#willssummerbucketlist

Little Boys, Big City

(or A Saturday Worth Remembering) 

We woke up this morning with no plan. Most Saturday mornings are filled with soccer - cancelled for the holiday weekend - or I’m solo with the boys while A is MBAing for the weekend. So this family of four/no plans Saturday was a rare thing!  While Cooper slept in, A and I taught Will how to play Uno (God, I love Uno). Soon after our little guy started screaming his head off for us, A suggested,  “How about breakfast out?” and I followed up with, “Then Maggie Daley Park?”, as it was the only thing on Will’s summer bucket list we’d yet to hit. 

Breakfast at Jane’s in Bucktown (I love the people there, such a pleasant vibe), and then we hit Maggie Daley Park. I bow down to the developers. I mean, a 20 acre public park with incredible views of the Lake and skyline, water features, stuff for thrill seeking kids and timid children alike, and that pleases a crowd from age 1 - adulthood?!  Come on. This place is fucking amazing.  (Though I will say that you should never, ever be responsible for more than one child there at a time. I’ve never seen so many adults go from smiling faces as they watch children play, to sheer terror as they realize they cannot spot their own offspring.) Simply put, this park is must-do. 

As luck would have it, this weekend is also the Chicago Jazz Festival.  We listened to music as we walked through Lurie Gardens, strolled past the Bean, grabbed some food and a Stella in Millennium Park, and snagged some seats for a closer look at the musicians while we lunched. I think the highlight of my day was pointing out to my boys where a musician was standing on the stage of Pritzker Pavilion and saying, “See where he is standing on the stage? That’s exactly where Mommy and Daddy were when Daddy gave me this ring and asked me to be his wife! And we’ll always be able to come here and see that spot!” 

We zipped home for a late nap for Coop, more Uno for Will, and then an early evening swim and dinner at our club. There was a whole lot of Pete the Cat at bedtime, extra snuggles, and a long reply when asked our traditional bedtime question of “What made you happy today?”