Travel the World, through This Book

The Muppets are back after a very long absence - and it's the perfect time to introduce your kiddos to their wacky ways. This time, human stars Jason Segel and Amy Adams team up with Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzie and the gang to save their old theater from a greedy oil tycoon. We're hoping for lots of wry commentary by Waldorf & Statler (those grumpy old men) along the way. One Chicago Parent reader will win a family five-pack of tickets to the Classic Cinemas of their choice.

To enter, tell us which Muppet is your favorite and why.

 

The best thing about traveling with kids is seeing the wonders of the world through their eyes. Whether it's the first time they see the wide expanse of an ocean, discover the different trees at the park or take in the most impressive sites of the world, I always love watching the faces of kids when they see something new.

There's a way to do that without ever buying a plane ticket: books. The newest, from TIME magazine, Great Places of History: Civilization's 100 Most Important Sites: An Illustrated Journey, is a coffee table picture book that kids can page through and discover the world on their own. The incredible photos are accompanied by just enough text to help you and your kids understand why that pyramid or this temple or that memorial is important in the context of the world.

After you spend some time paging through the book and discovering these worldwide wonders, think about introducing your kids to one or more of the sites in person. It's easy to start; Chicago's skyscrapers are listed as No. 84. While the world's first skyscraper-the 10-story Home Insurance Building-no longer exists (it was built in 1885 and torn down in 1931 to make way for a taller building), there are plenty of skyscrapers left in Chicago.

Other American sites on the list include the Hoover Dam (No. 87) on the Arizona-Nevada border; the Lowell Observatory (73) outside Flagstaff, Arizona, and the Cahokia Mounds (35) in southern Illinois, across the Mississippi River from St. Louis. (If you visit that site, plan to stay an extra day or two in St. Louis, one of the most kid-friendly and family-budget-friendly cities anywhere. There are tons of free things to do in St. Louis , including a fabulous zoo, a world-class art museum and incredible science center.

1885 Home Insurance Building - News


Travel the World, through This Book

While the world's first skyscraper-the 10-story Home Insurance Building-no longer exists (it was built in 1885 and torn down in 1931 to make way for a taller building), there are plenty of skyscrapers left in Chicago. Other American sites on the list



World's highest buildings appear on the threshold of tragedies

High-rise buildings have always been considered a symbol of prestige and this remains to be the case even after the September 11 events in New York. In 1885 the first building 55 meters tall appeared in Chicago. It belonged to "Home-Insurance" company.



Lighted history
Lighted history

The home built in 1837 by Mills Riddick is the oldest building featured on the tour. Riddick built the house with insurance money after a fire consumed his original home. After Mills Riddick's death, his son, Nathaniel, lived in the home with his wife



Pioneers In Paradise

After briefly serving at VI he became a partner with EK Bachman in the firm of Howell and Bachman Insurance Agency that was then located at 32 6th Street in Bristol, Tenn., but later moved to 305 Reynolds Building in Bristol, Va., and finally moved to



Can Worcester power its startup magnet?

For example, among the employers with between 1000 and 4999 employees are Commerce Insurance (founded in 1972), Hanover Insurance (founded 1852) and abrasives-maker Norton Co. (founded in 1885 and purchased by the French company Saint-Gobain in 1989).




10 Interesting Illinois Facts | Facts of World

Increase your knowledge of Illinois facts here. Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal, timber, and petroleum in the south, Illinois has a broad economic base. Below is the list about 10 Interesting Illinois Facts

 

1. Pinball was invented in 1930 by In and Outdoor Games Company in Chicago.

 

2. The Illinois facts that named after The state of Illinois derives from the Illinois River. The river was named by the French explorer, René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle (1643-1687) for France, in 1679 after the Native Indians who lived in the region. The word Illinois is translated from the Indian word “iliniwok,” meaning “warriors”

 

10. The Sears Tower, located in Chicago, was the world’s tallest building from 1973 until 1996. The Sears Tower is still the tallest building in North America. It covers two city blocks and rises one-quarter mile above the ground. The Sears Tower as Illinois facts  still leads in being tallest building to the top of the roof (1,450 feet) as-well-as having the highest occupied floor (1,431 feet).


1885 Home Insurance Building - Bookshelf

Home

Home

Creator: Marilynne Robinson | Fiction -
Returning to Gilead to care for her dying father, Glory Boughton, the daughter of John Ames's closest friend, is joined by her long-absent brother, with whom ...
Publisher: Picador USA

Home, A Memoir of My Early Years

Home, A Memoir of My Early Years

Creator: Julie Andrews | Biography & Autobiography -
Featuring over fifty personal photos, many never before seen, this is the personal memoir Julie Andrews' audiences have beenwaiting for.
Publisher: Hyperion Books

Insurance for Dummies

Insurance for Dummies

Creator: Jack Hungelmann | Business & Economics -
Explains how to buy and save on every kind of insurance, including life, health, auto and home insurance, and offers tips on how to get the best coverage for ...
Publisher: For Dummies

The new life insurance investment advisor

The new life insurance investment advisor

Creator: Ben G. Baldwin | Business & Economics -
"For anyone who needs to understand different types of life insurance, as well as considerations forpurchasing and managing policies, this book should be on ...
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Professional

At home, a short history of private life

At home, a short history of private life

Creator: Bill Bryson | Architecture -
The award-winning author of A Short History of Nearly Everything explores the ways in which homes reflect history, from a bathroom's revelations about medicine ...
Publisher: Doubleday Books