Chicago

Over Labor day weekend we decided on the drop of a dime to take off for Chicago. So we packed up the family mini-van and made the 6 1/2 hour drive. To maximize the kids sleeping we left at 5am. By some miracle our kids slept until 9am and then we decided to stop in Madison Wisconsin to see one of the greatest Capitol buildings in the U.S. It was pretty impressive. Some of the stone that was in the Capitol steps was from 100 million year old stone that had fossil shells in it. Pretty cool. Does that make me seem nerdy? Well I just loved the tour of the Capitol.

When we arrived to Chicago we stopped at the temple for a visit. At our home we talk about the temple nearly everyday. You see its an important part of the princess stories, you know... Belle, Ariel, Cinderella, Snow White, when they live happily ever after it's AFTER they get "married in the temple". Brainwashing, teaching, same thing. But Maisie loves temples.

We headed into Chicago and decided to park at the airport and take the L-train into the city to our hotel. We feel like pros with public transportation after our time in NYC. We walked along the Chicago river to get to our hotel, and we were all excited about how cool the city looks with that River running right through it.

Our adventures include: Navy peer, magnificent mile window shopping, saw street entertainers, ate deep dish pizza, hotel pool (Maisie's favorite), a Chicago river boat tour, Sears tower, House of Blues, walked the river walk and carefully followed food recommendations from our sister-in-law Brittany, a real foody.

We loved our time in Chicago. The most important thing we learned was that the "windy city" got its name NOT from weather patterns but from people in the city talking up the city over 100 years ago. Well, we can see why they still talk it up. What a fun, energetic and beautiful city.