Discipleship Bootcamp

Another post I just discovered that was stuck in draft mode and never finished. I believe it was 2008. Unfotunately the cute picture of Caveman is sideways (you can see his little cast sticking out from when he broke his leg.) Super cute to see the boys so much littler and think of what life was like almost 4 years ago!!! (7.16.12) Our stake Primary activity was in September. We had a "discipleship boot camp" of sorts, focusing on the four ways that Christ increased in his youth (wisdom, stature, favor of God and men) to teach the children how they could become better disciples of Christ doing the same.

Usborne Party

I am hosting an Usborne Party next Thursday, October 2nd @ 7:00 p.m. at my house. If you are in the area, I'd love to have you stop by and look at the books. There are lots of fun, cute and educational books for all ages. The prices are very reasonable and it's always fun to have an excuse to get together with friends! (There'll be food, too, if that's a clincher for you.) :)

If you don't live near me or can't make it next week (or if you just want to see what they offer beforehand) you can check out the books and place orders online at: www.robynsreading.com then click on my name in the right column (The e-show will run from today through around October 2nd). These would make great upcoming Christmas gifts for children, grandchildren, nieces and nephews, etc. I also have a copy of their catalog at my house if you'd like to look through it before the party. Let me know if you have any questions.

Yay for reading and good books!

We All Scream for Ice Cream

Chris' sister, Robyn, came down a few Sundays ago with her four kids. Her husband, Caleb, has been out-of-town working for the past few weeks (I hope for all of their sakes, he'll be home soon! They are troopers.) and Chris' parents were on a cruise to Alaska, so we figured we'd "host" Sunday dinner at our house. Chris made an amazing pot roast with onions and potatoes in the crockpot, as well as some delicious gravy with the drippings. The kids got along really well, which was very exciting! Ian is actually making a lot of progress in sharing and letting other kids play with his toys (not perfect yet, but a lot better than before!). Thankfully there was no screaming while they played together! :) We had ice cream leftover from Ian's birthday dinner the Sunday before and the kids were all excited to sit outside and eat their cones, as you can tell. We figured we'd give Abbie just a cone, but she was not very happy with this and immediately walked back to me, handed me the empty cone and said "attgh"! Kids are so smart, even when they are younger and we think we can slip stuff past them. Nope!

It's really fun to have Ian have cousins so close to his age. We're grateful to be so close to them; that was one of the hardest things about being in Las Vegas, so it's kind of nice to be looking for jobs in Utah. We'll see what happens, but being near family is an important thing for all of us, if it's a possibility and seems like the best option otherwise.

The Next Elders Infanger

My parents gave Ian this Sunday outfit for his birthday and he looks so handsome. He reminded me of a little missionary so I had to take pictures.
This picture reminded me of when we read scriptures with Ian at night--we read verses from his "big" blue Book of Mormon that we've gotten from the corresponding pictures/verses in his Book of Mormon Reader. In Las Vegas Ian started a few "scripture-reading" rituals. One was he would always say: "That makes us happy!" in a chipper voice right after we finished reading scriptures. He said it even after verses about murder and secret combinations. It was really funny. Most of the time he pays pretty close attention and will even repeat words we are saying, so I know he's listening, for the most part. But when he'd say this after verses like this, I'd just have to laugh and try to explain that it doesn't make us happy that that happened, but that we can choose a better way, and that will make us happy. The other habit he started was he would "have" to look through the pictures at the start of the blue Book of Mormon and label what they are. He knows Jesus, Joseph Smith, Christ visiting the Americas. He needs a little help with Lehi and the Liahona and Nephi on the boat. He forgets Samuel's name, but likes to say that he jumped off the wall. He often gets Moroni right, but sometimes calls him Ramoni (we giggle about that; I think that is a Cars influence). When we get to the page with Moroni putting the gold plates in the ground, our dialog goes like this:

Mom: Who is that?
Ian: Moroni
Mom: What are those?
Ian: The gold plates.
Mom: Where is he putting them?
Ian: In the hole.
Mom: Who finds them?
Ian: Joseph Smith [turning back to the picture of Joseph Smith]
Mom: What does Joseph Smith make out of the gold plates?
Ian: The Book of Mormon! [as he slams the book shut and looks at the cover]
Mom: And whose book is this?
Ian: Ian's! [hugging it, smiling, shaking side to side]

It is really cute! From the mouth of babes. It really is no wonder that Christ told us over and over to become as little children.This picture totally made me think of missionaries on splits! LOL. I am sure the local elders would kill for a ride like this to tract from. My cute boys. I am excited for them to be missionaries someday. I often mention to Ian that he will go on a mission when he is older. We have even started savings accounts for both boys, which is fun.

