Weekend review

What'd we do this weekend? Aside from cutting down 10 or 15 volunteer trees from our very suburban neighborhood (where volunteer trees are the only type of volunteers that aren't welcome)? Don't give a pre-menstrual woman a pair of branch cutters. I'm just sayin...

Well, we headed into Chicago to watch Aladdin at Navy Pier! Aladdin was 75 minutes long with no intermission (PERFECT for Corinne who was getting antsy towards the end). They did a beautiful job of making the play feel like the movie, including a flying carpet, favorite songs, and even camels. (You have to see the camels. They are worth the price of the ticket!)

One of my favorite parts of the play were the liberties they took with a few of the lines. The play is in the Chicago SHAKESPEARE theater, so there were several one-liners from various Shakespearean plays thrown in, but with a twist; "Aladdin, Aladdin. Wherefore art thou Aladdin?" I love Shakespeare (though I'm not an EXPERT, I just know several of his works) and took a class devoted to him in college (at a community college, so it was TOP NOTCH learning, folks). Those lines had me snorting on my $2 M&M's.

(I also know for a fact that I saw at least ONE other blogger there, and possibly another. I'll let you know once they confirm with me. It must be a sign of popularity when you are getting SPOTTED at places by people you don't "really" know, you know?)

Aladdin was definitely well done and we were thrilled to be able to attend for free. If not for free, then the price was a tad high, in my opinion. Then again, we're broke, suburban folks. For a city family or family who takes their kids to the full-price movies regularly? Then this was totally affordable. (And don't forget to get your parking ticket validated by the theater box office! You get 40% off of parking at Navy Pier if you are a theater attendee!) Plus, the draw to live entertainment is always more exciting.

We strolled Navy Pier for a bit, had a picnic lunch on a bench, watched the pirate ship (really! The Tall Ship Windy is a pirate ship with masts and pirates and EVERYthing! I think I was more excited than the kids!) and looked at the boats through the telescopes.All in all, a gorgeous day with lovely memories. The patriotic dress that everyone loves. Corinne and some random lady twirled together on the pier with their beautiful dresses spinning straight out. After all, the entire value of a dress can be measured with how far out it spins...

We also found a wedding ring that we forgot to turn into lost and found (I swear we were planning on turning it in, but the office we were directed to was at the front of the pier and we forgot about it after eating and walking and a few "chances to discipline"). So, if you lost a men's wedding ring at Navy Pier and can describe it, email me..