Sweet Home Chicago...And Wisconsin

So many things have happened since this trip back to the land of the middle, but I wanted to share some of my highlights with y'all anyways!  I had so much fun seeing everyone, being a part of shenanigans and celebrating one of my bff's graduation from law school.  Good luck on the bar now, Nippy!

 

A few photo ops: 

• Top left, me and my mom 
• Top right, me and the law school grad! a/k/a we are the four horsemen of the apocalypse but there are two horsemen in each of us 
• Bottom left, my favorite ladies and myself
• Bottom right, me and my soon to be wed bff, Nisa

Here are some "things" that happened:

• The graduates opened up a Cornoa pinata (didn't want to smash it for re-use purposes!) full of SkinnyGirl margs, Copa de Vinos, and candy
• My niece did my hair for me :)
• Got to visit with my mother-in-law and her adorable pup, Finley!  He was a surprise dog almost  3 years ago now from my father-in-law, and he's the sweetest guy around

Quicky show-off of my fav things in Chicago that I got to experience while there....

1.  I've never been to the top of the Sears Tower...7 years there, and no?  Fail.  But honestly I don't think I'm missing much--just seeing it though, seriously makes my heart stop and brings me back to when I moved downtown.

2.  Italian beef.  This is a dietary staple as far as I'm concerned.  I miss this stuff so much, and yet we only ever ate is a "treat" in Chicago.  This particular one is from Ricobenes on the south side and it was damn good.

3.  This bar..Dugan's.  It's an Irish bar in Greektown, that I used to frequent with one of my very best friends, Ian, all the time in college.  He lived down the street and they had $1 beers on Mondays.  So we would go out there after class, etc. and then eat a gyro and crash at his apartment.  And then wake up at 9 am for our 9 am media law class and scramble for cash and a cab!  I literally can't say enough about the good things and conversations that have happened at this place.

4.  This soup.  It is cream of chicken soup from a diner called Huck Finn's also on the south side.  We were introduced to this by our friends...and legit can't get enough.  We *dream* about soup like this and crave it.  We don't know why or how it gets so yellow, and don't care.

I know, guys, none of these are the traditional "Chicago" things you see or hear about...Michigan Ave., the lake, people being shot at 24/7, but this is "my" Chicago, and after living downtown for so many years, you realize the best thing about Chicago is all of the places you haven't been yet that are far, far away from the center of it all.