a 5-year-old boy.
Clara has a few mosquito bites.
Here they are before the seats are nailed on the end and the top is on. It's a quite fabulous sandbox!

Zoology

So, yesterday Pete skipped work- knowing it was going to be really nice out- and we went to the Brookfield Zoo. We met up with Kevin, Beth and Max there and a grand time was had by all. It was packed with field trips, but Kevin managed his fear of children and we did okay.
Here's Henry in front of the lions at the beginning of our day. That jacket was quickly shed and sunblock applied.
After big cats we went down and saw the dolphins and seals. This was about when Henry started noticing the Mold-A-Rama machines. His heart was really set on going home with a plastic mold. I was torn between allowing him to have one (because, who doesn't love Mold-A-Rama?) and teaching him about saying no to plastic.
There is a special exhibit at the zoo right now. It's a bunch of life-sized robotic dinosaurs. Note Henry's fingers lodged deep in his ears. He verged between being mildly alarmed and being on the brink of bolting.
The t-rex didn't help. I, however, was highly amused by its flappy little arms. Notice Henry still has his fingers in his ears. He was also saying "let's get out of here!"
I was also amused by the signage. Now, of course, Henry says that the dinosaurs were his favorite part of the zoo.
Next we went to the family farm area of the zoo. We liked the chickens in this henhouse, and also got an idea for the name of our next child.
Henry enjoyed petting this little chick and now thinks he wants to have one in our house.
I liked the baby goats.
I had high hopes that we might get a cute Christmas card shot by this friendly reindeer (named Heidi). I'm not sure this picture will pass muster come December, though.
This picture is just included as proof that I was actually along. Please ignore my ratty hair.
In this picture I imagine Clara is saying "Um, you guys? There's something big on the other side of the pond. I think it's looking at me."
In the monkey house...
Monkeys.
Henry wants me to call his picture "tooty head".
He did some nice sketching at the zoo too....I might have to have a post focused on Henry's art coming up some time soon.
Here's the whole crew...dusty, sweaty and tired. Oh...I guess I was holding Clara.
I love the giraffes. I thought this one was the baby, but now I don't think so. It must have been young, though.
Here are Henry and Clara with the baby giraffe statue.
And finally, since you waded through all of that....a video of the dinos.