Our Tree Cave

Yesterday I took the kids to the Morton Arboretum.  I love taking them here cause there is plenty of space for them to run around, and yes once in a while they even comment on the nature.

It was crowded since it was a school holiday so we couldn't park in the main lot, we we're directed to a different lot a bit down the main path.  Once we parked we decided to find a spot for our picnic. The kids found this tree which looked like a regular tree from a far, but when they got closer realized there was a tunnel entrance and branches with space to sit under it.  They were able to easily get in and out. There were even some spots where they could stand up straight.  

It was a little tougher for me, but once I got in I decided it was the perfect spot for our picnic.  We laid out our blanket and ate our lunches.  Whenever anyone came close by we kept quiet so they wouldn't learn about our secret spot.  We hung out for a while before heading out of our tree cave.  

We explored the surrounding area for a while before heading to the "Big Rock" which I have to say was much smaller than I had expected. Still the kids had fun sitting on top pretending they were on Pride Rock. Our final stop was one of their favorite climbing trees from our previous visit.

Little Monkey Bizness

I took Little Man to Little Monkey Bizness for the first time a couple of weeks ago.  We had never been there before but found out about it in a coupon book he brought home from school.  It's a bit far from us, but he had fun.

There's a bounce house with a slide, a climbing structure with a rope swing, a Little Tikes climbing structure (which we pretended was a volcano), another play structure which could be part of an outdoor playground and some oversized Legos.  

He was easily entertained for two hours.  There is also a craft room but we didn't go in there.  We went on a weekday and there were at most three other kids at the times we were there.  Not sure hoe much more crowded it gets on weekends.  We brought our own sandwiches but bought drinks there. They have snack stuff too (the usual apple sauce, cheese sticks, yogurt) but I didn't see any real food.  

He wants to go back again but it'll probably be a little while before we do.  Little Reader is 9 and had outgrown most of these places. Little Hugger would probably enjoy it but it's rare I just have the two of them.  

Personally I prefer the Treehouse (which is probably a similar distance for us) but I would recommend Little Monkey Bizness and we will probably go back some day this winter when we get cabin fever.  

Garden Patch Farms

This past weekend we took the kids apple picking.  There are so many different places around us we end up going to a different place every year.  This year we went to Garden Patch Farms in Homer Glen.  It's relatively close (took us under an hour to get there), small but good.  They have over 60 kinda of apples all of which were available to pick.  You pay $5 pp to go out to the orchard and they give you as many bags as you want to fill up.  Pay by the weight at the end $2/lb.  You can borrow a wagon to haul your stuff (or kids) in. Little Man liked having his sisters pull him around.  My husband tried to pull all the kids and the apples but that didn't really work.

 There are also vegetables to pick too but we stayed with the apples.  Unlike some of the bigger orchards the different varieties are mixed in different rows.  They have signs at the end of each row telling you what is in that row, but once you get in the row signs are hard to find.  So we picked based on color.

 After picking we headed back to the main area for lunch.  We brought our own and I'm glad we did as there isn't much available - chili and donuts was all I noticed.  They have cold water, juice boxes and of course apple cider available to purchase.

There is a bounce house - which had no line the whole time we were there.  There is a small barn with a few farm animals - chickens, goats, and a pig and a couple of shy barn cats.

We really enjoyed it and would go back again next year.  So many of the orchards feel like they have to add all these extra attractions to make it fun for kids, but our kids had a great time.  They had pumpkins for sale as well but I don't like to buy them too early in case they go bad before we can carve them.  They also have lots of prepicked veggies available to purchase. 

We'll be heading out to get pumpkins in a couple of weeks.  Last year we went to Didier Farms (which has all the carnival attractions).  The kids have asked to go back there again, which is fine.  Next year I hope we can go to a real pumpkin patch and get it off the vine.  It's been a while since we've done that but our October weekends are crazy this year. 

I've already made one batch of apple cinnamon muffins and am planning on making applesauce this afternoon.  This weekend I plan on making the first pie.

It was a fun day with the added bonus of not being far away.  The past two years we've missed apple picking because we couldn't find the time to head way to out to farm country.  Nice to find a good place relatively close.

Great America

We took our kids to Great America for the first time in August.  My husband loves roller coasters but we purposely waited to take them until they were big enough to go on some of the big rides.  Little Reader is officially tall enough for everything.  Little Hugger can go on some, and Little Man will go on some of the more adventurous little kid rides.  If your kids are close to the height minimums you can get them measured at the ticket counter and they get a wrist band proving their height so they don't need to be remeasured at each ride - saves a little time.  We didn't bother with any of the fast passes and don't think it would have been worth the money.

