Tag: memorial day

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Guaranteed (Fun) Rate Field

As the school year came to a close in 2024, my wife and eldest daughter went on a service trip to Nicaragua, starting on Memorial Day weekend and lasting for 8 days. To keep the wander lust as bay, Clara, JR and I decided to take a short jaunt to Chicago and catch a White Sox home game.

If you are asking why in the world did we choose the White Sox, the answer is pretty straightforward. For one, it is a direct flight from NOLA to Chicago, which made traveling with a three year old a lot easier. Two, we had never been, and I would like to see a ball game in home stadium of every team. Counting the ChiSox, I am up to fourteen.

We were in Chicago for less than 24 hours total, but we had a great time. There’s so much to do there, that we could go back again and have a completely different experience.

What We Did

Stax Cafe: We arrived quite early, and the game didn’t start until 1:10 pm, so our first stop was at Stax for pancakes. There are at least two of these in Chicago, and I was very impressed. They have a very diverse menu for breakfast and for lunch, and have several options for kids. All three of us got pancakes, and while JR, who is a bit of a pancake snob, said they weren’t the best he’s ever had, they were definitely above average. We were all very satisfied.

Maggie Daley Park: This is a great public play area right off the water in downtown Chicago. It has a lot to offer, and while we didn’t have a ton of time, we managed to get in 18 holes of mini golf and about 45 minutes on the playgrounds. There’s a lot more to do in this area, and it has great options for kids. We probably could have spent the whole day there. The only drawback is that parking is kind of confusing and kind of expensive.

White Sox Game: If you were too suggest that the White Sox stadium has the worst name in baseball, I wouldn’t disagree. That said, the stadium itself is quite impressive. While it isn’t in the best part of the city, the area immediately surrounding the stadium is great. There is ample parking, and since the team is pretty mediocre at the moment, we were able to park less than five minutes away.

There is a large Kids’ Zone in the outfield, but we actually didn’t take advantage of it. JR said the pretzel was a 6 out of 10, which is much higher than Philadelphia, and Clara easily took care of a hot dog. My only complaint about the food is that they didn’t have any candy (as far as we could tell), which helps to get a three year old through 3 hours of ball.

My favorite things about the White Sox experience are the batters eye and City Connect jerseys. Centerfield is lovely copse of green trees and bushes that creates a much more esthetic batters’ eye than does a simple green wall. While they weren’t wearing their City Connect jersey’s that day, I think the White Sox’ is one of the best. I see little reason to ever go back the Guaranteed Rate, but I would definitely recommend it.

Lou Malnati’s: We closed the night with deep dish pizza and spaghetti at Lou Malnati’s. I am not expert in Chicago-style pizza; frankly, it’s not my favorite. That said, the food was good, the beer was cold and the people were friendly, so what could there be to complain about?

We had a great, brief experience in Chicago, and while the Sox field certainly doesn’t compare to Wrigley, it certainly isn’t at the bottom of the list of stadiums that we’ve visited. It probably doesn’t make the list of must-do things in Chicago, but for the MLB fans hoping to visit every stadium, Guaranteed Rate is more than just a box to check, it was a very pleasant experience. We spent the night at a Holiday Inn Express (which was not very nice) near the airport and caught the early flight home.

Next up, we’ve got an RV trip through the Dakotas, so stay tuned to see if I hit another Dairy Queen.

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Memories in St. Louis

This Memorial Day, my family and I took a quick trip to Missouri to spend the holiday weekend with my parents, brothers and their families. We all grew up in St. Louis, and it is always nice to all go back together, as none of us currently live in the area.

We flew up early on Saturday morning and met my family at the National Museum of Transportation. This is a site that I visited many times as a child, and offers a lot for kids of certain ages. It has a great old car museum, multiple old train cars that you can tour, and a train ride around the entire park. It is definitely geared more towards kids younger (or older) than ours, ideally the 4 through 7 ages, but we enjoyed it.

