Explore the Arboretum's nine miles of scenic roads by bicycle. Bring your own or rent regular bicycles, tandems, electric bikes, burley strollers, wagons and more.

See gardens, woodlands, wetlands and prairies in a tram tour. 60-minute and 30-minute tours explain the rich Arboretum history, and describe the trees and plants you'll see. There's also an opportunity to see lovely wildlife in a native habitat.

Artistically decorated scarecrows from local Girl Scout troops are on display around Meadow Lake, daily in October.

The new Railway Garden, a G-gauge model railway running through a 2.5 acre site, opens April 30. Visitors enter through a 1920s-era railway depot to see trains running through a garden of miniature plants, water features and a variety of landscapes. May 1 through October.

Throughout October, visitors enjoy spooky sights and sounds, plus special events during Twilight Witching Hours (4-7 p.m. Thursday-Saturday October 6-29). Spooky trees, raving ravens and creepy crawlies will take up residence in the garden, joining the thousands of miniature plants, dozens of handmade bridges, and of course, an assemblage G-gauge steam trains.

Visitors can walk inside the two-story silo and turn the crank of a silage machine, watching "corn plants" delivered to the top of the silo. Plus, learn about the history of silos and silage, build miniature silos with building blocks simulating wood, brick and metal and much more.

Breathe in the crisp fall air as you enter the zoo through a cornstalk lined path, hear the crunch of the leaves underneath your feet, listen to the children conquering the straw pyramid or enjoy the sight of thousands of pumpkins on display. Nature-made fall decorations, including pumpkins, gourds and corn stalks, available to purchase.

See a toy so amazing, so unbelievable, it has the power to transform into anything you want it to be. Enter a world where imagination rules, and ordinary becomes extraordinary.

Create your own creepy costume, decorate a mini-pumpkin and explore our Spooky Backyard. Includes special crafts and Monster Mash Dance Party (Friday-Sunday) and face painting daily.

Following Harold's adventures, create artwork with a purple crayon while sailing a boat on water and designing a personal cityscape.

Kids enter artist Gino Severini's interpretation of trains by role-playing engineer, passenger or conductor in a child-size train and look for objects in an eight-foot wide "hidden pictures" mural of artist Don Stewart's "Steam Train."  Plus, enjoy specially designed wooden train tables and a huge new interactive crane.

The exhibit features the illustrations of W. W. Denslow, a Chicago resident whose famous illustrations helped to inspire the design of the classic 1939 MGM film starring Judy Garland. The bright and colorful exhibit provides a variety of learning opportunities and hands-on activities within a three-dimensional representation of Denslow's distinctive illustrations.

Take a behind-the-scenes glimpse at the world of magic and its historic roots in Chicago. Features a multimedia object theater experience, artifact display and live performances. Discover the tricks of the trade and witness Chicago's magical past reappear before your very eyes.

A special exhibit on the history of Girl Scouting, with special focus on Oak Park, River Forest, and Forest Park. Celebrate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Girl Scouts of the USA.

Hundreds of objects and documents from the exclusive private collection, together with a rare collection of first editions of his most famous works, tell the story of how Charles Dickens and his characters became enduring cultural icons. Interactive and multi-media displays and personal effects take visitors through a chronological tour of the life, literature and legacy of Dickens. View his personal traveling inkwell, take a ride in an early century carriage, and learn about the memorable characters, stories and themes of his famous tales through games, time period puzzles and Dickens' own personal Facebook page.

Visitors become space adventurers and set off on a journey to discover the Universe in a way never done before. Travel a billion light-years and back, fly through space, orbit the Moon, zoom into a canyon on Mars, and soar through the cosmic web where a million galaxies shower down. The experience was created utilizing real telescopic data and the best scientific imagery.

Multimedia displays and digital interactives show audiences how galaxies, stars, planets were created as the Universe grew. A projection showcases the enormity of regions farther than our Solar System, taking spectators billions of light-years from Earth to the edge of the cosmos, while touch screen technology allows them to investigate the diverse and beautiful objects of deep space.

Exhibit examines the ancestry and evolution of numerous species, ranging from huge to tiny, from speedy to sloth-like, and displays animals with oversized claws, fangs, snouts, and horns. Highlights include taxidermy specimens, an entire skeleton of a giant hoofed plant-eater, a life-size model of the largest land mammal that ever lived, one of the oldest fossilized bats ever found, and an impressive diorama featuring the swamps and forests of an island in the Arctic. Runs May 26, 2012-Jan. 6, 2013.

Learn and connect to the history of the Marathon race, inspired by the Battle of Marathon (490 BC), from the first Marathon race in the 1896 Athens Olympics to today. Includes section on The Chicago Marathon. Children are invited to participate in a Race for Pheidippides scavenger hunt to redeem a prize. Exhibit coloring pages also available.

Attractions include Pumpkin Patch Petting Zoo, The Inflatable Kidz Zone, Corn Cannons, Pig Race,s, Cow Train, Hay Rides, Pony Rides, Corn Maze, Hay Maze, Corn Box, Hay Pyramid Flashlight Maze, Zombie Safari Hay Ride, Zip-Line, Giant Inflatable Pillow Jumpy and Bouncy Horses.

Board a Safari Hay Ride outfitted with 20 Zombie Slaying paintball guns, mounted turret style. Once aboard, you will be ferried to the grounds via a tractor tow, where the Zombies will attack from all sides

Program is managed by Stepping Stones Therapy. Social skills groups provide interactive and fun opportunities to increase speech, language, oral-motor, motor planning, socialization and sensory processing and modulation skills. Visit www.airtastic.com to request additional information.

Toddler Tuesdays  | Schaumburg

LEGOLAND Discovery Center Chicago will open early on the second floor exclusively for toddlers and their parents. Guests enjoy programming specially designed to engage the youngest LEGO enthusiasts, including DUPLO play with earthquake tables,  LEGO soft brick builds,  LEGO city construction site play zone, and4D movies. No session Nov. 20.

Watch men painted blue do unusual performance art and original slapstick comedy. It's fun to sit in the front, but remember to wear a plastic poncho to avoid the flying food and liquids. Buy tickets at the box office, online, via Ticketmaster or by calling (773) 348-4000.

In a world where a trip to the Laundromat threatens to separate Trixie from her beloved bunny, a girl needs a hero to help--Dad. Can her parents understand what she's saying in time to rescue Knuffle Bunny? Performances run Oct. 2, 2012-Jan. 6, 2013.