Chicago Trip

My friend Katie from Tennessee called me last week with an idea! (She is the mom of Ethan's best friend, Colin.) She said that they would be in Chicago visiting family over Labor Day weekend, and she wondered if there was any way that we could meet them there. Adam was actually off of work last weekend, and we were thinking of something fun to do. This was perfect timing!! Also, my sister, Carly, just moved there from Indiana a few days before so we got to see her as well. Below are some pictures from our trip. We had the best time!! It was actually our first family vacation!

Ethan and Colin in front of the ferris wheel at Navy Pier

Colin, Faith, Ella, Ethan, and Jade (Colin's sister)
Colin and Ethan had SO MUCH FUN playing at the beach!
Me and Katie at the Children's Museum--She is awesome!

Family picture before dinner

Carriage ride- The kids LOVED this, and it was the most beautiful evening!

Ella having tea with her new American Girl doll, Emily! This was an early birthday present :)

I had the best time having tea with Ella. I loved the one on one time with her! The black and white polka dot box on the table had conversation starter questions. Ella wanted to talk about every one of them. It was so special!

We even got the American Girl package at our hotel which included a bed for her doll that she got to keep!
Ella and Emily in their matching pjs before bed. In the background you can see the milk and pink cupcakes that they got in the evenings.

Ella loved getting Emily all tucked into bed. This experience was a bit pricey, but oh so much fun!
Aunt Carly and the gang before the show!
I love my sister! This was the best play ever! It was the kids first theatre experience and they enjoyed it as well. There was a lot of acrobatics--super cool! I am so happy that Carly got to come with us!!

We decided to explore on our way home from Chicago. Oh, how I love having the time to do this with Adam! I wish he was off of work every weekend!

We stopped at a gas station in Wisconsin, and I found a brochure for the place below. I thought it sounded really interesting! We got to feed pieces of meat to the alligators through holes in the wall. It was so cool to watch them go after it! We also saw an alligator eat a live rat. Only Adam, Ethan and I were interested in watching this! We also saw a two headed king snake and several two headed turtles. I thought it was neat. God's creation always amazes me!

We also hiked a few trails in a Wisconsin state park so that we could get a good view of some of the bluffs that were formed during the Ice Age. It was beautiful, but we were eaten alive by mosquitoes! I had fun learning with the kids about the Ice Age all week during school!