Friday, August 26, 2011

The Windy City

Our quick stop in Chicago was a fun experience, despite the rain that plagued our downtown adventures.  Chicago is just about the exact half-way point between our home in Ohio and Kevin's sister's home in Wisconsin, so it made for a great stopping point to break up the drive back.  We had never visited Chicago before except for a couple of fly-in/fly-out business meetings that I had in my former life as a paid professional.  Ah, yes.  Those were the days of dressing like a grown-up, acting important and being listened to. 

I digress.

We stayed outside of Chicago, in Naperville, and enjoyed dinner at Rock Bottom Brewery.



At one point, the inevitable question, "Can we order dessert?" was asked.  Although we usually say no and explain to them that we have cookies/cake/ice cream/Popsicles at home or offer to buy them Junior Frosty's from Wendy's on the way home (much cheaper) we actually said, "Yes!"


The build-your-own sundaes were way cool!  It comes just as you see it.  A cone, couple uh scoops of vanilla ice cream, some sprinkles, hot fudge sauce, whipped cream and cherry.

No, Owen. 
Pinocchio's nose points OUT!

Evan enjoys a good sugar rush every now and again.

Wanna lick? 


As I previously mentioned, it was a gray, wet day for our visit into the city the next morning.  Although the rain may have wet the sidewalks, it didn't dampen our spirits.  We were happy to seek refuge in the shops and displays at Navy Pier.

Jesus with his Disciples.

I particularly enjoyed the Stained Glass Museum and all of the beautiful, colorful works of art.  Here are two of my favorites that we saw.

King Solomon
Among the many landmark spots to visit in Chicago, Harry Caray's is one not to miss.  Although we ate lunch at the Navy Pier location rather than the original downtown spot, we were still craning our necks to take in all of the baseball memorabilia on display and the endless rows of framed photographs of celebrities that have eaten or drank at this very spot!


Anyone familiar with the famous Chicago sports announcer, Harry Caray, is likely familiar with the incredibly hilarious sketches made famous by Will Ferrell on Saturday Night Live.


So, we had lunch at Harry Caray's and the place was crowded.  It was filled with White Sox and St. Louis Cardinals fans alike who were hoping the rain wouldn't cancel or delay the game scheduled for later in the afternoon. 

I'm passing the ketchup (to who else, but Evan) when I look up to see...


James Denton!

You know.  Mike Del Fino, the plumber on Desperate Housewives.  Married to Terri Hatcher's character. 

Blew. Me. Away.

I send a text to my friend Joy.  She responds back, "For real?"

Yes, my friend.  For. Real.

And I'm still convinced I saw Steven Spielberg earlier in the morning walking along the docks of Lake Michigan talking on his cell phone. 


We let Mr. Denton enjoy his beer without too much gawking and then Kevin gets his mug taken with the bronze bust of good old Harry Caray before we move on to see if the rain had let up.


It was finally nice enough to go back outside and see a few more sites.  We stopped at the shops where we had previously found potential souvenirs and purchased the items we knew we simply couldn't live without.



The skies finally began to break up as we made our way back to the parking garage to find our van and head east.


No road trip is complete without a Cracker Barrel stop.  This one was made in Fort Wayne, Indiana.  We had to capture this strangely unusual, and peaceful moment between brother and sister.  No name-calling, no screaming or crying, no teasing.  Just a simple game of checkers while they waited for their food.

Maybe we should take little trips like this more often...

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