We got there shortly after the park opened and went on the Whizzer first.  It's a roller coaster tame enough for Little Man to go on, but fun enough that the rest of us enjoyed it too.  The drops weren't huge but it was fun.  He was a little scared in the beginning but asked to go on it a second time.





Little Reader went on X Flight with my husband while I waited with the younger ones.  It looks like a cool ride but the line was pretty long and even though Great America lets you do a kid swap (wait in line with your kids and then the parents take turns riding while the other waits with the kids) I wanted to save that for the rides I really wanted to go on - like Batman.

Little Hugger was very excited to go on the Demon - her first upside down roller coaster.  Little Reader had gone on it with my husband first and she went with us, sat in front and warned Little Hugger as to what was coming up.

We happened to bump into Little Reader's best friend when we went to lunch.  She had mentioned to her friend that we were going, and she had asked her parents if they could go to.  We stayed together for a little while but since her friend is a little shorter she wasn't tall enough to go on some of the same rides that our new coaster enthusiast wanted to go on.  Also I think she was a little scared to go on some of the bigger coasters.  She made a point of telling one of the park employees that she was too short to go on Vertical Velocity

I took Little Man and Little Hugger on the Little Dipper while Little Reader and my husband went on Vertical Velocity.  Then it was finally time for my favorite ride - Batman.  The line was long, but the kids were pretty good while waiting and Little Man was excited about seeing the batsuit at the end.  We did spend some time letting them run around at the play areas including the Hanna Barbera section.  There was really only one coaster that we didn't get to go on - Superman but we ran out of time.  The kids all agreed that they liked the rides better at Great America but Tivoli was a nicer park : )

Running The Bases

We took our kids to their first Cubs game in August.  They were playing the Dodgers and we got seats along the third base line.  The weather was perfect but unfortunately not a very exciting game - final score was 1-0 Dodgers won.  Even though the kids got a bit antsy we stayed until the end to run the bases.

They only do it for some games, and you need to get wrist bands for each kid and line up by a door that leads to right field at the end of the game.  They only give out about 1000 wristbands.  The wait in line took a while but once they start letting people through it goes REALLY quickly.  The ushers herd you through, and you go through the outfield towards first base.  The kids start running at first base and then go around to second, third and home.  Parents can go with younger kids so my husband went with Little Man, the other two went on their own.  

Unfortunately I didn't get a single picture of anyone because the ushers really rush everyone through. As the kids are running, the parents are sent back into the stands and then back down towards home plate to pick up their kids.  I understand that they want to get people out of the park so that they can clean up but it would have been better if they would let us have some more time to.

The kids still had fun doing it, and I would encourage other baseball fans to do it.  Just don't expect to get to take a leisurely stroll around the bases or get any cool shots of your kids coming home (unless maybe you have a relative stay in the stands and wait for the photo op.   If we do it again, that's what I would probably do.  

Arlington Park Family Days

This past weekend we joined my women's group at Arlington Park for Family Days.  Most Sundays through the summer, they have a section of the picnic area set up with stuff for kids.  Pony rides (REALLY long line), petting zoo, bounce house, jugglers, face painting, etc.  There's a little under 30 minutes between each post time, so enough time to wander around in between.  The kids liked feeding the animals at the petting zoo (sheep, goats, llama, donkey) but skipped most of the other attractions.

We got there a bit before the first post time, so took some time to study the day's races while we ate the lunch we had brought with us.  We placed  few bets on each race.  The lowest is a $2 bet, and we each picked a horse for each race, then my husband added a couple of daily doubles and trifectas to make it more interesting.  All in all he and I each picked one winning horse (I picked Sancerre in the first - yes, because it's a kind of wine), he picked Guava Girl in the second cause he liked the sound of the name.  None of the combo bets worked out for us.  Little Hugger wanted 3 Cat Rules and Cat Bells in the 3rd and 4th races (because she loves cats).  The both came in second so no luck on those.  Still the kids had fun.  We watched the horses get saddled up and warmed up in the paddock.

We cheered for our horses as they made it towards the finish line 

And we got to see one of the starts up close when they moved the starting gates

We had to leave before the really big races because Little Reader had a birthday party to go to.  We had fun despite ending the day down (no big surprise given that we picked our horses based on names and not much else).  If we go again, I would probably arrive later in time for the bigger races, but the kids didn't know the difference.

