I Love Being a Girl!

When I realized almost all of the Nielsen girl cousins (sans Abigail) would be together, I immediately plotted a mani-pedi excursion. Ireland actually didn't go either because she was napping and hey, too young, right? Liesel, on the other hand, acted like she was a regular. Once upon a time when I asked Liesel if she was a boy or a girl, she would vehemently respond she's a "girly girl" and she certainly lived up to that! She quickly opted for a pretty pink color, chatted easily with her nail technician, and relaxed into her giant massage chair. She decided to get a snowflake design on her big toes. I have to say I was amazed the lady could fit it in considering the size of her canvas! Everyone was so nice and patient with our large group.

Grandpa couldn't help sneaking in to take some video. While the cousins were under the dryers they talked excitedly... sometimes to each other and sometimes to themselves. They were so cute. At one point, he asked them to show off their manicures and all the cousins delicately held out their hands. If I can get a copy of the video I will certainly add it because it's just precious! It was so nice to get in some girly time. I love my nieces.


What girl doesn't mind a little pampering?

Lest you're concerned Brent was drowned in all the estrogen, allow me to mention he managed to go to the shooting range with my brother. He came back with some bullet casings and a little more swagger in his step. We made sure he got some testosterone time too!

Polar Swim

With the excitement of Christmas over, we grabbed siblings, cousins and Grandma for a little fun out of the house. The U of I has an amazing new rec center with a little something for everyone:


Brent and Whitney trying the climbing wall

Whitney and Liesel playing with the fountains while Brent and Ireland float around the lazy river.


Liesel enjoying some light showers

Grandma helping Ireland get in some swim time. I love to see her chubby little legs kick so hard! She's definitely a water baby.

My personal favorite is the huge hot tub and ginormous flat-screen TV. You can play with your kids and keep an eye on the game! It's best to cheer for the Hawkeyes of course. I loved relaxing a bit with family and letting the warm, bubbly water carry away the residual holiday stress. Ahhhhhhh!

Merry Christmas!

The Wuehlers in all our morning glory

Somewhere I read that even tiny kids should sit at the "big" table
when possible. I decided to set a place for Ireland rather than put
her in the high chair and she was thrilled with the arrangement!

Believe it or not, this was our very first family only Christmas! I have to say it was a success too, with just enough (ok, perhaps a teensy bit of excess). After talking to friends and family about how they put it all together, Brent and I settled on the philosophy of  "something to wear, something to read, something they want and something they need." We did our fancy dinner on Christmas Eve which was nice for two reasons: it filled up the girls so they slept hard and it gave Brent and I good fuel to do our elving. In the future I think we'll stick to the fancy Christmas Eve dinner and then do something simple like a crock pot or frozen meal on the big day. Since we spend all morning eating chips and candy, it's kind of nice to finish the day with something simple.

The girls and their stockings

Brent's mother always rang a bell to let everyone know when it was time to come out. After a bit of searching, I procured our own Christmas bell that Brent rang after I queued some holiday music and ran the train around the tree for ambiance. We started the festivities off with a photo and then launched into the stockings. It took Ireland a bit to catch on but catch on she did! Liesel was getting eager to "help" unwrap her presents so Dad gave her a little lesson in folding arms and being patient for our turn. My favorite part of the morning was seeing Irelands little fingers covered in Pringle cheese. Pringles are a tradition from my family. One year my Mom got them because they quickly filled the stockings. Christmas isn't Christmas without Pringles ever since.

Liesel showing patience and restraint before opening her big gift.

There's always a gift that surprises and this year it was definitely the train people. We have an LGB train with a "Duck Tour" car. Technically it's themed from the cartoon but we adopted it as our Boston car. During our time there, we went on more than one Duck Tour to show off our city to visitors. Well, the plastic ducks that came with the car didn't really make sense, so this year I ordered some people. Heretofore, Ireland has been somewhat terrified of the train. Early in the month I think she accidentally knocked over a car and the resulting mess traumatized her. In fact, the reason she's scowling in our family photo (above) is because the train was running behind us and she didn't like it. Well, once those little people were on the Duck Tour car, her demeaner completely changed (see video below).

