Joyfully Weary

A couple weekends ago we went to one of our favorite farms to pick strawberries. This has become one of our cherished summer traditions. This year was extra special because Maca got to join us for the fun.  It's usually best to go early in the morning when picking Strawberries so you avoid the heat. We however, took things slow and didn't get out to the field until a little after ten. BabyZ was a trooper for about ten minutes and then decided he'd just rest on Dada until we were finished. Jer's such a rock that he took it all in stride. All the rest of us mentioned the heat a couple times, but despite the extra baggage Jer never complained and went along picking and smiling the whole time.  Big Buddy has always been a finicky eater and for the most part turns his nose up at fruit (thankfully, he's a bit better with veggies)...that is until we go pick it ourselves. He didn't like apples until we went to an orchard when he was three; and t...

A morning exploring The Art Institute and an afternoon at Maggie Daley Park is one my favorite ways to spend a day in Chicago with my kiddos. They are just across the street from each other, so I only have to park once and there are no complaints about aching feet. It's also an inexpensive day out. The Art Institute is always free for children under the age of 14 and if you register it's also always free for teachers - if you homeschool you'll just need to show a co-op id. Our favorite place to park is the Millennium Lakeside Garage - there is a stroller friendly elevator that takes your right up to one of the entrances to Maggie Daley Park. We always use Spot Hero and park for the day for around $15. We went last week and had such a good time. I need to make more of an effort to visit Chicago more often....it always feels like such a big task (it's the hour in traffic that get me) to do solo but once we are in the city we have so much fun.  We are curr...

Last week went to Kline Creek Farm with some other homeschooling families.  It's a living history farm set in the 1890's. It's a working farm with volunteers throughout doing period themed chores.  They had some the best volunteers I've ever seen; they were enthusiastic and engaging. You could tell that they were really passionate about their work and the farm. Despite us having multiple age levels they were able to interact in a meaningful with the kids .  We toured lots of original and reproduction buildings and got to watch a couple demonstrations on cooking, blacksmithing, carpentry, etc. The highlight, though, was probably the hands-on-activities. They had a large yard where children could try out period games like Graces  and hoop rolling. You can also help with seasonal chores, we picked seed corn and helped stack straw bales.