Valley Forge Park is a small park with some open space (smaller than a soccer field) and a…read moreplayground with a decent diversity of things. A great place to take kids but not close to as large as the nearby Mill Creek Park.

I have passed this house a couple of times and was amazed by how cute the house was. I wondered who…read morelived there and what the importance of the house was. The presence of the house seemed intriguing. It had a welcoming presence it. A few months later, my mother was researching Underground Railroad sites in Illinois and we found out that the Mother Rudd House in Gurnee, Illinois was one of the sites. We decided to go to this historical site, which was amazing and full of history in the Lake County Illinois area. The Mother Rudd house was a place that housed travelers in the 19th century, was a place where community events were held, and was a safe haven for slaves who were seeking freedom. Mother Rudd was a mother of 13 children, yet still was able to care for others, including people in her community. The house was amazing with great artifacts and memories that go back two centuries. The hosts were friendly and gave a lot of information about what the Mother Rudd house was used for, and what the Gurnee community was like long ago.Several families donated artifacts from their family history to help one understand legacies of Lake County history. It was great to see others interested in history and restoring historical landmarks. I would encourage young and and old to visit this house and take a stroll down memory lane. It's best to call and schedule an appointment ahead of time.

Yes there was a robbery at this spot in Rondout, of my time, that is. We were stopped at this train…read morecrossing while a very long freight train passed by. We certainly were held up. I almost was late for my appointment.

Not sure how to review a historical marker but I think nostalgia wise it has some good potential…read more Best seen while going east bound on 176/Park Avenue in the Lake Bluff/Libertyville area. I took a picture of it while waiting for a very long freight train so there you go. In any case it's a nice historical marker which documents the (at the time) largest train robbery in the country. Yes....Metra riders this was a long long time ago. I seem to recall some short clip or movie documenting or at least utilizing some facts about this robbery in my film studies class back in college but I could very well be mixing up my robberies. Check it out when you are stuck in traffic while waiting for the train to pass!

Waukegan Harbor Lighthouse is about a couple of hours away from Downtown Chicago and is located out…read moreon the lake with a small concrete walkway that connects it to the mainland. To get a better idea of what I'm talking about, feel free to check out the couple of pictures I shot & uploaded to this page. Because this is located out on the lake, it is pretty windy out towards the end. I got about just under three quarters of the way out and it just got too windy and slippery to feel safe going any further. If you look at the pix I took, the further you go out, the more the waves crash over the wall and then ices over the walkway during this time of year. This may all sound a little dangerous, and if you don't exercise some common sense, it probably is, but it was beautiful out there with the waves crashing over the wall, the birds circling above, and the sun out providing just that hint of warmth as you take in the view. Lighthouses are generally in remote locations, so the draw for me is the solitary calm amongst the sounds of the distant birds and the crashing waves. As lighthouses go, this is a smaller one than say Grosse Point Lighthouse, but I was digging the serene vibe that this place gives off. It allowed for an impromptu moment of meditation that you sometimes don't get in these hectic times. When all's said and done, this is not your grandma's lighthouse, and I doubt most people will come all the way out to this particular place for this little landmark, but for those lighthouse aficionados out there, and I know there are a few, this is one to check off if you happen to find yourself in Waukegan Harbor, Illinois... Whatever you do, be a traveler and not a tourist and get out there and explore your world people! :-)

Probably one of my favorite communities on the North Shore. At least 3-4 times a week my hubby and…read moreI take a drive up the lakeshore and end up in Lake Bluff as our northern most destination point. The town is quaint and small, and when passing through the neighborhoods, everyone waves. Some of the homes have a lovely farmhouse vibe, and I especially adore the pink-ish one on the main road heading in and out of town. At the eastern most point of the community you'll end up at the top of the hill overlooking Lake Michigan. It's sooooo pretty. There is a super cute downtown, and my favorite apple fritter in the whole world (ginormous and sugary) can be purchased at Hansa Coffee Roasters. I might add that the coffee is outstanding! They serve a fantastic smooth brew mixed with friendly and excellent service. (Link to Hansa Coffee review: https://bit.ly/ASHansaCoffee) You'll see in the attached photos that the village has done a great job offering outdoor patio dining by the town square for those who want to safely gather with friends and family. Town secret: There is a house that has an outdoor model train in their yard that runs year-round around a mini elevated track. We stop by every single time to watch it loop around. I'd love to know the story behind it. *Worth the trip up north.

