I'm running out of creative titles

So, we just got back from Chicago. What a fun trip! Bethany did great! She pretty much skipped every nap (except what she could catch in the car or in the stroller) but was "happy, happy" the whole time. (That's a new thing - if you ask, "Bethany, are you happy?" she'll move her shoulders back and forth and say, "Happy, happy". Too cute.)

She loved Lincoln Park Zoo. As do I. It's a free zoo (but for the parking) and there is so much to see. She loved the otters. No, wait, she LOVED the otters. And, who couldn't? They are sooooo cute. And she said Zebra for the first time. That was a shock. No prompting. We just walked up to them and she said, "Zehba". What??? Ok!

Aunt Susie taught her to say, "Okie, Dokie". Only when she says it, it sounds like, "Otee, Dotee". What a cutie!

We went to Ikea and I bought her these finger puppets. They are all animals - Parrot, Duck, Moose (Deer?), Frog, Bear, Panda, Giraffe, Elephant, Monkey and Lion. She loves them. She likes to put them on her fingers and tell us what they are.

She LOVED LOVED LOVED the train! Now every time you ask, "What does a train do?" she very enthusiastically says, "Woo-woo!". And I think she loves planes even more now. She wouldn't let us take her away from the window at the airport. She kept saying, "Airplane! Bye-Bye!" and frantically waving her arm. I bought her a little Southwest plane that lights up and makes the sound of a plane taking off and landing. And when you pull it back, it taxis for a second and then takes off (really, it just lifts the nose).

She was very confused by the pants and long sleeve shirts. By the time we were on the plane back home, she didn't want me to put the pants back on her. She had had enough.

She also thinks that Keifer Sutherland is cute. She was flipping through a magazine in the car one day and everytime she got to the page with his face on it (an ad for 24) she said, "Cute!" I love her.

She says that now, too. Only it sounds like, "I lellow". But she says it after someone else does. So we know she's trying to repeat it.

Bethany freaked out at the Shedd Aquarium. She was running all over the place. "FISH!!!" And we saw a shark. "Shart! Whoa!!!" And turtles. Aunt Susie bought her a turtle. I bought her an otter.

Ok, how about some pictures?

also

I forgot to mention how the rest of the afternoon went after B's doctor's appointment. I had to go to Walgreens to pick up a prescription and after waiting for 30 minutes, I finally got it. She was exhausted, but it was past lunch and we both needed to eat. But, instead of going home, I thought, "she deserves a treat (and so do I)". So we went across the street to Friendly's and we had a nice lunch there. I had a chicken wrap and Bethany had Mac-N-Cheese. They're pretty cheap there, though, because it was just Kraft (made with a LOT of butter!) but we had a good time. She talked to everyone, of course. After lunch we went home and she slept for a few hours. She was pooped. Me too.