Willis Tower Expedition

Waiting patiently for the train to Chicago.
A bird's eye view

The glass ledge on the Skydeck of Willis Tower.

Alex and Brooke, no doubt playing "I Spy"as they take in the beautiful views!

Saturday was a beautiful, sunny, fall day here in Chicago. We took the kids to lunch at Brooke's place in Oak Park then ventured out for a fun field trip. Brooke lives right off the blue line train so we rode the train to Chicago then walked a few blocks over to the Willis Tower. Ever since Alex saw pictures of the glass ledge that juts out from the Skydeck on the 103rd floor, he has been asking us to take him there. We wanted to wait for a perfectly clear day (there is actually a sign at the ticket counter that says something to the affect of no refunds for changes in visibility) and apparently so did the rest of Chicago! The wait was one hour and a half from the building's entrance but we shrugged that off as a probable over-estimate.

One line for the elevator to security. One line for security check. One line for tickets. One line for movie screening prior to elevator ride up to 103rd floor. One line for elevator ride. One line once on 103rd floor to stand on glass ledge. One line to take elevator downstairs. One line for snacks. One line for elevator ride up to street level exit. Phew! We were exhausted. The kids did remarkably well as the suspense held Alex's attention and Abby was just along for the ride.

What a view! The time commitment convinced me to bite the bullet and set foot on the ledge. I didn't last long. Alex, Abby, Brooke, and Brad on the other hand, ran right out there. The kids even laid out on the floor to look at the view down the side of the building. No fear.

We asked the kids what they liked the most and Alex said the glass floor, while Abby insisted it was the ICEE at the bottom. I think the train ride ranked up there as well. What a great Chicago day!