After about 3 times she started bidding the people, "Buh BYYYYYE, BYYYYYE, BUUUH BYE!" when they came around. I hope you all had a wonderfully Merry Christmas!

The Sweetest Thing

Makes me melt.

Got Lasik?

Anyone out there interested in getting lasik from TLC Laser Eye Center? We received two coupons for $250 off but can't think of anyone who might use it. It feels wrong to just throw them away since that's a chunk of savings. If you're looking to sharpen your vision (pun intended), please send along your address and I'll send one to you!

MOSI- Dr. Seuss Exhibit

We finally invested in a family membership to The Museum of Science and Industry! I was so excited to get into the "Members Only" line this most recent visit and I know we're going to make good use of our membership. I took the girls to see the Dr. Seuss exhibit which coincided with the Christmas Around the World festival. It was amazing. The main tree was a Grinch Who Stole Christmas-themed one (see the Whos holding hands and singing around the base?). I really loved the presents wrapped in plain but brightly colored paper. I may have to do that next year! It almost looks more festive than traditional Christmas wrapping.

Did you know Dr. Seuss never actually got his PhD from Oxford as intended? And Seuss is supposed to be pronounced like "voice." I definitely sympathize with having a German name no one can pronounce! Apparently Green Eggs and Ham was born out of a bet with his editor. The bet was that he couldn't create an entertaining book from 50 words or less. There are 49 one-syllable words in Green Eggs and Ham and 1 two-syllable word (anywhere). Dr. Seuss joked he was never compensated for that bet. He never had any children stating, "You have 'em; I'll entertain 'em." I loved seeing some of his original artwork! I once heard that genius is the ability to return to childhood at will. In that case, Dr. Seuss was the most brilliant of geniuses.

Yes I flipped for the photo, but I got a discount with our new membership!

Aside from the Dr. Seuss exhibit, the museum was decked out with dozens of Christmas trees representing different countries. It was the perfect place to take the girls and get them excited for the holidays. Oh how I love this museum!

The Chicago Do-It-Yourself Messiah

Growing up, the first Sunday of December heralded in the holidays for my family. My parents packed me and my siblings in our rusty van and trekked up to northern Iowa. What was the attraction? A Messiah sing-along. Eventually I grew old enough to sing (rather than just watch) and it became my favorite holiday tradition. I remember how thrilled I was when Mom bought me my very own score. After leaving home, I made use of that score by finding a sing-along here and there (Abravanel Hall in SLC, Harvard campus in Boston), but it's been years since I've been to one. Attending the one in Chicago was my #1 priority this year. Turns out it almost didn't happen due to funding difficulties. The organizers managed to pull it off though, and Mom and Dad came to town to join in the fun.
I didn't know The Messiah debuted in Dublin, Ireland! Even more reason to love it. Our conductor said it is the most performed piece of music in the world. He also told a story about how Handel was known for having a short temper. Handel confronted a man who was having difficulty with one of the solos saying, "You said you could read at sight!" to which the man replied, "I can, just not at first sight."

The conductor Stanley Sperber was fantastic! Apparently he flies from Israel just for this event every year. He was wonderfully humorous, ribbing the tenor section as is only fitting. With just 10 minutes of rehearsal time, he was incredibly patient with the amateur audience. Out here they call it the "do-it-yourself" rather than "sing-along" and rather than end with the Hallelujah chorus, they also do all of Part III minus one song. Initially I was disappointed because the Hallelujah chorus is such a fantastic finish. That feeling was short-lived because after the conductor, soloists and orchestra took their bows, everyone returned and we all sang it as an encore. The soloists joined in this time and even from my balcony seat, I could see the conductor smiling as wide as the Grinch after his heart grew 3 times.

