Instead of driving up to Chicago, we took the train from Bloomington. It has never been easier getting my girls out of bed before 6 a.m. than by telling them we had to get ready to meet their cousins at the train station. I wish I could use that as motivation every morning.
The girls had lots of fun together on the train. We secured this little alcove where the girls could roam and play. They snacked, visited, played games, looked at the American Girl catalog, and even found the time to write, practice, and perform a play.
There was plenty to see and do, and none of us had to drive in downtown Chicago. Winner, winner!
The girls were so excited to arrive at the American Girl store. It's truly an experience! The girls explored the whole store, making sure to see everything before deciding what they wanted. Each girl had some money to spend, and everyone was so excited with their purchases.
After all that shopping, we then enjoyed a special lunch at the American Girl Café. It was so cute! They had chairs for the dolls, each doll got a teacup and saucer, and the napkin rings were hair bows.
What could be more fun than eating a fancy lunch with your cousins and your dolls??
Topping it off with dessert, of course.
After lunch, we spent a little more time at the American Girl store. When it was all said and done, we spent about 4 hours there!
And this face says it all. Such a great experience!
We rounded out the rest of our afternoon with a stop at the Lego store...
...and the Disney store. I love how the girls took over the little Disney castle to play with their dolls.
Since we didn't want Briggs and Zach to miss out on all the birthday fun, they then drove up to Chicago with my dad to meet us for an overnight while Cathy, Jill, and her girls took the train back.
When you go to lunch with Daddy and Grandpa, this is what you get. And yes, apparently he ate almost the whole thing.
After checking into our hotel, we met Uncle Ethan for dinner at the Rainforest Café.
Briggs was scared of the animatronic snake...and gorillas...and the thunderstorm that occurred every hour. Other than that, the restaurant was a big hit. And it was nice for our 3 tired kiddos who had gotten up early and/or hadn't gotten a nap that we were eating someplace where they didn't have to worry about being too loud or fidgety and where walking around while waiting for dinner was encouraged.
After a good night's sleep and a quick breakfast in our hotel room, we headed to the Museum of Science and Industry to round out our Chicago fun.
The kids really enjoyed the museum. The Idea Factory was a children's play area that all 3 kids really enjoyed. They also liked the Fairy Castle Dollhouse, the baby chicks, the fun house mirrors, the farm area, the weather area... Each exhibit we visited had lots of hands-on fun that the kids enjoyed.
Briggs loved the huge model train set. He would have been happy doing nothing else. Zach really liked the submarine. In the same way that Briggs could have spent hours watching the trains, Zach probably could have spent hours checking out the submarine exhibit.
We filled our morning (and early afternoon) with museum fun before heading for home. What a great week-end we had.
I think this birthday girl (and her dolls) would declare it a huge success!!
