A Quick Trek To Chicago

Back in January, two of my friends moved from New York to Chicago and left behind a trail of very sad people. Jeff and Suzanne, friends who have become dear to me, are two of the best people I know. Just do a little search on my blog for their names and you'll get an idea of the many amazing moments we've all shared! I met them through Colleen and instantly connected with Suzanne on a variety of levels. What's also pretty awesome is that she's my boyfriend's sister! I met her first and knew her for about a year before meeting Bryan. It's been wonderful being connected to both of them and getting to know the family of two people I love in different ways. At any rate, when Jeff and Suzanne decided for sure that they were moving, talk of a Chicago visit immediately went to the top of the priority list. Me, Allison, Colleen and Jessica all decided to book flights and chose the end of March to head out there. I can't even tell you how glad I am that we did.

I obviously had no idea how demanding school would be for me when we were booking tickets. As I've gotten deeper into my program, I can tell you that I was thrilled to have a weekend away. We work so hard everyday and the visit came at a perfect time for me. We went on the last weekend of March and, due to differing schedules, each of us flew out at different times. I arrived last around 10:30pm that Friday and I was just so happy to reunite with Suzanne and Jeff. Truthfully, I was thrilled to be with the girls too because, even being in the same city, we all have just been so busy and haven't been together in forever, period.

It was such a fun weekend for us. I've been to Chicago a couple of times but never really with ample time to see the city. Since it was kinda late on Friday, we stayed in and drank wine. I also finally got to have Chicago deep dish pizza for the first time and holy crapola, I died and went to heaven. Obviously, Colleen took awesome photos over the weekend so I'm stealing a few from her to show you. I might frame this and hang it in my apartment:

So. Good. 

Saturday, we went for a delicious brunch at Old Town Social. I fell in love with the place the minute Suzanne told me they have bloody marys that are served with meat and cheese stuffed in a pepper:

Um, yeah. Best bloody mary, ever. We had a really marvelous brunch and stayed for a few drinks after. Aren't we so cute:

We spent the rest of the day at another fun bar and met one of Suzanne and Jeff's good friends. We laughed harder than I have in so long and completely made the most of every moment together. Such a fun afternoon:

On the way home, we took a cab that was quite unique. There was one small seat and then open floor space so me, Jeff and Jessica were the lucky ones who got the floor seats: 

The fact that we'd been drinking made it obviously that much funnier, but we cracked up the whole ride home. Our plan was to nap and get something quick to eat and then venture back out but, well, that just didn't happen. Naps did:

Going back out didn't. That was ok though because, as usual, we had the most fun staying in anyway. Two words: Dance. Party. I'm actually really sad there aren't any photos of mine and Jessica's killer dance moves but whatever, we know how good we really are. 

On Sunday, we had another terrific lunch at The Gage and we walked all around the city after. I finally saw the famous bean, too! While still very cold out, Spring has definitely arrived and it was delightful:

As you might imagine, the weekend completely flew. Each of us felt that crummy pit in our stomach on Sunday afternoon thinking of flying back to reality. I'm just so happy we all made the trip happen, though. These moments and memories made are priceless. Being able to see Suzanne and Jeff's new life in Chicago and be a part of it is very special to me. They are so missed in the Big Apple but I'd be lying if I said I'm not thrilled to have a reason to go back there, tee hee. I already can't wait for the next trip!