Dug It And Did It In ‘07

January 3rd, 2008 by Kelly

Happy New Year, everyone!

What a whirlwind of a month it has been - between school parties, cookies, shopping, gift wrap, more shopping, holiday concerts, and family visits, the New Year is here, and the kids are wondering what the heck I am going to do to entertain them for their few remaining days of Winter Break. I told them we need to take a deep breath and re-cap everything we did LAST year, so we can first be grateful for what we did do, before we move on to what we can do. It doesn’t matter if you are new to the North Shore scene, or have lived here for years - it’s always nice to remember how lucky we have it. Here’s just a sample of what we took advantage of:

Northwestern University activities:

Want a chance to catch the Wildcats for free? Check out the Spring game, where kids can get up close and personal with the players - it’s one of my son’s favorites every year! And it’s the tip of the iceberg when it comes to having a major university on our doorstep. Concerts, art exhibitions, great sporting events (where even if NU isn’t the best team on the field, they play some of the best!), chances to participate in health studies - it’s all for the taking.

Chicago Botanical Garden:

I’ve blogged on this many times - maybe because I’m always in awe of how amazing it is to have such a great garden just minutes away. The kids love hanging out here in the summer, and totally dug Wonderland Express. I’ll cop to being a bit cranky about the parking fee, but I could always just suck it up and join.

Fort Sheridan:

This was one of those “get in the car and drive somewhere” days when we decided to check out Fort Sheridan. Also, because we were fortunate enough to live in a rare respite spot from the cicada invasion, and I wanted the kids to check them out. How cool is it to stumble on a giant hawk’s nest? Again, another totally free, fun, educational opportunity for the little ones in your life!

The Pool!

We on the North Shore are SO lucky to have park districts that really know how to do it right. Glenview’s outdoor pools are simply fantastic, and well worth the price of a season pass. I’m already counting the days…

And speaking of recreation…

If you’re looking for somewhere to live that has awesome recreational opportunities, the North Shore can’t be beat. In fact, Glenview is one of the few locales around to offer a U-5 soccer program for those little Beckhams. And I could post a gazillion pics of my kids at the Northbrook Ice Arena, but suffice it to say we spend a lot of time on the ice, and that rink is very nice and very warm. Skaters and hockey players on the North Shore aren’t lacking for a chance to skate.

That’s just a few of the many, many things you can do in the New Year - yes, we did venture out past our home turf - a lot - but I feel blessed to live somewhere that offers us the chance to not have to if we don’t want to.

This year? I’d like to check out the Skokie Lagoons more than we already have, get to Gillson Beach at least a few times, explore Skokie and Northfield’s Farmer’s Markets and start buying my coffee from Deerfield Bakery. I want to take advantage of Wilmette Theater’s children’s programming and catch a play at The Apple Tree for the hubby and me. Oh, I know I’ll think of more, and put together a much more impressive list, but for daydreamers, that’s not a bad start.

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