Chicago trip

As we did last year, Greg's whole family spent a weekend in Chicago this past weekend.  With the addition of Tirzah, though, we opted to drive up instead of taking the train this year.  I'm so glad we did!  It was nice having the van and not trying to fit us, all of our stuff, and 3 kids in a taxi.  We went up Thursday night, taking Sheila with us.  Nate and Steph were already there at the Embassy Suites, as were Mom and Dad.  So on Friday morning, we all got up and took the kids to Lincoln Park Zoo.  It was a perfect day for it!  Cold enough for hats and gloves but not cold enough to be uncomfortable.

Nate and Steph let us borrow their carrier since I knew Tirzah was tired.  She got a pretty good nap!  Also, check out her sweet little snow suit...last year the kids and I absolutely froze the entire weekend, so I made sure to be prepared for the weather this time!

First animal we saw:  the gray seal

Anni looking so cute in her owl hat

This was Nora's favorite animal...the tiger!

In the ape house, they had this little tree thing the kids could climb in/on.

Max liked the gorillas!

Nora is saying, "Ooh ooh ahh ahh!" just like a monkey. :)

When we were outside, Nora said she was cold, despite her hat and gloves...so I helped her burrow into her coat as much as possible.

Gorgeous!!!  A beautiful day and a beautiful skyline!

Zebra

Elena thought it was hilarious to run up to me, smile, and then turn and run away as soon as I snapped the picture.  Little stinker.

Camels!  As Nora said, "bumpy ride!"

We saw this little guy on the sidewalk and he even posed for me!

There were hundreds of ducks and geese on their pond, as well as a couple of pretty swans.

Poison arrow frog!  Always amazing to me how dangerous these tiny little guys are.

This guy was NOT the favorite of any of the kids.  Max said, "I don't like him...he's going to eat me!"  After I explained that there's no way he was getting out of his cage and that he was just lying under the lamp to keep warm, Max would at least look at him with me.  I don't blame him for being scared, though...those teeth look so sinister!

Tirzy in her marshmallow suit...I was so thankful for it!  She was toasty warm!

Nora really really wanted a picture with the 'bubble,' so I finally got one.

It was fun seeing all of the Christmas decorations at the zoo.  Nora loved the giant teddy bear.

And Max couldn't be left out of a photo op!

Our three cuties with Frosty the snowman.  If you enlarge the picture, they are actually all looking at the camera!

Awww, Daddy and his baby girl

Sweet!

One of Max's favorite animals...the meerkats!  Recently, we watched the Lion King 1 1/2 at our house, and this song soon became Max's favorite.  So of course we had to sing a little bit of it when we saw the meerkats!

Some colorful fish in the African exhibit

Aaaaaaaaand that is where my pictures stop.  Friday night Dad and Mom watched the kids so that Greg and I, Sheila, and Nate and Steph could go out to eat at The Melting Pot.  It was very very good!  On Saturday the guys went on a run after breakfast (which ended up being late morning), and then Steph, Melissa, and I went shopping while Nate and Greg watched the kids for us.  By the time we got back to the hotel, Dad and Sheila went to get us a table at Lou Malnati's since it was going to be a long wait for 15 people.  After supper, Mom, Katy, and Melissa watched the kids at the hotel and the rest of us walked down to the Christmas market, then to Millennium Park.  Sheila really wanted to ice skate, but the line was pretty long.  We walked to another near by (smaller) rink, and she, Nate, Tim, and Dad skated for a while.  Near the end, Greg used Tim's skates and got out on the ice as well.  After a chilly walk back, we were glad to be at the hotel again!  Sunday morning we kind of split up...Greg and I, Mom and Katy went to church, and Dad came up at noon since our van was full.  They had to leave after church to check out of the Embassy, and we stayed in the suburbs and ate supper with U. Jim, A. Katy, Aridio, Katrina, and their crew.  We had a fun time with them!  It was nice, too, that we were home by 7:00...time to unpack and settle back in before the week began.  Thanks, Dad and Mom, for another fun Chicago weekend!  (And thanks for watching our kids for two evenings!)