Our Chistmas Gift

We decided to take it easy this year for the Holidays since it was a stay at home year (even years we head back home to Olathe KS for the Holidays). We planned a day in downtown Chicago as a Christmas gift to the kids. Wayne and I kept it a secret until we arrived at our destination. We just told the kids get up, dress warmly (very cold day of course!), and get in the car! We actually did this event on Dec. 12th because Rhianna's surgery was scheduled for Dec. 16th and we knew we'd be stuck at home afterwards. We had to leave the house at 6am because Rhianna had to stop by the hospital for her paperwork and bloodwork to be done to get the ok for the surgery. Nobody was happy about that. Boy did we have a bunch of whiners in the backseat all the way there!

After the hospital adventure we headed downtown. My Mom and Step-Dad gave us a membership to the Museum of Science and Industry for Christmas so we stopped there first to check it out. WOW what an amazing place! We had only planned on spending a couple of hours there but, like The Field, there is no way to see even half of the place in a day let alone in a few hours. Boy are we thankful for the membership!

We then needed to find something to eat and while the museum had eateries we wanted something special (Wayne and I had already planned it but we had to act like we didn't have a clue...), something different. We headed to Ed Debevic's. Nick loved this place! I have to say that while the food is okay and nothing to complain about it's the service and experience that makes it worth adventuring downtown! They treat you very special... by insulting you and treating you like crap. It is so much fun. Something you simply MUST experience if you are in the Chicagoland area.

After filling our tummies we drove a little further South to stop by Macy's and the Walnut Room. Rhianna dropped off her Santa letter in a special mail box. Macy's was giving the Make-A-Wish Foundation a dollar for every letter they received. We support this organization as often as we can! What a wonderful bunch of folks they are and we could never thank the KC Chapter enough for the wish they granted Rhianna several years ago. Anyway, we got there finally found a parking space (at $20 per hour) and walked to Macy's. We looked around, went up to the Walnut Room and came back out. To say this place was packed and busy is an understatement! We can now say we've been there and don't have to do it again. :) After leaving Macy's we walked down the block to the Christkindlmarket - passing the CBS 2 station on the way. We stopped to watch the news cast through the windows and then went across the street to the Market. It was too cold to stay out there and explore for long but what a cool place. We are planning to go back to the Market in the future Holiday Seasons.

After our walking adventures we asked the kids if they wanted some dinner and, of course, they were very interested. We already had plans for our dinner but they had NO IDEA... We had found a unique adventure called Tommy Gun's Garage. It's dinner and a show - gangster style! We arrived and had to give a password to get in then were seated in the garage. Our order was taken by our gangster and served. Then the show started! The songs were great, the humor was very funny (and occasionally not for little ears) and a very pretty flapper embarrassed Wayne on stage. I took a few pictures in the beginning but was told that photography wasn't allowed ... too bad to because I could have gotten some great shots of Wayne blushing! During the show the speakeasy was raided by the cops and we all had to act like we were at a prayer meeting. Too funny! Yet another discovery that if you are in the area GO!

After a long day we headed back home and enjoyed the Holiday lights and light snow that was falling. To cap the evening off the kids all slept on the way home and for me it made for the perfect closing of a great day!

The Beginning of a New Year and More...

Hi Everyone!

We hope you enjoyed your Holiday Season and the start of your New Year is going well!!

Here we are updating you again on our recent adventures... this time it'll be a longer update then it probably should be. Promise to update more often in the future.

Fall was a busy one with soccer, band and choir concerts and all the fun that school brings.

Oh and consider yourself warned... I didn't edit these pictures for lighting, color, cropping, etc. If I had it'd be another 3 months before you'd see them. ;)

A few pictures from Isa's (Isa's number is 14) 1st soccer game of the season. I unfortunately didn't make it to many of the games but got to hear all about them. The team, The Purple People Eaters, didn't win many games but sure had a lot of fun. We are all looking forward the Spring season starting soon.

The first band concert was in October. Isa had been sick and wasn't able to participate but Rhianna did. She did a fantastic job! Boy was she nervous though. The whole beginning band did really good considering they had only been playing for a couple of months.

There was also a choir concert in October. Great singing with a little choreography

The next band and choir concerts were of course in October. Both girls were at the band concert. Unfortunately the choir concert was the day of Rhianna's surgery (see next post for info about that adventure) and we didn't all attend. Isa was there and told us all about it. No pictures though...

Oh you probably noticed that between the October and December concerts the girls' hair became dramatically shorter. We had talked about having Daisy, our beloved hairdresser, trim up their hair for awhile. We scheduled the appointment and the girls started thinking about having something different done. Little did I realize they meant DIFFERENT! They found the styles online and printed pictures for Daisy to see. They both turned out really cute! I'll see if I can find a better pictures so y'all can see exactly what was done - they just weren't cut short. They are asymmetric and layered and all kinds of stuff. Down side - they now have to shower in the morning and style their hair. LOL Add an extra hour to the wake-up hour in our house. And heaven help you if you wake up late... worst bedhead I've ever seen heads to school.

Well, that catches you up to Rhianna's surgical adventures and the Holidays - the next post...

Catching Up!

I can't believe it's almost October already! Realized I hadn't posted anything all summer...

We had a nice quiet summer, nothing really happened. Rhianna got caught up with all of her specialist appointments since we finally had health insurance and was deemed healthy and growing like a weed. All systems are a go for her Urology adventures this Fall. Isabela spent most of the summer reading - imagine that! And Nick moved back in after graduating from college. Andrew is still training with the Army and having a great time.

School started mid-August with Isabela in 8th grade and Rhianna in 6th. They are both at the same school this year and that seems to be a blessing for my schedule (one drop off and one pick up) but the girls can't decide. Isabela is definitely "Mother Henning" Rhianna. As a matter of fact I can hear the daily fight from upstairs right now. It's usually something about Rhianna needing help/assistance with something small and Isabela over helping. Well, at least she's trying to help...

