"I don't think I'm in Carrollton anymore..."

Last Friday morning, Aunt Kathy came to visit me! She arrived around noon so we had an entire day ahead of us.  After dropping off her bag and bundling up, we set out for the day, with our first stop being Macy's on State Street. I had no idea we were in for such a treat! Just walking up to the 9 story store was impressive....

But the closer we got, we saw how spectacular each window display was....

I don't think pictures really do them justice. In each display, different things were whirling, twirling and dancing all around, and to top it off, Christmas music was playing outside the store. We were in holiday heaven, pumpkin latte in hand....

We thought the outside was good, we had no idea we were in for an even bigger treat inside! Let me introduce you to a little thing called "Holiday Lane"....

This was a HUGE section of Christmas trees, decorations, ornaments, stockings, every kind of Christmas item you can imagine. You could even write and drop your letter to Santa in the mailbox....

 

After ooh-ing and ahh-ing for several hours over all the Christmas goodies, we walked all the way down Michigan Avenue to, none other, than the John Hancock building. After a drink and an appetizer, we hiked all the way back down Michigan Avenue to head home. We were absolutely exhausted from all the walking so we decided to pick up a pizza from Giordano's, Kathy's first Chicago style pizza. A bit overwhelming, but I think it was a hit.

We changed into our pj's, ate some pizza, sipped some wine and snacked on some delicious pickles we'd picked up earlier from Pastoral. Of course Charlie couldn't go ignored....he got plenty of attention from Kathy, the ultimate dog lover....

The next day, we set out on foot again. We walked all through Millennium Park, did some shopping then got ready for an (so we thought) early dinner at Frontera Grill. We headed that way around 5:00, arrived around 5:15 to a line a mile long out the door! The wait was going to be 2-2 1/2 hours, for 2 people at 5:15!!?! Luckily there was a sushi restaurant across the street that was empty so we had some wine and edamame while we waited, which made the time go much faster. By the time we walked back across the street and waited a mere 10 minutes, we were seated. Landon and I had been here before and just shared some tacos and margaritas, but Kathy and I shared a ceviche in coconut milk then for dinner we shared an amazing shrimp dish. It was all well worth the wait....

The next morning, I went to walk Charlie and came back to Kathy, who had a sneaky grin and told me she had some exciting news.... KAREN was on a flight to come play with us too!!! I was shocked to say the least, but SO excited. That little stinker had been planning it for days, but wanted to surprise us, and she did, and it was a good one!

We met her at the train stop, and after about ten minutes of "I can't believe we're all in Chicago... together!" we regrouped at the apartment and had a repeat so we could show her all we had done. We had to take her back to Macy's to show her our favorite "purple tree"

 Then back through Millennium Park....

We decided that evening we would rather just stay in, get comfy and visit all night, so that's exactly what we did. We picked up a bunch of food and just snacked and chatted all night, it was perfect.

Monday morning, before they left, we had to go admire the view from the top of our building one last time....

On our way to the airport, we drove all around, showing them all different areas of Chicago, not just the downtown bubble we had been in all weekend. We even stopped for a quick bite at Southport Grocery & Cafe for some sandwiches, soup and salad.

I had so much fun with Kathy all weekend, we did so much and had a blast together! And Karen was such a wonderful surprise, I'm so glad she did that, so much fun!!! Love my dear aunties, lots of memories I'll treasure!

(Oh, you may be wondering about the title of this post. Kathy was completely entertained just looking out the window overlooking Michigan Ave. There are always all sorts of crazy performances.... dancers, people playing buckets like drums, and while watching all of this Kathy said "Well, I don't think I'm in Carrollton anymore" Haha, nope, you're not! Too funny.)

A perfectly, relaxing visit

With Landon in Iowa last week and weekend, I had it all planned out with plenty of visitors!

First, Alana came on Monday and stayed through Thursday. The weather was crummy the whole time she was here, but we made do and got to spend lots of quality, indoor time together.

Landon was still in town Monday, so we both picked her up from the airport and went straight to one of our new favorites, Big Star, which has amazing tacos....

These tacos remind me a lot of our Fort Worth favorite, Taco Heads, the taco truck we were so loyally addicted to.  

After lots of late night visiting, these two tucked in to bed together, and did so all 3 nights Alana was in town....

With weather that wouldn't cooperate, we were stuck inside most of the time, but we rented several movies, caught up on life, snacked, and sipped wine. Alana was a wonderful hostess; I got out of the shower one evening and was greeted with one of these lovely plates....