(Credit: Lisa Fielding/WBBM Newsradio/CBS)

The woman seated next to my mom closed her score and sang Hallelujah from memory, which I found incredibly touching. Even in the the heart of a city as diverse as Chicago, it was magnificent to proclaim my faith in the "King of Kings, Forever and ever!" and "Lord of Lords, Hallelujah! Hallelujah!" alongside others. My heart wrapped itself around the music of my Savior and I very nearly started bawling I was so moved. As every one's voice swelled fortissimo with utter rejoicing, it felt like the roof would blow off the theater. Rarely do we get the chance to feel so at one with complete strangers but this was one such occasion. This is a holiday tradition I need to cement!

(the janitor with the yellow caution sign is my favorite!)

Seeing Santa

With nothing on our agenda, Brent and I decided Saturday was the day to take the girls to see St. Nick. Oh what a mistake! Even though we got there relatively early, there was an insanely long line that DID. NOT. MOVE. A trickle of molasses moves faster! The Donner Party moved faster! Continental spread is faster! After waiting for an HOUR, we were told Santa was going to "feed the reindeer" and would be back in 30 min. We'd finally made it into the elaborate Ice Palace and with the girls primped, I wasn't going to lose my spot in line. We hunkered down with lunch and waited. All told we waited two hours. I'm definitely rethinking how I go about pictures with Santa in the future. Brent believes we don't need photos at all and I know many would agree with him. Still, there's a huge part of me that clings to yes--queue Fiddler on the Roof music--TRADITION!

This photo was NOT posed! This is Ireland trying hard to be patient.

Almost as tall as a baby polar bear!

The Ice Palace had this screen which showed
images from BBC Earth.

Inside the Ice Palace was a waiting room with more BBC Earth images and fake falling snow. Every family got to go in alone before meeting St. Nick which was actually really cool

I think everyone (including Santa) looks exhausted.

I'm SO glad Brent caught this footage of Ireland falling asleep in the car. Classic! What a doll for mumbling "cheese" even in her exhaustion!

Which Is Cuter?

When they fall asleep?

I told Liesel to come out when she finished her mac n cheese.
After half an hour I checked on her and found this.

Or when they wake up?

There were never two bows more skiwampus!
Socks are a lost cause when it comes to napping.

I can't decide!

Tidbits

This is another post of random things that have happened with the girls I just can't bear to forget. So without further ado...

Ireland is getting more and more antsy to start gymnastics. Brent and I firmly believe we're not going to invest money into classes for her until she's old enough to understand classroom dynamics and physically can build the basics. That doesn't stop her from trying to sneak into classes though! She's pretty sly about it too. Ireland pretends to be casually observing the class and before I know it she's sprinting towards the tumble track. I told her she could start gymnastics when she learns to use the potty. The other day she asked to go potty 3 times even though she didn't really use the potty. She makes sure to wipe though!

The other day Liesel put Ireland's backpack on her. After she clicked the front strap in place she said, "Okay Ireland, now go to college!" Ireland turned around and walked to the door. When no one opened it, she continued playing with her toys.

We'd been planning to wean Ireland from the binkie in stages: in November she could only have it when she was sleeping, in December she could only have it at night, and then we're throwing them away in January. Just before we implemented this plan, Ireland was hanging out one night and had a binkie in her hand. Suddenly she raised it high in the air and spun around gleefully crying out "beeekieee!" It was like something out of a Broadway play, no lie.

Lately Liesel has only been putting on her seatbelt halfway. Every time I discovered she wasn't really strapped in, I've tried to impress upon her young mind how serious that is. As we headed out for church on Sunday, Liesel piped up from the back, "Mom, you'd better put your seatbelt on or you'll fly out the window!" Brent frowned at me for that one.

Once Brent is home from work, I usually head over to the clubhouse for a workout. When I change into my workout clothes I explain I'm going "running, running" to the girls. Now when Ireland sees me changing, she says something equivalent and pumps her fists as if she's running. So cute.

Ireland is old enough she wants her fair share of prayer time. To alleviate any fighting, I told Liesel she could teach Ireland how to pray. Today at lunch Liesel told Ireland to be "thankful we love our food." I just about burst out laughing because Ireland really loves her food!

The girls laugh like crazy when I say their names like a ghoul. I laugh like crazy when they try to do it.

