Christkindlmarket 2013

And so our annual tradition of visiting Chicago's Christkindlmarket continues.  We never set out to make this a family tradition-it kind of just happened that way.  We have been attending the Christkindlmarket since we were dating and we kept going after we were married, had Judah and so on.  So, this year we took all three. :)  I was a bit nervous about this as we have never done Chicago with three littles yet, but surprisingly this was one of our best years going (with kids)! 

Eric and I have this down to a science by now.  Eric takes the older kids on the train down to the city (last year it was just Judah, and this year he took Judah and Eden).  I drive with the youngest and meet him downtown.  The kids LOVE riding the train, so this way, they get to have a fun train experience, but we have the convenience and flexibility of having our car when we want to leave.  It really is a win-win.  I park in a parking garage right across the street from the market, which is connected to an inside shopping mall, which is PERFECT for bathroom breaks when needed, nursing a baby, or just taking a break from the cold to do some inside shopping.

So, Eric took Judah and Eden on the train to head downtown.  One thing that Eric does for them is he gets the kids a breakfast sandwich from Starbucks to eat on the train ride down.  The kids think this is the best thing ever.  Asher and I met up with them once I got downtown.  It was chilly, but we were bundled up well.  The coolest thing was that it snowed all day!  This was not great for our drive home, but it was wonderful for our time in the city.  There is something magical about looking at Christmas-y things downtown while it is snowing.  Last year, the market was packed (crazy packed), but this year it wasn't that bad at all, so that was very nice.  We walked around, got the kids some hot chocolate and other yummy food, and picked our yearly Christmas ornament from the market.   

Another thing that has ended up becoming another tradition is looking at the Macy's windows.  The kids really liked doing it this year.  They loved to stand at the windows and look at the different scenes depicted.  They thought it was so neat.  After walking around for a while outside, we went to corner bakery for a meal, then walked to the mall nearby where we spent some time shopping there.  We actually spent the whole day downtown and we had so much fun.  On the ride home, we listened to some traditional Christmas music....the perfect ending to a fun-filled day.

 



These are some of the ornaments from one of our favorite "huts'.  Judah really wanted a "knight" ornament, but we convinced him otherwise.



Silly girl



Yummmmmy



I didn't get many pictures of this little guy outside since we kept him covered and bundled up in the stroller.

 

Then there were the Macy's windows...

 

Chillin' in the mall after being fed

 

The kids saw these cool lights as we were driving home, and they said that they looked like colorful marshmallows.  So, of course, I had to take a picture of them. :)

We can already see that our kids love visiting downtown Chicago, and he we hope to pass our love of the city on to them.  Last year, we had Judah give some money to a homeless man on our way to the Christmas market.  He remembers doing that, and whenever we talk about Chicago or going downtown, he asks about that man and if he can give money to him again.  Of course, we have to explain that we probably won't see him again, but we can pray for him and ask God to take care of him and show His love to him through others.  We love the wonderful unique opportunities that being so close to a major city brings!