Of course we couldn't stay cooped up 100% of the time; we did a little walking, snagged some souvenirs, and went out for some drinks, but every time we stepped foot outside, it was a mad dash for the next indoor location.  All in all, despite the weather, we had a wonderful weekend just being together. I have so many fond memories of spending a lot of time with Alana as a child and it's so great that we can do things together and still truly enjoy it, I just wish they were more often! I've been enjoying her company for exactly 24 years now (she had a birthday the day after she left, happy birthday Laner!)

Thursday afternoon, after she left, it started snowing up a storm here! I couldn't believe it.... I'm not at all ready for a midwest winter!

Weekend/Week Recap (Part 2)

After a fun-filled weekend with Tanner and Zena, I was off to Virginia Beach! I left on Sunday evening, not getting in town until late that night, but Miss Tenley stayed up late so I could meet her. She is a little doll, so sweet and so beautiful! Sean was leaving early Monday morning, so we all visited for a bit, then it was off to bed.

Monday was Halloween and I had so much fun taking Bergen and Tenley trick-or-treating with Heather. I carried Bergen most of the time and I'm not quite sure if it was because I just wanted to squeeze him or if he actually wanted to be held :) He was so funny, if we stayed at a neighbor's house chatting too long, he would just start saying "bye" indicating it was time for us to leave!

Does it get any cuter? I mean, really?!?

Bergen accumulated a good amount of candy, which Heather and I decided to dip into once we got home. Let's hope he doesn't like Twix, those things are long gone!

During the day, while Bergen was at daycare, Heather and I were able to get some errands done, but I really enjoyed just spending time together at home with her and Tenley. Once it was time to pick up Bergen, it was all about play time outside; that boy loves to be outside and I was more than happy to play outside with him as long as he wanted!

Bergen is quite the busy boy, hence the blurry photo....

Sean got home Wednesday afternoon, so we picked him up from the airport, Bergen up from daycare and played outside more.  After lots of playing, some dinner and a bath, Bergen was asleep and the three of us watched the movie Bridesmaids, which was absolutely hilarious; we all laughed so hard. I even came home and rented it so I could watch it again Landon could see it too. It was just as funny the second time around; I highly recommend it for a good laugh!

On Thursday morning, Heather, Bergen, Tenley and I loaded up in the car and went to drop Bergen off at daycare, which was the perfect note to end my trip on. I carried him in and passed him off as he waved bye and blew me a kiss!

It was so hard to leave, I wish I could have stayed longer. We agreed another week would have been perfect if only Landon could have joined us. I wish we all lived closer and could do things like this on a regular basis, but I really enjoyed my time with them and can't wait to see this sweet family again soon.  

Weekend/Week Recap (Part 1)

What a fun and busy week it has been! We had Tanner and Zena in town for the weekend and had so much fun. They got in late Thursday night so we just stayed in and watched the Rangers lose. Friday, Landon had to work so Tanner, Zena and I were on our own to explore on foot. We of course had to start at Millennium Park....

Then the Chicago Tribune Building....

Then a little shopping down Michigan Avenue.... After a day of sight-seeing, we went to dinner at Sweetwater, which is not even a block from our apartment, yet this was our first time to ever go. We just ordered several appetizers, including some buffalo rolls, which were just like the buffalo chicken dip I make all the time, but in an egg roll. Amazing.

After watching a disappointing loss by the Rangers, we trekked over to Hub 51. After a few drinks and some fun people/costume watching, we called it a night.

Saturday, we started off with brunch at Eleven City Diner, which is a favorite of ours that never disappoints. Then we came back to the apartment to watch yet another disappointing game (A&M vs. Missouri).

Since Chicago style pizza is a must while in town, we took them to Giordano's for some deep dish pizza, which has become our top pick for this local favorite.  After lots of pizza, we went to another favorite, the John Hancock building for the amazing view. I'm realizing I need to find some new places to take our guests.... this is the third time I've written about this place, but you really can't beat the view (plus it's free, unlike the other places with a view, as long as you order something in the lounge!)

Earlier that day, when I checked the mail, I had a fun little treat waiting for me. Julie and Aaron had sent a stick on mustache which turned out the be our source of entertainment the rest of the night....

     

We had way too much fun with this mustache (we even paid a homeless man a dollar to create the "bumstache") but we laughed so hard and had an absolute blast.

Thanks for such a fun weekend Tanner and Zena, love you guys!