What a weekend! My half-sister and her boyfriend drove all the way from Massachusetts to visit my husband, son, and me in Illinois.
They arrived on Thursday while I was still at work. My husband met them at the house and took them over to our neighborhood pool for a few hours. After I got home, we all went out to dinner at Emmett’s, one of our favorite local places. After dinner we watched 50/50 and then went to bed.
Unfortunately, I had to work on Friday, but my husband was able to show them around the area. They had sushi for lunch at Matsuri in Geneva and then walked around the downtown for a bit. That night we had a few other people over for apps, hotdogs, and steak, and then we all played Who What Where, a fun drawing game. Of course my sister and her boyfriend came in 1st and 2nd place – they are art majors, after all!
Saturday we woke up bright an early and headed into Chicago for the day. Luckily, my MIL and SIL babysat Evan for us; it would have been a challenge to spend a whole day downtown with a 1 ½ year old!
We parked at the Lincoln Park Zoo. My MIL has a membership, so parking was only $9. We walked all the way to Michigan Ave. from there. We went into the Water Tower Plaza to use the restrooms and check out the Lego store. Then we walked down Michigan Ave. until we got to Millennium Park. We had lunch at Tavern at the Park.
It started raining as soon as we left the restaurant, so we jetted over to the Art Institute and spent a few hours in there. I have to say, I think the Monet exhibit was my favorite. I wasn’t as impressed by Van Gogh, for some reason. I liked all the super old, religious stuff as well. It was creepy yet fantastic.
After the Art Institute, we spent some time in front of “The Bean.” Then we cabbed it over to the Hancock Building to enjoy some dessert and drinks on the 95th floor. I am pretty sure the women’s bathroom on the 95th floor of the Hancock has the best view of the city! It is absolutely stunning! (The men’s room doesn’t even have a window!)
By that point, we were all completely wiped out. We cabbed it back to LPZ and drove home. My sister and her boyfriend went straight to bed when we got back to the house. My hubby and I stayed up for a while, watching House Hunters and chatting. We were in bed by 11:00, though.
We all slept in on Sunday, had a late breakfast, and then went to the Chicago Botanic Garden in Glencoe. We all got some great photos before having an early dinner at the café. After that we headed back home. My legs were just killing me from all the walking, so I spent the rest of the evening with my feet up.
My sister and her boyfriend took a quick nap and then departed around 10:00. My husband and I watched Friends With Kids and then headed off to bed.
Needless to say, I am exhausted today. We covered a lot of ground in one weekend! Chicago is so massive, you could stay for a month and still not see everything. Next time we definitely want to hit up the theater district and Old Town or Wicker Park with them.
All in all, everyone had a great time. I got a little misty-eyed as we were saying our goodbyes, but she promised they’d be back once baby #2 arrives. I miss them already and can’t wait for next time!
