Chicago Trip, Day 5

What's a vacation without a trip to the beach?  So today was beach day and the beach the kids went to was on the shores of Lake Michigan.  Since I am retro-posting, I can tell you that going to the beach was Stella and Desmond's favorite part of the entire vacation, that and playing with their cousins!

Here they are in front of our townhouse before heading out to the beach, which was within walkable distance from our townhouse.

While at the beach, Des had fun throwing the football around...

...and playing with the water gun.

Stella had fun doing just about anything in the water...splashing in the waves, jumping over the waves, etc.  Look at the joyous smile on her face in these pics below!

The kids took turns burying each other in the sand.  First it was Ian's turn...

...and then it was Stella's turn!

The kids reluctantly headed home around lunchtime and after lunch, took naps, something they had been skipping because of all of the activities up until today. 

After dinner, we headed to Navy Pier, Chicago's landmark boardwalk on Lake Michigan.  We first went on the Ferris Wheel and got a beautiful aerial view of the city at sunset.

A family picture on the Ferris Wheel. 

Des came down with a cold today, but he was a trooper  and remained in good spirits for the most part. Here he is smiling away right after he went over to the other side of the Ferris Wheel to sit with Ommy and Poppa.

Des and Stella couldn't go on some of the rides their older cousins rode because they were not quite tall enough, but they all got to ride the carousel, over and over and over again!

Stella played miniature golf with her cousins (her first time) while Des stayed back with us.  

Here he is climbing the railing to get a better look at his sister and cousins playing miniature golf.

Des and Stella were tall enough to ride one of the "roller coasters" called the Lighthouse, which took the riders up and down a lighthouse for several minutes.  Stella and Des did not know what they were getting into so they were all smiles when the ride first went up.

But after the first drop, their smiles quickly turned to looks of fear and trepidation.

Stella's fear then turned into a mixture of fear and excitement at the same time (as you can see in the above pic), whereas Des was just plain upset and wanted to get off the ride.  The two girls that were riding next to them were screaming hysterically in excitement and soon, Stella and Des joined them.  The screaming, I think, helped Des tolerate the ride until it finished.  Then he was all smiles.  It was such a funny site to see his face and hear him screaming.  I so wish I had it on video.

We had an awesome time at Navy Pier that was capped off by beautiful fireworks on the boardwalk (which we didn't get any pictures of).  On the late ride home, we had one exhausted little guy who conked out as soon as we got on the road!

Chicago Trip, Day 4

Tuesday morning, the entire gang (minus me) headed out to the world famous Shedd Aquarium.  The kids did a lot of walking and had a great time seeing all of the cool stuff at the aquarium.

Desmond just loved this sting ray that was sticking to the glass wall.  When he came  home from the aquarium, he excitedly told me over and over about the sting ray and how it was sticking to the glass.  So cute to see his excitement!

Here are some candid shots of Des & Ian having a serious conversation about what they are seeing and Zoe & Stella consulting the aquarium map, figuring out where to go next.

You may have noticed from these pictures that the kids are wearing matching shirts.  They each have shirts with their nicknames and their ages on the back (the girls in blue and the boys in red).  Here are some cute posed pictures of the kids in their matching shirts outside the aquarium.

 

...with the beautiful Chicago skyline in the background

...from the front side

...sitting down

...and laying down

For dinner that night, we went to Ed Debevic's, a landmark diner in Chicago where the waiters talk to their patrons rudely and sarcastically.  Pretty funny!

Stella, Zoe, & Ommy posing while waiting for their food.

 

After dinner, Eli, Stella, & Ommy got complimentary desserts for their birthdays which all fall within weeks of each other.  Stella really enjoyed the loud singing done by the waitstaff.

...Blowing out the candles

 What a fun and full day the kids had today!

Professional Family Portraits in Chicago

As promised, here are the professional photos we had done in Chicago.  Stella, Des, and Eli (the three youngest ones) were the least cooperative subjects when it came to posing and smiling for the camera, but we did the best we could.

The whole gang.

The whole gang with Des looking at the camera.

 

Our Family.

Great Ommy with her great grand kids.

Great Ommy with her grand kids, Tara, David, & Marisa...

...and with Ommy & Poppa.

The 6 cousins.

Here are a few candid shots of the kiddos.

Des & Ian and Zoe & Stella.

The photographer asked the kids to roll down the hill and they just loved that.

I love this next series of shots where Zoe is putting on the clover necklace that she made for Stella.