I also have been thinking a lot about serving a mission with Chris someday. I did not get the chance to serve a full-time mission when I was 21, but have started to read Preach My Gospel again and am striving to increase my abilities to be a better member missionary. I know I have plenty of room to grow in this area! My patriarchal blessing talks about missionary work, so I know it is a fear I need to face and with faith let the Lord increase my abilities and become a tool in His hands to bring people to Christ, because I know how important it is; sometimes it's just hard for me to open my mouth (About this at least! Maybe I just need to learn to start talking about the right thing!!)

Success?

Hallelujah! Ian got a nap today. He really needed one today (just ask Chris' sister, Robyn, or half the neighborhood who likely heard screaming coming from our house about 1:30 p.m.) Somehow we got through the meltdown and were able to read stories and were laying down on my bed. Ian started to get up and fight going to sleep, but I firmly told him that if he didn't lay down and take a nap today that he was not going to watch movie, PBS, or play pbskids.org on the computer for the next week. He immediately put his fingers back in his mouth and we both fell asleep within minutes.

Some may say that was overly harsh or that I am threatening my child. I really don't want to do either of those, but I am realizing that even though he is only 3 years old, I can't let him run things to the extent that he can refuse things such as naptime without some consequences. I honestly don't know that he is completely cognitively, developmentally or emotionally able to process these concepts, but at the same time, I know I need to teach him and not just give in because I am exasperated, or because it seems like the easier way out for both of us (it's often hard for me to follow through!). I know I don't always handled things the best or most appropriate way, so I am very open to suggestions on how I can be a better parent. I just got a book on children and discipline today at the library; I really am hoping I can learn some new skills that will help both Ian and I to be happier. Not to complain or anything, but I honestly don't know where they got the whole "terrible two" concept--I have to say I think the "terrible threes" seem more appropriate to me. Now that Ian is able to verbalize and do so many different things, it almost has become harder to handle situations, especially sometimes when I think Chris and I expect too much of him. I have to remind myself--he may be smart and know lots of words and can talk to us, but he is still only 3 years old! We definitely need to learn to strike an appropriate balance between realistic expectations and remembrance of his age and developmental stage.

I ending up sleeping for a few minutes this afternoon, quietly slipped out of my bedroom where Ian was sleeping peacefully and ate a bowl of soup (It was 3 p.m. by now...no wonder I was so ornery...I had missed lunch in all our "chaos"!) and wrote in my journal for about 20 minutes until Cooper woke up. But I was grateful for the few minutes of down-time I got, even if it wasn't quite as much as I would have like. Ian ended up sleeping until a little after 5:00 p.m. which I usually don't like letting him do, but I figured since he'd been so out of it lately and hadn't had a nap in days, I'd let the poor kid sleep. Which meant getting him to bed tonight was a little more or a challenge (he was still down by 8:30 p.m. so not too bad). He ended up wanting to sleep on my bed, which I decided to let slide and not push the issue, since oftentimes we are putting him there so he doesn't wake up Cooper anyways (this btw, was after he had already woken up Cooper a few minutes earlier when he left his bed searching for his blanket, Cookie Monster, who was already in bed with him...!). I am also realizing that I need to be more flexible. I am afraid my need for control and to have things a certain way probably ends up being hard on my boys. I definitely I learning a lot from being a mom! They are patient to put up with my mistakes and learning curves. Hopefully I am getting better over time.

More Funny Car Sightings

This morning we had an early WIC appointment at the County Health Department. As I hurried Ian and Cooper across the parking lot, our conversation went like this:

Ian: [Pointing to a black coupe] "Oooh. I like that car. What is it?"
Mom: "That's a Hyundai Tiburon."
Ian: [Pointing to a full-size white van]: "I like that one, too. What is it?"
Mom: "That's a Chevy van, Ian." [Sounding a little perplexed, but trying to be supportive, of course.]
Ian: "That one is hilarious!" [Seriously busting up laughing, pointing to a white car parked across the parking lot.]

