Jenny & Co.

We had a fun-filled visit with my sister and company this weekend.  Jenny, Breanna, Sam and Joey got here late Friday night and left Sunday evening.  Oliver loved having visitors and on Monday morning he was looking all over the apartment for them.  Here are some highlights from our weekend.

Ollie and Bre looking down on Chicago

Saturday morning we took the train into Chicago.  Our first stop was the Sears Willis Tower, where we took an ear-popping elevator ride up to the 103rd floor.  Brian and I had been to the tower several years ago when we first moved to Evanston.  Since we've been there they have added glass boxes that you can stand out in and look straight down at the city.  As you can see in the picture, the kids had no fear.  The grown-ups, however, stepped out onto the ledge with a little more trepidation.  It was definitely a strange feeling to be out over the street.

After the tower we got a quick lunch and walked down to Millennium Park.  We took some pictures at The Bean and sat on the steps and took a little break.  The weather was gorgeous (maybe even a little on the hot side).  

Sam, Jenny, Joey and Bre at The Bean

The group taking a break

Once we were rested we walked down Michigan Avenue towards Water Tower Place, with a fun stop at The Lego Store on the way.  At Water Tower Place Breanna got to go to The American Girl Store and pick out a new outfit for her doll.  She couldn't stop smiling while we were in the store.  After picking out a cheerleader outfit for her doll "Anna" we picked up dinner at Wow Bao and walked to a nearby park to eat.  We were all pretty beat by then, and we happily took a cab back to the train station.

Breanna ON TOP OF THE WORLD! (Millennium Park)

Sunday morning we set out for The Museum of Science and Industry.  The Chicago Marathon was that morning and we knew public transportation would be kind of difficult, so we drove down to the museum.  We hit some bad traffic and it took quite a while to get there, but once we were there we had such a fun time!  There is a special exhibit there now on Jim Henson.  It was fun seeing some of our favorite Muppets and learning a bit about Jim Henson.  There was much more to him than just The Muppet Show and Sesame Street!

Bert & Ernie

The Museum of Science and Industry is HUGE.  There is no possible way to see it all in one visit.  In our few hours there we tried milking cows (real milking machine, but not a real cow), drove a combine and tractor through a corn field, watched a train drive across the US from Chicago to Seattle, met Bert and Ernie and Kermit, played in the water, saw some freshly hatched baby chicks, and toured an exhibit on the human body.  There were a lot of exhibits we didn't get to, but as Breanna said, now we have something to do next time they visit!

Oliver playing in the water

We had a blast with everyone and it was hard to say goodbye.  We had some deep dish Chicago-style pizza when we got back from the museum and then the crew was on their way back north.  Thanks for a fun weekend.  Come back soon!

The Crash

See more photos here.