The Houston Shopoffs Come to Visit

It's July already?!? And boy is this month busy. Not only did Brien's parents come to the Windy City for a visit, but Jeanie's brother, Robert, is visiting the last weekend in July. So this month is a busy blogging month, as we'll post entries and pictures from both visits. :-)

We had a BLAST during Brien's parents visit. They visited during the 3-day July 4th weekend, and we showed them the ins & outs of Chicago. They (and we) loved the weather, as you can actually be outside the entire day. Shocker, I know! We walked a lot and mastered the public transportation system (train & bus) , as well as got to see some awesome sights and venues. But come night time, we were ready for some good food and nightlife fun!


During their visit, we dined at some GREAT restaurants. Friday night was Feast and Saturday night was the Metropolitan Club (which is located in the Sears Tower). To say that Chicago has some fine restaurants is an understatement. Chicago knows them some food! I have to say, so far, the only disappointment in food that we've experienced is in Mexican Food. But we're still trying, and will keep you posted on that end.

On July 4th, after dinner, we came back to our place and watched the fireworks. And boy were they Spectacular! We got to see various ones from our 4th floor balcony. Not only the Navy Pier ones, but neighborhood ones as well. They were Amazing! They were big and bright, and they were varied and within good view. It felt like they were right by us, for we could hear them and see them go up.

On the 5th, we hung out at Pops Jazz Club after dinner. This was good times! The singer, Elaine Dame, was amazing. She mainly did cover songs, but it felt as though we were back in the days of Frank & the Rat Pack inside a Speakeasy. And Jeanie got her champagne cocktails (which she loves!).

To end the trip, on Sunday, the 6th, we visited the Museum of Science & Industry. We felt like kids again. They have everything. Bright colors, many exhibits, hands-on activities, you name it! My favorite by far was the Coal Mine Exhibit. I think the boys (Brien & his Dad) loved the 2nd floor, where it was entirely covered with a massive train exhibit which showcases the history of the train system, along with its impact on Chicago. Brien's Mom enjoyed the U-505 Submarine exhibit and the Omnimax Grand Canyon Adventure the best.





It was good to have family visit. Even though we love Chicago, we love our family more, and to see them was (as you can tell) GOOD TIMES!

Spring Time in Chicago

In Chicago for almost 4 months now and still love it! There's just so much to do, it's unbelievable. Over Memorial Day weekend, Brien and I did the annual Bank of America Bike the Drive and we went for the gusto. We did the 30 mile option. It was Jeanie's longest bike ride ever and she survived. Of course it did help that the streets were closed to traffic and we weren't racing. But it's a start! And I actually enjoyed it! Shocker, I know. :-)

Brien's company hosted a cocktail/dinner party on The Odyssey where I got a chance to meet his co-workers and their wives/girlfriends. We had a BLAST! And since then, we've gotten together with various groups of people from his office and gotten to know them better.

We're gearing up now for Brien's birthday, happening June 9th. He's turning the big 3-0. We've decided to fly down to Dallas to party his last days of being in his 20's with some of his friends. We're looking forward to it. It will be our 1st trip back to Texas since we've moved.

We've almost finished getting the apartment in order. We've unpacked all the boxes and we've finally got all of our furniture. Now we're organizing and decorating. These pictures are views from our place. We're on the top - 4th floor - so we get good views. We have 1 huge deck & 1 medium sized balcony. Both perfect for the Summer weather here. We're anxious to have our 1st house party and show off the pad. We've met a lot of great people here and have had tons of fun doing new & different things. But we're still anxious and love that our families and friends back home in Texas will be visiting. Both Brien's parents & my brother are visiting us (on separate weekends) in July. Can't wait!!!!

View from our front deck off the living area of Hancock Center

View from our front deck off the living area of Sears Tower

Chicago Here We Are

We made it to Chicago! Woo hoo! I think we've finally settled in....some what. And people said planning a wedding was difficult. Right now the jury's still out on that.

The road trip was too exciting. There's just so much to see on the drive from Texas to Illinois. I mean all that land and land. I think there was a turn here and there - Brien was sure to wake me up for that. But we made it safe and sound and we're together under one roof and in the same town. Something that became a foreign concept with us for awhile.

We're still getting the apartment in order. A little bit at a time. So much to do. It's vastly different from our house back in Austin, and we love it. It's our first place together and we're excited about that. I think it's actually bigger with more storage, but then again we did throw out & give away A LOT of furniture and things before we moved. Pictures will soon follow. We figured that you'd want to see the place and not just boxes, so we're a bit slow on posting those. But stay tuned!

Our apartment is located in the Wicker Park/Bucktown area in Northwest Chicago. For those of you who are Austinites, it's a little bit like the infamous SoCo area. A little bohemian, mixed with shappy-chic and then throw in some Highland Park shopping from Dallas. There's wonderful restaurants, shopping, and bars within walking distance from our pad. For those of you who watch Top Chef, both of the contestants from Chicago worked at a restaurant near us called Spring.

Brien and I are LOVING the city and all it has to offer. There is just so much to do here. We make a point to do something new and different each weekend. To truly take advantage of the diversity and events here that make this city so unique. We just purchased Lollapalooza tickets for the festival coming in August. We can't wait to enjoy all the music with the awesome summer weather here and in beautiful Grant Park.

More to come. We'll keep you updated. And come visit - Chicago's AWESOME!