TAYONTHEMOVE

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Cantigny Park in Fall - Wheaton, Ilinois

Cantigny Park in Fall

Tay Explores

Hello folks, today I have another beautiful fall post for your eyes to admire! My nieces are here so we are constantly trying to find places to take them and since it hasn’t gotten as cold yet, parks are the perfect place! I recently found a park in Wheaton, Illinois which is about 15ish minutes from me in Glen Ellyn. It’s called Cantigny Park and costs only $5 per car! However, it’s $10 per car on summer weekends. It’s all worth it in my opinion because there are tons of gorgeous gardens to walk through as well as museums with activities for kids! Unfortunately, the museums are closed on Mondays which is the day of the week we chose to go. Even though we were sad about that, it still turned out amazing because my nieces thoroughly enjoyed being outside in nature. The three year old ran around everywhere in happiness. (And as you will…

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Open House Chicago 2016 Series – Part 3

Architecture

The next stop on the Open House Chicago was the Nineteenth Century Club House and Oak Park Art League. Nineteenth Century Club House in Oak Park, IL This clubhouse was established by a group of women who believed that education, charitable activities, and civic involvement were an important elements to a prosperous community. (Girl power!) This neoclassical structure was built in 1928 and designed by James L. Fyfe who had ties to the club through his wife and mother-in-law. The clubhouse is still used to support educational and cultural endeavors. At the time of my visit there was a dance class going on, which was fun to watch! Oak Park Art League in Oak Park, IL The Oak Park Art League was founded after World War I and this structure was designed in 1902 by Eben Ezra Roberts. (I like how colorful and fun this building’s exterior is) It was a place for artist collaboration…

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Saint Edmund Parish in Oak Park, Chicago

Open House Chicago 2016 Series – Part 2

Architecture

Saint Edmund Catholic Parish in Oak Park, Chicago Another site on the Open House Chicago 2016 was the Saint Edmund Catholic Parish. It is the first Catholic Parish in Oak Park, IL and was founded by Archbishop James Quigley in 1907. It is a 14th Century English Gothic style church which was designed by Henry Schlacks and dedicated in 1910. For a more detailed history, you can click here. It is one of those places which one has to see in person because the photographs do not do justice. The details of the ceiling is impeccable. It all looks like tiles, but if you got closer to it, you would see that it’s actually little squares of paint that are made to imitate tiles, so brilliant! I could not get enough of it but we had to move on if we wanted to see more sites on the tour!

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Snapchat Story Series – Road Trip Silver Spring, MD to Glen Ellyn, IL

Road Trip

Hello everyone! I hope you are all doing well and have been having an eventful summer! I sure have been which is why I’m a bit behind on my blog posts! However, I just got back from exploring around the east coast so it’s time to get back on track. While you wait around for me to catch up and get organized, here is a little video of my road trip from Silver Spring, MD back to my house in Glen Ellyn, IL. What you saw in this video is: Fun things in Pittsburgh, PA Random farmers market Cute places in Vermilion, OH Lake Erie Beautiful skies! What have you been up to this summer?

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Maggie Daley Park – Chicago, IL

Tay Explores

Two weekends ago, Chicago did a weird thing. It was 55 degrees on a Saturday in February! So, of course I had to be out! I had family over which meant there were 3 kids in the house that needed to be entertained. I had been hearing about the Maggie Daley Park for a while since I moved here because people have suggested I take my nieces there. So naturally I looked it up but haven’t had the chance to go check it out yet. I took that beautiful Saturday to do so. So glad I did because it was such a cool place. Not for the kids only but the adults enjoyed it too! You get to it by crossing a bridge that is next to the Jay Pulitzer pavilion in Millennium Park. Once on the bridge, you immediately start to see various fun things like a rock climbing wall…

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Blackberry Market, Glen Ellyn, IL

Eating Out

One thing that I’ve liked about the Chicago suburbs is that they all have downtown areas that are unique. And Glen Ellyn is no exception. I really enjoy walking through it and going to all the small boutiques, restaurants and cafes. A place that I go to often is Blackberry Market. They make things fresh in house and try to get most of their ingredients locally. I come here and do my work, drink hot chocolate and occasionally have lunch. I love the colors used in the interior as well as the art all over the walls. I’ve tried three of their sandwiches (Grilled Cheese, Grilled Gouda and Caramelized Onions and Braised Beef Brisket). Everything has been delicious so far. There is a tomato chutney that is inside the grilled cheese which is phenomenal! In addition, you can find a variety of fresh salads that are changing throughout the year. My favorites are the Southwest Salad and the…

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Lincoln Park Nature Boardwalk, Chicago

Tay Explores

As sad as I was to move out here, I do have to say that Chicago ended up being a really awesome city. It’s clean, easy to get in and out of, there’s tons to eat and most of all so much amazing art and architecture everywhere. In particular, I immediately fell in love with the Lincoln Park neighborhood. And I make it a point to bring friends and family here whenever they are visiting. With winter break coming to an end, I took my nieces by the Lincoln Park Zoo and Nature Boardwalk this past weekend. They have an outdoor ice skating rink here during the winter months and thought they would enjoy it. In case you were wondering, its $5 for admission and $5 for skate rentals. It’s right outside of the zoo (which is free) and in between the barns. In this area, my favorite part is the…

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Exploring the GE (Glen Ellyn, IL) – Blackwell Forest Preserve

Tay Explores

This post should probably have been about the actual city of Chicago. And although the city is one of the first places I ventured out to when I got to Glen Ellyn (which is a suburb of Chicago), it’s not the first place I researched before moving. Before coming, I looked at the map of the area around my town. Being someone who LOVES being outside and enjoying beautiful weather, I looked up parks and hiking spots (for those rare winter days when the sun comes out). Much to my surprise, this area is pretty flat and doesn’t really have many hiking spots. (If I am wrong and someone out there knows of some, please let me know.) As I began researching I noticed that there were a lot of forest preserves around here and a lot of which featured lakes. The closest one I found was Hidden Lakes. As soon as the…

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