Love, Learn, Play: Chicago

If I had one magical wish, I would ask to understand how the boys think and why they fall so passionately in love with some things. Much to our delight, the boys- up until this point at least- always fall madly in love with the same things at the same time, so we are able to saturate our entire family in their interests and help them learn as much as they are driven to learn about anything at all that tugs at their heartstrings. Most recently their love of all things ships and boats began to slowly transition into a love of bridges, which has in turn started to shift into a love of architecture in general. And somehow- only God knows exactly how- while engrossed in the architecture of the London Tower Bridge and the Leaning Tower of Pisa and the Empire State Building and the Burj Khalifa, the boys fell in love with the works of Frank Lloyd Wright. They marvel over the Guggenheim and the Robie House for hours each day- two things that in all honesty I had never even heard of prior to the boys discovering them. I never imagined my four year olds would teach me more about the world than I had learned in my own adult life.

As luck would have it, the boys book a SAG commercial shoot in Chicago last week. Chicago is home to the boys' beloved Robie House and much to their delight- although it was totally coincidental- the hotel I booked was located in Frank Lloyd Wright's hometown of Oak Park, Illinois. Who knew?! The boys were totally geeked!!!

So on Tuesday morning, my mom and I loaded the boys up and headed west. Jon usually isn't able to take more than one day off of work if the boys have a shoot but luckily my mom is always up for the adventure. Although we missed daddy dearly, I love that the boys get to share some of their very special moments with Grandma and its nice to have the time with my mom. We headed straight into the city and arrived on the campus of the University of Chicago in four hours time. Our first stop was the Robie House. While it was actually closed and we were only able to walk around the outside, you would have thought the boys were at Disneyland! They were just mesmerized, running around the building pointing out all the features of Wright's prairie style that they had learned so much about. Our next stop was the Willis Tower per the boys request, as they of course wanted to see the tallest building in Chicago. Inside, there were tons of displays and paintings of the world's tallest buildings, showing their size in comparison to the Willis Tower. My mom and I stood back as the boys ran gleefully to each and every building, shouting out its name with an excitement never before expressed by any other four year old on the planet! They were in HEAVEN! When we finally took the elevator up to the Sky Deck on the 103rd floor, they were really as close to Heaven as they've ever been :) That is until mommy surprised them by giving in the very first time they asked for the Willis Tower Lego Architecture set. I'm as hard as nails if we ever have to step foot in a Toys 'R Us (which is a rare occasion as I seriously dread that place), but I was softer than melted butter when they asked for such a cultured toy in the midst of their little four year old glory!

We ended up staying at the most adorable little hotel in the most adorable little town of Oak Park. On Wednesday morning we explored the neighborhoods while searching for the many Frank Lloyd Wright homes in the area. I've got to admit, it was incredibly fun. Matthew asked repeatedly if we could buy one of Wright's houses. I told him that he's gonna have to work a lot more than a couple of commercials if he ever wants to live in such a place, but secretly I'd be delighted if he made such a dream come true for himself because I was quickly falling in love with Oak Park! Though we didn't pay to take the tour, we did stop by Wright's home and studio to visit the gift shop. If you ever want to feel unbelievably awkward- walk into the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio Gift Shop with two four year olds. It's like a museum- full of ridiculously expensive pieces- and the boys burst in full of excitement! Thankfully the ladies working inside seemed to relax a little when they realized that the boys knew each and every building they say and walked around spewing out facts that only diehard fans would ever know. When the boys settled in with a few good books, they all got back to work :)

Wednesday afternoon the boys had a call time of 3:00pm for their shoot. We arrived on set only to be ushered to "lunch". I don't know if it's beginners luck or what, but we always manage to have call times immediately proceeding lunch! The meal was no Chef Eric meal from How To Catch a Monster, but it was delicious nonetheless. After we headed back to set and spent the next four hours in holding. Unfortunately, by the time 7:00pm rolled around they still weren't ready for the boys' scene and apparently 7:00pm ends legal weekday working hours for minors in Illinois. Because production didn't have a night permit, they had to let the three kids on set go without having filmed anything at all. It was kind of a bummer, but the boys had a wonderful time and made a new friend with the other little girl on set. Although they didn't actually get to film, it was still an enriching experience for them and once again I was amazed by their behavior in such a setting.

We stayed one more night in Oak Park before heading home in the morning. We took a bit of a longer route home in order to take the boys to see their second favorite covered bridge of all time- the Langley Covered Bridge in Centreville, Michigan. Again, it was Heaven on Earth. The boys were over the moon excited to finally see and touch and cross a bridge they had only ever before seen in photos and books. Had they had a Lego Architecture set of the Langley Covered Bridge, I would have bought that damn thing too! It's impossible to describe the pride and excitement I feel when the boys' eyes light up over such things. They are truly remarkable little boys, and though we may never understand why they choose to love the things they choose to love, we will forever do our best to let them experience the wonders of their world. We are so blessed with such wonderful opportunities to travel with the boys on trips like these. We'd like to extend a special Thank You to Extraordinary Casting and as always, a special Thank You to our team at Brilliant Talent Management for helping make such opportunities possible!!!!

The Willis Tower