Garfield Park Conservatory

Little Hugger went here with her camp this summer and was eager to take us all.  I had heard about it a few times through the years but had never been so we packed up some lunches and headed out.  I knew the Conservatory was in a not so great area but wasn't really sure what to expect.  Garfield Park is pretty big and at first we parked at the Fieldhouse.  Once I realized we were in the wrong place I checked the map on my phone and realized we were only half a mile from the Conservatory.  Given that it's a big park I figured we'd just walk.  Unfortunately my GPS wasn't cooperating real well and the streets that wind through the park aren't very clearly marked.  After a little wandering and coming across one guy half way through drinking a 40 at 1030 in the morning with a half empty fifth of whiskey by his feet and a couple of other unsavory characters, I took the kids back to the car and drove the half mile to the proper parking lot (which was in the opposite direction from where he had been heading).

The Conservatory is a huge greenhouse with multiple rooms as well as gardens.  Unfortunately one large room is currently closed as the glass roof was ruined in a hailstorm a few years ago and is being replaced.  Admission is free although there is a drop box for donations.  There is a small gift shop that sells snacks and drinks but picnicking is fine and there are a few tables inside and out for that purpose.

At the front desk they give the kids a "Backyard Bingo" card with pictures of things to look for around the Park, and stickers to mark their card.  Little Hugger was convinced that if you got bingo you'd get a prize at the gift shop, but I think that was just something her camp did, as I didn't see it publicized anywhere.

The first room you enter is the Palm House which is as warm and tropical as it sounds, lots of different kinds of palm trees as well as other tropical plants and flowers.  There are a few paths within each room so that you can really get up close to the plants.

Kids are encouraged to touch the plants (with the exception of the carnivorous ones and the cacti), and my kids had fun petting furry moss and soft leaves and flowers along the way.

 Notice the "googly" eyes someone put on this lobster claw plant

The aptly named "Fern Room"

the "Aroid House" including some Chiluly lilypads left from his exhibit some years go

 
On the back side of the building is terrace which has a path made of tumbled blue glass and pebbles.  Little Hugger LOVES collecting rocks and sea glass and had come home from her field trip with pockets full of the blue glass.  Little Man thought they were cool and picked up a few of his own.  We brought a few more home this time.

There's a large field behind the conservatory which Little Man had fun running back and forth on while my daughters looked at the pretty flowers.  There is a group of little hills that they rolled down over and over.

There is an area of the demonstration garden with smallish tree trunks and large pond fronds and other natural materials that the kids can use to build forts.  My kids spent a lot of time here.

We spent about four hours at the Conservatory wandering around the different rooms and playing outside. Definitely a worthwhile trip.  On the way back to 290 to get home (a straight shot down Pulaski) I got turned around a bit and had to go around a block to get back on track - through another not so great area.  Nothing happened and I never felt unsafe, but I would recommend staying on the main roads.  

Spring Break Recap

Kids are all happily back in school, and despite the cool weather we had a good spring break. Friday we went to the library and loaded up on books. Over the weekend we sorted through closets and put away anything kids have outgrown.

Monday we went to the Tree House and then a late lunch at California Pizza Kitchen

Tuesday, Little Man had his sports class and Little Reader joined him playing dodgeball

Wednesday we went to the Chicago History Museum. It's a pretty kid friendly museum with lots of hands on stuff. The actual kids area is pretty small, but has a big hot dog to lie in, an old fashioned bicycle you can climb and an area where you can make a postcard to email to friends and family. My kids were fascinated with the artifacts from the Chicago Fire, and enjoyed going into the old L car. Little Reader's next unit in social studies is on the history of Chicago so she was interested in a lot of the different exhibits, and reading a lot of the different descriptions. Little Man got a bit antsy towards the end. Had it been a nicer day I would have let them run in Lincoln Park when we were done, but it was too windy. Still a nice day and they all were eager to tell my husband what they had learned.

Thursday was another stay at home day followed by Green Day. 

Friday we went down to the Art Institute. We took the L down as usual, which Little Man always loves. Both my daughters wanted to see the Thorne Rooms, and Little Hugger specifically asked to see "those paintings of faces where all the parts are in the wrong place". As luck would have it, there was a special exhibit on Picasso and Chicago ; ) She took a ton of pictures as usual. Taking Little Man to art exhibits can be tough and it was pretty crowded as the exhibit just opened a couple of weeks ago, but he did pretty well. The exhibit was a retrospective of Picasso's work, with an emphasis on his Chicago connections. He never actually visited Chicago, but one of our most well known pieces of public art is the Picasso sculpture in front of the Daley Center.

