Chicago Getaway

Hey, y’all! I hope everyone had a fabulous and well-rested weekend. I certainly did, I went to Chicago with my cousin and mom to hang out with my sister Lauren! Her fiancé Jordan was out of town to watch the Cleveland Indians play a few pre-season games in Arizona, so the three of us ladies decided to fly over to the Windy City to keep her - and her adorable dog Marvel - company for the few days. It was absolutely a much-needed girls’ weekend!

Normally, I have a bunch of pictures from my trips featured on my travel blog posts, usually more than enough 😂 But I honestly didn’t take that many pictures during this trip to Chicago. Mainly because I’ve been there so many times that I didn’t feel the need to take more pictures. I was also too focused on staying in the present moment and enjoying my time with my mom, sister, and cousin. Even bloggers need a social media detox every once in a while! Although I still managed to post a good amount of stuff on my Instagram stories … mostly food. But I don’t regret that even one bit, Chicago food is AMAZING!

Jenna, my cousin, hadn’t been to Chicago since we were at an appropriate age to shop at the American Girl Doll store. Ironically, that was the one thing she remembered from her first trip! So we had to show her all (or at least most) of our favorite spots in the city. We took her to the Water Tower, the Magnificent Mile, Macy’s (originally Marshall Field’s), and Lincoln Park. We also introduced her to a few of our favorite restaurants: Cafe Ba Ba Reeba, BomboBar, Foodlife, and Yolk. Something new that none of us have done before is take the Untouchable bus tour, which consists of history about Chicago gangsters (Al Capone, John Dillinger, Bugs Moran, etc.) and tour guides acting as 1920’s gangsters. They showed us the sites of the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre, the Biograph Theatre, and Holy Name Cathedral. It was a very intriguing tour. It was something I never thought we would ever do but I’m glad we did!

It was overall a perfect girls’ trip! What are your favorite things to do in Chicago? Comment down below and share!

I also want to say that I LOVE my outfit in the picture above! These striped wide-legged pants from Altar’d State are my current obsession. They’re so chic and so cozy, double bonus! The grey sweater I’m wearing from Jones New York used to be owned by my late grandmother, so I’m wearing it in honor of her ❤️ The two pieces, along with the military boots, gold layered necklace and silver cat eye sunglasses, match perfectly together. It was perfect to wear on the plane ride and all around Chicago, especially in the chilly weather. It’s my new go-to outfit for anything! Unfortunately, I don’t have all the available links to these fashion pieces, but you can shop a similar look down below!

SHOP MY OUTFIT

One Short Day in NYC

Hey, y’all! I hope everybody is having a fabulous week so far! I’m now back to my regular schedule and attending classes after a much needed fall break. It’s not even close to Friday yet and I already miss having time off! This year was actually Kent State’s first fall break ever. You would think it would have one like the other big schools like Ohio State University and Miami University. But they’re now finally allowing students to enjoy a four day long break from studying! Although there are still plenty of deadlines due once we all come back ....

For fall break, I got the chance to go to Sparta, New Jersey to visit my aunt, uncle, and two cousins. It was such a fun weekend spent with them since I don’t get to see them that often. One of the best parts about the visit was spending one whole day in New York City with my aunt and uncle! Although I’m more of a Chicago girl, NYC is definitely one of my favorite places to visit. There’s just so much to do and see, so you can never be bored. What also love is that it’s a very diverse city, which makes it great for people watching! Although we didn’t spend more than one day in the Big Apple, we still got the best out of it and managed to find the city’s best treasures.

We left New Jersey around 9:30ish and it took us about an hour to get to NYC. It was windy and chilly outside since we parked closer to the river. But then we walked over to Times Square, one of my favorite places to explore and snap pics, and the buildings blocked out the wind. After observing Times Square, we made our way to explore Bryant Park. There’s not much to do there, but it’s a great place to hang out during your work break and chat with some friends. It was very sunny and mild outside, so we decided to take Chipotle to go and ate at the park near the gorgeous fountain. It was the perfect day to eat outside. Not too hot or too cold, not overly crowded (although we had to sit near the steps because all the tables were taken), and a delicious steak burrito bowl makes it even better!

