Tiny Tour Guide

"There's no curse of King Tut! Harold Carter died of natural causes!"

Yep, that's my daughter taking all the fun out of the curse of the mummy. Sorry kids.

What's next? Santa Clause?

Harper and all the first graders from Lincolnwood School visited in the fabulous Art Institute of Chicago yesterday. George went along as chaperone, celebrating his 39th birthday by basking in a sea of youth. He had a great time, and learned alot about Harper while he escorted his group (Harper, Leia, Maya, and Jordan) through the rooms of the museum.

He learned that Harper knows alot about art.

He learned that Harper likes to share what she's knows about art.

He was reminded about how much Harper knows about Egypt.

He was reminded about how much Harper likes to share what she knows about Egypt.

He discovered that Jordan thinks Harper talks too much.

He discovered how easy it is to defend his daughter.

Jordan: Harper, do you have to talk about everything?

George: Yes, Jordan, she does.

George's girth does certainly help in silencing a crabby first grade boy.

Jordan wasn't sporting the best day having already been told off by Harper's pal Kelly, after he threatened to push her. Kelly, barely as tall as Harper and even thinner responded to his empty threat with a pointed finger in his face and stony, stand your ground stare,

"Just you try."

Jordan backed up.

Just the gal pal I want Harper hanging with. Today they had a 4 hour playdate, with no squabbles or knocking of heads. They are becoming really great friends. Harper plays softball. Kelly plays little league. They are the same size - which is pretty tiny for first grade. And they both have an inner confidence that is unique in girls. Kelly's confidence is very understated, and then, BAM, you are wow'ed by this little pint sized dynamo. Harper's confidence is outwardly bold, and then, BAM, she backs off when she feels anxiety. (Except on the softball field).

They are amazing for each other.

Anyhow, while Jordan was hot and cold during the entire field trip, Harper, with map in hand, led the group from room to room. They were all sad to find that Starry Night was no longer being exhibited having been packed up and prepared to head to another museum.

She located Georgia O'Keefe's "Cow's Skull and the Calico Rose", and Picasso's "Old Guitarist". She recognized and named these paintings, as well as Marie Casset's "Child's Bath", and others. But she was at the top of her game as they came upon the room housing ancient Egyptian artifacts. She certainly does love explaining the deal with the canopic jars . . .

She adored Monet's "Water Lilies" and exclaimed it as her favorite set of paintings.

And just as Kelly can speak straight to the point with a laser beam directness, so can Harper. Especially when it comes to paintings depicting Christ's crucifixion.

Leia: That's Jesus. He died.

Harper: (full on serious eye contact). Hey! He rose from the dead.

There was no more discussion.

Harper asked me to accompany her to museum on one of the free nights they offer. I think a little dinner, and a tour by this tiny guide sounds like a perfect night out!

Explorer Down! Explorer Down!

Zane is done exploring.

Today we visited the Peggy Notebart Nature Museum.

We got a late start, as I had to finish the whole controlled substance prescription situation before we could visit the museum, but we got there.

We arrived and couldn't find parking.

Anywhere.

Out of all the FREE museum days, this one was the most trying. And the most packed.

After driving in a circle for about 15-20 minutes the sun shined and we all cheered as someone started to pull out of a spot DIRECTLY ACROSS FROM THE ENTRANCE. Ah, things were looking up.

We really enjoy this museum as it is truly hand's on for the kids. However, that being said, it's very hard to be hand's on when the joint is literally packed with schools and every other mother, their children, and their SUV strollers.

Harper and Zane worked together to turn a river into a lake by building a dam, we experienced the butterfly sanctuary as just that - a sanctuary, (as all the other kids were leaving the exhibit just as we entered and thus it was quite peaceful - plus, Zane didn't step on any butterflies this time), attempted to take some portraits in the photo booth (um, yeah, try that with two monkeys and see if you get a good shot), explored a "green house" and made a family crest to remind us to recycle.

Zane spent the entire time going in and out of a grumpy, whiney, "I'm so done with all this" attitude. I had the stereotypical mother/child experience when Zane yelled at the top of his lungs, "I want a snaaaaaaaack!". I smiled. I gritted my teeth. I left my wallet in the photo booth and Harper's crest in the art area.

We got both back.

But, all in all, this is just what it is . . . being a parent and having children. Two tired children.

We got home, read books while Zane used the potty, he got his 3 jellybeans for being successful and then he took a nap.

