Chicago Trip - Going Home!!!

By Saturday we've pretty much ran out of things to do. We went to visit the tiny Vietnam town on Friday and the kids were exhausted so we went home to let them rest. We had a small feast that night to try and finish up all the food that we bought over the week. Everyone was happy to go home the next day because we are pretty homesick.

Learning from experience on our airport trip here, Hieu reorganized the trip home. Instead of dragging all of our luggage and the kids to the car rental place, then load the entire luggage and the kids on a bus to go to the airport. Hieu decided that they'll drop us and the kids off at the airport first and then go return the car. We headed out to the airport 4 hours earlier than our flight. Hieu and my brother-in-law dropped us and the kids off at check-in. They both then made 2 trips back to the car for our luggage while we wait. After they got the entire luggage then we all checked-in and went through security. They took us to the gate where there is a play area and went to return the car.

We thought 4 hours was plenty of time to go check-in but it was barely enough. We were feeding the kids breakfast when Hieu and my brother-in-law came back from returning the car. It was then almost time to board so a round of bathroom/diaper change then it's rushing time to board the plane. Amidst the rush, Hieu dropped his cell phone and lost it at the airport. We got on the plane and Ky-An fell asleep but Ai-Vy fussed a little before she would. They slept almost the entire ride back, which is a great thing but really bad for our arms.

Overall we survived the trip and the kids had a great time with their cousins. However, they were so excited when they got home and see all their toys that they skipped their nap. What's one more day right?!!

Here are some pictures of our rental home:


This is the courtyard that the balcony overlooked:


There were 3 floors to this house and the stairs were steep! Keeping Ai-Vy from crawling up or down the stairs was a pain all week. This is the main floor:


The kitchen:


The breakfast nook:


The patio:

Chicago Trip - Thursday - Millenium Park & Grant Park

Look how tired Ai-Vy is:




Super dad:


They are so cute:

Chicago Trip - Wednesday - Children's Museum & Navy's Pier

He's in heaven here, being able to ride Thomas the Train:


Enjoying his ice cream cone:








Ky-An looks like he's about to fall asleep:




Don't you just love her matching socks?




My little daredevil:


Going to the park with dad while big brother napped:

Chicago Trip - Tuesday - Aquarium

eeding the kids breakfast before I head out to my training class:


Hieu gets some help with the kids today:


Poor thing..so tired. She can't keep up with the older kids.


Snug as a bug:


My little sister bought him a little salamender:


Look at those bags under my niece's eyes!


Crawling around on the dirty floor at our rental house:

Chicago Trip - Monday - Lincoln Park Zoo

Monday is the start of my training. I woke up and feed them breakfast and helped Hieu get them ready. They all get in the car and dropped me off with daddy. Ky-An wanted me to stay with him today and cried when I got out of the car..it was so sad. :( My only comfort is knowing he'll have a blast with his cousins and his dad for the day and I was right.

Supper dad:


Someone is looking a little tired:


I think she liked her lunch:


His favorite..FISH!


Squatting Asian-style!


Miss Ai-Vy trying to blow at dad:


Eating a snack before bed:

Chicago Trip - Sunday

This was my only day of sight-seeing so we head out to Chinatown for dim sum. The restaurant was very tight and barely fit our double stroller. The food is okay, not comparable to the dim sum in Houston. I fed Ai-Vy some rice soup and she threw up at the end so I had to change her clothes in the restaurant because I don't trust their bathroom. Ky-An wanted to poo while we eat. He was a little backed up so it took him a while. By the time he was ready to eat, everyone else was done.

Hieu stayed back at the restaurant with Ky-An so he can finish eating and I went sighteeing Chinatown with my older sister and her family. By the time Ky-An was done, it's time for Hieu to go and pick up my little sister and her friend. He left us there with my sister's family and planned to come back and pick us up. We didn't realize the traffic to the airport was so bad and it took him over 2 hours to get back.

The vacation home we stayed at is very nice and is all wood but dirty. I guess people are used to wearing shoes in the house. My sisters and I both bought slippers to walk in the house. We also got some toys for the kids.

After walking down the streets awhile, all kids start getting tired. We are trying to decide what to do and plan for my brother-in-law to make 2 trips since the place we are staying back is only about a mile away. We left my older sister with 2 cryig kids. My brother-in-law tried to help her but I just tell him that the best thing to do is to hurry up and take me back then he can quickly come back to get his wife and kids.

He held Ai-Vy and I held Ky-An and we trek to the parking lot. When we got to the gate, he asked if I have any cash. I looked around for my wallet and asked him to check the trunk to see if my wallet is there. He opened the door to go get it and saw it ready to drop on top of the car! Thank goodness we stopped or all our money and my ID would've been gone.

He took us home and I quickly got the kids in the house and helped him get out of the house fast so he can go pick up my sister and nieces.

This is the gate:












My little niece loves to pose with this umbrella:




This is a great pictures of the kids. Hieu were blowing raspberries to make them laugh like this:


We went back to Chinatown for dinner that night and it wasn't much fun. The kids were still exhausted from the trip and we didn't get to the restaurant until 9 p.m., a little past their bedtime....especially Ai-Vy's. They were all fussy at the restaurant and Ai-Vy was clingy. It took us forever to find a parking spot then we rushed to the restaurant so we don't have to be out later than we already were. The restaurant was on the second floor and the area was not stroller friendly at all. I had to climb up the stairs holding Ai-Vy, then come back for Ky-An and Hieu fold up the stroller to carry it up. We did all this in a tight staircase right next to the kitchen and had to try and get out of the way with our stroller and the kids to let people through. It was incredibly exhausting and frustrating at the same time. However, the food was great so that was a bright point.

Grumpy face:


They are all glued to that dvd player and all were crabby: