I’m so tired, today was a loooong day! We woke up this morning, got ready to go and headed straight out to pick up Jen and head to the Morton Arboretum. I’ve wanted to go there for so long and I’m so happy that today I finally did. It’s so beautiful and there is so much to see, if you like nature, and I do. Plus, it was free. I got a museum adventure pass that was good for 2 admissions.

my big girl with her backpack

First we went to the children’s garden, which is 1400 acres, and saw as much as we could before all the screaming kids got to us (don’t let that deter you, it was great!). Ve ran away from me twice, once in the maze and terrified me, so I had to yell at her in public. I’m waiting for the day to come that she understands danger! I had a stroller for her, but I think keeping her strapped in takes away part of the experience for her, and I wanted her to have a good time.

in the path walking into the children's garden

such a pretty tree!

a shiny ball!

ve playing in the mini cabin

the children's lily pond

this picture was an accident, but i think it looks really cool

marshy

she was so excited to climb the rocks!

in the secret grotto

entrance to the maze

ve's sad after she was in trouble

Then we headed to the west side of the park to see a really old oak tree and a lake, both were incredibly beautiful. It was hard with the little though, her legs are too short to do much hiking and she’s easily distracted by everything. I plan to go back in the fall without Ve and without bugs to explore that part of the park more. We still got to see a lot though!

they were learning stuff

lake marmo

lake marmo, again

the old, old oak

they keep all the witch hazel under lockdown

so many butterflies in the 4 seasons garden!

in the wild garden

i love this tree!

jen and a breathtaking weeping willow

We ate a lovely meal: Jen had a sweet yogurt parfait and me and Ve split an asian chicken sandwich with pasta salad that contained some of the best fresh mozzarella I’ve ever had. Jen struck up a conversation with one of the membership desk workers who started telling us about the lore of the place. Apparently Joy Morton was named from his mother’s maiden name, which was tradition, and the Joy Path is so named because he would have his driver drop him off a ways away from his house and he would walk that way home to decompress from his day before seeing his family. I would have loved to hear more, but I knew that Ve was moments away from a meltdown, which means I was moments away from a meltdown, and it was time to go home.