One of my favorite things that we did during our time was visiting the Rosé Mansion, which runs from July to October (so go now before it leaves!!!) My aunt was telling me all about it beforehand and how it’s so perfect to get cute pictures for Instagram, and she was totally right! The two of us went (my uncle decided to go to a bar and let us have some “girl time”) and spent about a little over an hour trying different kinds of rosé and taking fun, silly pictures. It was basically like going to a wine tasting event, but with more rooms based for quirky photoshoots. We took so many cute pictures and boomerangs, it was hard to choose what to post!

Rosé all day!

We met up with my uncle at an Irish pub before going out again to explore and shop a bit. We stopped by Pasta Lovers for dinner before going to see Pretty Woman on Broadway. It was so fun and a surprise for me, because my aunt and uncle didn’t tell me that we were going until the night before. It was such an outstanding show and so worth seeing! If you are a fan of the original movie with Julia Roberts, you would absolutely enjoy the musical performance!

To end the perfect day, we stopped by Dunkin Donuts to pick up a few donuts - my aunt and uncle’s special post-Broadway show tradition - for the ride home and we were back on the road to New Jersey right after. The busy Manhattan traffic held us back for almost an hour, but it wasn’t that bad when we got a view of the beautiful city skyline on our way out.

I want to send a HUGE thank you to Aunt Mindy and Uncle Mark for taking the time out of their busy schedules to spend time with me in NYC, as well as the rest of the weekend in New Jersey! I love you guys so much and I’m so grateful for this past weekend. Thank you for a wonderful fall break!

Me and Aunt Mindy at Bryant Park!

Have you visited NYC? What are your favorite spots and treasures to check out? Let me know in the comments for some future recommendations for my next visit!

Favorite Spots in Chicago

Hello, babes!

I recently had the pleasure to visit my sister Lauren and her fiancé Jordan in Chicago to celebrate my 22nd birthday. It was so much fun and amazing, definitely one of the best birthdays yet. I can't wait to see what this year brings! I also now have an excuse to sing the song by Taylor Swift! Although I'm not a huge fan of hers, but I'm still gonna sing it whenever I'm in the mood to.

Chicago is hands down one of my favorite cities to visit. It's better than New York City in my personal opinion. It's not as crazy, it's more clean, the people are more nice, and it's a very unique place. There's so many different things to do and go to, the list is wide open with several opportunities! I got to do and see a lot of cool places during my birthday vacation, and of course I still have some favorites from previous trips. So I thought with summer coming, it would be great to make a list of some of my favorite spots in Chicago that you should check out for your next trip! 

Chicago Tourism

At the Art Institute of Chicago!

• Chicago Architecture Foundation River Cruise

  • I didn't think I was going to enjoy this at first, but then I loved it. Not only was it a boat ride on a warm sunny day relaxing but it was so fun to learn about Chicago's unique architecture!

• Millennium Park

  • Where else are you going to find a ginormous silver bean or crown fountains that spit out water?

• Lincoln Park Zoo

  • It's one of the coolest zoos I've ever visited. Plus, admission is free!

• Art Institute of Chicago

  • I'm a sucker for art museums. This one is definitely a must-go on your museum bucket list! Chagall's America Windows display is so beautiful and there is even a statue of LeBron James! Well, it's actually a statue of a goat, but you know what I mean ...

• Shedd Aquarium

  • It's a little expensive, but seeing all the amazing aquatic creatures from beluga whales to seals is totally worth it.

Chicago Entertainment

• Howl at the Moon

  • This is definitely one of the best bars I've ever been to. Not only do they provide every kind of alcoholic drink you can imagine but all music is performed live by pianists. And if you request any song, they'll perform it right off the bat without practice!

• Chicago Theatre

  • A landmark feature and theater in the Windy City. Just to see the sign and snap a picture of it is well worth it!

Chicago Shopping

• Water Tower Place

  • I LOVE this building. Even if I'm not visiting to shop (which rarely happens), I have to stop by here just for the feel of it. This place has almost every retailer and food rest stop you can think of. They have Chicago's famous Garrett Popcorn store which has the most amazing Garrett Mix (gourmet cheddar and caramel popcorn). They also have Foodlife, a self-serve food hall with every kind of food you can imagine. Italian, Chinese, desserts, burgers, Mexican, Chicago style, they have it all!

