chicago

This past weekend, my mom and I went to Chicago to celebrate my {belated} birthday and simply spend some quality girl time together. She and I are both {kinda} shopaholics, although my mom may have a difficult time admitting this! Chicago is the perfect place to indulge in our addiction while getting away together for the weekend. 

We got to Chicago late Friday night {courtesy of my dad's bad directions}. When we checked into our hotel {finally!} we were told that our room was on the 46th floor. Not only did I feel like I was going to plunge to my death in our unbelievably high room, our air conditioner was leaking onto the floor. Needless to say, we quickly called and asked for them to switch our room. Finally we were in a {lower & cooler} room so we could quickly unpack and hit the hay. 

We woke up somewhat early {for me} on Saturday so we could get in a full day of shopping. After eating a {scrumptious} buffet breakfast, we quickly headed out to the first store...{a HUGE} Forever 21. {*Anyone that knows me, knows that I HATE shopping in stores like Forever 21. I get very annoyed with how messy these types of stores are and how many people are there. But, the most annoying thing is how they operate the dressing rooms!!! I'm not even going to get started on this! Oh, and I wish I had the patience to shop at stores like this because they have great deals....} Good thing this was the first store because I was in a good mood and they had some great things! By the time we checked out, I was about to have a panic attack because we were in there for so long, but I survived and made it out with some really cute {and cheap} new things! 

(This is what we dropped off at our room after the first couple hours!! Successful trip for both of us!)

The afternoon continued on with more and more shopping. We stopped to have lunch at a cute little pizza place in one of the malls. It was really yummy and much needed energy! One of the most eventful stores we went to was the American Girl store. When I was growing up, I loved playing with dolls, especially American Girl dolls {I have 5 of them that my mom has saved for me to give to my daughter(s)}. The stores weren't around when I was younger, so we had no idea what to expect. We wanted to go check everything out, but we were really going in to find something to buy Julia, my niece, for her Bitty Baby. O.M.G, this is paradise for any girl {old or young}! If you're ever in a city with an American Girl store, you should check it out just for the entertainment aspect. 

After a very successful day of shopping, we went back to the room to freshen up. We then had dinner at this Italian restaurant {the oldest in the city}. It was pretty good. The tiramisu {one of my favorite desserts} was fabulous!!!  We then walked around for a little bit before our show started. We went to see Jersey Boys. It was phenomenal! I can't wait to see it again in Indy this coming Winter. 

(Enjoying our dinner together. Notice the huge tiramisu that I ate all by myself...oops!) 

On Sunday, we ate breakfast, packed our things up, checked out, and then decided to take advantage of the awesome weather. So, we walked around for a little while {and stopped in a few more stores} before heading home. It took us forever {or so it seemed} to drive home. We were so hungry when we got home, we decided to meet Kurt and my dad for some great Mexican food at a little family owned restaurant in Broad Ripple. 

(Mom and I modeling all our new clothes and accessories while waiting for a table.)

(It's good to get away, but even better to come home and see the one you love!) 

Thanks for a great weekend, mom! I had so much fun and can't wait to wear all my new things!! :)