Hunter & Alyssa Visit Chicago

We started at the beach Monday morning.  It wasn't sunny, but it was fun!  We skipped rocks, splashed, waded, and finally got all the way in the COLD water!  Alyssa is a fearless little daredevil--she was the first to go all the way in.  Hunter & I couldn't let our little sis outdo us, so we both followed!

Sand Art!

Hunter missed football practice & weightlifting, so we thought we'd give him a workout by having him carry the milk home :)

We also went to the Lily Pond (where Hunter may or may not have gotten poison ivy) and the zoo.  It is so much fun having Hunter & Ki around--they make everything exciting!

Later Monday night we went to Molly's for cupcakes!  Yummmm :)  I love this place!

And we shared some wings at BWW to watch the end of the Stanley Cup Finals.  Travis was so excited when the Hawks won!  This also means the Millars owe us dinner...yesss! :)

Yesterday we took the train downtown, and rode a bus on our way home--Alyssa's first time (that she remembers) on public transit!  Thanks to his trips to San Fran visiting the Hightowers, Hunter was a veteran.

And even though it was a rainy day, we all had a blast downtown.  We saw the bean, walked the Mile, had lunch with Travis, and explored the Brain Store and the Lego Store.

Dad drove up today to join the fun! He brought us lunch and then we went to the beach.  He waded in the water right along with us, skipped rocks, and took pictures and videos to document the day :) It was great to have him here!

 Big thanks to Mom and Dad for letting us steal their kids for a few days--definitely a highlight of my summer here in Chicago!  We were sad to see you leave, but we'll see you again soon! We love you!

--Travis & Holly

It's All Travis' Fault

...that we're having so much fun! Seriously, I have to give a big shout out to this boy.  He makes sure we have something big planned almost every day, and I have LOTS of evidence to prove it. This is gonna be a long one, folks. Take it easy.

Since I last posted, Travis and I:

• Went to the Beach down the street--BEAUTIFUL! We passed a Lily Pond on the way and thought of Lily! Miss you, cutes!

• Went to an Art Festival Downtown

We contributed to this lovely piece

• Went to the Field Museum!

Chicago loves their Blackhawks! (And so de we!  Millars, your Bruins are going down!)

Travis really loved this museum.  He got emotional during the exhibit that explained the extinctions of different animals and plants :(

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  Irish...Somethingorother. One of Trav's favorites in the "Mass Extinction Exhibit"

  
  
  

  

  SUE!

• Explored Shedd Aquarium!

• Shedd was fun, but Trav & I agreed it's a tad overrated.  You just can't beat SeaWorld (or the Indy Zoo's Underwater Dolphin Dome)!

  
  

  

  It started POURING on our way home.  This tunnel filled up with refugees and we all partied for a good half hour or so.  We were sitting on a pedestal and got stranded by a freak flood!

  
  
  
  
  

  

  This is me in a sea of legs.

  
  

  

  
  

• Saw Chicago from 103 floors up!

SkyDeck of the Willis (formerly Sears) Tower!

I'm sorry to report that Travis fell off of the top of the building.  I didn't have time to help him because I was snapping this picture of the event.

• Ate Deep Dish at Girodano's...it truly was delicious.

Travis LOVED it!

• Saw some Monets and Van Goghs at the Art Institute of Chicago

Trav loved this exhibit of miniature rooms

• Stopped by the Blues Fest in Millenium Park

• Walked the Streets of Chinatown

It's fun to be with Travis as he relives Mission Moments :)

• Visited the Blues Fest at Grant Park

Buckingham Fountain at Grant Park

• Learned about the universe at the Century-Old Adler Planetarium

This thing is 100 years old and was used to teach naval officers about navigation during WWII

Travis fell asleep...

...while I was trying to teach him about the planets.

We found this sweet beach next to the Planetarium--definitely going back!

• Stayed at the Museum of Science & Industry until it closed.  This was my favorite--I could have spent days in there, reading, learning, and playing.  There was an exhibit about babies and I thought of Caitlin and Laura!

Newborns in the chick hatchery!

This museum was so cool! They had so much, we didn't even get to see it all before it closed.

• Saw Camels and Polar bears at the Lincoln Park Zoo! 

Camels: The new addition to Travis' Favorite Animals List!

This cute little meerkat dug a whole, sat in it, and watched as all the other meerkats ran around and fought, etc.  We watched him for a loooong time!

• Attended a Rather Foggy White SOX Game!

Welcome to Cellular Field!

It started off as a beautiful night!

Then the  fog began rolling in...

White Sox scored 2 runs in some pretty thick fog!

When the field turned so completely white that we couldn't see over the rails, they delayed the game.  We headed home, but the Sox went on to beat the Bluejays!

We have had so much fun, and it's not over yet! We have about 3 more weeks here in Chicago and still have lots planned! Thanks for a great summer, Travis :)