craig and i got married on september 3rd and moved to illinois on september 9th.
we were 18 & 20 years old.
babies.
he went to school & played basketball… i worked as a temp at the college before and after lauren was born.
between his classes and my work craig was in charge of tiny baby lauren.
such a sweet memory.
when he finished school and got a job, i started to nanny and took lauren with me.
then i did daycare from home when scott was on the way.
we bought our first home. we fixed it up room by room.
we loved that house. we filled it with love and babies…we had all of our babies while living in illinois.
this summer we did a little tour of the old places we loved.
it had been a long time since going back there (physically and mentally).
our first stop was The Grove… a nature center.
this was a place i came to ALL the time with my daycare kids because it was free!
i was so glad to see it was doing even better than when we lived here.
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huge tank filled with turtles… lauren used to love this!.jpg)
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it smelled exactly the same in these buildings. 🙂
it felt a little surreal being back there.
scott remembered it a little but the others couldn’t..jpg)
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we had never seen this black smith demonstration before.
they watched him work for several minutes making a nail.
just one nail!
it was crazy to think about how they used to have to hand craft every nail they used.
can you imagine?.jpg)
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one nail.
five minutes.
then just for something different we went to Abt.
there are NO stores like this in kansas.
we killed an hour here easily between me looking through the dream kitchens, the boys in the massage chairs, the free hot out of the oven cookies and this magician.
my kids were totally into the magic..jpg)
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we stopped in to see our neighbors from our old neighborhood.
one friend was at work so we peeked in at her job to say hi.
marybeth was so special to me.
she helped me so much with my little ones way back when.
she watched them sometimes, she encouraged me as a young mother and she loved my kids.
we loved being neighbors with her family..jpg)
THIS is where i wanted to go more than anywhere on our vacation.
the choo choo.
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this tiny little diner was my FAVORITE when we lived in Des Plaines.
and it’s funny because back then… we hardly went there.
at the time it was a lot of money for us to spend on a toddler’s meal or with several kids.
so it was more of a special place when we had just one kid with us.
or we would go just for a milkshake but no meal..jpg)
it is very small and it is almost always full with people waiting for a seat.
they serve hamburgers & fries. they make big yummy milkshakes. (Oreo is the best)
we sat at the bar because there were too many of us for a booth.
this is a shot of the whole place.
there are three booths in front of the camera that you can’t see but otherwise… that is it..jpg)
what makes this place so fun?
your meal comes out on the train!.jpg)
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i was loving all the memories from this place so much and then they played the happy birthday song for a little boy in the diner.
and oh man… it was very hard to not cry.
immediately i remembered the last time i had been at the choo choo was for lauren’s 9th birthday.
i think it was just the two of us?
and i got her the birthday cupcake.
they play the birthday song really loud and the train brings out a cupcake.
i missed her very much in that moment.
i wished she had been there with us to see if she remembered it too..jpg)
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this meal made my whole trip.
and i didn’t even eat anything! ha ha ha
i was just so happy to be there.
i was beaming from the inside out.
so many memories for me of being a mama to those little ones.
and how it feels so different now… it was so good to go back..jpg)
and then if i wasn’t feeling emotional enough already…
we went to see our old house!
this was our first home.
we moved here in 1998… scott was a few months old..jpg)
we painted it all white… we put in that “garden”… craig built me an arbor for mother’s day that i LOVED… we built the fence and the deck… finished the basement… gutted the bathrooms and the kitchens and made them shiny and new… the four windows on the second story were our bedroom.
i remember taking naps on sunday and laying in bed listening to craig playing with the kids in the front yard.
i spent so many MANY hours on those porch steps watching my littles ride their bikes up and down the street.
i rocked my babies on the porch swing.
it was a great place.
1345 Henry street treated us well.
ahhh… i am feeling a little weepy now thinking back to those days.
life keeps going.
kids grow up.
i am so grateful for that home.
and that guy who i shared it with… he’s pretty rad.
Flower Patch Farmgirl - OH MY GOSH THAT SNAKE.
First the possum. Now this.
You want me to have bad dreams every night, don’t you?
Lisa - Oh my goodness, I live in Park Ridge and we’ve been to Choo Choo grill many times 🙂 Makes me sad that my boys have all outgrown it as well…it’s amazing how fast time flies! I miss the days that we spent playing in the backyard, looking for bugs and eating goldfish crackers – sometimes it seemed as if those days would never end but I’d sure love to see those chubby little hands digging in the sandbox one more time…
Friday Favorites » Between You & Me - […] Meg shared some memories. Her oldest just left for college, so she’s in a new season. I’m learning from her, while I’m in my new season, and she doesn’t even know it. […]
Vicki - I was already a bit emotional before reading this and now I’m a hot mess! I’ve been reminiscing too over the last few weeks as our family is in the midst of some major transitions. This post makes me long for the days when my babies were babies and a nap made everything better!
Renee - This post was sweet. I grew up near downtown mt. prospect, which is like 10 minutes from the choo choo restaurant. how fun! And the grove – i remember a few class field trips there. Free and educational! haha.
