chicago

A Funeral, Chicago and XO Marshmallow

September 27, 2017 by Alicia Leave a Comment

If you saw any of my posts last week, you know that I headed home for another funeral this weekend. As unfortunate as the visit was, I made the best of my time at home by getting together with a friend and enjoying the beautiful 90 degree weather. Yes I did just call that weather beautiful. I will soak up all the 90 degree days we get as winter is always long and summer was nearly nonexistent with all the rain.

I covered Saturday in my post on Monday. Sunday was mostly a day out with one of my friends from dance class. We started with the new Pure Empower class which is basically Pure Barre but with more squats and less pulsing. You also use ankle weights either on your wrists or ankles and use a step stool. The class is only 45 minutes, 15 minutes shorter than the usual Pure Barre class since it is a bit more intense. I liked that it was a shorter class, even though it costs the same amount to drop in. Since I hadn’t taken a Pure Barre class since April when I was last home, I noticed a HUGE different in how much stronger I was since I started weight lifting again in May.

After Pure Barre and changing our clothes, we hopped on the train to Chicago. We had some lunch at Heartland Café in Rogers Park. I got the delicious quinoa salad. My only complaint was that the service was very slow with our food and check.

After eating a healthy meal, we headed over to my friend’s XO Marshmallow shop around the corner. I have been following her business since before the kickstarter and loved that I got to finally see her cute little shop space in person. She was working hard in the back making marshmallows but we got to chat a bit before she got called away again. I ordered the classic s’more and a variety of 12 marshmallows: green tea, caramel, vanilla and Harry Potter Butterbeer.

You guys, I have never had a homemade marshmallow and it was sooo delicious. I loved the fluffy texture of it. The s’more was also amazing. I love how they use the little torch to toast the marshmallow. I also love the color scheme of the shop. Even my sports bra I wore that day fit right in. Of course I had to get a few photos around the store and I can’t wait to stop by again. If you are in the Chicago area, definitely check out the store, but if not, she also takes online orders.

With it being a beautiful, hot, sunny day, we had to stop by Loyola Beach to test the water. The water wasn’t bad and there were plenty of people laying on the beach and swimming. This is so rare for September. Even the bathrooms and water stations were closed for the season. I’m sure they close them right after Labor Day. It was nice to have my toes in the sand again for a bit before we headed back.

I got home around 3, which was perfect so I could shower and change for dinner. We left around 4:45 and arrived in time for 6pm dinner with a total of 19 people, all family in town for the funeral.

dinner outfit, loved that it was warm enough for dresses and shorts on my visit

My sister and I began with an appetizer of chips and guac and then I got the half rack of ribs, which were messy and delicious.

By the time we got home, my sister and I curled up in bed with our own laptops watching different shows. We have to share a bed at home since my bed is gone. It’s a bit tight…

Monday morning I was still awake around 6am Central time. It’s fine that I didn’t adjust too much to the central time zone as I knew I had an early wake up call Tuesday morning for my 8am flight. After reading in bed for a bit, I got up and made a little breakfast and watched HGTV.

Eventually I decided to get outside and enjoy the morning weather. It was weird watching all the cars drive by, people dropping their kids off at school and heading to work while I was walking around the park. I enjoyed doing some yoga around the park and just getting some fresh air.

When I came back, I slowly started to get Theresa up by bringing her the kitty, Skittles, to cuddle with. Me, Theresa and my dad headed to brunch at Walker Bros. I decided to change from my usual pancake order, to French toast instead. It was delicious and filling; since I knew we wouldn’t be eating much until dinner.

By the time we ran a couple errands and came home to change clothes, it was time to head to the funeral. We gave an ETA of 12:32 while on the road and arrived right on time. While all the family was there, we took a family photo. The calling hours started at 1 and there was a nice slideshow of photos that was put together by my cousins and aunt.

in memory of my uncle Jim (me and my cousin Chris)

The service was beautiful and there were some great stories shared. We then headed over to the cemetery for the burial. Since my uncle was a veteran, there was a beautiful flag service performed by the US Army. That was really nice to watch. It was also nice that the cemetery set up a tent for us to have some shade on the warm day.

From there, we headed back to the church for some refreshments and mingling before we said our goodbyes.

On our way home, we hit a bit of 5 o’clock traffic (the things I don’t miss) and picked up dinner and dessert. We didn’t really need more dessert, but Theresa had a coupon at Nothing Bundt Cakes. Their special was the confetti cake, which made a perfect after dinner dessert.

The rest of the evening was relaxing as I had some time to write, watch the rest of the Fuller House episodes and pack up for the flight back.

Blog Friends, a Musical and Dance Show: MIMM 106

May 1, 2017 by Alicia Leave a Comment

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Hey there and happy Monday!! These days, weekdays and weekends are kinda a blur for me as I job search and am back home. After a week at home and sorting through my things, still downsizing, I am ready to get back into a routine of working again. In a week I am moving to Binghamton, NY and I have been working on applying to jobs so hopefully I find something soon. Meanwhile, let’s look at what I was up to this weekend at home. Thanks Katie for the link up.

It was a very rainy and cold weekend, like 40 degrees outside. Oh and our heat is broken at my house so we have 2 space heaters working overtime and moving from room to room. Basically my room is 63 overnight but that’s not so bad when you are in bed with all the blankets, it just makes it hard to get moving in the morning because you don’t want to leave the cozy bed. Hopefully this rain passes soon, the end of the week and weekend look good. I would rather not have to do my long drives next weekend in the rain so hoping the weather gets better.

