Babymoon in Chicago

Our solo trip to Chicago two weeks ago to celebrate the impeding arrival of our baby girl was a total success. I am all about taking trips to celebrate life so you know I won't miss any opportunity to go somewhere with hubby or our family. We are truly lucky to live near our families and have an amazing support system. My mom volunteered to watch our boys so that we could take a few days off and we of course jumped at the idea and started planning our getaway :).

Initially I was all for a tropical vacation of some sort but then all those reports about the Zika virus surfaced and I just didn't want to take any chances. Hubby decided to pick the location and plan our activities. Next thing I knew we were booking our flights to Chicago.

Chicago was such a great choice because it is such a busy city with so much to see and do. 5 days was barely enough to scratch the surface on all that the city had to offer. There were so many amazing restaurants too, that we were constantly stuffing our faces. The planner in me couldn't help but start making plans the minute we booked our flights and I was so pleased at all the possibilities and fun activities.

We stayed at the Marriott hotel near Midway airport and in hindsight, we should have stayed in the city center. Though the hotel was only 14 miles away from downtown, it was a hike on the train or taxi to get in the city so we were never able to come back to the hotel during the day to take a break. We ended up just hanging out in bars and restaurants downtown every time we needed a break. Other than that, we loved everything about our trip.

We were all smiles when we got on the plane with no kids in tow :)

We made it to Chicago, I am a huge fan of signs :)

We arrived in Chicago on a Wednesday afternoon and hit the ground running :). No rest for the wicked on our vacation. Hubby had plans for us to see a concert that night.

After checking in and dinner, we saw a band called Eagles of Death Metal in concert.

By the time we got back to the hotel, I was worn out and enjoyed a blissful night of sleep. We slept like babies (pun totally intended) and woke up feeling so refreshed the next day.

The weather forecast was not looking good for the entire time that we were in Chicago but surprisingly we had beautiful weather the entire time. It rained a few times but not enough to ruin our time. When we woke up Thursday and the sun was shining we decided to do all the outdoor activities that we had on our list :). You guys we walked around the city like it was our business taking lots of breaks along the way. We clocked a solid 7 miles that day and somehow I was not dying.

I just loved the beautiful skyline of this city

We checked out Buckingham Fountain

Look at all those tall buildings

Totally posing with my bump

We had a nice outdoor brunch, the food was so yummy our entire trip

Hubby always has to find a record store in every city that we visit, that's his thing

Then we made our way to Millennium Park, I couldn't wait to check out the Bean

Us with the Bean, we had to do a kissy shot on our babymoon of course

I know we are such dorks

After Millennium Park, we made our way to the Navy Pier. We had a late lunch cruise scheduled

The scenery from the boat was absolutely beautiful

Lunching with my favorite guy with the beautiful Chicago skyline in the background

We enjoyed some delicious drinks with our food :)

And of course had to take a picture with the Navy Pier sign :)

After the cruise, we walked to the shopping area know as the Magnificent Mile. We checked out the shops in the area and just took in the sights. Since we were still full from our late lunch, we decided to only have desert for dinner and found an awesome restaurant on the Magnificent Mile called Grand Lux Café

You guys, we ordered desert but somehow we ended up with the biggest possible deserts you have ever seen. I mean look at these deserts.

My giant strawberry shortcake

Hubby's beignets

We took a cab back to the hotel after this and enjoyed another great night of sleep. I love my kids to death but it was so nice to have a break and just chill and relax with my main squeeze.

Friday was another nice day, it started out sunny but then the rain showed up. Luckily we had a few indoor activities planned so we totally dodged the rain. What I loved is that it would rain for an hour then the sun would come back up like nothing ever happened. We walked about 6 miles on Friday, this city was so easily walkable.

On Friday we started with the John Hancock building. The view from up there was absolutely beautiful, the pictures don't do it justice at all.

Selfie time at the top of the Hancock building

It was so beautiful and sunny that hubby was able to wear his shades :). We had a small breakfast in the morning because we were planning to eat lunch at Fogo De Chao, it's an awesome Brasilian steakhouse with all you can eat meat. We definitely took advantage of that 

It rained like crazy during lunch but the sun was back out in full force when we left. We decided to check out the Shedd Aquarium that way we wouldn't be out in the rain if it came back. It was such a great idea, we loved the aquarium.

They had an exhibit where we could actually touch the fish. How awesome is that

Posing in front of the snake's refuge, we must be crazy

We got our cheesy picture from the Hancock building and I just love it. It's currently hanging out in our kitchen. Hubby always makes fun of me for buying these but I can't help myself when we all look decent on them :)

Friday was a day well spent exploring the town and I was so happy that the rain did not put a damper on our day.

Saturday was awesome and beautiful all around. We met up with Faith and her husband for brunch and it totally made my day. It was a beautiful sunny day all around and our last full day in Chicago. We only walked about 4 miles or so.

Walking down the Magnificent Mile, I remembered to snap a picture of all the tall buildings.

After brunch, we headed to the Willis Tower (formerly know as the Sears Tower). I was hell bent on checking out the ledge on the Skydeck whereas hubby was unsure about it all. It was a long wait to get up there but I think it was worth the wait.

The view from up there was breathtaking

And we got these awesome shots of us standing on the ledge. See hubby, it wasn't so bad. I absolutely love these pictures of us on the ledge

After the skydeck, we grabbed a quick bite to eat then headed over to Wrigley Field. There was a game on that day and though we didn't care to watch it, we wanted to experience the pregame action. it was busy and bustling with life and all the bars were full.

After hanging out at Wrigley Fields for a bit, it was time to head back out to the city. We had reservation to watch the new Xmen movie at a Dine-in movie theater downtown. It was a perfect timing too because we just ate dinner while we watched the movie, killing two birds with one stone.

If you've never done a dine-in theater, I highly recommend it. The chairs were so comfy and big and I loved the fact that we actually had dinner while watching our movie

I mean, the chairs reclined all the way back and we were able to put our feet up :)

Saturday was another day well spent in beautiful Chicago.

On Sunday we packed our bags and bid farewell to this awesome city. Every single day during this trip we slept in and enjoyed every minute of it. Though I loved the break, I was happy to come home to my babies.

Reunited with my babies :). They were so happy to see us

We really enjoyed our time in Chicago and would highly recommend it as a place to visit. It was a great mixture of busy yet chilled life and there was lots to see, do, and eat. Thank you for the amazing time Chicago, we really enjoyed our time in your city. I highly recommend solo trips if you have children, it is such an awesome way to recharge and reconnect with your spouse.