Jolene (Homespun Heritage) - This summer I was thrilled to take my 7 children to the place that I grew up going to on vacation. Its changed dramatically since I went there as a child but it still held that same magic that it use to hold for me!
Rach - Such a sweet post and such an inspiration.
tracy fisher - precious!!!! thanks for sharing 🙂 -tracy
josie - what timing, I am from chicago and they just featured choo choo on “chicago’s best” – i had never heard of it and then its on your blog today….
Will have to take my 2 year old : )
Nanette - We love the Grove! My first boy had his 5th birthday party there and I remember how much he LOVED passing around the animal skins to look at! We don’t go as often as we should…so pretty just to walk the trail on a good weather day. And I have heard from others how great Choo Choo is…but they always just called it “The Train Place”…I will have to take my 4 year old before he gets any bigger. Thanks for the post with the good reminders!
amyellen - oh my goodness! i live in arlington heights, i have a daughter the same age as lauren, i did (still do) home day care when she was little, we LOVE the grove, my son is 11 and still has to go to the choo choo for every birthday (and a couple other trips throughout the year), my husbands best friend has worked for the abt family since high school!
i so wish i had known you when you lived here, i am certain we would have been best of friends 🙂
Christy - What a great post! My husband and I were the exact same ages as you and yours when we got married. It was actually October of my senior year when he proposed. I still can’t believe it. We have survived through a lot. So glad I have him to make the journey.
Julie - Memories, misty water-color MEMORIES, of the way we were… In my mother’s family, reminiscing is kind of a no-no (stoicism, always!), but like you, Meg, I enjoy a little trip down memory lane every now and then! You remember what it took to build your life as it is now.
On another note, did you notice how all three kids in the blacksmith shop photo have their hands up near their mouths? Funny! I notice mainly because I am constantly reminding my 9- and 5-year old to stop chewing on their hands/nails. 😉
Thanks for sharing, Meg! I love your blog!
Shelby - Meg – I just read this and it made my sentimental morning even more sadder. My daughter is in 11th grade and so far I have cried at her field hockey team’s parent night (knowing next year I am there!), her last field hockey game of this year and at homecoming. I loved this blog and learning more about you and your family. Sometimes I think people lose sight of the memories they are currently making, so I loved reading this. Next year I will probably be the biggest crybaby watching my daughter go through her senior year but I will cherish every single experience, photo opp and memory. Thank you! Oh, and your family is beautiful!!!
Sarah K. - So many beautiful memories!!! I love that you can still go back and relive them! My husband would LOVE to go to that Choo Choo restaurant!! Oh my word, the trains!
Melanie - I loved this sentimental trip of yours! And I’ve been to all the places you mentioned – I live here in the Chicago ‘burbs. What town did you live in?
Jennifer - Meg thank you so much for sharing your memories and pieces of your heart. I just married the love of my life this past summer, and just last night I was telling him how I can’t wait to make memories like these with him. Your post had me in tears!
Colleen - Those kids of yours are beautiful, both then and now. Couldn’t have been easy making ends meet, taking care of all those babies and a daycare to boot. Love your ability to make lemonade and ignore the lemons ( not being able to afford eating as a family at the diner) Hope you let Lauren know about the cupcake to see if she remembered it when you returned home. I think you are a great mom!
Carol S. - Meg, you know I’m from Chicago but you probably don’t know from Mt Prospect at River Rd and Euclid. Minutes from Choo Choo but regret I never went there! Loved taking my kids to the Grove too. The paths to a field with a gazebo and swamp, the t-pee and long house, such an awesome place on a fall day to let kids explore. Ever feed the ducks at Allison Woods? Thank you for these sweet memories and pics. I miss my college guy too, Thanksgiving is sooo sweet with them home! Happy Fall.
Kat - I love this post as it struck such a chord with me about memories and little ones growing up and wanting to step back in time and be there again.
Such a beautiful thing.
My kids are still relatively little at 11, 9, almost 7 and almost 5, but gee I still get so sentimental about when they were babies, toddlers and preschoolers. Sigh.
I loved the part about you remembering Lauren’s 9th birthday.
That made me want to cry too.
Aren’t we so lucky that we get to make these special memories with our kids and that there are still many more to come.
Love your blog, after all these years I think it is still my favourite 🙂
Valerie @ chateau a la mode - Awww, love this post. It tugs at my heartstrings. There is something so special about the place where you raise your babies.
Jessica McCart - I bet. Makes me teary just reading this. Great looking house!
Kristin S - Meg, it’s so special how your girls look at their big brothers. You are raising them well!
And what the heck would you do if Lauren told you she was getting married?!?!?! You WERE babies.
Jenny B. - So special. What a great trip. It must have been hard to move away from there. It appears you guys have always had great taste in houses. 🙂
Tiffany - Sweet sweet post. When u look back u see how time flies. The elders always say, The days are long but the years are short. The Choo Choo cupcake with the doily, sprinkles and train topper almost got tears outta me. I hope your daughter reads this and REMEMBERS too.