Lake Bluff is a pleasant little town. It's too far to really be a suburb; maybe "exurb" is proper…read more On the one hand, Lake Bluff has some aspects of a typical Illinois farm town, where everyone pretty much knows everyone else. On the other hand, it's a haven for the super-rich, a Lake Forest without the ostentatious pretension. There's a very pretty town square with a good summertime farmer's market, an interesting mix of good restaurants, small shops and a lot of banking services (no surprise there). I've never felt uneasy walking through town after dark, as crime appears to be very low.

Fort Sheridan was originally developed as a US Army installation in the late 1800s, and it has…read moresince been designated as a US historical landmark property. Fort Sheridan was officially closed in 1993 and portions were renovated and sold as private residences. The Town of Fort Sheridan, divided between Highland Park and Highwood, consists of ninety-four historic buildings on 640 acres of prime Lake Michigan property. The center is the 54 acre, oval parade ground and the 228 foot tower. The Town of Fort Sheridan is unique on the north shore due to its proximity to the beach, the lake, the forest preserve, its landmark status, walking paths, historical significance, stopping point for migratory birds, and more. Things I've seen: the thin red line at the horizon before sunrise which blooms into a red and purple sky; coyotes sauntering down the street at dusk; black and brown squirrels tossing nuts from the trees; hawk circling overhead and the early warning system of screeching bluejays; rocky pebble beach with thundering waves; the lake which can be a cold grey or cobalt or Caribbean blue; walkers, runners or racing jersey wearing bicycle packs; eye contact with a family of deer silently watching; red fox scrambling out from under a bush; technicolor display of leaves in the fall; butterflies and dragonflies in the meadow; other moments that may have significance to me but more than 100 years ago someone is standing where I'm standing and experiencing the exact same thing.

After I was directed to the US Postal Carrier Annex and I realized that it was not open to the…read morepublic, I booked over to this Post Office in Lake Forest. This is a neat building, I'd like to find out more about it. I dropped my letters inside, took one look at the long line, and left. I'm only now seeing the horrible reviews for this Post Office. I didn't have any interactions with the staff so I'm leaving a neutral rating.

gave me great mailing advice and was courteous. The building is so historic and beautiful.read more

Today, my boyfriend and I rented a paddleboat for an hour. The weather forecast indicated rain…read morewouldn't start until 1:00 PM, so we thought we had plenty of time. However, around 12:20 PM, the sky turned black. We immediately turned around and began pedaling back to the dock as fast as we could. While we were heading back, a safety staff member on a speedboat approached us. He told us we had to return to shore but added that he couldn't tow us in--we had to pedal all the way back ourselves. While we were already doing that, the storm was rolling in incredibly fast, and it was a genuinely scary experience. As we finally approached the dock in the storm, we saw two teenage employees who had been assisting people earlier. One of them looked right at us, but instead of helping us secure the boat, both boys ran back into the covered checkout area and completely ignored us. As we struggled to park and tie up the boat in the pouring rain, not a single staff member stepped out to help us dock safely. Meanwhile, at least 10 employees were crowded inside the checkout area. As a person of color, I am unfortunately always hyper-aware of how I might be treated in certain environments. I have visited this forest preserve many times, always thought it was beautiful, and was so excited to show my boyfriend around. To be treated with such a lack of care was incredibly disappointing. When we spoke to the male manager, he explained that they are required to clear the water during storms. My boyfriend clarified that we had no issue with leaving the water; our issue was the complete lack of staff assistance to help us dock safely in a dangerous situation. The manager offered us a "rain check" for a free rental, but missing out on time wasn't the issue--our safety was. No one seemed to care that we were the last ones out on the water. I hope this forest preserve implements a better emergency protocol, because storms on the water can quickly become life-threatening. I guess my question is if the staff are closely checking the weather , why even let people still go out on the water ? Instead of saying "hey there's a storm that is going to be rolling through , we are holding back on rentals at this time for safety reasons " .

Independence Grove is such a nice forest preserve with lots of things to do especially in the…read moresummer time. Beautiful trails to walk/run along but they also have a playground for kids. They have a beer garden and snack shop. They also have water activities that you can rent like paddle boats and kayaks. It's just a nice place to go solo or with friends if you are looking to connect with nature for a bit.

I ordered a custom drawn portrait of my two boys for a Father's Day gift for my husband this year…read more I was blown away by the final product and my husband absolutely loooved his gift. We live in California now, but we hope to recreate this drawing in real life one day with the boys once they are older!! Thank you Wendy for this amazing piece!!!!!

We have used the talents of Wendy Zumpano for several very special occasions and have been very…read morepleased.