Our Chicago weekend

Last weekend, we went to Chicago together as a family. It will be a vacation we will never forget, but, like childbirth, the pain should lessen as time goes on. Some good, lots of bad.

First, the bad:

• The kids fought. I mean. Come on. We're on vacation and you STILL have to fight?
• Our hotel had no pool. We knew this before we left, but we learned how extremely important it is for us to have access to a pool. The five of us sharing one little hotel room got old quickly.
• It was cold. I know. We knew this also before going, but we walked outside ALOT and that is a cold city to be outside in for a long time in February. I'm just saying.
• It was hard to find an activity that made everyone happy at the same time. And when the others were unhappy, they made it painfully clear with lots of complaining and whining.
• Bob forgot his cpap machine (for sleep apnea). He realized halfway down in the car and he didn't want to turn around. He promised me he wouldn't die in his half-sleep. Untreated sleep apnea is no joke, people.
• Bob and I both got sick.

OK, enough of that. Let's talk about the good:

• Rainforest Cafe. Not on my list of places I want to go, but Two was in heaven there. He said it was the best place on earth, next to Six Flags Great America, and he was going to write a story about it at school. I have to admit, even my cold heart warmed up to place when hearing that.
• Chicago Children's Museum at Navy Pier. Two and Three really enjoyed it there. Great firefighter exhibit, building area, water splashy area, and much, much more. Three could have spent all weekend there and been very, very happy.
• Taking public transportation (mainly bus, but train too) around Chicago. Even when we took the wrong bus and ended up kind of lost, we had fun figuring out how to get where we wanted to go. Oh, and one of our buses got really bumpy going over an old bridge, which caused us all to laugh loudly and bounce around.
• The Field Museum of Natural History -- at least for Bob and One. Two and Three were less into it. ("This is stupid. Why are all of the animals dead and behind glass? WHY CAN'T WE TOUCH ANYTHING? Why do we have to walk so much? I don't want to wear my coat. MY FEET ARE HOT!")
• The Willis Tower, formerly known as the Sears Tower. Although the wait was practically unbearable, One and Two and I eventually got up there and had a great time on Floor 103. (Three and Bob opted to stay down, which was a brilliant decision.) There are these sky decks up there that were quite freaky. One and Two bravely went out on them, and that was just waaay too much for me. They pleaded and begged for me to go out on it with them, and, when my hands were in a death grip with theirs, I stepped on it. For about 1.5 seconds. And then I wanted to faint. See picture below. Seriously freaky, people.
• Ikea. Enough said.
• Deciding to head home early and sleep in our own beds Saturday night. Two nights was enough, we decided. We left after our evening Ikea trip, so the kiddos slept and we talked. It was almost like a date.

We learned that we are some years away from taking a big trip together somewhere. I had a fantasy earlier this year that maybe we'd be able to drive out to Baltimore this spring break, but no. Not yet.

So, some pictures.

First, two of Chicago's finest.

My attempt to find peace at the Field Museum. We sat in this mock bus, watching a film about a mother and her baby taking a bus around somewhere in west Africa. There was good African music. We looked for Uncle Mark, Aunt Aisha, and our friend Tijani (all of whom have lived in Africa). I gave the kids candy, and we zoned out.

Here it is! The sky deck of death. I'm getting queazy just looking at this picture.