August 2008 – Not Content to Crawl

Chicago Botanic Garden

Posted onAugust 31, 2008March 19, 2011

Yesterday we decided to visit the Chicago Botanic Garden. I didn’t realize it had been three years since our last visit! Of course, the parking price went up from $12 to $15 which kinda stinks, but we got so many beautiful photos it was well worth the visit. The majority of the flowers had dew on them which was really pretty and made many of them shimmer in the sunlight.

We got there right around 7 am so it wasn’t very crowded for a good hour. Then my camera’s low-battery indicator came on, so we went back to the car to grab my little Powershot in case I needed it. Instead of following the normal progression we take through the gardens, we started where we normally end and made our way back to the beginning. This helped keep us away from the most crowded areas, which we had already seen anyway the first hour.

I got a few shots of a chipmunk which was exciting. They aren’t close-ups, however, since those guys are so skittish, but we never seen them anywhere but the Botanic Garden and Brookfield Zoo. I’m sure they exist elsewhere, but I’ve never seen one outside of those two areas.

I also “rescued” a Monarch butterfly. We were walking back toward the entrance when I stopped short of stepping on one in the walkway. I didn’t want to chance someone else squishing him, so I encouraged him to walk onto my hand and then he flew away.

We had a great time and the weather wasn’t terribly warm since we were there so early. The only problem I have with the gardens is they get super crowded quickly which makes taking photos, particularly landscapes, nearly impossible if you don’t want people in them (which I don’t). By the time we left at 10:30 am you could hardly walk through the visitor center it was so packed with people. It reminds me of Brookfield Zoo which is why we rarely go there anymore either.

After all that walking around we were hungry, so we decided to check out Longhorn Steakhouse for lunch. I had gotten a gift card through our Discover and we loved them when we dined in the Florida one on our honeymoon. We got there when they opened so we got a lot of personal attention from our waitress. Too bad she didn’t listen to us when we ordered. We didn’t realize until we got the check that she rang us up as having the sirloin instead of the filet we had both asked for. And I guess we’re dumb because we’re still not sure what was actually served to us. It wasn’t as tender as a filet, so I’m guessing we really did get the sirloin instead. What the hell? I clearly said “I will have the 7 oz Flo’s Filet” to which my husband said he’d have the same. So how the heck did she hear 8 oz Renegade? If it wasn’t for that, I’d have high praises for the place, but that really turned me off to going back there. I still miss Lonestar Steakhouse. All we have left by us is Outback and they suck.

All photos from the Botanic Garden are at Flickr.

KR @ WD

Posted onAugust 22, 2008November 30, 20082 Comments

That tiger cub photo is the highlight of our two-night stay in Wisconsin Dells. I’m by no means a water park fan, in fact I’ve never really been to one, and I’m still not a fan after our little trip. It wasn’t horrible, but I would have been happy with one day at the Kalahari Resort instead of two.

After checking in on Wednesday afternoon, we headed to the outdoor water area where I managed to injure my back halfway down the first water slide I went on. When I got to the bottom I went under because I had a hard time standing up due to the pain. I will admit, it freaked me out a little since I had just watched one of those Primetime Medical Mystery shows about Surfer’s Myelopathy recently. Luckily the pain has subsided since then!

After spending an hour or so outside, we spent a couple of hours in the indoor water park. It was better because there was no sun beating down on us. Plus it has a hot tub which I love (even though it wasn’t as warm as most hot tubs since kids are allowed in it). The indoor park also has some nice water slides you go down on in rafts instead of a body mat like the slide where I hurt my back. Their lazy river is fun, yet annoying because of the waterfall areas where you get drenched. Due to that, you spend more time worrying about getting soaked than enjoying the ride. The pool where the lazy river ends is pretty cool since it generates waves every so often.

Wednesday night we had dinner at Buffalo Phil’s Grille and then went to the arcade for a bit. Since we got the cheapest (which is all relative since it was not cheap at all) room available, we all went to bed at the same time. Or I should say tried to go to sleep since ignorant people (adults as well as children) were running through the halls and yelling after 10 pm.

Thursday morning we had breakfast at Paul Bunyan’s. I only recommend it for the atmosphere because as far as buffets go, it was ridiculous. $40 for breakfast for four people? That is insane! In fact, all the food in Wisconsin is terrible; it doesn’t taste good and it’s ridiculously overpriced. We ended up having lunch at Wendy’s on Thursday just to save some money. Then we spent four hours at the indoor water park and had pizza for dinner. The pizza was reasonably priced but wasn’t really good.

This morning we stopped at a place called Denny’s Diner (not to be confused with Denny’s) which was inexpensive and good. They have homemade bread which is super yummy. Better yet the bill was under $20!

In all, I’d say Wisconsin Dells ranks right up there with Branson, Missouri. You have to go once just for the hell out of it but you should never go back. Not unless you enjoy bending over in the name of “entertainment”. Even the miniature golf is over priced!