He's still a bit out of it, even after the nap. Just plain crabby.

My mom says everyone has days like these.

Even in Australia.

Smallpox, Water Tower, and Hershey's

What do these items have in common?

Well, they make for a very special day.

Seriously, you ask? Smallpox makes for a special day?

Yep. Add some Chicago history and chocolate and this Mom found herself having one of those perfect parenting days, basking in the enjoyment of my children.

First up for us today was the Museum of Contemporary Art, which upon entering gave me the impression of one of those restaurants that serves really fancy food. Albeit tiny, fancy food. Minimalistic. Food that doesn't cover the plate. I was terrified that the kids would yell out, "So, where's the art?!"

They didn't.

The first piece we saw was bleeding on the wall.

Good start.

Harper brought along her journal and jotted down the name of every piece she found interesting. Zane asked when we would see the toys. Harper would asked, "What's this called?" Zane would ask, "When can we play with the toys?" It was quite humorous.

And then, we hit the mother load.

In one gallery, there was a sculpture in ebony of St. George and the dragon. We literally just read that story. This peaked Zane's interest as he found the dragon's wing, the dragon's beak, the head of George's horse, etc. All the while, Harper was jotting down the names of pieces she found interesting.

Both of them agreed on a favorite piece, Wall's Paper, which was enormous and took up an entire wall. Sorry, no pics allowed.

There was one piece on which they could climb, Convertible Clam Shelter, by Vito Acconci, who became an artist due to his dislike (he went as far as to use the word hatred) of art. One of the reasons for his dislike of art was due to the "no touching" rule. So, he created a piece on which the kids could crawl. It is indeed a huge clam shell with the sound of the ocean playing inside. My two "pearls" (ha) crawled in and had a jolly time until they were told by an employee that they were having too jolly of a time. Hey mister, have you read the artist's bio???!!!

And then there was the piece that Harper almost stepped on, as it just looked like a mess in the middle of the floor. A mess of pills, capsules, a mirror, white powder, a spoon . . . I don't know the name of it. I think I'll call it "Crack on the Floor". Whatever.

Upon turning a corner at one point, we came upon a huge white wall. The bottom corner had some dripping red paint, some type of fuzzy thing and, oh, I don't know, something else I can't remember. What I do remember was Harper's comment about it.

"It makes me feel sick."

Fitting.

The piece was entitled Smallpox.

Other favorites, if you ever get over there, were Garbage Wall, Weed, The Unwearable Dashiki (Zane saw bones in it), and Cage.

We then walked a block to the infamous Water Tower. Did you know it's haunted? Apparently, the guy working the night of the Chicago fire decided to hang himself there rather than burn to death. He haunts it. Kind of ironic, right? As this was the only building left standing after the fire. Had he just hung on (um, wrong phrase), he would have made it out alive.

The Hershey store was next. Free samples. Need I say more.

Then lunch and home. At lunch, Zane had a love fest with mom. It was hugs and kisses the entire time.

Do you think Harper and Zane are enjoying their week so far?

The Museum Adventures of the Dynamite Explorers

Yes, this is a pretty long title, but created by Harper, and thus, perfect.

For Spring Break, we've decided to take advantage of FREE museum days here in Chicago. It seems as if many museums no longer offer free days, or only offer free admission at limited times, however, we have been able to plan a week involving the exploration of at least three of them.

First up was the Chicago History Museum. Become a giant Chicago hot dog, sniff the smells of the city, ride an old fashioned bicycle, hop on the "L" or a steam locomotive, and learn about the great Chicago fire . . . a lot to do and see. We learned that Chicago is named after a word in the language spoken by the Miami and Illinois peoples meaning “striped skunk, ” a word they also applied to the wild leek . . . and we sniffed one. Yuck. Zane wouldn't go near it after the reaction Harper and I had to smelling it. The kids met a little boy name Charlie during our visit and the three of them repaired the steam engine.

I also gained a bit of insight into one of the reasons Harper is embarrassed to share her name with others when they ask (for sometimes he is hesitant). After not answering Charlie when he asked, I took her aside to question her about it:

"I don't like to say my name. People don't get it when I say it."

She went on to share that her name was different and that sometimes people don't "hear" her or get it wrong, or have to repeat it in a questioning tone, ("Harper?"), and that this embarrasses her. Interesting.

Today, we visited the Museum of Contemporary Art.

More on that adventure later!