learning to live.laugh.love.: December 2010

I'm so glad that my dad is spontaneous like I am. I had been talking for months about how I wanted to see "Chicago at Christmas time". Well Friday night dad and I decided that we were going to go, we took ourselves and some clothes in case we stayed, we had no reservations or plan really. We arrived in Chicago for quite the day, it started with Chipotle for lunch! YUM

And not very far down the road we came across a corner bakery cafe, and I have heard lots of things about this place, and 100 ft of walking is cause for taking a snack break, right? Well, the good thing is that we didn't do this every 100 ft. It would be expensive, and a lot of food, although I would love to eat my way through the city!

Christkindlmarket

After Corner Bakery, where we had a delicious Maple Pecan Bar and Snickerdoodle cookie, was when full tourist mode stepped in! I was snapping pictures like I had never been to the big city before, and I didn't care! I think it's fun to take picture and even more fun when you are in the city that you have wanted to see at Christmas. So dad and I tromped and tromped and tromped through the city, all of Michigan Ave (where I did do some shopping it wasn't all about the tourist attractions! :) ), all of State St., Macy's and to Daley Plaza for the Christkindlmarket that was going on. That was really interesting it was this German outdoor market, where they have everything German. Dad and I walked around and I bought some toasted Almonds! MMMM so good and worth every penny! We were exhausted after Daley, but we walked more to Giordano's for some pizza, where I hate to admit but we killed a pizza, we were starving and hadn't eaten since Corner Bakery. On the way to getting Pizza, I thought we had missed our chance at Garrett's because we didn't get to the one of Michigan Ave., nope we happen to stumble across one on Madison St. I was so excited, because everyone talks about it and I wanted to see what the hype was! So I bought my Chicago Mix, and wasn't in the least disappointed! :)

You can't come to Chicago and NOT get Pizza!

After dinner we decided that we were too exhausted to drive home, well I was too exhausted since I was driving, and that we would crash with our nephew/cousin Bob. He was so gracious to let us come and stay there and had great accommodations. Dad had a full size bed, and I had a mattress on the floor, it was very comfy and so wonderful of him and his roommate to let us stay!

I told Bobby we need a picture because he was all part of our Journey!

Sunday, I wanted to get home for Bethlehem Blues Cafe, but I also wanted to stop at a few places in Vernon Hills area too, so we did that and I got my Kiehl's that was so excited about, even though dad thinks I should go and buy a bottle of Vaseline and call it good! (Men, what do they know?! :)) BBC started at 6 and we rolled in the parking lot of the church at 5:49 pm. Just on time! We had a great trip and made some good memories. I guess Dad had never been downtown and so he was like a little kid in a candy store, he is still talking about it, and loves to tell people “When we were in Chicago...” I'm hoping I can make this a yearly thing, and hope to bring more of my family members, and if not then that's cool too! It's just so fun and no far away at all, it's the next best thing to NYC, I have been to NYC, but Chicago is so pretty with the lake, and just an all around fun time!!!

Now I leave you with some of the pictures I took throughout the day!