Dark Glass Ponderings

Arrived in Rochester at 12:41 a.m.  Chris (I've yet to think of brilliant blogosphere names for my family members) generously wiped the drool from all of our sleeping faces with wet wipes before we left the car.  Just jesting, although I was in a medication-induced coma for the last leg of the trip. Yes, we managed to drive Chicago to Rochester in one day, driving noon to midnight with two preschoolers in the backseat.  Yes, we are nuts.

Aside from the regular chores of unpacking the various useless goods we collected at various points along the way, hitting Wegmans for enough food to make it through the weekend without cooking, and vaccuuming a monster box of cheeziks as my kids affectionately call them from the floor of my Honda...we are resting. 

I decided to ask each family member their personal high point on the trip to Chicago.

Chris: "Coming home."  While we were touring the city, Chris was learning how to error-proof his data.  The more boring his job sounds, the prouder I feel of him.  Seriously, my husband is one smart guy. 

Elizabeth: "Seeing T-Rex." Seeing the infamous Sue at The Field Museum made for our most stressful day in Chicago, but it was worth it to hear my children gasp as we walked around around the most (add adjective...Sue's name is followed by a list of superlatives on the placard) Tyrannosaurus Rex. 

Getting to Sue was an adventure.  First we drove 10 miles to the nearest train station.  We watched the train pass as we pulled into the parking lot, so spent the next 45 minutes pacing through the outdoor station and herding children away from the tracks.  Then we spent 50 minutes on the train from Elgin Station to Union Station.  Its amazing the amount of sugar a mom will resort to in order to keep said children quiet on public transport.  There was not a single child on the train...except for mine, of course.  i noticed Chicago is not a very stroller friendly city. Traveling on public transport with strollers, a diaper bag that weighed nearly as much as my son ,and a purse stuffed with everything we didn't feel comfortable leaving in the hotel resulted in several glares as I desperately tried to fit it all in the 6-inch alloted space for my person.  I hunted out some nearby security to find out how to get to our station without using the giant staircases.  Then we took two separate buses into the city.  On both buses I eventually brought out the M&M packets.  Finally we were at the museum.  The ride home involved more of the same except it was rush hour and we were out of M&Ms.  On the 50 minute train ride I finally resorted to allowing my kids to do a seat dance while listening to kid songs on my iPod, as the suit-laden newspaper commuters glared. 

After studying dinosaurs in homeschool this last month, Sue was a must and worth every minute of the fuss.  After all, any mom can tell you, hearing that excited gasp makes almost anything worth it.  And as any homeschool mom can tell you, being peppered with questions from an excited learner makes absolutely anything worth it.

Noah: "Eatin' ice cream."  What can I say??  My two year old loves to eat and appreciates the finer things in life, especially if they include sugar.  I'm inclined to say that a Valrhona brownie with homemade coconut ice cream probably comes pretty close to the highlight of my trip, too.

Julia:  I'm inclined to agree with Liz that seeing a T-Rex skeleton for the first time was definitely the highlight.  Although I have to admit as a confirmed foodie and bookaholic I enjoyed shopping: Trader Joes, Whole Foods Market, The Olive Oil Place, Half-Price Books, and Lakeshore Elementary School Store. 

And of course I found some great books I'm hoping to review soon at Half-Price books, including several by fellow ACFW members.

So, in conclusion, if you plan on traveling with small children in the future...make sure your stash of sugary snacks is sufficient.