SOLVED. Children's book series, two children are mentored by an old professor (?) who teaches them a new way of thinking [s]

[Nicole]

I remember reading and loving these books as a kid, but I can't seem to remember the title! I have a vague memory of it being of the same publisher of the Boxcar Children books (however this is foggy and vague, I'm not entirely sure). I know I read these books when I was in about 1st-5th grade (2004-2008), however they were at the very least third grade level.

Some weird additional details that I remember:

I'm pretty sure the girl's name was Lucy because I kept on thinking of the Chronicles of Narnia while I was reading it (not totally sure though)
I know that the mentor/professor guy had this unusual umbrella that was clear plastic with bright yellow flowers on it
I know Lucy (or her brother) always looked on the ground when they walked home from school and they would describe the pavement but the mentor told them to look up and enjoy life or something along those lines
There was this weird but cool sequence where Lucy (?) looks into this hedge and she finds this little maze in it but then she looked away (i think?) and the illusion was gone. I remembered that part because it made me really look for the little details in things like that.

Thanks to all who answer!

[SparksofEmber]

Were these older books reprinted (like the Boxcar Children & the Narnia series) or modern day?

[Lydia]

This sounds familiar! Could it be The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles?

[Lydia]

I don't remember the book particularly well, but it does involve a professor who teaches three children to pay attention to interesting details. The girl is named Lindy Potter, which is fairly similar to Lucy.

[Nicole]

LYDIA YOU FOUND IT THANK YOU SO MUCH

[Lydia]

Yay! =]