Gratitude in Vomit

Yesterday, December 7th, 2011--a day which will live in infamy--Ireland was suddenly and deliberately attacked by viral forces from the empire of pneumonia.
It began as a somewhat typical day. Brent showered and dressed for work and then offered to take Ireland while I got ready. Liesel was still asleep which was a little odd but hey, I'm not gonna look a gift horse in the mouth! Ireland was extremely lethargic, wheezy and cuddly which is atypical behavior these days. Brent noticed she seemed sick and asked if he should request to work from home. I firmly told him no. I could handle one sick child on my own, right? Turns out Ireland had something to say about that. She vomited 4 times all over Brent from his head to his shoes and then some. When it was all over she pointed a shaky finger at the mess and pitifully squeaked out "ewe!" I jumped in the shower with Ireland while Brent stripped, scrubbed and garbage-bagged everything else. He was definitely staying home.

A call to the pediatrician's office led us straight to the ER. I've been told by a number of medical professionals the best time to visit the ER is in the morning. It's the least busy because people figure if they've made it though the night, they're going to be okay. With timing on our side, we were triaged pretty quickly. All in all, we still spent a couple of hours there and believe me, it was no picnic. The staff was wonderful but lets face it, Ireland was miserable. After they sucked her nose to test for RSV, she begged for her coat. When Ireland asks for her coat, it's her way of saying, "I quit this job, I'm outta here!" The last 20 minutes of our visit she fell asleep in my arms, exhausted from the sickness and all the prodding.

Our RN brought in toys to keep Ireland occupied. She looked
SO tiny in that big hospital room!

Brent picked up Liesel from preschool and looped by the ER to get us. I gave him as many details as I could remember about all the treatments and procedures she'd gone through (including a breathalyzer and x-rays). I tried to describe what the image of her lungs looked like and what the dr. told me to watch for in the next little while. When we pulled up to the apartment, Liesel opened her door and then got a funny look on her face. She vomited all over the car, the street, and me and then burst into tears. I quickly called the pediatrician's office (again), added my pukey clothes to the garbage bag, and jumped in a bath with her (my second of the day). Luckily, Liesel wasn't having any of the wheezing issues so we just hunkered down for the day. By evening the apartment was a huge mess but everyone was feeling a little better.

Even baby hospital gowns leave your bum hanging out!
Thank goodness she could still wear a diaper.

As hard as it was to see Ireland and Liesel suffering, I'm so very grateful I can be home with them. I remember the dreaded calls at work telling me Liesel was sick and needed to be picked up right away. More than anything, I wanted to BE there for her! But so many times I had to call Brent to see if his afternoon had any huge meetings in them like mine or worse, I had to call a friend. I'm so grateful to be the one stroking back their hair and caressing their cheeks, whispering it will all be okay. I'm happy to pick up the ginger ale and make beds on the couch so they can quietly watch The Muppets as they doze. I'm also grateful for my wise husband who decided to work from home for a day :)

You'll Shoot Your Eye Out!

Brent's gonna kill me but it's too funny NOT to share!

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

Scary Story

My sister Reagan forwarded me this link which is apparently going around Facebook. As little girls, Reagan and I shared a room and often stayed up late talking. Could that possibly translate into all the texting we do now? Anyway, I laughed so hard at the story and the pictures, Brent told me to quiet down. I had him read it and he got a good chuckle too.

There's a tiny bit of language, be forewarned!

Bring Your Kids to Work Day

As it is the day before Thanksgiving, the girls wore their pumpkin
sweaters. They're a veritable pumpkin patch!

Decorating hats. I think Liesel's an
up-and-coming "Happy Painter".

The girls had a rare opportunity to follow Dad around for a day. I think they envy his commute, as a train ride is much more exciting than being cramped into the backseat of a sedan. Brent's co-workers couldn't have been kinder. He tells me he received multiple offers to take the girls... permanently! He really enjoyed showing them off.

