the chicago chapter

he

she

me/we

 

Highlights:
Decided to leave the freeways for a while on our drive to Chicago and stumbled across an Amish hub and some incredibly picturesque American country towns.
Millennium Park's brand new playground, definitely the best we've ever played on, fun for all 4 of us!

Cloud Gate

Chicago Children's Museum, with exhibitions designed to engage She, He and beyond.

Chicago pizza

Watching the city from the elevated train

Walking beside the lake

Wandering our neighbourhood - Lincoln Park

Chicago zoo - FREE and right in our neighbourhood

Catching up with a lovely Aussie

the toledo chapter

he

 

Highlights (not necessarily corresponding with photos):

Hanging with his American cousin

Imagination Station (hands-on science centre)

Toledo Mud Hens Game (and new obsession with mascot Muddy)

Playing in Great One's room, eating her cookies, riding in her wheelchair

The awesome Toledo Museum of Art (current exhibition 'Play Time')

Toledo Glass Museum and demonstration (he put up his hand and asked the presenter a couple of questions, "Why does glass have sand" and "What is your favourite colour of glass?")

she

Highlights:

Growing a new "Great One" tooth

Clapping!

"Crawling"/pulling herself around Great One's room

Mutual gazing and smiling with her Great One
The Swan Creek lifestyle! Slow pace, friendly faces and cheek squeezes around every corner, long lunches for munching to her heart's content, sleeping in, lots of time to play on the carpet... 

me/we

Highlights:

All of the above, plus...

Swan Creek Retirement Village, hanging with Great One, enjoying the setting (swans/ducklings/lakes/forests) and being minor celebrities for 2 weeks
Squirrel spotting
Maumee Brewing Co (Toledo was the brewing capital before it was the glass capital, waaaay back in the day)
Meeting Little Miss Ohio
Whole Foods grocery (and sooo much more...) chain

Day trip to Detroit (regeneration of inner-city abandoned suburbs into urban farmland, and the Heidelberg Project)

Mini holiday to Cedar Point ("the roller coaster capital of the world") and Castaway Bay (water park) with my USA rellies

Whitehouse Cemetery to visit Grandpa and Albert and Suzie (He and She's 'Great-Greats')

A trip to Bowling Green to see where Great One went to college - one of those awesome little university towns - and the best bookshop/cafe ever, Grounds for Thought

book club

he

 Now that he is really making meaning from the text in his books, he is loving the bed time reading more than ever, sitting in bed, reading aloud to himself (well, probably to Giraffey and the rest of the menagerie) for as long as he is allowed. So turning lights out has become more of an issue and has somehow evolved into a complex routine where he has his bedroom light on for a nominated amount of minutes, then (with some warning) that light goes off but the hallway light stays on, then, after some more minutes the hallway light is turned off but the lounge room light is on. And when that is off, the aquarium light is still on... As his access to light decreases he gets sleepier and ends up falling asleep on whichever book he was working on. Theoretically. 
Complicated!!!

she

She and I with our books at Book Club. She still prefers eating books to reading them.

me

Earlier this year I started a very informal monthly Book Club at a nearby comfy cafe. Some bring kids, some don't. Some stay for hours, some pop in. Some come every month, some can't. There is no prescribed book to read. Instead, I proposed that people could choose to do any/all (or none!) of the following:

- Bring a kids' book for others to check out. 

- Bring a grown-ups' book for others to check out.

- Tell us what they've been reading (and discuss with anyone who's interested).

- Ask if anyone wants to read a particular book to discuss next time.

- Ask questions/make requests regarding books.

- Bring a book and steal a few minutes to read it!

- Drink coffee and stare out the window and ignore the rest of us and our books, silently seething and wishing the rest of us would just. stop. talking.

- Write a book.

- Eat a book.

I just love it.

Little She and I were the first to arrive at last week's Book Club, and ended up with half an hour to ourselves. I ordered a coffee, pulled out a few toys for her and put a new book on the table to show to our friends. I had a fleeting, ridiculous thought, "Hmmm, what shall we do while we wait for the others?" Thankfully I quickly realised I had the new book! The two of us sat on the couch with our books; she chewed hers and I read a chapter of mine and it was wonderful. I hope to spend many, many more half hours with her doing exactly this! (Hopefully less chewing / more reading on her part as the years roll on, but each to their own book-love!)

mothers day

he

 He had a day full of play, including some backyard baseball and lots of dress ups. At bath time he wrote this (pronounced 'Mama') for me, unprompted. Cute.

she

She was a bit snotty but managed to find lots of smiles.

me

I got a magical bubbly water machine from She and a teapot picture, tea bag and card from He (and his lovely daycare teachers), and a very special purple pen which He chose for me while shopping with his Daddy. It was a lovely day, spent with B's family and a skype call to my own Mom.

grandpa's visit

he

Lots of books and stories and playing and outings!

she

Lots of cuddles and cafes!