Now that we’re officially getting the ball rolling with our site, there are lots of exciting things coming up at The Inspired Parent! I’m fine-tuning some travel articles that will be published here very soon. One series involves traveling with your kids. We’re big believers in immersion travel — be it here in the U.S. or abroad — so we’ll have some fun tips & ideas for you.
In the meantime, I’ll leave you with one of my favorite photos from a trip we took to Acadia National Park — it will be the focus of an upcoming article or two. 🙂
It finally snowed today in the Chicago area. Just a dusting, but I’ll take it — glad it actually (finally) looks a bit like winter. It’s been warmer lately and as a total snow girl, I’ve missed seeing the fluffy stuff.
Between Christmas and New Year’s, we picked one of our rare-for-this-year’s snowy days to head over to The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois to see their Illuminations display. This was our second year that we attended the Illuminations festivities & it is a wonderfully fun way to get out and about for a picturesque nature walk.
Entrance for Illuminations typically starts at 5 p.m. The line is usually pretty long at that time so waiting until 5:30 or 6 p.m. may be a bit easier. Once you’ve parked the car and are at the Guest Center, the actual Illuminations walk is approximately one mile long. The paths are wheelchair & stroller accessible. There are a couple of “warming houses” throughout the walk where you can take a break and purchase snacks & hot beverages. Remember to bring your camera and have some fun capturing the lights!
As a photographer, I always have blast to working with nighttime shots. This year I kept things simple as we were expecting it to be fairly crowd-heavy that night since we went during the holiday week, so I left my tripod at home. All of these shots were taken with a Nikon D600 using my “nifty 50” Nikkor 50mm/1.4G lens.
Enjoy the shots! A few will be available in the near future as fine art prints through my TurtleBug Photography site.
Loved the lights on this one. The sky was back-lit from the tollway in the distance. Sort of a haunted fall-meets-winter look.
Oops…someone dropped some rather large ornaments all over the field…
One of my favorite shots of the night – total Dr. Who lights.
While the other photo reminded me of Dr. Who, this one reminds me of Harry Potter. I solemnly swear I am up to no good.
Loved, loved, loved seeing the lights shining through the trees.
Nighttime tree shots are always fun when converted to black & white.
Another stunning example of nature’s wonders.
We’re so very glad The Morton Arboretum started hosting this event each year – it truly is a magical way to spend a winter evening!
The lights on some of the trees changes colors every few minutes – I liked the blues & greens during this color cycle.
Shooting from across the pond, I feel like we’ve somehow ended up in Miami. hahaha
There are lots of fun, interactive displays as well – you can “conduct” the light orchestra, hug a tree to make it change colors, and even sing to the trees to make the lights move to the rhythm of your voice.
Back at the main Guest Center.
Once you’ve had all the fun you can have meandering through the forest lights, you’ll head back to The Morton Arboretum’s main Guest Center where they have a wonderful shop full of unique, nature-related gifts as well as a great restaurant area. This year they also had different food & beverage kiosks outside, too.
If you’re in the Chicagoland area, be sure to head over to see Illuminations when it re-opens in early-December — bundle up, put on those snow pants and get into nature! Details for this next year’s Illuminations display will be available in mid-fall via The Morton Arboretum.
We’ve been fans of Chef Rick Bayless for many years. His long-running TV show Mexico: One Plate at a Timehas been a family favorite of ours — it is not only informative about regional Mexican cuisine, but also teaches various cooking techniques that we’ve incorporated into our daily lives. Season after season, we’re still learning as we watch. We’re also huge fans of his wonderful restaurants here in Chicago — Topolobompo and Frontera Grill are both phenomenal.
We were overdue for a visit so we headed downtown for the Saturday brunch at Frontera Grill to celebrate my husband’s birthday. Awesome food as usual!
Frontera Grill opens at 10:30 a.m. on Saturdays and we made reservations ahead of time since we know the line can get quite long. We arrived a bit early and took advantage of walking around the city for a bit. Our six-year-old got a kick out of watching the boats sailing by on this unseasonably warm, late-autumn morning.
Tourists cruising along the Chicago River past Marina Towers
Frontera Grill – 445 North Clark Street Chicago, IL 60654-4682
After our brief walking adventure, we arrived back at Frontera just as they were opening – we were seated immediately and our daughter had a blast coloring the cool Mexican-art-inspired sheet they gave to her to pass the time.
Food choices for this particular trip did not disappoint (they never do — we’ve always had great experiences here).
Our starters included side dishes of the Frontera Hot Cakes – Three Sisters Garden corn pancakes with whipped goat cheese & one of the best maple syrups we’ve ever had.
Our other starter was a side dish of the Jicama Street Snack (jicama/pineapple/cucumber salad with fresh lime and crushed guajillo chile… WOW)! The serving size was way larger than we expected and was a combination of chilled yumminess. We all fought over the last bite. The six-year-old won.
Jicama Street Snack
Onto the entrees – I had the Yellow Mole Enchiladas. Holy “Mole” these were great! Fresh corn tortillas with a wonderful filling of braised kale, turnip & mustard greens and topped with an Oaxacan amarillo mole sauce. The dish was served with a side of black beans & topped with crispy onions.
Yellow Mole Enchiladas
The birthday boy chose the Sopitos – three Xalapa-style corn masa cakes each with a different topping – scrambled eggs on one, grilled chicken on another and chorizo & plantains on the third. Topping things off with the chipotle – black bean sauce and wow!
Sopitos – awesomeness!
The wee girl selected the Quesadillas with Rice. We also ordered a bowl of black beans for her, too. Not your run-of the-mill quesadillas by any stretch – more of a turnover pillow of cheesy goodness. Regarding the beans, her quote was “wow, Chef Bayless sure knows how to cook awesome black beans!”
Kids’ Quesadillas & Rice
Add to the mix the unbelievably awesome Mexican Hot Chocolate we had…seriously, we could drink gallons of this lovely stuff…and our next visit can’t come soon enough!
Mexican Hot Chocolate – yum!
The bar area when you first walk in & the display of some of Rick’s wonderful cookbooks other products available for purchase.
If you love traditional Mexican food, great service & a relaxed atmosphere, be sure to make time for a visit to Frontera Grill the next time you are in the Chicago area – you may even see Chef Bayless while you’re there. For a fancier experience, check out Topolobompo – both restaurants share the same main entrance at 445 North Clark Street Chicago, IL 60654-4682. Reservations recommended: (312) 661-1434
