• Best Thing Ever,  Family Fun,  Friends,  Fun in Chicago,  My Friends Have Mad Skillz,  Something That Could Change Your Life

    Whirlyball, Where Have You Been All My Life?

    Actually, I guess it’s the other way around. Whirlyball has been a Chicago staple for years and years, right here in front of me, but for some reason–and I’ll be kicking myself over it for a long time to come–I had never tried it…until this week. (Disclosure: the fine folks at Whirlyball invited me and some friends in for some complimentary play. I was not compensated for this post.) Whirlyball, which is a combination of lacrosse, basketball, hockey, and bumper cars, is a fast-paced team game and SO MUCH FUN. Players are buckled into “WhirlyBugs” with a plastic scoop in hand. The idea is to get a whiffle ball through…

  • Family Fun

    Just A Traditional Christmas Around Here…

    December 25th already? Wow! This year has flown! Today, in honor of it being Christmas and all, the Wells family is planning to—as tradition indicates—see a movie (“Unbroken”) and then, of course, enjoy the Chinese food that Jim will make for dinner. Same fun stuff, different fun year. Besides that? Well, you know: Merry Christmas to all of you who are celebrating!

  • Family Fun,  Fun in Chicago

    Celebrating Holiday Traditions With Target

    I was thrilled when the folks at Target asked me to write a post about one of my favorite Chicago area holiday traditions. After they provided me with a gift card to purchase items that I thought could enhance the fun, they just turned me loose and let me do my thang. (Thanks, Target! This was fun!) All words and opinions are mine, as usual! Oh, and stick around for the end: I’m giving away a $75 Target gift card to one of you lucky readers!

  • Contest,  Family Fun

    Netflix #StreamTeam Celebrates The Holidays!

    I am a member of the Netflix Stream Team and will be happily sharing monthly tips and stories about how my family uses Netflix on a regular basis. (Okay, that’s an understatement. I should say CONSTANTLY. We use Netflix CONSTANTLY.) As a member of the Stream Team I was provided a voucher to apply towards my Netflix account. Naturally we on the Netflix Stream Team are celebrating this month: it’s December after all! I have a gift for one lucky reader, too: a year of Netflix! More on that in a minute. Netflix has lots and lots of holiday viewing options for families, and it’s a good thing since the…

  • Amazing People,  Best Thing Ever,  Family Fun,  Something That Could Change Your Life,  Travels

    Neverland

    This was originally going to be a Throwback Thursday post but as it turns out, yesterday was a crazy work day and two things happened since then which will help this be a better post. It’s all good. First, last night, many of my friends were watching “Peter Pan Live” on NBC, which is something I probably would have tuned into if our antenna would allow the Peacock Network, but it doesn’t and so I lived vicariously through everyone else. I enjoyed reading everyone’s tweets and Facebook posts, and thought fondly about Peter, Tinkerbell, and the rest. It’s a great story. Second, this morning, I overheard part of a conversation…