Both girls seem to like their teachers and classmates this year. Rhianna has had some huge adjustments entering middle school; changing classes, gym everyday, lockers, etc. We are in our 5th week of school and I think she's finally getting the hang of it. The school is making adjustments too; understanding her Latex and Nut allergies, her need for more time to do almost everything, transportation issues, her lack of organization skills and having to go to the nurse twice a day for cathing. My compliments to this school, the staff and administration! They have made the transition from elementary school to middle school very easy and are willing to go that extra mile! Wayne and I are very happy with their efforts and willingness so far.

Progress reports came out yesterday and both girls are doing very well. It's a little frustrating to watch Isabela pick a class and not like it or the teacher. She has all A's except for her Literature class and that's a D-. If you know Isabela at all you understand the frustration...

Nick is still job hunting and working on his portfolio when not bugging me. You can tell he's bored without his sisters home to pick on. The consequences are that I have gotten some furniture rearranged, walls painted and the grass mowed on a regular basis. Not such a bad deal when I look at it that way. I feel bad for him and this year's college grads. Not an easy task to find a job right now. Nick is open to working almost anywhere just to have an income. So if anybody hears of anything available in Northern Illinois or Southern Wisconsin let us know!

We haven't had the chance to hear from Andrew recently. I know he's busy with all kinds of training and learning. Last I heard he was at Fort Riley again but that seems to change at a moments notice. The last time we spoke he was getting his transportation licenses (you should see some of the trucks and rigs he can operate) and finishing training for heading overseas. I wish he wouldn't go oversees but I know that's the Momma in me and that he is thriving and successful in the Army.

Wayne and I have just floated along with the kids for the last few months. I've been working on redecorating a lot of the house and rearranging rooms of furniture. I know the trash men hate me as I have been purging tons lately. We now have our pond in the back yard finished and I will be making some landscaping changes in the Spring. It has been very nice sitting on the patio and hearing the water trickle and watching the wildlife. We discovered that Sara (4yo golden retriever mix) loves fishing and more so catching frogs. I don't appreciate it but her hunting seems to captivate her for hours. We also have finally set up our 125 gallon tank in the living room and it seems to be flourishing with 9 Cichlids we received from a fellow Freecycler. It's been nice to have some of these projects completed and enjoy having a home to just "be" in and not chaos from a project everywhere.

Well, as Fall has started we have added soccer games, band and choir concerts and more to the schedule. These tough economic times have had our lives changed and molded back into a more simpler style, something that I think was needed regardless of our financial status. We have new goals for the next few months and next year that are leading us in a very different direction. A family that is growing and changing with that growth. A hard thing to do. Next post I will add pictures and be less wordy, I promise. Hope you are enjoying your Fall and the changing of the seasons! Take care!

Dreams For Kids Extreme Recess

Hi I'm Rhianna the youngest of the Princes. I wanted to share with you a special day I had last week. I got to go to an extreme water recess put on by the Dreams for Kids organization.

I got to waterski






and ride on a jetski




Here's me getting some hair extensions

riding around Bang's Lake on a pantoon boat


riding in a kayak

eating cotton candy

more jetski riding


more hair extensions

and really good snow cones!

I had a lot of fun and hope to go to the next one. See the rest of the pictures from the day at http://picasaweb.google.com/PrincesRealm/ExtremeWaterRecess#

4th of July

Well folks believe it or not I didn't take any pictures of the fireworks the holiday weekend. Forgot the camera as we headed to the beach and didn't turn around for it - the whole two blocks away from the house that we were. :) A huge step for me!

We did have a visitor for the weekend. Wayne's friend , Mark, came to visit from good ole KC. He came in on Thursday and stayed till Sunday. Mark and Wayne headed into Chicago on Friday to walk around the Field Museum and tour the Taste of Chicago. Both Wayne and Mark were very disappointed with The Taste. I tried to warn them that it was a typical festival of overpriced food and lots of cranky people but noooooo they wanted to experience it. And thus they did and won't again. They can now honestly say they've done it. One thing scratched off the bucket list...

Wayne and Mark checking out the house next door to Frank Lloyd Wright's home.

Later Friday evening after grilling some hamburgers we headed to the beach for the fireworks. Wauconda's display was really great this year. We expected a lot less due to the economic times but got a whole lot more. Thanks Wauconda Parks Dept for the great show! I'm telling you it's a really nice set up to have a private beach as part of your homes association and be able to celebrate the 4th of July in a quiet style with a picnic, beer and fireworks. If you want to join us next year just give us a holler!

On Saturday we took a Sunday drive around the "suburbs" of Chicago. We toured some lovely older homes by Lake Michigan in the Lake Forest, Highland Park and Winnetka areas. We then headed to Oak Park to visit the Frank Lloyd Wright homes. I love this neighborhood! I love Frank Lloyd Wright! So of course, even in the rain, I stopped and took some pictures. Here are some of my favorites...

The side of the house. You can see the two human figure statues above the Stork columns.

One of two statues at the side of the house


The storks

Stork columns

Wayne and Mark walking to the front of the house

The front of the home

You can see the rest of the set here -http://picasaweb.google.com/PrincesRealm/FrankLloydWrightHouse#

I hope everyone had a great 4th of July - a safe one too. We enjoyed the company, food and comfortable weather. Mark couldn't get over how chilly it was. He didn't miss the hot KC weather. We don't either! Still can't believe we are knee deep into July and the average temps this summer have been in the mid-70's. Can't beat that! Enjoy your summer wherever you may be and how ever much of it you have left. School starts in 39 days and counting...