Today on Kristen’s suggestion we visited Millennium Park. I was avoiding it when it was just Kristen and I watching four kids. It’s so big, open, and crowded that I find it nerve racking to watch Jack and Ben plus the twins. Even though the older boys occasionally play together, more often than not they run off in opposite directions, determined to do their own things.

How did I go from being a mom proud of the fact that, apart from an occasional Saturday night sitter, I watched the kids by myself most of their weekday waking hours to a mom who needs three people to cover four kids?

Listening to the singer at Millennium Park

Millennium Park has a family fun festival with a Wiggleworms singer at 10am, followed by a reading circle at 11am and a bunch of things to play with inside the tent like building sticks, bean bag toss, and arts and crafts. They also have the bean (Cloud Gate, by artist Anish Kapoor) and the fountain (Crown Fountain by Jaume Plensa).

The fountain is a good hour of entertainment for the kids. It’s basically a slab of water that they can run and splash in with two tall buildings on either side. The buildings have faces that change. Every 15 minutes they spew a stream of water out of their mouths.

Ben, Jack and Kaden playing at the Fountain

I love how unique it is. A singularly Chicago experience. It also reminds me why I’d make a crap artist. If I was on the planning board and someone said, let’s put slab of water up with faces spewing water out of them on either side I’d probably tell them to stop taking so much acid. Luckily someone bought the vision. It totally works.

Last Day of “Work” for Auntie Doris – We’ll Miss Her!!!

I think this is the last summer I’ll be able to cart Jack around all summer long checking out different playgrounds. Unless there is a play date waiting for him, he tells me how bored he is and can he play games on my phone? The answer is no, no video gaming at the park. A bit of boredom eventually leads to him finding something to do that uses his motor skills and tires him out for the day.

No Matter Where We Go, the Twins Attract a lot of Attention

Yesterday at Jonquil Park we kicked the soccer ball around, the play structures and water element were not enticing to him.

Today I tried a new tactic, a new park! I found it on my friend Mistie’s iPhone app, Playground Pointers. It’s got tons of pictures of parks in Chicago and lots of information on each park to help you decide. It’s well worth the $.99 if you have kids in Chicago.

Kompan play structure

I settled on Holstein Park in Bucktown. It has one of those more unusual Kompan play structures that I thought would hold his interest.

It also had a wading pool which oddly was closed most of the time we were there, one spray spout and a full on fenced off pool which seemed to have pockets of open play for anyone, mixed with camp time and adult lap swim.

We stuck to the park, climbing, swinging, collecting crab apples, picnicking and treating ourselves to ice cream from the ice cream cart.

Spray Area

It was fun to check out something new and different. The only thing I didn’t like was the two entrance areas were completely open. Made watching the kids just a little more stressful. I prefer my parks to be fully gated off.

Still, it was fun to be somewhere new, think I’ll be searching my new iphone app for more places next week.

For the google map, click here: Holstein Park

Laurie Berkner on stage

Saturday we packed up a picnic and headed to the suburbs to see Laurie Berkner at Ravinia.

Ravinia is famous for it’s summer concert series. Performers such as James Taylor, Seal and Diana Krall grace the stage. There are also a bunch of kids performers on the weekends.

We fit right into the suburb crowd. We pulled up in our large minivan and unloaded our strollers, cooler, and wagon. Every other car was a large car like ours and every other family was pulling their wagon out of the trunk too. It was like a scene from Edward Scissorhands.

I forgot how elaborate the picnics can get at Ravinia. I spent some time packing food. We also had chairs and a blanket. But when we got there we saw catered food, collapsable tables, skinny girl martinis. All for a one hour concert!

We also brought a soccer ball. There was a huge open space to play in, but when Adam brought the kids over there to play they told us it was too crowded for balls today. Another reason I am so happy we don’t live in the ‘burbs. In the city, no one would care. It certainly wouldn’t be staffed so much that someone had time to pick on a couple of kids playing soccer.