Next year we’ll be taking the kids to one of the local water parks for the day. It would even be cheaper to pay Great America’s outrageous prices.

Some photos from our stay. I didn’t get any of the water park since I didn’t want to leave my camera unattended.

Flicka Flicka Flicka

Posted onAugust 17, 2008February 15, 2009

I had such a busy work week that I didn’t have time to make specific plans for the weekend like I typically do, so we got a late start yesterday. For one, we slept until 9:30 am. Secondly, getting my husband to come up with ideas of things to do is like pulling teeth! After me insisting he come up with something, he suggested we check out this one grocery store way out in Plainfield because their Indiana store usually has the Butterball turkey polish kielbasa we can’t find anywhere else. I gave them a call first to check whether they had any in stock and once they confirmed they did, we poked around online to see if there was anything nature related out that way worth visiting.

Will County’s forest preserve website isn’t as easy to navigate as DuPage County’s site, but Joe managed to find Lake Renwick forest preserve which has a rookery where five species of birds, one of which is state endangered, nest together. It’s closed during the breeding season and yesterday was the first day it was available to the public. Unfortunately, without a better zoom lens, we just couldn’t get any good photos of the birds. We did come across some crazy looking caterpillars, however. I learned online that they are Milkweed Tussock moth caterpillars, to be exact.

After walking around about an hour, we were sweating to death so we went to the grocery store and got our beloved turkey sausage. Now we don’t have to rely on my mom to buy it from Indiana anymore. Yippee!

Today we got up a bit earlier and ran some errands. One of our stops was Walmart where we bought a couple of those reusable bags that I’ve seen a lot of people carting around. The plastic bags are out of control! It’s too bad Target’s reusable bags are so crappy. I’d much rather use a bag that says Target than one that says Walmart but the Walmart ones are sturdier and better designed, so what can you do?

Once we got home, Joe washed both vehicles while I cleaned the kitchen and dining room. He’s going to clean the rest of the house tomorrow before picking up the kids. We have them Monday-Sunday and Joe is off all week while I’ll be working Monday and Tuesday. Then it’s off to Wisconsin Dells for a few days.

No Tennis

Posted onAugust 10, 2008September 13, 2008

Well, we didn’t end up getting to play tennis after all because both courts were taken and despite driving around for awhile, we couldn’t find any parks that had any.

I just spent 45 minutes searching the park districts’ websites for the surrounding cities and learned we were quite close to a few during our aimless drive. I created a Google map with all the locations so next time we’ll have a backup plan. Yes, I am a nerd.

Exercise & Nature

Posted onAugust 10, 2008August 10, 2008

Friday evening after a healthy dinner of grilled chicken, potatoes, and veggies, we took the kids to Mallard Lake forest preserve to get some exercise. To make it fun, I gave them each one of our old Nikon digital cameras so they could take photos along the way, which they enjoyed. The only one who didn’t entirely enjoy the walk was Joe since the mosquitoes love to dine on him.

Saturday morning we bought the boy a tennis racket and played Pictionary Jr. and Disney Scene It while waiting for the rain to pass. We managed to fit 45 minutes of tennis between rain showers but ultimately had to head home when the lightning siren went off. The rain finally went away in the evening so we took a walk around the neighborhood after dinner.

After dropping off the kids this morning, Joe and I headed to Willowbrook Wildlife Center to check out the new sandhill crane exhibit. You can’t get good photos of them, or any of the wildlife they have on site, as a matter of fact, due to the way the cages are designed. We mostly got flower photos instead. They do have a butterfly garden but it was more like a bee garden today. Not that I mind – I love the bees. Oh, and we saw a baby raccoon as well.

We stopped at Trader Joe’s on the way home because I wanted one of their pizzas. $47 later we have pecans, almonds, dark chocolate covered raisins, tapenade, orange chicken, garlic chicken, chicken fried rice, bananas, sea salt, and some other stuff I can’t remember right now. We usually don’t buy that much stuff there but it all looked so tasty, probably because we hadn’t eaten breakfast!

After dropping the cameras and food off at home, we went to the mall where I finally found a bathing suit. It’s a lot more colorful than I usually go for, but it will do. Joe bought more stuff than I did which was a bit annoying. I couldn’t find any clothes I liked at New York & Company or Kohl’s, except for the bathing suit. I did get a cute Nike tote bag, though. I’m all about the bags, much to Joe’s chagrin.

I even got a new bag for my work laptop at Target. I hate the Dell one that comes with it, as do all of my colleagues who have laptops. It has sections to hold other stuff as well so I’m not dragging around several bags and feeling like a pack mule.

After dinner we’re going to go play tennis again. I forgot how fun it was until recently. We used to play regularly when we lived in the apartment but stopped for some reason after we moved.