Happy Birthday Ivy!

We spent the night in Chicago to celebrate Ivy's fourth birthday. I did a terrible job at taking pictures (Luke is sitting on my lap listening to me dictate what I am writing. As I wrote the last sentence he said, "No you didn't I thought you did a great job." He's sweet but wrong.) Maybe Whitney's photos will fill in the gaps.

We stayed in a fabulous and historic hotel right on Michigan Ave. I, unfortunately, have no pictures of the hotel, its incredible pool, or the yummy breakfast we enjoyed.

We started with dinner at American Girl Place. It was really fun. They really moved quickly getting us seated and started. I was impressed-- they know that they are dealing with kids. Ivy and Luke both brought their bitty babies (yes, Luke has a doll and yes, he loves him. He's no longer nursing him though-- we convinced him that dads give their babies bottles). The dolls had their own seats, saucers and tea cups. It was all very cute and the kids really enjoyed it.

Here's the dynamic duo seated with their babies.

Noah was also entertained. He yelled and pointed at things the whole time.

Santa and his sleigh were made entirely out of Legos. We enjoyed a stop at the Lego store.

We ended the excursion at the museum of Science and Industry. They had some really great attractions for the kids. Luke loved the chick hatchery. I loved the embryo and fetus exhibit.


These kids have some seriously adoring grandparents. It's really wonderful to watch Doug and Barb with their grandkids. The only agenda that they have is to see their kids and grandkids enjoy themselves. I hope that I am on that same path towards selflessness.

Thanks for all the fun!