At this point I was no longer paying attention to the make and model of the car, but was dying laughing myself because I could not figure out what Ian found so humorous about that particular car. On our way out the amusing car was still parked there, so I glanced over to see what it was--a Toyota Camry. I don't know about you, but I think there is something to be said about finding laughter and enjoyment in every moment of life. Leave that to Ian--it sure is a good example to me.

"I'm not tired."

Anyone who has talked to me recently knows I am going through withdrawals--and am kind of freaking out. Up until recently I have been accustomed to at least 2-3 hours (sometimes more) of quiet, "me," get-other-stuff-done-time while the boys are napping. Now the three-year-old (who will not be named to respect his privacy) has determined that naps aren't a necessity anymore. Unfortunately his behavior and emotions don't quite agree with this yet. So by about 3 or 4 in the afternoon we are experiences more frequent, intense meltdowns than normal (notice, I did not specify that those were coming just from the 3-year-old...) and by dinnertime I am counting down the minutes until we can put him to bed! In the last 2 weeks, I think he's probably had one nap; maybe two. I don't even think I'm exaggerating (Chris can correct me if I'm wrong).

Ian's usual reply to my efforts to get him down for a nap is: "I'm not tired." Well, the one day I was able to get him down, this is what I found when I went to check on him and wake him up so he didn't sleep too long (I know. I never want to wake a sleeping child. But Ian tends to sleep too long during the day and then wants to stay up late...so what do ya do?):
And yes that probably is drool on the blanket (for Chris' sake--Ian gets that from his mom, not his dad). Another Ian funny on that note--the other day we were in his room and he noticed his pillow was kind of yucky. He started making faces and commented about it. I tried to explain to him that sometimes he drools or sweats at night and that it gets dirty. Mostly Ian just looked more disturbed. Maybe there really are some things children don't care about or need to know...even if they ask...
I love that little bum in the air! I've been trying to put him on our bed in our room during naps, since Cooper has been so finicky with noise and I want to have at least one well-rested child! Notice the big, red, fleece blanket underneath Ian? On a slightly off-subject, but related note--if your 3-year-old has had a few dry nights and woken up with a dry Pull-up, the first night to try leaving him in big boy underwear isn't the one when you put him to sleep on your bed...without any extra protection between him and your down comforter...

Now our new "naptime" is quiet time on mom's bed reading stories and attempting to have Ian fall asleep. I, on the other hand, would be happily taking a nap during this time if it wasn't for Ian kicking me and then telling me very decidedly that he is done having quiet time (and Chris thinks I wear the pants in the family...).

Chocolate Hoodies

We headed out to the library for storytime last week and since it was a little chilly outside, I figured it was a good excuse to don the boys' new hoodie sweatsuits from Grammie and Granddad (Thanks again for all the clothes! You spoil us so much, but we are very grateful!). It also was a great opportunity to take pics of the kids! Plus, I love how their brown eyes match their outfits almost exactly--it's so cute! I love my brown-eyes boys. :)
Ian was excited about his VeggieTales movie from the library. I honestly can't remember why he was making this face, but as always, Ian comes up with something new and humorous.
They were being so dang funny making Cooper laugh.
Notice those teeth...he has 6 so far and is working on 7 and 8 right now. Crazy how many teeth he is getting all at once!
And Cooper learned to clap! He must have been inspired during storytime (since they clap after everything there) and picked up this new skill. It really is so fun how much he is learning; he can sign "more" and likes to point at things. He gets really excited when I offer his a sippy cup with juice or water, which he is getting pretty good at drinking out of (he prefers dumping it if he has c choice...) He claps at everything now, especially when Ian is doing funny things, which is often.

Learning Curve

No one who knows me even a little bit will be surprised to know that I have been teaching Ian about cars. It's just natural for me, and I can't even enunciate how proud I was when, in mid-July, Ian started to ask us questions about the cars he would see in the parking lot. Friday night Ian and I were walking across the parking lot of our local Smith's and we were looking at all the cars. He was riding on my shoulders and we were having the following conversation:

Ian: I like that car. We should get one of those.
Me: That is a Jeep Grand Cherokee. I like those, too.
Ian: Oooh! I really like that one, dad. What is it?
Me: That is a chevy suburban. Let me guess. You like that one because it has two tv sets in the ceiling, right?
Ian: Yeah. It's pretty cool. We should watch Cars.
Ian: Whoa! What is that one, daddy? I like that one.
Me: Which one? The brown one? That is a Jeep Wrangler Unlimited. I like that one, too.
Ian: No, Dad not that one.
Me: The silver Chevy Cobalt?
Ian: No, Daddy! The red one. (he points)
Me: Um, Ian... That's a shopping cart.
Ian: I know. I get to drive them at Macey's. They're pretty cool.

