Willow's 3rd Birthday at Navy Pier

We planned a super fun day to celebrate 

Willow turning THREE!!!

We started with breakfast at Sunrise Cafe, 

our favorite neighborhood diner.

The server was so sweet 

about it being Lolo's special day

and even put a candle in the French toast.

A group of 6 police officers

eating at the next table 

sang "Happy Birthday" to her along

with the rest of the patrons.

It was so cute and Willow just loved it. 

Next up we headed to Navy Pier

to try out the new, bigger Ferris Wheel.

Willow was a little unsure 

when we first got on...

She held tight to Mommy & Daddy

as we reached the top.

Pretty soon she was having fun

and enjoying the awesome view.

Selfie at the top, 196 feet high!

Unsure of how long the ride was going to be,

we were pleasantly surprised when 

it went around 3 full times.

We also went up & down and up & down

 on the Light Tower ride. All smiles!  

We headed to Build-a-Bear next.

Willow insisted on this Batman bear,

which she promptly named Bruce

for her first ever Build-a-Bear experience. 

Mila lucked out too as we happened 

to be there on a buy-one-get-one free day!

We are members of the 

Chicago Children's Museum at Navy Pier, 

so we had to pop in and 

check the latest exhibits.

Willow has always been so good

at keeping herself busy.

She played in the water area

 as long as we'd let her.

It wouldn't be a trip to Navy Pier

(for our kids anyway...)

without a stop at the pretzel place. 

Later, Daddy took the girls to

Smith Park for some splash pad 

and playground fun. 

This kid is a GOOF

and she knows it. 

Sometimes we call her Chris 

because oddly enough she reeeeeally 

looks (and acts!) similar

 to the late, great Chris Farley.

One of these days she is going to figure out 

who we're talking about and be none too pleased. 

She brings SO much joy to this family!

And with that, folks, 

we have to let you know--

I'm putting the blog on the back burner for now,

and maybe forever. 

I started this right before Mila was born 

and I am so glad I did. 

It's awesome to 

look back at all the memories 

we've made as a family,

but the truth is we are busier than ever, 

and with the ease of Instagram and Facebook

(and the next latest thing I'm too lame

 to figure out) 

I don't feel the need to document 

in this form as much anymore.

Also...a confession. 

Despite my post earlier this summer

about sticking around Chicago, 

we actually very recently found a home in 

Ogden Dunes, Indiana

 that we could not resist.

And then sold ours in less than a day!

We are super excited,

 and if all goes according to plan 

will be making the move at the end of September. 

Please wish us luck

with our new adventure--

we're gonna need it!

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Weekend in Milwaukee

Last weekend we drove up to Milwauke

for some family time and to root on our Cubbies. 

We'd never been to Milwaukee as a family before, 

so it made for an extra fun adventure.

Our first stop was at SafeHouse,

a spy themed restaurant that "requires" a password to enter.

Surprises were around every corner--

checking out the puzzlers,

 secret passageways and spy equipment 

made the wait before the food extra fun for the kids.

Next up we headed to the Sprecher Brewery for a tour.

Of course the best part was the beer samples for adults 

and unlimited craft soda for the girls!

Having a little fun while

enjoying the generous samples.

After settling in at our hotel,

we piled into an Uber and headed to 

the Westown neighborhood.

I'd read online that Mader's German Restaurant 

was a classic, and good for kids 

with it's amazing giant pretzels....

Um, no. 

After we snapped this picture and got the menus

 things went downhill quick.

The place was very old-school, pricey and stuffy

and the kids were behaving like hooligans

(maaaaybe a little too much soda at Sprecher).

To top it off, they were out of the pretzels!

So, we apologized for messing up a table

 and then promptly left 

in search of a better fit for our family.

We walked around the block a bit and

decided to try The Old German Beer Hall.

The staff was very friendly

(Mila liked the Bavarian style 

dresses the servers wore)

and they served us a super yummy

GIANT pretzel and chicken schnitzel.

We spent the evening swimming at the hotel.

In the morning we walked to the Public Market

in the Historic Third Ward. Neat place!

We kept the good times rolling

with breakfast at Cafe Benelux.

I would definitely recommend it.

Great food, generous portions, neat old building--

the whole family loved it.

Time for some baseball!

Though we were in Brewers country,

 about half the crowd

sported Cubs gear.

Wrigley is tough to beat,

but this was a NICE ball park.

They offer plenty of great vendors, 

a little playground, 

free face painting and balloons for the kids.

And kids eat free on Sundays!

It was HOT at the park,

but the kids lasted until the 8th inning.

We listened to the game on the radio

 as we drove back to Chicago..

 CUBS WIN!
After a pit stop at Mars Cheese Castle
 for some cheese curds, we made it home--
happy, hot and hoping to visit
 Brew City again soon.