What did I do with a morning sans kids? I headed down to the Mag Mile for a little shopping. I ate brunch at the Oak Tree Restaurant alone which once upon a time would have made me self conscious. At this stage of my life, I just stared out the window and relished some quiet contemplation. No book, no bb, nothing to distract me from my own thoughts. Oh my, it was a piece of heaven on earth! I scouted out some of the stores I've been aching to see. Feeling bold, I stopped in at Jimmy Choo, Tiffany's and Burberry. 


Ireland got to work right away.
See? All the mail is delivered!

When I got back to Brent's work, the girls had found a little compadre and the 3 were running around squealing. They absolutely did NOT want to leave!  The promise of another train ride was enough to lure them away. Ireland fell asleep the instant we sat down, exhausted from all the excitement. Liesel chatted endlessly with her new friend (who happened to ride the same train). It was a magical day for all.

Turkey Trot

Those doing the 10K had red numbers while those just doing a
5K had black numbers.

Immediately following my mud run I swore I'd never do anything so sadistic again. But the siren call of a race managed to creep it's way into my brain and I became determined to sign up for a Turkey Trot. To up the ante, I opted for the 10K and began training for the longer distance. Ever supportive, Brent gave me two thumbs up and time in the evening to run. Per usual, I came down with a horrible head cold the week before the run. I could hardly breathe and my left ear was completely plugged. Misery, pure misery. I skipped out on running and went to bed early hoping it would go away. It didn't completely dissipate, but I was functional on the morning of my run.



Liesel discovered the coziest place to be was inside Grandpa's coat.

The course was set up so that everyone ran the first 5K together and there were no wave starts. As we headed up the trail, it was apparent I wouldn't be getting my best time with this run. Many places were narrow and well, it was difficult to run around the people dressed as turkeys! Some random kids decided to join in the fun and would go from running to a dead stop. I experienced at least half a dozen near-misses. Finally all the 5K-ers pealed off at their finish line. My mom and Brent were waiting to cheer me on at the start of the second half which bolstered my confidence tremendously. Once I was in the woods again, everything quieted. At last I was able to find a good pace and truly enjoy my run.


My biggest fan!

All of my training has been indoor on a treadmill which I still prefer to running outdoors. Coping with the cold weather and the last vestiges of my head cold was definitely a challenge. My time was actually within 5 minutes of the 10K I'd done on the treadmill the week before. In the time it took me to finish the 5K portion, some people had done the whole 10K. On the other hand, just 5 minutes before I crossed the finish line for my 10K, the last large group of people finished the 5K. Of course I wish I hadn't been sick and the course had been easier to navigate, but I'm SO glad I did it!

Recently a friend told me about the Chicago Santa Hustle and I was tempted to sign up. Yes it's in freezing weather but it's only a 5K and everyone gets Santa gear to run in! Doesn't that sound like fun? Well, after doing the Turkey Trot I've decided I'm finished running races this year.  My knees could use the rest!
 

With the finish line in sight...

HRH Rapunzel & Aurora

In spite of my feelings about Disney princesses, the girls were royalty this Halloween. Ireland was the perfect size for Liesel's Aurora dress and they're at the age where if one has something, the other does too. Rather than come up with brand new costumes for both of them, Liesel was Rapunzel. I bought Liesel's costume ridiculously early but it sold out and so did the hairpiece. While I was at the checkout, another Disney store called to ask if they had one in a certain size. I was happy to have it taken care of.

Even seeing them hung up made me happy!

The first time Liesel put on her costume she complained it was "too fluffy." She's the rare girl who was none too thrilled to be a princess. The hairpiece looked absolutely adorable and set her apart from all the other Rapunzels. I modified her dress a bit by cutting off some lace trim on the bodice and the brooch with Rapunzel on it. She left glitter everywhere she went... Disney didn't skimp on that! Ireland took to being a princess like a fish to water. As soon as her dress was on she asked for her "hat." Once she was all dressed she smiled and danced around... SO cute!