Now, riding lawnmowers, I get. Go-karts, I get. Heck, I even like electric motorcycles. But shopping carts... Wow.

I guess we probably could fit a small-block chevy in there...

Sad but cute!

On Friday I was getting ready for our Stake Primary activity that was the next morning, so I stopped by my parent's house in Pleasant Grove to grab a few things. Cooper had been a little bit fussy when we got there, but then quickly got down on the ground and starting scooting around and pulling himself up to things. He found a nesting doll he wanted to play with so I set him in the living room floor with it and continued talking with my mom in the kitchen, which is right next to the living room. The next thing I know I see Cooper trying to stand up on the floor right below the stairs that go upstairs and then sit back down pretty hard and started crying. I was pretty sure that Ian and Isaac had just run upstairs, so I figured maybe he was upset that they were gone. He knows how to crawl up the stairs, so I assumed he was just frustrated. It was time for him to eat, which he did so reluctantly, still a little bit fussy. After feeding him he was still crying and we could not figure out what was wrong with him! My mom took him outside for a few minutes, then for some reason I ended up sitting back down with him in front of the steps where he had started crying in the first place. He was still really upset, and I wondered if maybe he was constipated (he gets really upset sometimes when he is pooping!) or tired or teething...but this seemed different. I was holding him and seeing if he would stand up when I realized that he would not put any weight on his left leg! My mom (who is an RN) felt his lower leg and he did not like that at all. So we wrapped it up with an ace bandage and decided to watch him for a little bit and see what he did, since we could not figure out what had happened that would have hurt him...but he still continued to baby it, being careful while scooting and when he did pull himself up to standing, he was wobbly because he couldn't figure out how to stand with just one leg (He looked like a flamingo! It was kind of funny).
So Cooper and I headed for the BYU Health Center. Cooper was really in good spirits most of the time (luckily he slept for a few minutes on the ride there, since of course it was naptime by then). He smiled and waved to all the people there and was friendly with the doctor. He really didn't like the x-ray or when the doctor touched his leg. From the x-ray it looked like everything was okay. But when the doctor zoomed in she said there were two places she wondered about, but that the radiologist would have to look at them on Monday (ya love how these things always happen on the weekend...). She said it looked like a "buckle"; to me it looked like a small chip had come out of his leg in two places, about an inch about his ankle. So she said to keep it wrapped, give him Tylenol and bring him back on Monday to see the orthopedic specialist.

Cooper did pretty well all weekend. He was fussy (but also is teething; almost has his 7th and 8th tooth already!) but we kept him on the Ibuprofen and Tylenol, so we made it through. On Monday we saw the specialist (who had NO personality whatsoever! I made a joke and was met with silence. Nice.) who said that the radiologist read the x-ray as normal (weird) but that he thought it didn't look quite right and Cooper was definitely still sensitive there when the doctor messed with it. The doctor called it a toddler fracture. Children's bones are so elastic still that they usually are pretty resilient, so the doctor said he would have had to fall pretty hard for this to happen (still not sure how that happened...!) It is a simple fracture so it's not broken through or anything, but the cast should keep it stabilized so it could heal more easily and that if Cooper fell again or was played with too rough by his older brother (not that that ever happens!) he wouldn't injure it more.

Cooper didn't even seem to notice the cast at first. He was really good while they put it on and was more interested in his seatbelt in his car seat after we got in the car to leave, than the cast. Since then he plays with it some, but otherwise is playing and scooting around like normal. I've had couple people tell me that it's so sad to see him with the cast, but that it's also kind of cute. I have to agree. He will have it on for 3 weeks, which isn't too bad. The doctor said oftentimes little guys will scoot right out of it, so if we can keep it on at least 2 weeks, that would be good. We'll go back to the doctor in 3 weeks. The hardest part right now is sponge bathing him since it can't get wet. Mostly it's sad because Cooper LOVES baths so much and has been so cute splashing and playing in the water lately. So that is our most exciting news this week!
Still moving around--no problem! He was completely fascinated with Chris' tax book. More than Chris is, I'm sure.

