Sarah's First Vacation, Day 3

On Saturday, we woke up early (Sarah's good sleeping did not extend her usual wake up time of 6 am) and headed to the aquarium.  We ran around outside until the doors opened at 9!

We were one of the first families through the door, so Sarah was able to run around a bit.  As the morning went on, it got more and more crowded, and Sarah was stuck in her stroller again.  Luckily, there were lots of interesting things to look at! (Please forgive the blur - no flash photography is allowed and things in aquariums swim FAST!)

Even Daddy had some fun at the aquarium!

We went to the marine show, but we were a little disappointed that it was less about dolphins jumping through hoops and more about how they train the animals at the aquarium.  I was expecting a Sea World-type show that would keep Sarah entertained.  Instead, she spent the show playing Toca House (her current favorite app) on my phone and fussing because she was bored.  Sorry, Sarah!

Luckily, she was appeased when we went to the lower level and she could watch the belugas swim in their tank.  It might have been her favorite part of the whole aquarium - she certainly spent more time watching them than any of the other animals!

We grabbed some lunch, checked out some penguins, and then headed back to the hotel for a nap before hitting Michigan Avenue that afternoon. 

Michigan Avenue highlights for Sarah included seeing lots of busses (she pointed them ALL out to us), seeing lots of wedding parties getting their pictures taken at the water tower, and having a free sample AND a chocolate milk at Ghirardelli.  Mmmm...heaven!

We also let her out of her stroller to run around the courtyard at the Presbyterian church on Michigan Avenue...

Not bad for our first full day in Chicago!

Sarah's First Vacation, Days 1 and 2

On Thursday, June 21, we loaded up the car and strapped Sarah into her car seat for her very first vacation! 

Day 1 was a leg of the trip she was already familiar with - Kansas City to Paris, MO to see Grandma Linda and Grandpa Watson.  We also got to see a few of Tom's friends, which was nice for everyone.  Sarah loved playing with Miranda and Max and Owen and Savannah, but her favorite part of her time in Paris was the time she spent playing with the broom in front of Grandma and Grandpa's house while we all looked on...

We left Paris around 4:00 to drive to Hannibal, where we spent the night at Robards Mansion bed and breakfast.  It was a beautiful old house in the historic district of Hannibal, and it was a pretty nice place for Sarah to be able to spend her first night away from home!

We were lucky enough to have a suite, so Sarah had her own room.

Sarah's Room                                                                                     Our Room

   

After we checked in and lugged all of our stuff up the steep (if beautiful) original staircase to the second floor, we went down to the riverfront in search of dinner.  We ended up at the Mark Twain Diner, which was exactly as fantastic as it sounds.  Apparently they serve "Mark Twain Fried Chicken," but I didn't see it on their menu...

 With tummies full of canned green beans, chicken fried steak, and mashed potatoes, we walked down to the Mississippi River to give Sarah some time to run before bed.  And boy, did she run!

We woke up Friday morning and, fortified with a breakfast of eggs, sausage, biscuits, fruit, zucchini bread, orange juice and coffee, we headed to Chicago!  We stopped for lunch at a Burger King (don't judge us - there's not much to pick from along rural highways!), and Sarah enjoyed her first experience with the Burger King crown.  It was super cute!

We got into Chicago around 2:00, so we unloaded our luggage and headed out to explore.  We walked from our hotel toward Michigan Avenue and the river.   Once we got to the water, Sarah had her first run-in with a pigeon.  The bird didn't fly away like birds in the backyard, so she hid behind the stroller! Eventually, she came out to investigate...

From the river, we walked through the Wrigley Building and down to Millennium Park.  Sarah wasn't interested in the giant jellybean, but she really enjoyed walking in Crowne Fountain!

After we dried off a bit and enjoyed an Italian ice, we walked down to Buckingham Fountain.  Sarah couldn't play in this one, but she really enjoyed running around on the large open space around the fountain. (Notice how she's running in almost every picture here!)

We walked back to the hotel, took Sarah for a swim in the pool, and then it was time for bed!  Sarah slept great the entire vacation, too...all that running around paid off big time for Mom and Dad!