A Whirlwind Visit to the Windy City

We've been in Illinois visiting my parents for several weeks, as Andre has work up here. They live about three hours from Chicago and since we both have friends there who we haven't seen in a while, we decided a quick visit was in order. Also, this is one American city I've never been to, and one that Andre loves.

So a couple of weekends ago, we drove up, stayed in a great little hotel (the StayBridge Suites was awesome!) and saw some of the sights, as well as our friends. Unfortunately, I forgot to take photos of Wendi & Cris and their precious new baby Alina, or our Russian friends Pavel and Lena, but thanks for the wonderful meals and visits, friends!!

On Friday night, after settling into the hotel, we fought the traffic to get downtown and visit the John Hancock observatory. What amazing views from the the 95 floor!!!! And the elevator only takes about 40 seconds to make it all the way up there. Incredible!

Jack thought he was big stuff staying up that late and
getting to run around everywhere

We enjoyed drinks at the espresso bar overlooking the city.
To give you an idea of the amazing variety of concoctions they served,
I had an espresso with nutella, whipped cream,
almonds and meringue chips. Divine!

The next day we spent the morning at Navy Pier, enjoyed milkshakes, and
Jack even got to ride in a miniature train! He dissolved into tears
when that train-ride ended. The attendant
took pity on him and gave him a free ride!

After spending the rest of Saturday with friends, we headed out on Sunday morning back to Peoria. We had a great time, although we both agreed that it certainly was different from the romantic weekends away we had enjoyed before kiddos!!