So Proud!

First off, I apologize for the lack of pants (just ask our neighbor, Becky Williams, it could be worse!) but it's fitting considering the moment. This is Ian choose his daily potty prizes that he worked so hard to earn the previous day. As I mentioned in a previous post, when Ian goes in the potty all day (poop and pee; no accidents), he gets to choose a little potty prize the next morning. Some may call this bribery, but heck, at this point, whatever is going on is working so at $.20 a piece about anything is worth it right now. Kudos to Zurchers for their little toy bins. Ian had a great time picking out the prizes to put in his potty prize bucket.
Since it is part of being a parent to brag and be proud of you child, I am going to do just that. I was starting to go so discouraged about potty training. Chris will be the first to tell you that I was ready to give up and was honestly being a big brat about it. But we transitioned to underpants almost all the time (except at night, which is our next step when this bag of night Pull-ups runs out) and I think that has made a world of difference. We've definitely had our moments of frustration; it's not perfect yet and I have cleaned up accidents in more unique places than I'd like, but it's been worth it. I am SO proud of Ian! He has started to tell us when he needs to go, which is a huge deal! So if you are hanging out with us and you hear Ian say he needs to go, help us out and yell for us or run with him. He is doing an awesome job! For anyone out there who is still battling, be patient. It will come when they are ready. And when mom is ready to give what it takes, as well (hey, I can be humble--I'll readily admit that I wasn't ready to be potty training for the previous 6 months!).

Maybe I can be crafty!

Anyone who ever knew about my last cross-stitch knows it was a project that spanned many years. I began to wonder if I would finish it before I had grandchildren, but I finally did finish it before Ian was born and am super proud of my accomplishments. I love seeing it hanging in the boys' room.

So when we got some cute "IAN" block letters from our friends, Jared and Julie Bristow, when Ian was born I did the most sensible thing I could--I hung them on the wall just as they were--nice, lacquered white. Then of course we had Cooper and I decided he needed his name on our wall too. So I went to Roberts and found some letters. But these were unfinished, so of course I had to paint Ian's too. And rather than making the project as simple as possible (let's be honest, I know nothing about painting) I decided that I'd paint the front of the letters blue and the sides accent colors from the boys' room (red, cream, green). This ended up looking super cute when it was done (I'm glad I did it) but ended up being a huge pain during the process! I will have to post pictures when I get them hung up, but they are finally done (after about 9 months!).
So here is my evidence that I can be crafty. Actually it was pretty fun. What I've realized is that I don't just sit down and work on other projects well (unless they are on the computer or involve my calling or responsibilities like Law Partners). This really helped me realize I need to take time for myself and hobbies. Like I need to play my poor neglected piano...there are a lot of things I have let go over the last few years. I think being "busy" with school and kids, I have forgotten to let myself be and fill my life with things I love. Sometimes I am not even quite sure who I am or what I like or want to be or do. Anyways, I am trying to recommit to doing more of the little things that matter instead of staying busy with lots of things that probably aren't as important for my personal and family's well-being. Maybe this is one of those "good, better, best "that Elder Oaks spoke about a few conferences ago.

I also have to note that while I was having fun finishing my project in the living room, Chris was in the kitchen baking Ian's birthday cake:
What a cute daddy! I will post soon about Ian's birthday, including pictures of Chris' awesome decorated cake. I love that there are no gender boundaries in our marriage as to "who" does what. I have to say we have a pretty dang good set-up. Brad Dowd, a mutual friend of ours from Pleasant Grove (actually the person who set us up on our first "blind" date) always told Chris he would make someone a really good wife because of all the things he did, like cooking. I definitely can't complain about the balance and contribution Chris brings to our marriage and to me. I need him in so many ways!

