Visited a new forest preserve today – Pratt’s Wayne Woods. I got more photos of dragonflies today that I’ve gotten in many years combined but I had to post this frog photo because he’s so cute. You can check out all the photos I took today, including my favorite dragonfly, at Flickr.
Yesterday we took the kids shopping to get a few things to keep at our place. I was getting a bit tired of Joe’s son wearing these terrible knit shorts that don’t even match the shirts he brings. We bought him shirts but he took most of them home and the ones left at our place were getting too small. He does have some nice shorts at home but never seems to bring them over. I can’t trust that he or his sister will remember everything they need (they’re only kids, after all) each weekend, and since their mother lets them pack their own bags without overseeing what they’re bringing, she’s useless.
Anyway, the boy got a pair of shorts, 3 shirts, boxers, and flip-flops. The girl only got a shirt, a pair of shorts, and flip flops. She wasn’t as interested in getting stuff and I wasn’t going to push it since I don’t have a problem with what she wears. I just felt bad since the boy got more but she didn’t seem to care. She’s not very materialistic. In fact, when she got checks for her graduation she asked us to put the money in her savings account.
Joe took the boy to a school event in the afternoon so I made lunch for the girl and we hung out til the boys got back. We wanted to go to the park but wouldn’t you know it, the second the boys pulled into the garage it started raining so that was out. We ended up playing board games and the Wii instead. My arms were sore this morning which is a true testament to a) how out of shape I am, b) how infrequently I play on the Wii, or c) a & b. I think you know the answer to that.
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It was a beautiful day out today but now it’s cool and rainy out. Other than not being able to fit a bike ride in before the rain came, I’m satisfied with how the day went. We got a little shopping in after dropping off the kids and then headed to St. James Farm Forest Preserve. We’ve been wanting to visit ever since Joe and the girl put in some volunteer time cleaning up the grounds in early May. When we arrived a bit before 10 am we ate the sandwiches I had made and then explored the area.
We had the place to ourselves for over an hour which was nice but by 11:30 there were more and more people walking around so we decided to check out Danada Equestrian Center where there were not one, but two young foals. One was born a month ago and the other was just born last night. Talk about great timing! I can’t say I’ve ever seen foals before so it was a real treat to watch them walk around. Yes, even the 12 hour old foal was on her legs in the barn. Imagine a 12 hour old baby being able to walk!
I posted videos of the two foals on my YouTube account and I’ll be slowly adding photos to Flickr in the coming week. Check back here for links.
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Thursday we left the house around 9:30-ish so we’d “miss” the morning rush-hour traffic. We made it to the Dells around 12:30 pm just as we anticipated.
We located our hotel just so we knew where it was but it was too early to check-in, so we rode around the area scoping out where everything was. The first thing we did was play 18-holes of miniature golf at Pirate Cove’s Golf. We hiked up to the hardest course, Pirates Challenge 18, and enjoyed the sunshine while working up an appetite.
After golf we headed to the downtown area to find a place to eat. I had read about how good the burgers were at a place called Monk’s, but we got really poor service and didn’t end up eating there. I gave them a lovely review over at Yelp if you’re interested. Instead we ate at Sharky’s Sports Bar and Grill. The food was your typical bar fare but at least we were waited on promptly. Plus they had a dart board with which we occupied ourselves while waiting for our food.
After lunch we walked around the downtown area for a little bit but there’s only so many t-shirt stores (it seemed as if they sold nothing but clothing that said Wisconsin Dells on it) and candy shops one can take, so we made a pit-stop at Walgreens to pick up some snacks and then headed back to the hotel to check-in.