Rather than doing a trunk or treat, our ward had adults man a door of each classroom in the church. That way the kids didn't have to go out into the cold and parents didn't have to decorate their trunk on top of making chili, dessert and getting kids dressed in costume. Brilliant idea! Ireland quickly caught on to the concept of trick or treating. She also noticed she could pilfer Liesel's basket when she wasn't looking and somehow managed to get twice as much candy. Brent tells me she wasn't shy about asking for more either. We don't have a definitive policy on Halloween candy so right now I'm using it as a bribe for good behavior.

The real picture here would have been what an idiot I was making
of myself to get the girls to look at me. Obviously I was not successful.

Another addition this year was the trick or treat basket. Sorry to say I'm not talented enough to make something like these; I found them on etsy. Liesel immediately claimed the one with bats and Ireland was perfectly happy with the black one.

This was my favorite Halloween-esque video. I hope you all had a very happy Halloween!

Cupcake Wars: Fall

The minute I saw these I knew I wanted to make them for a cupcake challenge. A simple concept yes, but they look so, so, SO adorable! They're pumpkin spice flavored so it's not just appearances though. Brent was busy making some chili for the ward cook-off (he won for Most Comforting). Had he not been so busy, I'm sure he would have created some elaborate pumpkin patch just to upstage Allen's barrel for Reagan's apple cupcakes. No one seemed to mind they were on a simple serving tray because they were totally gone by the end of the night! The mini ones seemed to be the most popular.

I got a peek at Katrina's creation and I can't wait to see what everyone else does!

A Lady of the Left

It's no surprise to those who know me that I follow The Container Store's blog. I have to limit my visits to the local shrine to just one a month or I'll bankrupt us. Somehow I started receiving Real Simple articles in my email as well. When I'm able to find a few moments of quiet, I like perusing them for recipes and organization ideas. You could say I've been a fan of Real Simple. Were I more into Facebook I would "like" them. However, I came across one article that made me feel absolutely exposed.

It's this one on Organizing for Your Personality and specifically, the quiz which determines if you're a left-brain person or a right-brain person. It's like someone has been secretly watching me because I fit the left-brain profile perfectly. So I wear the same jewelry every day... should I be swapping out my wedding ring for a cocktail ring? My morning routine is what helps me keep my sanity in those crazy afternoon hours, so what? And who in the world regularly drives around with the Empty light flashing? I can't be the only one who thinks that is reckless and irresponsible! The more I read, the more I felt eerily defined. My current project is a mission scrapbook for Brent... which matches MY mission scrapbook. And yes, my digital photos are organized by date.

I was eager for Brent to get home so I could give him the same quiz. Of course he would score the same as I did and then we could discuss how much the writer nailed our personalities. But that's not quite what happened. Turns out Brent is more of an even split between left and right brain. When I explained the scoring method to him, he threw back his head and chuckled, "You are SEVERELY left-brained!" I couldn't believe it! All this time I thought he was with me on my organization ideas and methods. We were two peas in a closet-full-of-clothes-hung-by-color pod! Not so much. All this time Brent has just been going with the flow... like a typical right-brainer. When I devastatingly reached this realization he insisted he loves the matching scrapbooks, but to no avail. I'm so very alone in this far corner of my brain.

Maybe I need to take a step back and uh, finger paint? I have no idea how to even tap into my right brain... could I make a list and meticulously follow it step by step until I've achieved it? If there are any strong right-brainers out there, please let me know!

Franken Plaza

It's been all of a couple of weeks since we've been downtown, so I decided to take the girls to check out a Chicagoween festivity. Every year Daley Plaza is transformed into "Franken Plaza." We were able to meet Brent for lunch and then stopped by his office so he could show off the girls (and so the girls could show off their costumes). After that, we strolled on over to check things out. Some highlights:

They dye the water in the fountain orange! A very impetuous dog ran right into it much to the chagrin of his owner.

There were regular performances by The Midnight Circus. By then Ireland was fast asleep but Liesel thoroughly enjoyed it, especially the acrobatics. I loved watching the Boys of Chicago who did some amazing stunts. 

Ireland (aka Sleeping Beauty's Aurora) was not too keen on the fake rat in the toddler maze.