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Pure Michigan

Summer in the big city brings a lot of fun, but my favorite time to get out of town continues to be around Independence Day. Checking the Facebook neighborhood watch page to ascertain if those booms coming from Augusta and Western are gunshots or fireworks gets old pretty fast, so we planned a Pure Michigan trip for the week of July 4th.

After almost 12 (!) years on the near west side of Chicago, with kids and without (Oh, 10-cent wing night at Cleo's, how I miss you...) it's hard to picture another way of living. I'm not gonna lie, I really oughta just work for Trulia considering the amount of time I spend browsing it. Whether it's watching home prices around our "hot" neighborhood, dreaming about a future lake cottage, or checking out potential...dare I say it...suburbs, it's fair to say I'm sliding open my Trulia app on the daily. And there's always the pull of friends and family back home in West Michigan--

the kids seeing their cousins more, 

maybe some free babysitting, 

beers that cost less than $7 at a restaurant...

the list goes on.

Don't forget about those nights after the girls' bedtime, when I risk becoming a Mombie the next day because I relish my alone time a little too long with back to back to back episodes of House Hunters International and think, hey! Maybe we should just move somewhere entirely different.  Sell our stuff, pack up only what's absolutely necessary and live on the cheap (yeah, right--turns out the Faroe Islands have a SUPER competitive rental market, guys). The pressure is on, because just like every other parent I know, we want the best life for our kids. We're constantly trying to figure out what is best for our family (kinda tough considering neither of us can predict the future) because we feel the years are slipping away faster than ever before. And schools! We have to consider school systems more than anything, all while still being mindful, grateful and living in the present moment, don't forget.

So, for now, we stay put. I still keep my eye on the real estate market, but I try and be involved in our neighborhood, park district, and our struggling Chicago Public School. I remind myself how fortunate we really are. I like what these guys have to say about Minimalism and learning to live with less. Less stuff, less space. More experiences, which feels easier in the city. And we visit Michigan when we are able. We hit up as many of our favorite people and places as we can and discover some new ones too. Then we come back home to our neighborhood and crush on it all over again, appreciative of the differences we noticed while away (thankfully we don't come across many Confederate flags here in the Windy City...unlike a few lakeside towns that shall not be named. Don't worry Saugatuck, you're obviously safe here). We love the places we can walk to, the endless cultural options, the food, the diversity, the attitude, the energy. We love Chicago, fireworks and all...because even my Facebook friends who live in Small Town, USA complain about their idiot neighbor blasting those

 flippin' fireworks all week long.

Now for a whole lot of photographic evidence

of our awesome week in Michigan:

The new mini-golf course at

Captain Sundae in Holland

is genius.  

We took the girls on the Harbor Duck ride

in Saugatuck. It was a blast!

Livin' that Dad Life

at Phil's in Saugatuck.

Me with my two besties. 

Still hard for me to fathom that we girls made...

THESE GIRLS!

(Plus sweet baby Lincoln)

This rock at Douglas Beach has 

withstood kids climbing on it for over a century.

At Silver Lake we 

used Joel's parents' boat for tubing and 

zipping across to the sand dunes.

Love the pure joy on her face. 

Both Mila and Willow were fearless

on the tube!

Miss American Pie

So glad Joel took this picture--

We were singing 

"You Are My Sunshine" to each other 

at this moment. I'm surprised my heart didn't 

burst right there on the spot. 

We always enjoy the fish boil
(and the pie!)

at Cherry Point Farm in Shelby, MI.

It may look crazy, 

but our yummy whitefish dinner is in that pot, 

cooking to perfection. 

Nice mug ya got there, Daddy. 

The kids really liked playing by the channel 

at Silver Lake State Park.

Shortly before this trip, 

Mila discovered the band Kiss

on a Scooby Doo special.

She nearly wore our speakers out

(and Mom & Dad's patience)

listening to Kiss songs

 as we rolled down the road.

Happy 4th of July! 

The fireworks were shot off the top

of Sugarloaf, the tallest dune at Silver Lake.

In case you had any doubt...

Yes, she is our wild one.

Cap'n Daddy-O

No more swimmie diapers 

means saggy bottoms.

But, YAY! Lolo is now fully potty trained.

Mila and Dad braved the 

zip line at Craig's Cruisers.

We spent a day in Pentwater, MI.

What a cute little town!

Pentwater Rock City, LOL. 

We really got some amazing pictures 

this trip!

On our last full day at Silver Lake

the entire Vander Vliet clan

joined us for some fun in the sun.

Cousin pyramid!

Baby Sam stayed home, 

but next year he'll be on top.

Thanks to family, friends and Michigan

for a wonderful week!

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