Back Home!

We arrived back home late this afternoon from our little vacation to Chicago. This was our first family vacation where we were able to plan all our activities and go on our own schedule, and we really had a good time. We took over 500 pictures, but of course I won't be posting all of them. :) I'm going to try and post the top 5 from each day we were there.

We arrived in Chicago in time for dinner Wednesday evening. Fortunately, Scott found a J. Alexanders restaurant close to our hotel, and I was excited because I really like that place. We enjoyed dinner and then headed to the hotel. We stayed in a suburb of Chicago (Oak Park or Oak Brook or something like that), and we had a room with 2 rooms, which is always nice- Allison had a tough time adjusting the first night, but after that she did just fine- just needed some additional cuddles to get to sleep.

The next morning we donned our red outfits to celebrate Valentine's Day and we headed out to Shedd Aquarium. What a COOL place! On the way there I kept having this feeling I'd forgotten something. I mentally went through my check list (camera, sippy cup, extra undees, snacks, etc.) and figured I had it all. Once in the aquarium I went to take off my coat and realized what I'd forgotten. I'd forgotten to finish getting dressed!! I was wearing a white t-shirt but NOT the red sweatshirt I had laid out to wear. NEVER before have I done that, but I was so concerned making sure Allison had everything ready to go that I didn't even look in the mirror to check myself before I left. GEEZ!! It was just a good excuse to pick up a sweatshirt in the gift shop. :)

Allison LOVED the dolphin show, looking at fish, sharks, sting rays, etc. She also enjoyed the penguins, sea lions and everything else the aquarium had to offer. That afternoon we headed to Macy's downtown, where they had an FAO Shwartz. It was nothing like the one in NY, but it was still fun for Allison.

When we got ready to leave we realized we didn't have Shay Shay (Allison's beloved doll). We looked everywhere but could not find her, so we had to leave. She was SO sad in the car- like a grieving kind of sad. We drove for about 40 minutes before I thought, maybe we should at least call lost and found at Macy's and let them know. We ended up talking to the folks at FAO, and THEY HAD Shay Shay! We drove all the way back downtown to get her, which is something any parent would do because you know the pain of making the return trip will be nothing compared to the pain of your child losing her beloved doll!!

But driving in Chicago, don't get me started! We lived in the San Francisco Bay Area for 5 years, so believe me, I understand traffic, and nothing compares to S.F. HOWEVER, I've been out of S.F. for quite some time now and had forgotten what bumper to bumper traffic felt like. I do NOT like it!! And it's not even rush hour or anything- UGH! I felt like we spent half our trip in the car- that was the only frustrating part.

That evening we ate at Houlihans and then headed to a really nice outdoor mall and I found a store I fell in love with. I know I've seen the catalog, but the store in person was much more fun! It's called hanna andersson, and MAN do they have cute stuff. I chose something for Allison's 3rd b-day party and another outfit for good measure and we called it a day! What a FUN first day in Chicago! :)