Chicago.

So. I'm not going to lie, the Chicago trip was somewhat of a bust. It rained--no, poured the entire time we were there. Which meant no Grant Park (which I was most excited for) and we didn't even bother going into downtown Chicago. All was not lost, however, because I got to see my MOMMY! Which made the trip SO worth it.

We picked up my mommy at her truck in a truck stop and I promptly lit the candle on a cake ball (I'll explain in another entry - similar to a truffle) and sang happy birthday to her. After presents and all that jazz, we drove the hour and half to Chicago so she could spend the night in the hotel with us. I was only expecting to go to lunch with her, so it was super exciting that I got to hang out with her for the whole night. We were all really tired, so we didn't end up doing anything besides hang out in the room all night.

The next morning, we woke up at early o' clock and took her back to her truck so she could get on the road. After we returned, we went to Trader Joe's <3 and got some goodies. Also checked out Costco since we recently bought a membership (even though there are none around here...yeah). That night we ate at Gino's East. I love me some Chicago pizza, but the place we went to last time, The Art of Pizza, I think was better. Either way, Chicago pizza is amazing and the atmosphere at Gino's was definitely neat.

Sunday we went shopping. We decided to forgo downtown Magnificent Mile due to the whole difficult parking situation plus dog and ended up at an awesome shopping mall. I didn't buy TOO much, but got the awesome LUSH products I raved about, as well as some things from Sephora. After we returned to the hotel we relaxed for a bit and then got ready for P.F. Chang's. Seriously, if you haven't been there, DO IT. I don't even LIKE Chinese food, but this place was SO SO good! They had a promo going called something like "Dinner for Two" which included an appetizer, two entrees, and two little dessert shooter things for $40. We got chicken lettuce wraps for the appetizer and I would totally get them as a meal they were so awesome. Also highly recommend the honey chicken and sweet and sour chicken. We can't wait to go back when we get to Cali!

The next morning we packed up and headed home! But not before stopping in Milwaukee to see my crazy grandma. Overall, it was a good time. I just wish we could have done some of the touristy things. I think having a dog makes things a little more difficult and it's not as easy to just get up and go do something. And the rain totally didn't help matters.

So besides just what we actually DID, here are some things I realized/learned over that weekend:

-My mom really is so thoughtful. It's not something I think about very often because I don't see her much, but she truly is so awesome. When she found out we'd be able to see each other she went out and bought Dex a huge toy. She is constantly thinking about other people and doing nice little things like that. I think it's so cute. It was also really neat to watch her with Dex. They totally became BFFs. She let him lick her face whenever he wanted (he's a huge kisser!) and he totally dug that. Even we get sick of it and push him off, but she let him go on forever. When we were driving back to her truck I looked behind me and she was sitting there feeding him treat after treat like it was his dinner. It was too cute. She had such a good time with him and it was just really awesome. It made me think about how she'll be a great grandma.

-Traffic stresses me out. You see, Cali obviously has TONS of traffic, but I've been gone for a while and don't have to deal with it on a daily basis anymore. Add that to the fact that in Cali I KNOW where I'm going because it's not some foreign city. In Chicago, I was stressed to the MAX every time we drove. Even if I wasn't driving! It was terrible. I tend to be a stress-ball as it is, but the craziness that is Chicago intensified it to the point where I was almost ready to go home after the first day. I guess I'm just not made for huge cities. I much prefer an in between kind of place.

-Tax in Chicago is 10%!! Are you kidding me?! That's just ridiculous. I'd refuse to shop, but that's a crime in itself. So shop I did. But Chicago needs to check themselves. They are NOT that special. 10%!

I think that's about it. We only took ONE picture the entire trip. And it wasn't even a good one. We got all dressed up for P.F. Chang's and then forgot to take a picture until right after we left the place. Ugh! Oh well, I've got the memories :) Or something like that..