The hotel I chose, the Hilton Garden Inn, was a good pick. Not only was it very clean and modern, the rate was reasonable ($99/night) and since it doesn’t have an indoor waterpark, it wasn’t overflowing with kids. Our room had a king bed, fridge, microwave, and a desk with a complimentary high-speed internet access. The alarm clock had a line-in which allowed us to listen to our iPods which was nice touch. The bathroom was very clean and bright. Inside was a sink with a granite counter-top and a shower with more than adequate water pressure. Complimentary Shampoo, conditioner, mouth wash and lotion were provided. My only complaint was the lack of fan in the bathroom. Otherwise this was one of the nicest hotels I’ve ever stayed in.
I got online at the hotel to scope out places to eat and we decided on Buffalo Phil’s Grille which turned out to be really good (their coleslaw is the best I’ve ever had) and in retrospect the best place we ate at during our stay. Before dinner we checked out the attached place called Knuckleheads Bowling and Family Entertainment Center. In addition to the bowling, Knuckleheads has pool tables, air hockey, go-karts, small rides for the youngsters, and an arcade. We played air hockey, skee-ball and some other games before dinner and afterwards played a few more games including Deal or No Deal and a Lord of the Rings version of a pinball game. I’m not a fan of LOTR but I do love pinball machines. In addition to the pool, air hockey and poker tables I plan to have in the game room of my dream house, I would like a pinball machine.
The restaurant and amusement center are located directly in front of Tanger Outlet Center so we headed over there before they closed because I wanted to check out the Old Navy store. What a disappointment! There’s nothing outlet about their prices. I saw no better deals than at the regular Old Navy store at home. It’s official – I’m completely over outlets and won’t bother ever shopping at one again.
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What a beautiful Spring day in Chi-Town! It has been a long time coming.
We woke up a little later than we planned because we went to bed too late last night. Well, I went to bed at midnight but someone was up until 3 am playing Warcraft.
I hit snooze one too many times this morning because I’m really loving our new mattress. Plus I got a pillow wedge last night to help elevate my head (I cannot sleep completely flat) and that made things even more comfortable.
We hit the animal show a little later than planned thanks to the snooze-fest and stopping at Dunkin Donuts first for a quick bite to eat. The show was interesting even though we didn’t buy anything. I was surprised no one had any hamsters or ferrets. There were a ton of reptiles and rats, though. And this one breeder had sugar gliders. I would have never even considered one for a pet until I saw them in person. I’m glad they were $200 each or we might have bought one on impulse which after reading this site would have been a huge mistake. They were adorable, though, and I enjoyed interacting with them.
We decided not to let the gorgeous weather go to waste, so we parked in downtown Wheaton (a beautiful nearby town) and visited the little shops. We ended up grabbing lunch at a place called Shane’s Deli. I got a cup of potato soup and half a turkey sandwich with avocado. Joe had an Italian sub which was yummy too.
After walking around a bit more and getting ice cream at another shop, we headed back to the car and drove to the mall so we could take back a few items and use my Sears gift card to get Smarty Pants for the Wii.
Hot Topic had these cute things called Skel Animals but none of the plush ones they carried were black which is what I wanted. Ah well.
I’m going to veg in front of the tv, computer and Wii now. ;)
Someone was a bad girl today and peed on the carpet. Luckily she’s so cute. So much so that I’ve been running all over looking for a 20 gallon long aquarium with a mesh lid so I can give her more space to run around. I called a large aquarium store this evening who had the aquarium but not the lid. The woman who helped me couldn’t have been nicer. She checked all over the store to see if they sold a kit like Petco does (typically used for lizards) but they didn’t. We decided to check for one at the Reptile and Exotic Animal Show and Sale next weekend. Even if we can just find the right lid, I’d be willing to get the aquarium from the store I called since it’s only $32. I checked Craig’s list but most people just don’t take care of their stuff and I don’t want one that’s all scratched up. The 10 gallon I have now is nearly pristine and I’ve had it over eight years.
I’m looking forward to getting out of the house next weekend to do more than shop for groceries. Plus I love looking at all the cute animals. Last time we went to the show I was temped to get a frog because I just love them (hence the domain name) and the ones they sell are super small and colorful.