Lisa - I’m getting emotional for you! And I don’t even know your family! Haha! I was just listening today to the song my husband and I danced to at our wedding and was all teary eyed and emotional! Its fun to look back at all the good memories…
Molly - this was a really cool post. life is so full. isn’t it. so good.
we are from iowa and lived in arizona for three years. those were three hard years…in so many ways. it is emotional to think about it. now we have been back in iowa for five years. going back and visiting would be so fun and so emotional.
Sara Torbett - Meg,
this might sound strange, but thank-you for this post. I was walking on the treadmill, praying over some things and a bit sad. Then I read your post. It was just what I needed to read today. I’m a mama to two little gals and sometimes I look at gals like yourself with older kids and think how lucky you are that you get to pursue your dreams and be mama. Gulp. That was selfish of me to write. Your post reminded me that the rich life I’m providing for my little girls matters. That it will still matter later, it’s something that lasts. XO.
Angela - Your children, ma’am, are absolutely beautiful! And I love that you took them back to that house – I lived in the same house from birth through college. In fact, my parents still live there, but… My son, my first child, is due in January and I already cannot wait to take him back to my childhood home. My Mom and Dad took my brother and I to their childhood homes and told us all sorts of fun stories. It is so special knowing that part of a parent’s life.
Your kids are so blessed to see a home that was your first and theirs! And to hear stories about what it was like with Mr. Duerksen or with them when they were tiny? Even more special!
Nicole Q. - Loved your trip down memory lane . . . made me teary and think of our own memories with little babies!!
Alicia @ La Famille - I am beaming too!! Meg, I love this post so much. Every drop of it. I love it because we are in a major limbo period of our lives and nothing seems right. We moved from our first house two years ago in a major move and things still don’t feel like home at all. This post makes me see that there’s memories everywhere and you’ve shared it so well. I hope I look back on this time with tears of happy memories, even though being in limbo makes me sad a lot right now.
Thank you for sharing, Meg. Really really beautiful post.
PS: Sean holding Annie on his lap in that photo is so sweet. Something about big brothers and their little sisters…protecting them, loving on them…just melts me. I saw Noah (my 11 yo) holding Sophie’s hand (5 yo) the other day and totally lost it.
PPS: Choo Choo is where its at. I’ve never been, but when you get your food on a gosh darn TRAIN, you know its something special. Officially on my bucket list: Eat at friggin’ Choo Choo
Trish - we are still in our first house. i am ready to move into something more suitable for our family now, but just thinking about it makes me all nostalgic and i know i will cry when we do finally leave!
Jenn - What great memories! Thanks for sharing….I’m smiling 🙂
Jackie - I’m a 26 year old mama to 2 (three in March!) little ones, and I think I’m in those days right now. Is that strange? Seeing how your kids grew up and the trips down memory lane makes me think about how things will be for us in 10 or 15 years. I catch myself wishing things were easier because they’re so little, or wondering so often what things will be like when they’re bigger, but the truth is it takes a post like this from a person like you to make me realize I’m in the “good old days” right now!
Gina - What wonderful memories!! Your story about Lauren’s birthday tugged at my heartstrings too!! 🙂
Sabrina - We recently moved back to my hometown and it’s been fun to drive around and reminisce about all the fun times I had as a kid. My kids are tiny, but I’m excited to introduce them to some of the old places I enjoyed growing up.
P.S. I almost had a panic attack looking at all those snakes. They are HUGE and so many!! eeek!
Kari - It’s awesome that you posted this now. I just went to see the house I grew up in. The house I lived in when I met my husband [who lived across the street]. The house we had out first kiss in front of. The house we spent most of our dating years. We looked inside and I was checking out my old bedroom. I noticed in the closet, the wall says “Kari <3 Zane Forever" It's been about 12 years since we lived there. No one ever covered it! It's STILL there! Made me so soooo happy! And to make it even better. WE'RE MOVING IN! It's ours! I can't wait to make more awesome memories there!
erin - You were in my old “hood” I grew up in Elk Grove and had many friends who lived in Des Plaines growing up as half that town went to our high school. I work in Niles now so I know the Grove you were talking about. I looked into the house to host my wedding there but it was too small for our needs. Thanks for sharing!!
Courtney - I needed this today. I have small babies.. And in the last 3 years we have bought, redone, put our hearts into 3 homes. And then to find out, it was time to move. We are moving into the next house we just finished remodeling this weekend.. Here’s to living in today, and focusing on the now.. Appreciating today! These will all be cherished memories someday. (I hope! Ha ha)
Tracy - Awwwww….now you’re making me cry! I love going back to see our first house. This was a beautiful post!
Kassondra - I am smack in the middle of raising babies and running my in home daycare. Crying over your memories because I know all too soon I will be coming back to this place missing this crazy time in my life.
Tessa - Loved this … a great reminder to soak up all the time we have with our kids because they will be off to college before we know it … 🙁 The Choo Choo is adorable!