• Macy's on State Street (Marshall Fields)

  • Fun fact: My mom worked here while she and my dad lived in Chicago in the 80s before they changed it to Macy's!

• The Magnificent Mile

  • Located on North Michigan Avenue, it is a busy and vital premier commercial district flooded with so many amazing famous shops, fashion outlets and restaurants that you can only find in big cities such as NYC, LA and of course, Chicago. From the Disney Store to Burberry, there's no great store that you cannot find. I feel cool just walking around the district and taking pictures!

Chicago Dining   

• Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba

  • My family and I have been dining here for as long as I can remember. The service and atmosphere is very delicate. Their sangria, prosciuttio, goat cheese marinara with garlic bread, buttermilk-fried chicken thighs, and fried calamari are even better!

• Labriola

  • A very delicate Italian restaurant with great pizza, spaghetti, wine, and much more. My mom and I went last fall and we had the nicest and funniest bartenders!

• Barcocina

  • Awesome Mexican restaurant in Lincoln Park with great margaritas and cheeseburger tacos, as well as a pink Instagrammable sign saying "Feed me tacos and tell me I'm pretty."

• Homeslice

  • My sister, her fiance and I went here for my 22nd birthday dinner. The thin crust pizza is so good. The interior design is all wooden, even the menus are wooden plates!

• Hampton Social

  • This is where we went to brunch for my 22nd birthday. It's a little expensive, but it's still worth the experience. It's very Instagrammable (it's where the famous sign "Rose All Day" exists that bloggers love) and cute. And it's hard to turn down a mimosa and breakfast sandwich with avocado, scrambled eggs, American cheese, bacon and arugula!

• Foodlife

  • I pretty much covered this above when talking about Water Tower, so you get the gist of it already.

• Yolk

  • You're typical breakfast restaurant with everything you can imagine. It's perfect if you're hungry for something specific, it's right on menu. They have delicious cinnamon french toast with strawberries!

• BomboBar

  • I had a "Bombolato", a donut with vanilla gelato, salted caramel icing, and fruity pebbles. It sounds like a heart attack, but the calories are "cerealisly" worth it!

• Stan's Donuts & Coffee

  • As a donut lover, this is a must-do on my Chicago list. The doughnuts are hot and fresh out of the oven, and there's so many different unique flavors to choose from. They also have great coffee that makes stopping there convenient. Coffee and donuts no doubt always make a great combination!

Chicago Instagram Hot Spots

• Hampton Social

  • Like I said above while mentioning it it in my favorite restaurants, it’s very Insta worthy for bloggers like me!

• Skydeck Chicago

  • This is a definite photograph hot spot! I haven't gone yet, but I so badly want to and get a picture standing over the glass room! This is perfect if you're a daredevil or not but looking for ways to step outside your comfort zone! The only downfall is that you do have to book tickets ahead of time or else you have to wait in line for three hours (meh).

• The Bean at Millennium Park

  • This place is a legendary icon, how could you not post a selfie reflection of yourself?

• Navy Pier

  • Get a vivid shot of the iconic ferris wheel lit up at nighttime and you're good to go!

• North Avenue Beach

  • Not only will you enjoy a pleasant walk along the shore during the summer, but you can snap some great shots of the city skyline. Thanks to Tom Haverford and Andy Dwyer taking a piggyback ride picture here in a Parks and Recreation episode, it's well worth it!

• Chicago Riverwalk

  • There's so many different angles and poses you can do on the bridge or sideline near the river. It's definitely a great place to take pictures, even in the winter. The river also turns green for the famous Chicago St. Patrick's Day celebration which you don't want to miss out on for a cool picture. It looks slimy yet super cool!

• Chicago O'Hare International Airport

  • The third biggest airport in the USA, big enough to take some really cool pictures. This is perfect especially if you're a travel blogger, you can share some pictures of you on an adventure as you go through and explore the airport. Share your journey!

• Lincoln Park murals

  • That picture of me above? Yeah, Lincoln Park has some pretty dope graffiti walls that are worth the picture.

What's your favorite place to go in Chicago? Comment down below and share!