Wonderland Express

If you live near Chicago and are looking for a fun and different activity this holiday season, I found it for you. Actually.....my mom found it for you. She, however, does not run a blog so she does not get credit. Ha!

The Wonderland Express Exibit at the Chicago Botanical Gardens is worth a drive in the snow. It has trains for the little ones (and the big ones who still love trains) and lots of beautiful details for the ladies in your family. Basically, there are trains that run all through out a village of Chicago landmarks, which are all made out of natural plant materials. The work starts in August (I believe) and one building had a plaque that said it took 3 weeks to build. Trust me, the work shows. It is a very special exibit and one that I would love to see again. (ps - prepare for lots and lots of pictures!)

{eddie is ready to go see some trains!!}

{the green houses were even decked out}

{peek-a-boo I see you!}

{the Obama's Hyde Park house}

{shedd}

{chicago bungalows - with christmas lights! so cute}

{half of the Frank Lloyd Wright house}

{shopping...of course!}

{navy pier}

{chicago river system and downtown buildings}

{baha'i temple}

{my lil' trooper}

Really, honestly, go see this. It was a very neat thing for my mom and I to do with Eddie, but it would also be a great trip to adults only. It was very neat and I can tell you that walking through it a second time brought new things to my attention. You really have to appreciate the time and effort each artist put into these pieces....I know that WTTW is running a show on the man that designed the whole thing and I have been keeping an eye out for that. The only negative aspect to the whole thing was that parking was very expensive (we got in free with my Morton membership), but the tickets to the exibit were reasonable.

If you have older children, they have lots of crafts and even special events like hot cocoa with Mrs. Claus, so be sure to check out the website to watch for times and dates.

Oh....and if the pictures weren't enough to persuade you, let me tell you this......the smell. Oh my word. It smells so good in there. The smell alone is worth the trip!