Little Man's favorite part was illustrations of animals that Picasso had done for a book. There were about 12 of them. Little Reader read a bit of the blurbs around the room that put the exhibit into context.

Sunday of course was Easter, and as I've said before we're not religious so it's all about dying eggs, and eating chocolate and jelly beans.

Still since Little Reader has had quite a few questions over the years about the meaning of Easter, I had her pick up a book about it at the library. I should probably read it too as a refresher.

Spring Break Staycation

My kids are out of school for Spring Break so we're playing tourists in our own city.  Check out our plans on Chicagoland Moms Blog

Treehouse

Whenever my husband takes our daughters on a campout I take Little Man somewhere fun to play. At this point we've tried most of the places near us so decided to venture a little further today - to the Treehouse in Lake Zurich.

It took about a half hour for us to get there but it was great!! It's a play place and cafe. I've been to a bunch of those over the years (Nibbles in Wheeling, Little Beans downtown and the now defunct Little Village Play Place in Arlington Heights) but this is by far the best. $10.50 per kid (1 and under are free) a treehouse climbing area that kept Little Man happy for 3 hours, and the food was good.  What I liked best about it was all the little details that they got right.

1. The food is made to order and good quality.  No outside food allowed but they are nut free
2. Kids menu choices are the usual plus a few more adventurous choices for the older kids, and the parents options are extensive (12 different sandwich options, salads, etc)
3. Little Man had a grilled cheese and they used a cookie cutter to make a heart shape in the middle
4. Free refills on sodas
5. Free water with a sharpie by the water cooler so you can label your kids cup, instead of taking a new one each time.
6. Wipes, napkins and tissue boxes available in lots of easy to find areas.
7. Lots of comfortable seating with full views of the play area, a well stocked magazine rack and free wi-fi (get the password from the cashier).
8. The whole time I was there I saw at least one staff member cleaning something - either wiping down tables and chairs, vacuuming floors, or wet Swiffering the floors.  Not in an obtrusive way, but enough to keep things clean

View from the treehouse

9. The treehouse is made so parents can climb around too.  I'm 5'7" and could fully stand up most places. Most of the areas have at least two ways to access (one for kids and flexible parents, another that's easy for parents).
10. There is no age maximum and when we went back on President's Day even Little Reader (almost 9) had fun.
11. There were three birthday parties happening when we arrived but it wasn't crazy crowded.
12. They allow you to come back same day without paying again.  I'm not sure how it works (maybe hand stamp) as we didn't use it, but good idea if the littles need naps or you have errands to run.

Note: As with most places socks are required and they have all the kids use hand sanitizer when they enter.  Normally I hate that stuff, but they have a friendly staff member by the gate to squirt the kids' hands so you can't really avoid it.

Little Man climbing through the obstacles

Getting into the Christmas Spirit

Today was a busy but fun day. I don't think we could have crammed more Christmas activities in if we'd tried.

This morning we got the kids all dressed up and went to a Santa brunch at Makray Golf Club in Barrington. It's a public course so the brunch is open to everyone. It's reasonably priced, they have a professional photographer there and let you take your own pictures (the one on the right was the one I took, not quite card worthy but still cute). They email you their picture so you can use it however you want.  The one weird thing though was that when my kids started to tell Santa what they wanted he told them to write him a letter instead.  I guess because they do take their time with the pictures, they don't have time for the actually telling about wishes.

After we were done eating we all changed into warmer clothes and headed out to cut down our Christmas tree for the first time ever.  A friend of mine had recommended Oney's Tree Farm in Woodstock IL so that's where we headed. The weather wasn't that great. It was raining most of the ride there but by the time we arrived it was just misting and eventually stopped.

There is a little store and bakery right by the entrance but we skipped that and headed straight for the trees. You can bring your own saw or borrow one of their's (with a $20 deposit that is returned when you bring back the saw). There is a horse drawn wagon that brings you to the middle of the field and you just wander around among the trees until you find one you like. In the past we've usually gotten Fraser Firs but at this farm (and maybe it's this way at all of them), they are all mixed together which made finding the right tree a little trickier but still fun.  Little Man loved looking at all the little trees, especially the ones smaller than him.

