A Day At The Pig Race

Oink, oink!

I love my parents because they always come up with something fun to do, such as spending a day at a pig race! The pig race (which was hosted at the Richardson Farm) is most definitely a family event, with parents and children all over the place!

Once everyone was settled…

The pigs were in and the bets were down. It was time to go. At the count of Five! Four! Three! Two! One! And they’re off! The pigs thundered around the track. It was very exciting seeing them race! I enjoyed myself a lot and I must say: Piglets are so cute!

Oink, oink…Happy Friday!

Remnants Of A Sunny Afternoon

Summer Lovin’!

Summer is almost over – so make sure you grab your family and head out to enjoy some sand and surf in the sun before it’s fall!

I already miss a day in the sun and on the sand which always guarantees you a great time to play with your family!

We used to swim, build sand castles together or my dad would bury me in the sand! Summer is a great season because it urged us to be outdoors and try something new and different.

This being said – now is a great time to take your tot(s) out to the beach one more time before it gets too cold. I’ve come up with some fun activities the whole family will enjoy at the beach below!

1. Beach Tag: Use the whole beach as your playground! To make it extra fun, bring along a water gun to turn it into a game of “Super Soaker Tag.”
2. Scavenger hunt: Make a list of “treasures” (like shells, pebbles, etc.) for the kids to look for while visiting the beach! You can also make it an activity scavenger hunt so every family member or team has to complete certain.
3. Sand mini-golf: Stop by your local drug store and pick up some inexpensive plastic golf clubs and balls in the toy aisle or use replacements, like plastic buckets, water bottles, etc. Then build your own golf course! You can also dig holes and create obstacles to make it more challenging.

Happy Playing!

Ravinia Festival with your Toddler

Classical Music for Toddlers!

On Sunday we had a nice picnic (organized by my beloved god-parents!) at the Ravinia Festival while listening to the CSO Orchestra playing Tchaikovsky, including “1812” with cannons. Ravinia hosts live concerts every summer. Located in Highland Park, IL, it is the family event in the Chicago area!

Ravinia not only target adults, but also kids of all ages, from toddlers to college students, looking to introduce us to the beauty of classical music and other performance genres. To make it a ‘hands-on’ experience for tots like me –  a “family space” on the north lawn has been provided as well! It had music-related arts and crafts, storytelling, sing-along and an “instrument petting zoo“. A hoot!

Yet my favorite were the cannons, though! At the end of the night, cannons were first fired after several strains of the Marshallese, France’s national anthem. Then overture’s familiar strains became more and more dominant as the cannons ended the piece in a Russian win. It was really loud, and I must admit that I was shocked at first but my ‘surprise’ settled quickly and I started jumping again (in tune with the cannons)!

What are your adventures this summer?

Mini Golf for Toddlers

Looking for fun kids activities in Waukegan, IL?

Take them mini golfing!

My parents and I went mini golfing at ‘Lighthouse Golf‘ over the weekend! Located next to Shirl’s Dive-In and behind the clubhouse arcade, are 18 holes of the most challenging and entertaining mini golf in Lake County.

I had so much fun mini golfing, and let me tell you: The mini golf course is a delight for the eyes, too! It features beautiful scenes, fountains and waterfalls!

Toddlers are free, adults are $5 per person.

Happy Golfing!

Summer Fun For Toddlers

Summer Lovin’.

The temperatures have nearly been unbearable for the past week or so and you’ve probably wondered what you can do with your toddler during these hot, summer days!

You can’t expect us to be keen on sitting inside sipping lemonade all day — so what should a tired and hot parent do to keep us entertained?

Here are some of my ideas:

I’m a sponge when it comes to learning about nature, habitats and animals so my parents took me on a scenic exercise walk around Chicago’s harbor to learn more about Lake Michigan, seagulls and sail boats! If you don’t have a harbor close by – you might want to opt for your local park and look for “special in the summer” activities. Another fun idea would be to invest in a cheap sprinkler and/or baby pool. I’ve mentioned this in a previous post but I can’t stress it enough! There’s nothing like splashing in the water on a hot day!

Further, have you tried the ‘chalk talk’ with your tot(s)?! Sidewalk chalk is cheap and lots of fun! It’s a super easy way for little kids to show off their creativity and even learn a thing or two (numbers, letters, spelling, shapes… imagine the possibilities)!

Happy Summer!

Arts & Crafts for Toddlers

Quick tips for crafty activities.

Are you looking for fun activities to do with your toddlers? If you do, please visit (if you’re from the Chicago area) Millennium Park and its Family Fun Festival presented by Target. My parents and I went there over the weekend and it was a lot of fun! The huge tent provides arts and crafts activities for us little ones that guarantee hours of fun and learning! To boost my creativity I kept busy drawing and I even made my own little puppet made out of a sandwich bag!

Below are a few tips to encourage your toddler to get creative:

1. Allow your toddler to explore and get messy!
2. Don’t do an activity with an intentional plan but instead let us take the lead!
3. Help us create (usually making art bigger works better for us!)!
4. Use unconventional materials to make art or crafty things (I played with glitter, paint, glue, etc.)!
5. Allow us to move around – we don’t like to sit still!

Now…let the fun begin! Happy Crafting!