The Accidental Boilermaker

We saw a Tin Caps baseball game today. We were a little nervous because the forecast called for storms in the afternoon but the rain held off and the Tin Caps won! Jameson managed to not hit or poke anyone with his balloon sword that was not related to him so that was good. Evelyn got a flower.  To celebrate the win we got ice cream. 

Evelyn started kindergarten today! She was so excited. The current plan is for Jameson and I to walk her to the bus stop in the morning.  We got there really early today.  Evelyn boarded the bus no problems. The windows are tinted so I couldn’t see where she sat and couldn’t wave goodbye which was actually kind of sad. Jameson thankfully wasn’t upset once Evelyn was gone. We went for a short run and then headed to the library for a toddler play time themed things that go. The day went by pretty fast and soon it was time to meet Evelyn off the bus. She did seem tired but in a good mood. It sounded like she had a fun day and she was able to meet up with a friend from church who is in a different kindergarten class at recess. And tomorrow we get to do it all over again!

One last trip before school starts tomorrow - we went to the Spangler candy factory in Bryan, OH with Bella and Millie. Spangler is the makers of Dum-Dums lollipops. There is a store, small museum, and a tour of the factory available to visitors.  It was pretty neat and I learned a lot. Bryan is just under an hour drive from our house and while I’m not sure the entire experience is worth the drive, I only had to pay $6 for the tour so it was certainly inexpensive.  Waiting to take our factory tour. When you buy your tickets they ask for your party’s name. Bella was kind of grumpy after being told she couldn’t bring her stuffed penguin into the store and didn’t want to offer up a name so Evelyn pipes up “the rats!” And that was our party’s name. It was a little embarrassing.  You ride the trolley through the factory which the kids enjoyed. I learned Spanglers is the only USA maker of candy canes. If you buy a candy cane that says made in the USA it w...

Our last day in Chicago we went to the Brookfield Zoo with my parents.  We did a good job of seeing all the animals we missed when the kids and I came with Kate back in April. The giraffes were outside trying to get leaves of the trees. Jameson's favorite - the rhino. Snowflake the albino alligator. The really cool thing we did at the zoo was the brick safari, Lego sculptures of all different animals.

Part of my birthday present was a trip to Chicago with the kids.  They both still love Buddy so much. We drove over Wednesday and Kate and Tom took us out to eat at the restaurant where Kate works.  For dessert we went to Pretty Cool for popsicles. Thursday was beach and pool day.  In the morning we went to Lake Michigan.  The water temperature was nice and it was windy so there were some pretty big waves. After lunch we met some of Kate's friends at a nice pool just outside of the city.  The pool had a kids area with water features and it was the perfect for depth Evelyn.  She could touch the bottom and didn't need her puddle jumper so all of sudden she starts diving under water and swimming.  She also loved playing with Kate's friend's daughter.  JJ really liked the little wadding pool that had a small slide and other small water features.  After all day in the sun everyone needed a little ice cream treat.

Yesterday was my birthday!  We met Nate at the zoo in the evening. We got to see one of the new baby lynxes up close. The alligator was also super close. In the morning the girls were over.  I felt a little bad but we waited to play in the kiddie pool until Violet was down for nap.  Just made things a little simpler. But we did wait until she woke up to put on a movie.

On our last day in Cleveland we went to the zoo. I always like to see the elephants. The giraffes were up close too. We did get to see one wolf. A grizzly bear swimming. Jameson was excited to see the rhinos. At first the rhinos were laying down, but then they got up and moved around so we were able to see the baby. The primates, cats, and aquarium are up a big hill so we decided that since we walked up the hill we could take the courtesy tram back to the center of the zoo.  Evelyn and Jameson thought it was the best thing ever.  Our last stop was the rainforest exhibit.  The clouded leopard was very active and talkative.  After the zoo we drove back home.

Nate left for a work trip in Cleveland on Monday and on Thursday the kids and I drove over to meet him.  We picked Nate up from the VA, drove to hotel, changed and went out to a nice dinner right on Lake Eerie.  Then we swam at the pool and went to bed. On Friday Nate still had a half day of work left, so Evelyn, Jameson and I walked downtown to get coffee and donuts for breakfast before checking out of the hotel.   Then we drove to the botanical gardens.  The gardens were close enough to the VA that Nate could walk and meet us when he was finished for the day and we got in for free with our Fort Wayne botanical garden membership.  Evelyn and Jameson got a rose from a nice gardener. They both loved the kids garden and probably would have played there all day if we had let them. Once we were done at the gardens we drove to the beach.  After some fun in the sun, we headed to the hotel.