It was extremely muddy after the rain, but the kids had fun with that ;). When we finally found our tree we were a little further and downhill from the wagon stop than the entrance so we walked back. Pretty tricky with a nine foot tree in the mud, but we made it back.

The farm workers shook our tree (to get any critters out). The kids thought that part was hysterical, and they bailed it for us and helped my husband get it onto our car. Note, they only lift it on the car, you are responsible for tying it down.

We stopped in the store to pay and have some cocoa, before heading back home. It took us a little over an hour to get back, but part of that was I didn't want to be barreling down 90 at my usual clip in case the tree did come loose - which it didn't.

We got it into our house really easily since it was bailed, and are letting it settle in a bit before we decorate it. Ok, ok, it settled in pretty quickly since it was so fresh, we were just too tired to do it.

After dinner we decided to keep the Christmas theme going and we all sat down to watch Charlie Brown's Christmas. It's fun to watch Christmas movies with the kids cause my daughters now know them well and often giggle in anticipation of the funny lines, while Little Man is really only appreciating them this year.

Nyhavn in the snow

We all slept very well after a fun but Christmas packed day. The only things missing were the Christmas cookies (I'm catching up on those today) and the fact that we still haven't had any snow. I read in the paper that if we didn't have any measurable snow today - we didn't - it would set a record for longest gap of snowy days for Chicago - 282 I think the number was. It makes it a little harder to get in the Christmas spirit without snow, but thankfully my friends and family in Denmark have been posting some gorgeous snowscapes on Facebook so at least I can enjoy their snow.

The view from my aunt's apartment

Trip downtown

The kids are off of school all week this week, so I decided to use yesterday as the day to get their passports.  The weather was good, so we took the L to get downtown which was much easier (and cheaper) than parking, and felt like an adventure to them as we hardly ever do it.

Our consulate is in the Hancock building which the kids got excited about, to get to go a building they've walked by many times but never been inside.  They got kind of antsy during our meeting at the consulate but I told them if they behaved I'd show them something special in the basement. That helped get them settled down for a little bit.

Finally we were done with the paperwork and headed downstairs. They have an elaborate and FREE train setup in the lower level. It really was quite impressive and the kids loved it.  We probably spent 20 minutes there looking at all the details.

We went to M Burger in Water Tower for lunch. It's a Lettuce Entertain You place, but fast food style. We got basic plain cheeseburgers (because that's what we wanted, you can make them more interesting) and fries. They were pretty decent for the price and speed. It's not Blackies, but definitely a step up from the usual chains which I avoid at all costs.

Since we were in Water Tower we stopped at the Lego store and American Girl. Little Reader spent a lot of time studying the different dolls to figure out which one she wants. She's leaning towards 57, but wants to go on line to see of they have something better. I could tell Little Hugger was starting to get interested in them too but luckily as soon as Little Reader pointed out that they were for 8 year old + she stopped and focused on their little pets. Thank God. Bad enough that I'll have to get one, I did not want to get two. The worst part is that this $105 doll is dressed but it's a pretty lame outfit, basically forcing you to buy an outfit as well (another $30). I tried to impress all this upon her today, that if Santa is so generous as to bring her one, she's may have to purchase future outfits accessories using her own money. Once she saw the grand piano for the doll and saw that it cost $150 she understood ;)

I still needed to get the title transferred to the car we refinanced, so we hopped on the bus and headed down to the Loop to the Thompson Building. I let them play at the Dubuffet for a little bit hoping to get the wiggles out before dealing with the DMV.

They thought the building was really cool but got bored pretty fast at the DMV. Luckily we got through there relatively quickly.

Kids wanted another snack before getting back on the train to head home. We picked up some drinks, cheeses rocks and grapes at Walgreens and sat in a little courtyard between some of the buildings. Quick stop at the Renaissance hotel to use the washroom before getting back in the Red Line home.

All in all a good day. I got the things done that I needed to do and the kids had fun. On the way home I noticed a FB comment from a friend about a gingerbread display at the Marriott on Michigan Avenue. Oh well, we'll have to save that for next time.

Mt Prospect Recplex Indoor Playground

Since my oldest is 8 I figured that by this point I had been to or at least heard of all of the indoor play areas around me. Yesterday I found another one.

Inside of the Mt Prospect Recplex is an indoor playground. It has a climbing structure, slide and ball pit. Kids are supposed to be at least 3 and no taller than 48 inches, although I don't think anyone checks.