We went to the Corner Pub and Grill for lunch, which has a vast menu for just about anyone, but is nothing spectacular, then went to relax at my parent’s house. After we unpacked, we went with my brothers to the O’Fallon Brewery. My middle brother, in particular, is a big fan of breweries, and this was a nice way to spend the evening.

The following day, we really kicked off our trip. This was Sunday, and the family decided to head about an hour south to Hawn State Park. This is another location that we visited a lot as kids, and it offers several really interesting hikes.

As my family, in particular, is big into getting our National Park passport books stamped, we left a bit early and took a little detour. In 2018, the Ste. Genevieve Historic Park became a part of the National Park services. Ste. Genevieve is the site of the first permanent European settlement in Missouri and is one of the newest sites designated by the Parks services.

It is so new in fact, that they are still building out the area. The Visitors’ Center offers some very cool scale models and a very informative video. In addition, there are several buildings that are part of site that date back to the late 1700s. The kids got their books stamped and did the Junior Ranger packets, and we pressed on. This is currently not a site that you would want to spend more than an hour or two at, but if you are in the area, it is pretty interesting.

When we arrived at Hawn State Park, we met my family at the Pickle Creek Trail and headed out. This trail follows a very scenic river about a mile deep into the park. While the entire trail is pretty impressive, the end offers several natural water-slides upon which the kids can play. The water was a little cold, but it is a lot of fun for the kids to have something to look forward to at the end.

The park has multiple trails that seem pretty worthwhile, but as we had the baby with us, we decided one good hike was enough for us. The baby fell asleep in the car on the way home, so after we ate and changed, we headed back into town and spent the afternoon at the City Museum.

If you have kids between the ages of 6 and 16, I would call this perhaps the number one ‘must-do’ in St. Louis. While it says museum in the name, there is very little educational about this attraction. The City Museum consists largely of repurposed architectural and industrial objects through which the kids crawl, climb and tunnel. It is hard to do this museum justice in print, but it is the first place that Jonathan and Eileen ask to go every time we are in St. Louis.

We went to the City Museum without the rest of our family, as my brother’s kids are just a bit too young for the experience, but we all met back at the house for Imo’s Pizza. If you watch Jimmy Kimmel, you may have heard one of his rant against Imo’s, but if you are from St. Louis, like Jon Hamm, you understand that this pizza isn’t just from St. Louis, it is St. Louis. There is nothing in the world that takes me back to my formative years than eating one of these thin, provel-covered delights.

The next day, we hit the Zoo, and while I have been there many times, it never fails to impress. The St. Louis Zoo is regularly ranked as one of the top five in the country, but perhaps the most attractive feature is that the zoo is free. Our zoo in New Orleans, which is fine but nothing special, costs almost $20/person. Getting to see fantastic zoo with great animals and enclosures, for free, is a reason to go to St. Louis in and of itself. My kids, who only go to St. Louis once or twice a year, have probably been a dozen times, and it never gets old.

We left the Zoo and headed to The Hill for lunch. The Hill is an old neighborhood in St. Louis that was settled by Italian immigrants. While it has produced some notable people, like Hall of Famer Yogi Berra, the best product of The Hill is the food. There are bakeries, delis or restaurants on every corner, and this time around, we picked Joe Fassi’s. Joe offers about 20 different sandwiches, and while they all sound good, I cannot never pass on the salami. If you are visiting St. Louis and looking for a really unique, high quality restaurant, I recommend just about anywhere on The Hill.

Before we headed for the airport, we made a quick stop at Ted Drewes. I feel like, aside from the Cardinals who were on the road at the time, we really hit all the St. Louis classics. Ted Drewes is an old drive-in/diner-style frozen custard shop. Their specialty is called a concrete, which is reminiscent of a blizzard, from DQ, but so much better. It is hard to choose, but I think I have to recommend the Oreo concrete; it may well be the best desert I have ever enjoyed.

Since my parents live their, we visit St. Louis a lot, but we try to do something different every time. I think we hit the nail on the head this Memorial Day, and the kids really seemed to enjoy. If you are going sometime soon, please reach out as I would be happy to give you suggestions for families of all shapes and sizes.