Since we didn’t go home over Christmas, it had been ~a
year since we were last in Chicago. What
a difference a year makes!
YEAH for bikes!
Bike lanes have been springing up all over & while
5 years ago, the bikers were mostly the hard-core messenger type, now you see people in dresses.
The city even installed tons of shared bike stations
And thanks to the double-tandem, we were able to get the whole family out for
several spins
Outgrowing old haunts
The bad news with being away is suddenly realizing our old
haunts are no longer 'age appropriate'
Climbing structure at the zoo. We LOVED this - used to go all the time & now Q has aged out of it....
A neighborhood park the kids spent endless days at - Adam's - was deemed 'baby-ish' - and Q aged out of their water feature
Luckily you are never too old / big for this park feature...
Gorging on favorites
Another risk with being away, is the gorge fest we feel is justified during visits.....
Chipotle is such a favorite, we stopped there on the way home from the airport
Q loves the crunchy tacos, X a carnitas burrito, Z a large bowl of white rice...
After going 4 times in the first 5 days, I discovered one can burn out on a good thing. (Sissy is smiling as it was the first of ~4 times we made her dine there with us!)
Clarke's for omelets, pancakes & free WIFI
Mandy B's for cupcakes...
And 7-11 for Slurpees & donuts....
Is it shocking that our pants seem to have all shrunk while we were away?
Packing in the Play dates
We also attempted to make up for lost time with friends - with as many play dates & get togethers as possible...
(the best/only shot I could get of these 5 kids together!)
Including day trips to the horse races...
And 6 Flags...
Bittersweet farewell
Leaving a good vacation is hard, but leaving our constantly improving Sweet Home Chicago is even harder.
Here's to home & celebrating your favorites!
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