I took Little Man there and he loved it. We got there about 10 and ended up staying for two hours! There weren't a ton of kids there (maybe 8 at the most) even though the weather was kind of blah this morning.

It's located at 420 W Dempster in Mount Prospect and is open whenever the RecPlex is open - which on weekdays is 530am to 11pm.

The play area is not supervised. There are restrooms, vending machines and water fountains in the Recplex. Little Man had a lot of fun, and the price can't be beat for an indoor place. Best part, since it's about half way between us and Woodfield, I can use it as a reward for being good at the mall or a place to get the wiggles out before we get to the mall.

Hot Chocolate 15k and Walk for Little City

Today I'm posting over at Chicagoland Moms Blog about this past weekend's Hot Chocolate - my 15k and the walk my kids did with my husband.

Our Visit to the Pumpkin Patch

As I mentioned before I am now contributing to the Chicagoland Moms Blog.  Check out my post about one of my favorite fall traditions - our visit to the pumpkin patch.

Police Department

Yesterday Little Reader had a Brownie field trip to our local police department. Since it was just going to be about an hour long, it wasn't worth going home and coming back so I stayed for the tour and brought Little Hugger and Little Man with me. They were all very excited about it.

We started in the roll call room where the officers start their shift being updated on anything that happened since they were last working.

Then, we saw different areas of the office - the main control of the building and computers that update them on any major events happening nearby or elsewhere in the country that could effect us. They are constantly monitoring the Weather Channel in order to be prepared for severe weather and related emergencies.  We had a tornado warning this past weekend and the girls all thought it was cool that the officer giving the tour was the one who had sounded the alarm we had all heard - but were a little disappointed that he wouldn't sound it while we were there.

We saw the evidence lockers, report writing area, sargeants desks (which also had the 10 most wanted pictures posted).

We went down to the garage and got to see the squad cars. There was an officer getting ready to go out on patrol so he turned on his lights for the kids and let them see his bullet proof vest (and a couple got to try it on).

The next to last stop was the holding area - aka the jail. It's down in the basement level and was a concrete walled room with 6 cells and one group holding area, a DUI processing area, and a room for interviews. There was a big desk in the middle for the officers. The kids all got to go in one of the cells, and after checking if they wanted him to, he closed the door to the cell, and turned off the lights so they could see what it felt like to be locked in. Lots of shrieking little girls.

He had been joking through a lot of the tour, but at this point sat them all down and very seriously said that today was the only day he wanted to see them there. If you break the law and get arrested you could get kicked out of college, lose your job, etc. At that point he answered questions

Little Reader had a couple
- what is the most common crime they see there? Retail theft
- are there more men who go to jail than women? Almost 50/50 but slight edge to the men
- could they meet the police dog? Nope, she was out on patrol.

He also made an important point that kids should never approach or try to pet a police dog, as they are extremely protective and on guard at almost all times.  He also mentioned that these dogs are so smart that one way that the K9 officer lets the dog know whether it's time to work or if they're off duty is how they let them out of the car.  If they are let out of the front passenger side door, it's time to go to work.  If they are let out the back door, their shift is over and they can relax.  I don't know if that's standard procedure but thought that was pretty cool. 

Other questions
- when was there last someone in jail? someone had been in there that morning
- how long do they stay? usually no more than 48-72 hours  If they aren't released at that point, they get sent to Cook County
- what do they get to eat?  Breakfast is a bagel and milk, hamburger and water for lunch and dinner

Little Hugger had brought her Book About Me and was very excited to get the officer's autograph, and he happily gave it.  I was surprised that a lot of the other kids and parents had never seen it before.  I had one growing up and gave them to each of my kids as pre-school graduation gifts.  If you have young grade schoolers check it out, they're fun books.

We ended the tour in their break room for a snack (leftover s'more fixings from our campout). Each of the kids got a goodie bag to bring home - a coloring book, pencil, police badge sticker, and a ring that says Texting Kills.  My kids didn't really understand what they meant as they didn't make the connection with texting and driving until I explained it.

One last thing that I hadn't realized is that if you are going out of town, you can notify the police and they will add a driveby of your house to their usual patrols for the duration of your absence.  We have an alarm system and always let our immediate neighbors know we're going to be gone so probably would never need it, but still that's a nice option I was never aware of.

All the kids had a great time, and all the officers we met were very friendly and eager to talk to the kids.  If you have a scout group or other group of kids that you're planning an outing for I'd definitely recommend checking with your local police department.