On Saturday morning I was supposed to meet up with Susie for a walk for National Infertility Awareness Week, but due to the rain, Susie decided to just do brunch. Most people canceled but I met Ellen from My Uncommon Everyday and enjoyed brunch with her and Susie. I finally got to try the Pancake Flight Susie has posted a few times on her Instagram as we met up at Orange on Clark in Chicago.

orange on clark pancake flight — pancake flight

After brunch, we happened to be down the street from Molly’s Cupcakes, which is my favorite Chicago cupcake place, so I had to make a stop and get the Cookie Monster and Smores Cupcakes to go. I am going to pretend it is summer with that smores cupcake. Cookie Monster is my absolute favorite. I have had a few different cookie dough cupcakes from different cupcake places and Molly’s still wins as the best. Who doesn’t like a cookie dough filling?!

Once I got home, I made a list for the grocery store and headed out to get some veggies and meat to make stir fry. Usually my dad makes stir fry in his wok on the grill but with the rain and crazy wind, that wasn’t happening. My dad was also busy with work, so I worked on roasting Brussel sprouts and sautéing veggies in a pan. I marinated some chicken thighs for about a half hour and then cooked them in the oven. I will find any excuse to use the oven after not having one for most of our 4 months travel. Plus with no heat in the house, using the oven is always good too 😉 .

veggie stir fry and skittles — skittles checking out dinner

My dad was happy to come home right as I pulled the chicken thighs out of the oven. I guess the only thing I have to work on is keeping everything hot when I cook things in batches. The Brussel sprouts were cold after everything was done and while I don’t mind eating them room temp or cold, others might.

We had the cupcakes for dessert, I had half of each and my dad ate the other halves. Then we headed out to my high school to see the musical Jesus Christ Superstar. Apparently my parents both like that musical, but I had never seen it and had to familiarize myself with the story line a bit. I hadn’t been in my high school auditorium in 9 years since I graduated (this makes me feel old), so it was a bit weird to be back, but my high school definitely does great performances and the main leads were amazing singers.

As soon as I got home, it was off to bed. I think that was my first night in a week staying up past 10pm! I slept like a rock too, so that was good.

Sunday morning I was up at 7 which is better than the 6am time I have been waking up. I’m sure the rainy cloudy morning helped me sleep in. I made some breakfast and then waited until 9am when Kohl’s opened and headed out. I needed some new sneakers as I threw mine out after my trip (well worn) and I had $15 in coupon rewards. I finally decided on a pair of the Gel Flux 4 Asics. I previously had the Gel Flux 2. I have been wearing Asics since college now and they work so I haven’t changed.

When I returned from the store, I worked on blog posts for a while before having some lunch and then heading out to my friend’s dance show.

Following the show, I headed over to my friend’s house and somehow we ate a snack and talked and 4 hours went by. I figured by then it was time to head home as she had studying to do and it was getting late. It was great to catch up though as I obviously had so many stories after 4 months of travel.

All in all it was a great and busy weekend. Great time catching up with friends and doing indoor activities since it was raining and 40 degrees. Now that it is May (I still can’t believe that), I hope the weather starts to get a bit warmer, I mean, at least the 60s would be better.

What’s your favorite rainy day activity?

Chicago Holiday Traditions

December 24, 2016 by Alicia Leave a Comment

I feel like so many of my Christmas memories growing up revolved around the things I got for Christmas, but my list seems to grow shorter each year with items that are sometimes too pricey for one person to buy me. Rather than focus on the gifts, I have learned that it is the holiday spirit and the traditions and what you make of this season.

This year, I was happy to get the opportunity to be in my hometown for a week before my trip so that I could partake in some Chicago traditions. Though I usually think of traditions as something done each year, these are a few things that I try to do each year when around Chicago. Sometimes it doesn’t happen like the year I didn’t get home for Christmas, but when you live near a city like Chicago, it may be cold, but there are some fun activities for the holidays.

(edit: I plan to add photos but having difficulties at the moment.)

DIY Messiah: My sister and dad started this tradition many years ago. I haven’t been always able to make it, but when I can, I go. It’s fun to sing along, even if I do get lost sometimes on where we are. I also know how to read music when it comes to playing a piano, but singing is quite different. Luckily there are enough people around that I think it sounds good 😉
Ice Skating Millennium Park: I wish we did this each year, but some years it is just too cold and the line is too long. We make it when we can and this year it was just above 30 degrees which felt like a heat wave after the 0 degree days earlier in the week so it was perfect for skating. I only lasted 30 minutes, but it was fun to skate under The Bean. Also pictures at the Bean are totally necessary every single time!
Macy’s windows: We took a quick swing by the Macy’s windows while in the city and I was a bit disappointed this year to be honest. Actually I got to see the NYC windows and Chicago this year and I kinda liked the NYC windows more. I liked when they did stories on the windows and this year didn’t seem to have as much detail. Still fun to bring kids to though.
Christmas trees: I think seeing as many Christmas trees in city as possible is a fun tradition. Cities really light up during the holidays and when the daylight is shorter, it is nice to have those decorations to look at.
Gingerbread cookies: not specific to Chicago, but I thought I would include this as I started this maybe 5 years or so ago and love to bake gingerbread each year. Can’t wait to share this with my children in the future.

Merry Christmas Eve and Happy Holidays to everyone. Hope you enjoy the weekend with your family and friends.

What are some of your favorite traditions?