Daley Plaza has a huge Pablo Picasso sculpture with a large tilted base. As we approached the plaza Liesel asked if she could go on the "slide" and I couldn't figure out what she was talking about. After I changed the girls into some warmer clothes, I let her have a go. Most of the kids were much older than she was and initially she would only walk up a few feet and then timidly slide down. After a while she dared going all the way to the top. She could have played there with the other kids all day! Ireland also wanted to try it so I took her with me a few times (hence no picture). She wailed when I buckled her back into her stroller.


I think the expression on her face says it all!

We were able to commute home with Dad. Ireland loved watching the world go by her window. When the conductor came by to punch our ticket, Liesel carefully examined it. I think she was expecting it to spell something ala Polar Express.

No Love Loss

Ireland and I are really settling into our new routine while Liesel's at preschool. We run errands, go visiting teaching, hit the playland, attend story hour at the library, or just spend some one on one time at home. Those 2 hours fly by and inevitably, it's time to get Liesel.

The Field Museum of Natural History

Yup, the University of Chicago called asking both girls to participate in separate studies. I was starting to worry they'd lost our number and was relieved to get the call. Another foray into downtown Chicago! I'd been missing the city. Looking at our very long list of places to see and things to do, I decided upon the Field Museum. That decision cemented when I found out about this exhibit: Chocolate Around the World? Yes please!

We drove right by The Museum of Science and Industry (currently my all-time favorite) and I felt a twinge of regret when I saw they had this exhibit:

Luckily it will be around through Jan. 8! Brent still hasn't been, so we'll have to make it a family trip. It's just we've done the Museum of Science and Industry and I wanted to try something different. So I stubbornly headed to Museum Campus. Some highlights:

The building is stunning. It's what every museum should look like. Just walking into the lobby made me want to paint or read or do something creative! Dinosaurs aren't really on Liesel's radar (mea culpa), but when she saw the skeleton of the famous "Sue" T. Rex, she was entranced. No matter which exhibit we saw, she wanted to circle back to this. She's still talking about the big "dragon." The skull was so big and heavy they had to use a fake. The real one is on display nearby.

I'd been forewarned there were a lot of aging dioramas on display. That actually worked to our advantage. By and large the girls weren't nearly as scared of the animals as they were at the Brookfield Zoo. We did pass an exhibit of Alaskan Bears... one of which was up on his hind legs and the size of an oak tree. Liesel loudly announced, "I'm scared, I wanna go, OKAY?!? The girl doesn't mince words!

Thank you Daniel Burnham!

I was able to get a pic of Liesel pointing out Chicago. Did you know the Field Museum was home turf for the fictional Indiana Jones? Yet another reason to love the Windy City.

I decided to save the Playlab for last. Supposedly it's the most interactive and age appropriate for the girls. I figured after just looking at things they'd be eager to get down and do something. However, Liesel was telling me she wanted to go home and even Ireland looked rather tired. We'll have to hit that one another time... and at the beginning of our visit.

Liesel's favorite part of the museum:
the drinking fountain just her size!

On the way home both girls fell asleep. It was raining and (of course) there was traffic. Somehow it was really peaceful for me to think about the things I saw and learned. I always wish I could have Brent with me but other than that I really enjoy my outings with the girls!

Yeah, Liesel wouldn't recommend this exhibit for tiny tots either.

If I could sum up the chocolate exhibit in one word it would be: meh. For unknown reasons strollers weren't allowed which was bizarre because there were mostly plaques. In a way it was good for Ireland to get out and run around a bit. Pretty soon that was the problem... she and Liesel were running around everywhere. Really, I don't know why they didn't allow strollers.

They also didn't allow pictures. At the end of the exhibit there was this giant truffle display and they had padded seats that also looked like truffles. I was so annoyed with the no stroller policy that I whipped out my camera and snapped away to my heart's content. Go ahead, call me a rebel. I also rip the tags off of mattresses and swim right after eating.

With the girls going kamikaze, I didn't get to read everything but I did learn Brazil consumes almost all the cacao it produces and that the Swiss consume the most chocolate per person. I'm looking forward to the Dr. Seuss exhibit for sure!