Still it was a beautiful day and the kids don’t need much more than a big open space to run in to make them happy. And some ice cream.

Next time I go to a kids concert I’ll remember to get there early. The park opens at 10am. The concert was from 11-12 and they closed the grounds at 1pm.

Picnic at Ravinia

I’m really settling into having an extra set of hands around (Auntie Doris) on top of my other set of extra hands (Kristen).

Surprising how quickly I relinquished control over my kids considering how closely I watched the first two. Perhaps it’s because with four kids it’s impossible to give them all the attention they want. Since the goal is unattainable, what difference does an extra hour or two make each day?

The first full day Auntie Doris was here I planned my usual “shower next two the older boys while they bathe” evening ritual. When Kristen started this was a luxury. Before her I didn’t shower for days. When the older kids bathed, I watched the younger ones. When summer started and Kristen was here I showered next to the boys while she watched the babies and was happily in my jammies by 6pm. But with Auntie Doris and Kristen around I actually showered BY MYSELF. Now that is a luxury.

It didn’t last long, the second day I found myself showering with both Jack and Ben. One by one they found me and decided to jump in too. But still, autonomy was out there. A little whiff of it made me think, what else can I do?

So this morning I asked Kristen to come a little early and I went to my first yoga class in over a year.

It was a odd feeling walking out of our house by myself with no bag full of diapers, wipes, extra formula, extra clothes, water bottles, snacks. I didn’t have to make two or three trips to the car to load each baby and the stuff and other kids. I listened to adult music in the car. I didn’t take the elevator for the stroller. And I did yoga. Sort of.

Boat Pose

The first time back after a year without yoga is a humbling experience. After all that work I spent years building I was back to where I started. I was unable to touch my toes when I bent over. And forget any abdominal exercises. My abs where like jelly in boat pose. I couldn’t keep in the pose for a single second – I was more like a sinking ship!

Still, it got me thinking what else I could do. Go for a quick run? Get those thank you cards that are way overdue out? Get a pedicure? NAP?! Mmm, the possibilities are endless.

Evening Feed

Auntie Doris with Aaron

My Aunt Doris arrived on Sunday to take her turn helping with the babies. In the past, whenever I’ve had a baby she’s come for a week. This time I bargained two weeks off her, claiming that I need more time since I have twins!

So far it’s been trial by fire. The first day we left her alone with the twins while Kristen and I went to a water park all day. I thought she’d be overwhelmed but after all the kids were in bed she offered to babysit so Adam and I could go out for a drink. So nice to pop out of the house and sit, face to face, across from your husband. We were only away about 1 hour and 1/2, too little time to hire a sitter but just enough time to catch up. If we were home we would not have sat down with a glass of wine and enjoyed each other’s company. Time is so precious, there are so many kids to deal with. Any free moment at home is a time to get some overdue task done or sleep.

Tummy Time for Aaron and Sam at the Pritzker Place Space

I’m not sure what my Aunt did while she watched them during the day but I woke up in agony around 2am. Okay, Jack woke me up, needed to go to the bathroom. Then he crawled into our bed. Both twins were still asleep so I laid there thinking they must wake up soon to relieve me. By 2:30 I got up and pumped. I couldn’t stand it anymore. The first twin didn’t wake until 3:45am! The next one 4:30! I hope she can get them to repeat the pattern tonight!

Jack and Kaden

Today we met up at the Children’s Museum with one of Jack’s buddies from school. Even with three people watching four kids, two who can’t walk, I still managed to lose Ben and Jack at times.

He's not my child!

We had a great time, especially Ben who decided at one point to lay down in the middle of the museum and stick his hands in his pants.

We saw our friend Mistie there. She has 3 girls the same ages as our kids. In fact we were on the same floor of the hospital at the same time for the birth of the twins/her daughter. She had a helper with her too. I must remember to tell Adam that no matter whether we had three or four kids, once you move past two kids you need more hands. I guess in that sense it’s a bargain that we had the last two at once!

Tuckered out after a Long Day