I also just realized that as I am writing this post, Chris is--again--in the kitchen baking--this time it is chocolate chip cookies for me because I said a treat sounded good tonight. What a sweetheart. I definitely am so lucky. Oh, and while I'm on the subject and bragging about Chris' cooking and kindness, he made Sunday dinner yesterday and a vegetarian lasagna (pretty much made up the recipe, his first time doing one like this) Saturday for my newly assigned visiting teachee, Casey Jensen, who just had twin girls last week. The Jensens were more than impressed. I told them if it was good I was going to take credit and if it wasn't, I'd tell them Chris made it. Of course, they said it tasted great and I ended up giving credit to Chris anyways. He is cute about cooking. I like that he enjoys doing it, and I definitely can't complain if he likes doing it!

Cooper's New Tricks

Pulls himself up to standing position next to whatever he can get his hands on!
"I got it!" (grabbing Ginger's tail; Ginger wasn't a big fan of this one)
Scootin' around--he has this funny almost lizard-like scoot, where he moves his arms/hands back and forth to move forward. It's super cute. He's getting pretty fast.
He is starting to get up on his knees and crawl for "real" a little at a time. Usually he ends up quickly changing back to his scoot.

Cute Kid!

I know it's no surprise that I can't get enough of Cooper. He just keeps getting cuter and more fun every day (every week, for that matter, Chris!). There is just something about him that melts my heart. He wasn't a big fan of the hat, but I thought it was adorable! Notice the red shirt--it was Chris' when he was a little boy. I love dressing the boys in stuff that was Chris'. I guess it goes to show that fashion really is cyclical. That, and I think it might mean Chris is old.

He's Come Alive this Year!

Chris' mom gave us this toy to give to Cooper for Christmas last year. We almost felt a little silly giving it to him them (we felt silly giving him about anything at that point; he was only 17 days old) but 9 months later, it's amazing how much Cooper has changed! He is motoring around, playing with toys, making car noises and driving them around, and my personal favorite, terrorizing his older brother (or at least that's how Ian sees it). I think I'm starting to realize why older siblings need younger siblings--they need someone to help them learn to share and be nice. Remember, I am the oldest in my family...hmmm...I have 7 younger siblings...maybe I am slow at learning.

Chicago Blog-- Day 2 Museum of Science and Industry

So, Day 2 in Chicago was scheduled for the Museum of Science and Industry. The museum is only about ten blocks away from the apartment where we were staying, so we walked south with the boys as soon as Cooper woke up from his morning nap.

Alan and Melanie had headed down about 45 minutes before we did (their kids were ready before Cooper woke up), so the first place we went was to the ice cream parlor in the Old Chicago section of the museum. Both Cooper and Ian had milkshakes and Ian had a PBJ and we were all fueled up and ready to go.

I'm not sure if this is the same spoon that Cooper had on the airplane the day before, but he sure seemed entertained by it! He was a good boy the whole time we were there and shortly after this picture moved into the Moby for another nap. Robyn and Caleb gave us this umbrella stroller for Christmas, and it was great unless you were on a slick surface... MSI is a couple hundred thousand square feet of travertine. I was about ready to smash the wretched thing because without any friction the front wheels turn in and it persistently refuses to travel in a straight line. I'm pretty sure that they invented an eighth circle of hell for the sadistic and nefarious designer of this particular torture device.
When Jenny and I were at MSI last year, we saw this exhibit and were just dying for Ian to see it. They have an entire automated assembly line with all of the spiffy robots doing the sorting, assembling, sonic welding, testing, et cetera of a little gyroscope that you can order in three colors and with your name laser etched on it. It was fun to watch the robots work and I wasted no time helping Ian scan in our little order slip. (I might have been a little excited about the robots, too.)

Once you scan in your order the system places it in the queue.

Then you watch as the robots sort out the parts for the colors you picked, install the bearings, retainer ring, antenna tip, and weld them all together with ultrasonic pulses. I think that Ian thought that the robots were cool, because he was definitely enthralled by what was going on, but I am not sure how much of the linear process he got. We had fun anyway.

This is what we were looking at through the glass. We actually got to watch the whole process three times because the first two times Ian's gyroscope was assembled it failed the quality control check at the end of the assembly line. I'd say we definitely got our five bucks worth. If you look closely, you can see the little purple gyroscope in Ian's hand; it looks just like the blowup on the display above his head. The first words out of Ian's mouth just about every morning from then until we got back from Chicago? "Daaaaaad! Where's my spaceship?"

MSI has what must be one of the largest model train installations around. There are dozens of trains running around through about 5,000 square feet of display space with synchronized sound effects and lots and lots of details. It must be some model train fan's dream job.

