Chicago Revisited

This past weekend the boys and I took a trip to Chicago. Again. I know, I know we were just there but Jack had a bachelor party to go to and I didn't want to be left alone so I asked if I could go to my parents' house for the weekend. Turns out though, they were going to Chicago to visit friends and most likely didn't even want me there, but I invited myself (and the boys) to tag along anyways. 

I was somewhat apprehensive about traveling by myself with both boys but mostly because of the amount of stuff that is required to travel with a toddler and an infant. I definitely had to organize myself to the nines but I'd say overall, the round trip was a success...

 And this was with a 2 hour delay and all! Again and fingers WAY CROSSED, these boys are good travelers. Plus, I live for compliments and got a whole lot of them for hauling 2 boys through airports solo. Fairly certain the compliments and the compliments alone were what got me through the journey. It made me keep my composure when all I wanted to do was crawl under a rock and sleep for the next 20  years.

 But back to the Windy City...

Per our usual MO, we hit up the Field Museum and checked on Sue's whereabouts. She was still there, much to Jackson's surprise and he was EXCITED to see her! This time however he was also interested in the other animals on exhibit. 

Turns out Jackson wanted to see the bears this time and James wanted to see the dinosaurs! Funny huh? Last time it was the complete opposite. James was a huge fan of the dinosaurs (see below) and Jackson enjoyed telling Gigi stories about all the other animals. 

 

One in particular? He told Gigi he wanted to be a little bird when he grows up so he could fly so high high high in the sky sky sky. It was sweet :).

After visiting the museum we went across the path to the Aquarium. 

I'd like to tell you that Jackson was oh-so-interested in all the different fish species and the beautiful jellyfish, or the sting rays that he was going to get to touch, but no. He wanted to hang out at the penguin exhibit. The ENTIRE time. 

 

My mom and I really wanted to see all of the above exhibits but my dad quickly reminded us we were all on 'Jackson time' so to the penguin exhibit we went. There we sat for what seemed like an eternity while the boy ran around, played and even dressed up like a penguin until he was finally ready to call it quits. It was exhausting, but he had a grand time. 

On our way out Gigi and Abuelo took Jackson to the Beluga/Dolphin show while I tended to James and Jackson apparently fell in love with Belugas all over again... 

On that note we took off because we were all so drained and my parents and I had dinner plans anyways...

...some WELL deserved smoking martinis from Mastro's (thanks for rec Kate ;)).

The boys hung back and dreamt of T-Rex's, Belugas and birds that can fly so high high high in the sky sky sky...

They slept, well, like babies and were ready to conquer the day as soon as they woke up and had their lechita. 

AND bundled up. Fall definitely hit Chicago while were there. Or at least fall for us warm-blooded, heat-breathing Texans. It.Was.Cold. 

 

We had a whole lot of fun exploring Michigan Avenue--which funny enough, have never really done with the boys and they seemed to really enjoy strolling through the streets and going in and out of stores. 

 

We also made sure to stock up on warm clothes as we'll hopefully be hitting the slopes later this winter and it's somewhat difficult to find kids' winter clothes in Austin. This picture is hysterical. My dad took it and my mom says it looks like someone is holding Jackson for ransom...

 After a fun day of shopping and napping we ended our visit in the Windy City by visiting our favorite Tia's. They were so gracious for hosting my parents, the boys and myself to some lovely appetizers, adult beverages, and teddy grahams for Mr. Jackson. Can you tell he was happy to see them? This kid ADORES them.

 Thanks for the love Tia's! 

Chicago, once again you have won our hearts. Until next time, which won't be in another 3 weeks. Promise...maybe ;) Gracias Mami y Papi por un viaje divino y por toda su ayuda con los gordos. Love you guys!

A trip to CHI

Last week we took a family vacation to Chicago. My good friend Kate is having a baby in October and I helped host a shower for her there. Since James still needs me to survive we can't very well leave him behind, and, well, its just not fair to leave one and take the other. Especially when the other one is sooooo adamant about traveling anyways. 

So off we went. Here's a shot of our first flight together as a family of four: 

See, the boys are thankfully good fliers: 

Jack got us a condo near Millennium Park and all of the museums. While it was a ways from my friends, it was a great location for all of the sights we were going to check out anyways. 

 

First and foremost and the entire reason for this trip (if you ask Jackson) was to see the dinosaurs at the Field Museum. We had explained to the cub that some dinosaurs lived in Chicago and so he was dead set on wanting to see them.

 Can you tell he was a little excited? 

 James preferred the bears. He likes to think of himself as a little bear cub (he is one) and so he wanted to see what these animals were all about.

 Can you tell he was so intrigued?!!?

We ended our visit at the Field Museum with a 3D movie experience about Sue the dinosaur. We thought Jackson would love it, but as it turns out the film was just a little too scary (and SO loud) and so the boy kept asking to 'go to lunch' and 'hold him' instead. He didn't want to say he was scared so he kept yelling, "I want to go to lunch! Mi quiere sandwichito!!!!" instead. It was hysterical.  

We of course did as Jackson asked, but Jack and I couldn't stop laughing at his response.

 A little bit of walking and sightseeing later...

 ...and we ended up at the Lincoln Park Zoo. As you can tell from reading this blog, Jackson is a fan of all things animal related so he thoroughly enjoyed the visit...

 ...and so did James. He was his usual doll self :) 

 The next day was Kate's shower. It was beautiful and my friends did a spectacular job putting it together. I really hope she enjoyed it, she looked stunning!

 

Baby James and Baby Jackson were huge fans of all the Tia's that were there. My friends, Angie and Jo stayed with us at the condo and Jackson was OBSESSED with them. He wanted to play with them, sing and dance with them and he was SO excited to show them his very own bed. 

I'm so glad they put up with him and love these boys just as much as they love the Tia's. Jackson and James are truly blessed to have so much love from so many people. 

Our last day in Chi city was spent at Millennium Park where Jackson was free to run wild at the Crown Fountain. It's such a great attraction and the last time we were there he couldn't even walk yet so he definitely took FULL advantage this time around...

 James was a bit jealous of his older brother, but we promised him we'd bring him back when he can run wild. Hopefully it'll take longer for him to run though--these boys are growing WAY too fast :(

To my sweet friends--thank you for having us. To Kate--cannot WAIT to meet beautiful Noelle, and to the fantastic city of Chicago--I love you. Until next time, which will probably be sooner rather than later ;)