Riding on the train with strangers

Jess' mom was in town this past week to watch Emma, so we could work. We thought it would be nice to head to the zoo on Saturday, however the forecast called for rain pretty much all day. Instead of potentially getting caught in a monsoon, we thought we should head to an indoor location. Unfortunately, there really aren't any close museums around Elgin, so we looked up the train schedule and headed downtown to the Shedd Aquarium.

Emma loves riding the train, so we thought it would be a fun little adventure there and back. After eating some lunch and finding a nice comfortable spot to sit, Emma looked around at all the strangers and discovered this one girl sitting right behind her that kept closing her eyes. Of course Emma, being curious by nature, couldn't help asking what the girl was doing. We told her she was resting, etc. Then, the girl started talking to Emma; this was VERY exciting for our curious little one. No one could have prepared us for what questions came out of Emma's mouth, but they made all of our day. Emma asked the girl "Where is your daddy?", then asked "Where is your sweetheart?". The girl couldn't help but laugh at these questions for an almost 3 year old. We are astonished and always amazed at the questions/sentences Emma puts together. We're also glad the girl had a sweetheart because you never know what that question will do to someone.

The Shedd Aquarium

Playing in the Rain

Emma was in a really silly mood tonight; well most nights actually, tonight I was able to capture some on my camera. She had a blast running in the rain and feeling the sprinkles on her face. Out of nowhere, she started looking up into the rain and thought it was hilarious when it got in her eyes. She kept doing it! We, of course, just laughed at her. I love that she was having so much fun discovering rain; some thing we take for granted, but brings a whole different world to kids.

Father's Day Weekend

It's always a great time when we head to WI to spend time with Ben's family. It's relaxing and most times just what we need in terms of jokes, laughter, and of course Emma loves playing with "cousin". It was a great Father's Day for Ben!

Daddy's are the BEST!

Emma loves her daddy! I love watching them play together; you can tell how much Ben loves spending time with her. He's an amazing father to our daughter!

Emma's Easter Dress

My Random, but Profound thought for the day...

After washing Emma's "Easter" dress for what seemed like the 100th time, I realized some thing. I am so thankful she's worn it more than once. Usually people buy a "special" dress for Easter or another holiday and kids will wear it once, before it's hanging in the closet collecting dust. I'm glad I don't care that Emma's dress is faded and that the bottom lace has fallen off. She's gotten good use out of it. For some reason it just struck me as profound today, as I thought of so many kids in other countries (including the US) that only have one article of clothing. Most aren't given the chance to fade their clothes because they come already faded. Our daughter is BEYOND blessed; she has several dresses to choose from. (I'm sure you've noticed from the pictures I take which ones she likes the most.)

I hope this strikes a chord...in a good way =)

Day in the Life of Emma

I guess I should say Emma's afternoon since I was working up until the time I took these. As you can see, the afternoon was filled with quite the activity (playing w/ her baby and cat, making stick faces and caterpillars, blowing bubbles, baking cookies, and of course fishing off the deck.)