On the lakefront in three states

This week turned into a bit of a mini-vacation without really planning on it. On Sunday afternoon we spent some time in Michigan city at the beach, zoo, and lakefront park having a picnic. The wind was coming strong from the north and huge waves which were fun to watch, and great view of the windy city from the top of the lookout tower at Washington park zoo!

On Monday we met my friend Amy and her children for a day at the St. Joseph lakefront. This is a wonderful spot for a summer excursion as they have recently improved their lakefront and filled it with children's activities: like a playground on the sand, an open splash pad, a carousel pavilion which includes free access to sidewalk chalk, checker boards and hula hoops, and a pizza restaurant in the Amtrak station. We also enjoyed a few hours in the Curious Kids Children's Museum, which is one of our favorites. We had perfect weather to be outdoors and it was so nice to catch up on the past year.

Jeff had to spend a few nights in the city for work, so we spent Tuesday and Wednesday in the city and did a few excursions: riding the redline CTA, a couple trolley rides to Navy Pier, and brunch at Toast followed by playtime at Oz Park. An almost four year old loves experiencing the thrill of moving objects, so South Shore train, ferris wheel, little Thomas train ride, and taxi rides all were included in the fun. He was amazed by the noise and speed of the underground train, and couldn't believe that some people get to ride one of these every day! I was impressed by the upgrades and improvements to the Grant, Belmont and Southport stations, everything looks so much nicer than when I was a CTA commuter ten years ago.