Foodie Fun

I am so glad the weather has been nice lately. It has let us be outside way more often, which is so nice. One thing that is not so nice... our smoke detectors beeping for hours even when we changed the batteries. Poor Bella was hiding in our front closet when I got home from work yesterday.

Anyway, a new thing I'm going to add to this blog is food reviews around Chicago. I just feel like Mark and I have been to so many great restaurants, they need some recognition.

Last weekend, we went to Hub 51, on the ever-popular Hubbard Street. Let me preface this review with the fact that we had to make a reservation a week and a half in advance because it is so popular. In Chicago, all the best restaurants (and some so-so ones) have very long waiting periods to get in to eat.

Anyway, we made a reservation, and it was the best meal I have had in a long time! I tried two of their signature cocktails, which were amazing. Both were very refreshing and not too watery. We also got an appetizer to start, the sweet potato sushi roll. One word: amazing. Mark doesn't even like sushi and he loved it. And our waitress was super attentive and told us after we had eaten a few pieces "something is wrong. let me bring this back." We were confused, but then she brought it back and it had this delicious barbeque glaze that was supposed to be on it originally, and that made it even better. The cool thing about Hub51, other than its posh atmosphere, is that the menu is very diverse. Mark got a burger and I got tacos, and both were very appetizing. If you live here and have not tried Hub51... you are really missing out.

I am super excited because one of my BEST friends in the world, Emily, is here with her boyfriend Mike! They are moving here in a month and I am so excited. I will write an update with pictures of wherever we end up going this weekend. Thank god for three day weekends.

Happy Fourth of July! Hope you have as great long weekend!

Bling-Bling

First thing: what I am excited about today... my amaaazingly cute flats I got at Bloomingdales for a fourth of the original price. I also got a cashmere cardigan that I had been eye-ing at J. Crew for three months for about 50% off. Winning.

Also, since my knee is still haunting me with its jankity-ness my PT suggested I get better shoes for work. IE: more arch support.  IE: FUGLY.  IE: I think I'd rather take the pain. I caved slightly and found some semi-non-ugly Cole Haan shoes that have a bit of support. I really don't want to be 87 yet.

I am starting to get sick of all those online sites that send you emails every day with clothing items on sale. Not once, EVER, have I found something off of "Shop it to me" and the like. I should probably unsubscribe.

Anyway. Last weekend was quite eventful. The weather was pretty nice and we spent a lot of time outside and going to meals. Meals are like the center of my universe. If I can get out to dinner, or even better, brunch, I am a happy camper. So Saturday night we went to dinner with our friends Deanna and Brett and then went out to celebrate Jess, a sorority sister's birthday/engagement.

Party animals.

Apparently, the bar we went to actually has a retractable roof, which will DEFINITELY come in handy during... what? November through May? Given this past year's weather, I'm gonna go with that.

I know it is only Wednesday, but it feels like Friday, so have a great weekend everyone!

Home is where the heart is

This past week, Mark and I drove down to Maryland for our first trip back home! It was truly wonderful being able to see our families and a lot of our friends. Bella was once again a trooper for the ten hour car ride, but it felt very long to me. It was very weird being back at home, and it really felt more nostalgic than anything else. It made me realize how much I love Chicago, and how hard it would be to move back to MD... at least right now. It also made both Mark and I realize how much we cannot remember about roads and things there. Navigating around was weird. And, I was also told while I was home, that my "a" in words had become like a Mid-westerner's. For example, I say "back" as "bayk"... Can you saw 'ew'? I would like to keep my original accent por favor.

Here is a picture of Bella and my family's dog Lily on their way with us to my grandma's pool (They know what "MomMom's house" means). It is just too cute for words, so I had to include it in the post.

So, it was a great couple days at home, but for now, Chicago is the place to be.  :)

Memorial Weekend madness

This past weekend had a lotttt going on.

Friday after work, Mark and I decided to use a Groupon we had for drinks/dinner at a mexican bar. It was really overpriced, and the food was just okay, so thank god we had a groupon and didn't have to spend real money there. Plus, the place was practically empty and pretty awkward because of that.

Saturday we went to brunch at an Irish place, and watched the Barcelona vs. Manchester United game. Fun times.

Sunday was quite the unique experience. We decided ahead of time to go on a food tour of Chicago. Sunday was the day that Mother Nature decided we needed yet another rainy/thunderstormy day... and this was the worst yet. We met our group and leader at a Jewish deli and then proceeded to a tea place, fudge shop, oil shop, spice shop, bakery, and pizza place, all the while trekking through the storm. Because of the weather, our three hour tour ended up being five. It was all good in the end, but we were completely exhausted afterwards.

Monday was Mark and my one year wedding anniversary! It is so hard to believe we're not Newlyweds anymore, and that it has already been a year. We woke up early to ninety degrees, and sunny weather. Woo! So we decided to take Bella down to the pier park like we usually do, and when we finally got there, I was burnt and getting attacked by flies (everyone was), and Bella was panting like crazy.  We kept giving her water and putting water on her, but after twenty minutes we'd all had enough. So we spent the afternoon relaxing and watching our wedding video for the first time. I started crying within two seconds of watching it. We capped the night off by going to dinner at Shula's steakhouse, which was pretty good. All in all, an excellent Memorial Day weekend. (And thank you to our troops!)

Three things I am excited about right now:
1. My work event I am planning is on Monday, and is almost OVER
2. I get to go home a week from today!
3. Did I mention I get to go home a week from today?