Chicago

We decided to seize the moment. We knew at some point we would do the historic Nauvoo trip but adding Chicago was a bonus.

We flew into Chicago first to spend a few days there touring the sites.

Our plane was delayed leaving Phx. Our shuttle service that was previously arranged to take us to the hotel upon arriving would not be open for our late arrival. (12:30 am.) So Scot made a few phone calls and told us all the he scheduled to have a limo pick us up. YAH right, we all said. He didn't say another word until we walked out off the plane and there it was! Our very own LIMO! The kids just about died! Now that's the way to start off a trip to Chicago.

Josh was pretty concerned prior to leaving for this trip. He was really worried about the different people we might encounter.

We'll he was spot on with that concern! No sooner had we pulled up to the hotel in downtown Chicago when a drunk lady approached me for some money! It was pretty late. There were other groups of african-american guys that were congregating by an alley way. Josh said, "See, I told you there were gangs!" The rest of our stay was fairly pleasant with the locals.

Our over-all review: A very clean, beautiful, and highly educational city.

We loved everything about it. All of us plan to go back.

OUR LIMO RIDE.

This was not the trip to sleep in. We told Jesse prior so he could be prepared for the early mornings. He did great most of the time. He was a trooper.

There was so much to go do and see that we ran the kids ragged. We visited the Shedd Aquarium, Field museum, the Planetarium all in one day! We fit a Chicago hot dog between our runs. The kids said it was the best hot-dog they've ever had. I have to say myself that it was a good dog. My pickle was as big as the dog. ??? Fully loaded with all the fixing's it was just enough to fill the hunger pains.

We loved the architecture all around us. Not only were there interesting things to look at inside these buildings but the buildings alone were so amazing.

Racing to beat the clock!

Olivia's friend had told her about this place down by the Pier. "THE BEAN" We had to see it. It is the huge structure that looks like a bean and is made out of some kind of mirroring material.

We spent most of one day at the SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY museum. The kids had an incredible time here. There was so much hands on stuff to explore. Everything from wind tunnel effects, how storms moved, avalanches and their formations, to how our bodies operate. You could have the computer take a picture of you and it would then show you what you would look like in 40-50 years! Now that was not so fun to see for Scot and I. :)

There was a whole section devoted to the gestation of a fetus. You could see the hair-like structures on the body. It was that detailed.

There was a section on the future that I thought was so neat. They had a model of a high-rise that was a whole community. Within that community they were growing gardens full of vegetables up and down the sides of the walls. So cool.

One of the highlights was to ride the city transportation where ever we went. From trains, to buses it was a fun experience. Even Jack carried his own bus and train pass. I could never get the hang of how the card was to be placed in the machine. The kids loved pointing that out.

Jack thought it was pretty special to have a stop named after him. So he thinks.

It was hard to pick what our favorite thing was, but, the Willis Tower formerly the Sears Tower was a HUGE highlight. Especially because we didn't think we were going to get Olivia up there.

As you can see she did. She was pretty proud of herself. She even let me take a picture of her on the clear glass openings.

The building is the 2nd tallest in the world. It was designed to sway with the wind. Let me tell you first hand.....IT DOES!!!

You could see planes flying close by that were lower than us!

We also took a shore cruise that went down the Chicago river between the enormous buildings. It was an hour long tour with a historian giving details all along the way. So interesting.

We spent 3 days in Chicago before heading to NAUVOO. I decided to do the Nauvoo trip on it's own Post. It can't be compared. Each amazing in it's own realm.