We drove for a long time and then showed up at a theater, not a hotel. Archer was slightly disappointed and wondered when we would get to go swimming. "Just this one stop, then we'll go to the hotel." This one stop turned out to be a Disney Live Music Show and even Archer warmed up to it when the Toy Story characters came out yodeling and doing fancy rope tricks. Elijah tried to claim the entire bucket of popcorn for himself but the rest of us sneaked some while he was distracted by Mickey Mouse singing.
When we got to the hotel the smallest person was put in charge of the heaviest bag and we made our way in. That smallest person was then put down for a nap with Dad while the rest of us checked out the pool. FINALLY! It was a great place, the kids loved showing off their swimming skills and I even got Arch to try out the hot tub with me (the BEST part!). Later, after supper, Dad and E joined us in the pool again for lots more fun. All the way till ten at night we swam, the kids were in HEAVEN. (Sorry, E, for the pink shirt. Its what we had.)
For breakfast we ate at the Sugar Bowl, what a sweet place! The waitresses were all so kind, Archer even commented on how nice they all were, it definitely felt like a small town diner, and the food was SO good! Did I mention lunch the day before was at a McDonald's with a water tower in the parking lot? And supper was at Buona's, another friendly place with fantastic desserts, E didn't want to let a single drop get left behind (and that's why you can see him with the bowl in his face, drinking up every last bit). As you can see the kids' attitudes ranged from "quit taking so many pictures and WHEN IS THE FOOD GOING TO BE HERE???" to thrilled to get so many treats in one day.
Next was the Museum of Science and Industry, the almost-last surprise. We wandered all around for half a day, lost each of the kids once or twice (three of them, two of us, its easy to lose track of where everyone's at!). David and the kids reviewed the map a few times and then...
Rock climbing, an indoor tornado that got Shelly a little nervous, visiting a toy factory, learning about the circus, ships, farming (see us milking a cow?), catching sand with our shadows, what have I forgotten?
We did a coal mine tour which only slightly terrified Shelly, she clung pretty close for that adventure. I don't blame her. Onto an elevator and into the dark to descend 600 feet into a mine. The elevator was dark and noisy. No lights in those elevators, you know! Through dimly-lit tunnels and past noisy machines. It got to be a little much for her, and since it was the end of the day, Elijah was carried most of the time. And rubbing his face against my face, getting ready for his nap. We learned so much!
And now, goodbye Chicago, finally we were on our way home. Just one more stop, the famous Rainforest Cafe. The kids were completely fascinated by every detail, but all three were surprised by the thunderstorms, with rumbling thunder and lightening flashing it was a little too much for Eli. Plus I'm sure he was completely exhausted, and still... more to come... a Volcano for dessert! We kept seeing the waiters walking by with flaming stacks of brownies and ice cream, they watched as the desserts kept passing us by but Mom and Dad said we'd already had enough to eat. And then... the waiter brought one for us! We all dug in and enjoyed this last treat from our trip. And then that really was it, time to go home. Archer and Shelly wished they didn't have to go back to school tomorrow, the fun still lingering and wishing real life didn't start up again so quickly. We got home at 8:30 and were all in bed and sleeping by 9:30. And even Archer slept in a little more than usual on Monday morning.
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