A Day in Naperville

On the last day that Jim and Carolyn were with us, we decided to stay a little closer to home and spend the afternoon in downtown Naperville. We started by strolling along the Riverwalk, which is a paved path that follows alongside the DuPage River. Along the path are beautiful gardens, water fountains, outdoor art sculptures, covered bridges, and a playground.

As we walked, we watched the ducks and geese swimming in the river and then headed to the playground so the girls could run around a little.

After the park, the girls made a quick run through the sprinklers to cool off and then we headed over to the paddle boats. This was our first time and it was really nice. The girls decided to take the boat out while the guys took pictures and watched from the side. The boats were suprisingly easy to peddle. Everyone took their turn peddling, except Paige--her legs were too short!

After the paddle boats we were ready for lunch. And of course, why break the record for gluttonus eating we had going for this trip? So we walked over to a nearby restaurant called Heaven on Seven, critically acclaimed for it's Cajun cuisine. Unfortunately, I was so hungry and excited for my food, I pretty much forgot to take pictures until dessert time. For the foodies out there, this is what we ate: Dave ordered red beans and rice--it was probably the best. I had Voodoo chicken enchiladas, Jim had Mardi Gras Ettouffee, and Carolyn had a salad of grilled Gulf Shrimp and asparagus. The fun part was that we all divided up and shared our entrees so we got to eat a little of everything along with our jalapeno corn muffins and honey butter---yummy.

And as if that wasn't enough food, we then moved onto dessert which is half-price during lunch. We all shared a mixed-berry cobbler (it was okay, I've had better,) bread pudding, and Mississippi Mud Pie. The mud pie is the best, richest, most delicious thing ever. Just look at Paige and Carolyn enjoying it. When Paige comes across a good dessert, she tends to get all dreamy with a far-away look in her eye as she savors every morsel. She loves dessert so much, it's worth buying for her, just to see her in complete sugar ecstasy!

After we waddled out of the restaurant, we stopped at a couple of stores for a little shopping, then headed home after a short detour to Trader Joe's.