around the world lately: Chicago mini trip

Yet another perk of living back in our hometown: proximity to Chicago! Growing up, this was our nearest big city, and since it's only about 2.5 hours by car, I've made a lot of trips over the years. I love that the proximity makes it easy for even just a 1-2 day trip, because it's a city I always love to visit.

At the end of last weekend, we left Hendrik with grandparents and drove down for a quick trip with multiple purposes: first up, celebrating Peter's birthday at a Cubs game. That was followed by dinner and checking out the new river walk with my sister and her husband, and then crashing at our downtown hotel before grabbing a donut in the lobby shop in the morning and then spending all day Monday furniture shopping for the new house. Fun and productive!

Some more details of our "what to do in Chicago" from this particular little getaway:

See: the Chicago Cubs in action. We experienced the bleacher section at Wrigley Field for the first time - and on a Cubs vs. White Sox day, no less - which was kind of fun as a Cubs cultural experience. Lots of beer and shirtless guys (and rather hot direct sun the entire time, which called for a lemon chill treat), but it's cool to sit right by the classic scoreboard and to take in the whole field from that angle. We walked over to the stadium from my sister's Lincoln Park home about 1.5 miles away, so I felt like we really got the Wrigley experience, coming in on the crowded sidewalks with the locals. And Peter got the extra gift of a Cubs win, happily.

Eat: always a fan of trying out Top Chef contestants' restaurants, so I was glad my sister suggested trying the Little Goat Diner. Loved this upgraded twist on diner food (and the reasonable prices). We started at the bar/bakery while we waited for our table, and then moved over into the fun mod-styled diner for our dinner. They do breakfast all day, which was tempting, but this scallion pancake with pork belly and bok choy I had was SO good. Peter loved his kimchi Korean burger, and our vegan dining companions had a whole separate menu to choose from, which was great for them.

Stay: we've stayed at the Rafaello Hotel before, right next to the Hancock building. Didn't spend much time in the room given that it was a quick trip, but it's comfortable and clean and conveniently located. This time around we got upgraded to a suite, which was fun. Also fun was the Glazed donut location right in the lobby.

Shop: I'm a big fan of online shopping, but when it comes to couches and chairs, seeing them in person is a must, and Chicago has everything I want all in easy access, with huge stores and great displays. In the morning we walked from our hotel down to Room & Board, which took us a couple hours to get through all three floors of, and then stopped at Crate & Barrel. After a lunch break, we went over to North Ave. where we could get West Elm and Pottery Barn (plus a little Land of Nod side stop) all in one. We sat on many couches and came home with a stack of fabric swatches - need some time to mull things over after seeing sooo much furniture! Also checked out a bunch of office furniture, and I picked out my chair and desk, which are now on order.

Wear: I received some Kushyfoot samples before the trip, and they were just what I needed to pack in my overnight bag! Big cities always mean lots of walking, and this trip was no exception - walking the 1.5 miles back and forth between my sister's place and Wrigley Field, not to mention all the huge stores, so I opted for cute sneakers, but when paired with shorts, the sock situation is sometimes difficult, but their foot covers were great for no-show comfort. Also, the flats to go are advertised as being something you can carry along and switch into when you need to get out of your heels, but I thought they were perfect for padding around a hotel room after a day on our feet.

We're looking forward to lots more Chicago mini trips in our future - lots of favorite things we're ready to repeat, like the architecture boat tour, the Art Institute, and Rick Bayless' restaurants. And there are tons of things I can't wait to start taking Hendrik to, like the Shedd Aquarium, Navy Pier, the new play area by Millennium Park, and more.