Part of the display is a scale model of the downtown Chicago area from Michigan Avenue going east out to the river. Right here I am pointing out to Ian where we popped up from the Metro station right by Millennium Park. Some of you may recognize that building from Adventures In Babysitting. It's the Smurfitt Stone building, just in case you were curious.


I got a kick out of the things that Ian really found interesting. I was nerdy enough to want to read about the oversize drive wheels fitted to this steam locomotive which allowed it to set a land speed record at one time. Ian and Peter were more interested in having a discussion over whether they were seeing bear tracks or deer tracks. Funny kids!


I'm not sure if you have to have a learner's permit to drive one of these things, but I am pretty sure that if this was the real thing that my insurance agent would rapidly develop an ulcer. Cooper spent a lot of the trip hanging out in the Moby. He was a good boy about taking naps in there, but he never seemed to grasp that his was the best seat in the house.

One of the displays which is kind of a tradition at MSI is the hatchery-- one end of the display has an incubator for the eggs where you can watch the chicks peck their way out. As we were looking through the glass it occurred to me that hatching eggs is a way better way to have offspring than doing the whole pregnancy thing. Seriously. While the kid is being born mom and dad can be of celebrating and having dinner together. (Or, in the case of chickens, being dinner together... ) I'm going to suggest to Jenny that we try this one as an alternative birthing method.

The other end of the incubator holds the chicks for a few days until they get shipped off to wherever it is that they go (my bet: Foster Farms. Hey, someone has to pay to keep the warming lights on.) With the attention span of our toddler, the 4-12 hour span it takes for a chick to get out of the egg was not nearly as enthralling as watching the little fuzzballs run around.

Cooper even seemed to get that there were cute things there behind the glass. There is one picture that didn't turn out very well where Jenny has turned to try to get Ian's attention and you can tell that Cooper is unhappy about having his view obstructed.

It will come as no surprise that my very, very, super-duper, uber-favorite part of the whole place is the U-505 experience. This is an actual German submarine which was captured during WWII by an American hunter-killer task force. The story of the capture and the subsequent intelligence coup reaped by the Allies is fascinating, but no less fascinating is the story of the red tape, technical planning, restoration, historical fact-checking and engineering which resulted in it's being towed across four of the five great lakes, hauled out of the water, across a freeway and installed at MSI-- and then it was moved all the way around the building and installed in this underground exhibit after fifty years of being on display out in the sun. Pop culture tidbit: the engine room of the U-505 was used for filming a number of sequences in the movie U-571. I bought a book and have been reading up on it. Love it!

The display is dimly lit in order to slow the degradation of the decking and other materials on the sub (and it gives a very cool ambiance because they variegate the lighting to look like you are underwater), but it makes taking pictures very tough without auxiliary lighting.

One of the attendant submarine displays had you try to trim the ballast tanks in a mock sub. I figured that since I had read a fair amount about subs and had a pretty good idea of what you were supposed to do I would be a whiz at it.

Ian totally kicked my butt. It's harder than it looks!

You pass through the circus area on the way back from the submarine. Ian roars!


We had to coax Ian into the seat of the tractor, but he thought it was pretty cool once he finally got in. What tractor? Where? I'm still playing with my spaceship!



Ian came up with this all on his own-- there was no coaching. I cracked up.


There is a very thoughtful children's play area called the Imaginarium. We went in so that Ian and Andre could play, but Cooper thought that the little water toys were awesome. We need to get some video of him in the tub, because he just goes nuts when we let him play in the water.

I love the look on Cooper's face here.

I'm tired!
This was one of the coolest things that they had in the Imaginarium-- it was a water kaleidescope. They had all of these plastic beads in the water and little pumps for stirring them up and then the orange tube you can see in the foreground has mirrors mounted in it so that the swirling beads created a really cool effect. Cooper (and I) got a big kick out of just watching stuff flutter around in the tank. Jenny was great about making sure that Cooper got some play time.


Thankfully, the museum had the forethought to include pint-sized slickers along with all of the water-based displays. The only downside to the slickers was that we just kind of turned the boys loose to play, and it was dang hard to get their attention after we told them it was okay to just go play!
This display had different colored lights that cast different shades of shadows. Most people just stuck their hands under the lights. We just stuck the whole kid under there.

Coming soon: Day 3!