Chicago

Chicago did not disappoint. As you can see from the first picture I was a little apprehensive  upon arrival to the airport. I had never traveled by airplane before or stayed at a hotel. I didn't know what to pack, what to wear, or even which toys to bring! Then I thought of the song by Raffi "All I Really Need" . It sings like this "All I really need is a song in my heart. Food in my belly. Love in my family. Oh yeah. Love in my family. " Once again better if you actually hear the song the way Raffi sings it but you get the idea.
As you can see the night life in Chicago is spectacular.

 I did some window shopping at showed him the souvenir I thought we should take home. Wouldn't that copper tub be perfect for my bath?
Chicago is full of vibrant and wonderful flavors. Call me watcha wanna but don't call me a picky eater. Can you believe it was both my Mom's and my first time eating at an Indian restaurant? I must be very advanced. Mmmm, it was tasty. It's fun to get dressed up and go out every so often. As you see my Mom just stripped me down to my diaper and sat me on a towel to feed myself at the hotel. How undignified.
My Dad's review course lasted 11 hours a day. During that time my Mom and I were all over that city. Taxi? Who needs a taxi? The L train? Well that's great for getting into the city from the airport. Once you are in the city you really can't beat your feet for sight seeing.

BTW! Chicago is not called the windy city for no good reason. On our first day of sight seeing it was 39 degrees with a windchill off Lake Michigan that was cold. Brrr! Good thing my "Helicopter Mom/ First time parent/ Late in life mother/ Over protective Mom.com" or whatever you want to call her packed me a snow suit. Lake Shore drive has 18 miles of paved paths for biking and running. Can you say Run Mama?


During a run along the Riverwalk I had my 15 minutes of fame. Ok, it was more like 5 minutes. Probably edited to 30 seconds, but who cares about the details. My Mom and I were running along, at a fairly good pace, because it was flat, we had a tailwind and only 2 miles to go and....my Mom really wanted a tall skinny decaf latte from Starbucks, or is it a tall decaf skinny latte? Say that 5x fast. Anyway we got waved down by the Chicago 5 news crew and they interviewed us regarding what we thought about funding a project to clean up and improve the Chicago River and surrounding parks and paths. I am all for that seeing as it would probably benefit my adventures during future visits.Besides I don't pay the taxes to support it.

Our hotel and convention center was attached to the Mart Plaza and Luxe Home. This was very convenient because while my Dad studied ortho I was able to see the design show rooms of all the best in home design. I found him the perfect shirt to wear. It is a total one off seeing as it is made from tile. My mom said it would make our luggage overweight so I had to leave it behind.
Wandering Grant Park while we waited for dinner was spectacular! I love mirrors. See if you can find me? It's like where is Waldo? Except my outfit is more like Gumby's.

Seriously! Is this city great or what?
If you have not had Chicago style deep dish pizza you have missed out!

 Stuffed crust =No fuss! Pizza is serious business.


Does it suprise anybody that "More Food Please?" is the most common sign phrase in baby sign?
I'll be honest, after a dinner like that, the crust wasn't the only thing stuffed. Good thing I have plenty of room in my puffy bunting. What great fuel for my city adventures.

My Mom and I are a little like Kato Kalin and had no real responsibility. We had the best time starting the day with a run followed by some sight seeing. Later we would go for a walk. There may or may not have been some shopping on Michigan Avenue.

Chicago's Art Institute is amazing. I'm sure it has imprinted on me in some way. When I utter the phrase "but Daddy, I wanted a pony" you'll know why.
The display of miniatures has given me such inpsiration for the decoration of my doll house. I can't wait. Daddy ? Please? After all it's art , not a toy..

The Shedd Aquarium was great too. A few of the residents  were a little crabby as you can see.






2 comments:

Grandma Cindy said...

Annika,
Your travel descriptions make me want to visit Chicago!

tim said...

I love her baby bunting!