good news, eastern time-zoners. i'm back. fear not, central time-zoners. i'll be back someday. that's right, the ray's have returned from a fun-filled stay in the midwest's big apple: chicago. the windy apple, if you will. we dined, we shopped, we immersed ourselves in local culture, and had an overall awesome family vacation. for you detail oriented types, i'll take you through the specifics. for those of you who are easily distracted by shiny objects (like me), just go ahead and look at the pictures.
on wednesday morning, i dropped gerty off at jamie's house. in doing so, i bawled like a baby the entire car ride there and back. i managed to pull myself together while at jamie's. i had no idea leaving her in a new environment would be so traumatic for the two of us. gertrude insisted on laying across my lap during the entire drive, shaking like a leaf. at one point, she tried to sit up on my lap (santa style). while doing so, she managed to sit on all four of the power window buttons, which meant that all four windows were open for the duration of the ride while her big ole' butt hung out the driver's side window, thus forcing me to drive bent over while peering out the windshield between her front legs. i know, i know: safe.
after 'operation abandon the dog' was complete, mom, dad, matt and i drove to michigan city where we caught the south shore line to chicago. we promptly checked into the hilton and went to grab some lunch at the weber grill (which was conveniently attached to the hotel). with my 1.4 lb. weight gain looming over me, i tried to make diet-conscious decisions. i ordered the salmon. we wandered the city a bit and i managed to make some purchases at anthropologie and H&M. everything was uber cheap, so why would i not? richie and lindsey met us after they got off of work and we went to grab some chicago-style pizza at lou malnati's. so freaking good. we had to wait about an hour and a half to get in, which is always a good sign that the meal is going to be worth it. and it was.
i woke up on thursday morning (after sharing a double bed with my little brother who forgot to pack pajamas...ew) and felt a pizza bomb forming in my stomach. i decided to diffuse the situation by taking advantage of the hotel's gym. i managed to run four miles and i happened to work out right next to fitness fun barbie. she paid me an awesome compliment, though, when she called me a 'cardio junky.' i was so proud. afterwards, we hopped on the red line for a bite to eat at ann sather. sooooo good. i continued my christmas cinnamon roll streak by sampling a bite of my brother's, but overall i was pretty good and ordered a fresh fruit bowl and oatmeal. both exceeded my expectations. after consuming mass quantities of swedish cuisine, we parted with ann and hopped back on the red line, destination: shedd aquarium. now, every time i've been to the aquarium i've had to wait in line for a little while. no biggie. this time, however, the line was redonkulously long. like, nearly two hours long. at one point, the aquarium was at max capacity so the line had to be held an additional twenty minutes just to let people out. thankfully the temperatures were unseasonably mild, so it could have been much worse. after fighting the crowds for a while, we went back to the hotel to nap for a bit and then had a late mexican dinner at dos diablos. muy deliciosa. we rays eat our meals quickly. like, really quickly. so we had some time to kill between dinner and our 11:00 second city show. we returned to the hotel to play some cards and waited for the minutes to slowly tick away before we caught a cab to the second city. guys, the show was so freaking hilarious. i had lowish expecations going into it, but ended up laughing the entire time. it helped that we were seated DIRECTLY front and center. i couldn't even cross my legs because i was so close to the stage. while this made for an entertaining location, the idea that i might have to participate in the show terrified me. there was one point in the show where an actor grabbed people sitting all around me and pulled them on stage to participate. all i could think (while trembling with fear at the thought that i might be one of them) was "oh no, my jeans are too low and i will flash my butt crack if they drag me up there..." sad, but true the way my brain works. luckily, i got off easily and was able to enjoy the show merely as a spectator.
breakfast at ann sather
shedd aquarium marine life
waiting to watch the polar express 4D experience. or a kanye concert...hard to tell.
due to thursday's late night excursion, we slept right through breakfast on friday morning and went straight to lunch at the grand lux cafe when we woke up. again, i ordered salmon and it was delicious. after lunch, the boys and girls decided to part ways for a while. the girls went shopping (it's what we do best) and the boys went to the chicago historical museum. my mission was to find a new jacket. after trying on every jacket in the city of chicago, i left the stores empty handed and a bit cranky. we returned to the hotel and i decided to work out some of my frustration on the treadmill before we dressed up to make our 7:30 new year's eve dinner reservations. we ate at an awesome asian fusion restaurant called opera. it was one of the best meals i've ever eaten. i'm getting all drooly just thinking about it. there was something satisfying about the fact that the last food that i ate in 2010 was so darn good. after dinner, mom and dad went to a movie and we kids returned to the hotel to ring in the new year rather than fight the big city crowds. lame, i know, but it was a lot of fun ringing in the new year with the sibs, some beer/bubbly, and stroked out dick clark on tv (was watching dick as painful for everyone else as it was for me?). i just went back and re-read those last couple of sentences and they sound very dirty, but i assure you that is not my intention.
enjoying our delish meal and a little bubbly on new year's eve
i am proud of myself for waking up early on new year's day in order to spend some quality time with the eliptical and treadmill. after working out one last time, i packed up and then the fam caught the train back to michigan city where we picked up our car and ventured home. when i got home i dropped my bags in the middle of the kitchen floor, grabbed my car keys and sped off to get gerty girl. she was happy to see me, but i could tell she had been well taken care of at the dauphinais' house.
well, there you have it: my vacation in a nut shell. thank you so much, mom and dad, for taking us. your generosity is mind boggling. i am so happy to be a part of a family who looks forward to spending time with one another. you two are inspirational. thank you, thank you, a million times thank you.
ps...happy new year.
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