july in an instant

You start out with Utah, throw in a little heat and humidity in Iowa and end with Cancun. 

July was basically an Iowa sandwich with a really tasty bun on both ends. 

Throw in some swimming, star-studded golf, Nauvoo, neurology and GRANDMA and you've got a pretty great month. 

spring break in mis-wok-ee

It wasn't until about two weeks before spring break that I realized Leah had a neurology appointment in Chicago smack in the middle of our free time during the break. With me getting home from Salt Lake on Tuesday, we only had the end of the week to play...and her appointment was on Friday afternoon. These aren't just appointments you can reschedule - unless you're okay waiting six months. And we're not. I was a little bummed seeing as we wanted to go somewhere new (Chicago is lots of fun, but we've done it a few times and wanted to explore!). Ryan suggested Milwaukee and I wasn't over the moon about it, but figured it was better than nothing. Just a short drive north of Chicago, it was the best option for the amount of time we had given her appointment. 

We arrived a little later than we would have liked, but still took some time to explore the area near our hotel. We ran into the Fonz and Leah loved the elevators they had for her stroller on the river walk. Kate apparently had a rough day and relaxed by drinking a late night glass of water from a wine glass. 

The next day we explored Discovery World - an innovation, science and technology museum with hands-on exhibits. It had a music factory, an aquarium, an enormous exhibit of the Great Lakes and surrounding regions, a Les Paul exhibit and so much more. We spent hours exploring inside and out with a great, windy view of Lake Michigan...where we got a perfect family photo. (And, thanks to the reciprocal pass from our local museum, it was FREE!) 

That night, we walked over to the Milwaukee Public Market to eat. It was a hoppin' (read: crowded, notably so with a large special needs stroller) place to be on a Saturday night, but lots of fun. We ate some great food and bought some local popcorn to take home. We spent the night in watching a movie as a family. 

The next morning, we decided to hit up the Harley Davidson Museum on the way out of town. It was incredible! SO many Harleys from the first one produced in 1903 to current day. I loved the Harleys through history - especially the wartime effort, the wall of engine covers and, of course, all of the posters and ads. i can only dream of designing that well. We learned all about engines and tires and so much more. And we learned Kate was born to be wild. 

What a fun, quick weekend getaway with our girls to (ask Kate calls it) Miswaukee. It's fun to explore new places and learn new things!

A day in Dubuque

We took advantage of the holiday and Ryan's day off work today by heading to Dubuque, about an hour north, to go to the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium. 

We saw all sorts of wildlife found in the Mississippi (remind me to never swim in it!) - catfish, sturgeon, ducks, frogs, turtles, octopus, otters and more. We learned about steam boats (and dressed the parts), got reluctantly close to an armadillo and played in an historical train depot. 

On our way home, we stopped by Galena to grab some root beer at Ryan's favorite local store: Root Beer Revelry.

To sum it up: a good time was had by all. 

Leah the Lamanite

Tonight for Family Home Evening, we learned about Samuel Leah the Lamanite. 

Those Nephites princesses were relentless, but Leah won out in the end. 

And, according to our resident sugar connoisseur, the wall was delicious. 

chicaaaaaahgo

We decided to take advantage of Ryan's time off after Christmas and spend a few days exploring more of Chicago. We usually go for doctor appointments, so it was fun to have nothing on our agenda. 

While not quite as cold as last December's jaunt to the windy city, it was still a pretty chilly few days. The girls were troopers, especially when we walked away from the protection of the wind-blocking buildings and out to the museums around the lake. Brrrrr!

We logged plenty of steps and ate some seriously good food to more than make up for it. And I finally tried Garrett's popcorn, which is now a Chicago staple for me. We attempted Eataly, but after wandering for an hour, trying to find a place to sit with two strollers, we gave up and braved the line at Shake Shack across the street. Eataly will have to wait for an adults-only trip another time. We had a great time at the Adler Planetarium; and it was FREE because of our reciprocal pass from our local museum, which is always a bonus. We also made our obligatory stop at the Bean (where Leah was less than impressed, I guess, since she had seen it before - she fell asleep!). Kate's initial impression was not great but made for one of my favorite pictures. "But mom, I don't WANT a picture at the bean!" Sometimes two year olds are just plain fun. But she eventually came around. We also took them to the American Girl Doll store for the first time which is an experience of its own. 

The girls loved the hotel, especially Kate, who took a liking to singing "Let it Go" in the shower as loud as possible. I think Leah mostly loved the continental breakfast. 

Definitely a fun three days with my little family.