Chicago 2017

27 May 2017 - As an early anniversary present to ourselves, I purchased tickets for Nick and me to see Hamilton in Chicago exactly 8 months ago. After waiting impatiently since 9/27/16, it was finally the day! We dropped the kids off with my parents around 10, then hit the road. We didn't encounter all that much traffic for Memorial Day Weekend on our way to Milwaukee. There, we ate sushi for lunch at Koi by the airport. Bellies happy, we drove the rest of the way to Kyle and Delphine's house in Deerfield, IL. It had been over 2 years since we last saw them, and now they're back in the States! We had a nice chat on all manner of things - life, kids, politics. We got to meet 8-month-old Louison. Unfortunately, we couldn't stay long, because we had to get downtown and traffic was picking up. It took us ~1 hr to get to our hotel on W Monroe. Managed to get the valet sorted with so many cars and theater-goers around. Check in, freshened up, changed, and walked across the street in time for our reservations at The Grillroom. Nick got the $60 surf and turf. I contented myself with surf and surf (seared salmon on shrimp risotto) - so good! Talked to fellow Hamilton fans at the table next to us. Finished dinner a little after 7, then walked back across the street to join the throngs of people waiting for the show. Got in fairly quickly, bought a souvenir shot glass (get it?), got a couple drinks in souvenir cups, and settled into our back-row orchestra seats. The view was limited to stage-level only. We couldn't see anything happening on the elevated part, but not much happens there. I've been listening to the show for over a year, and I was not at all disappointed. Yes, I even shed a few tears, but I tried not to so I didn't miss anything. It was so amazing. After the show, went right upstairs to our room (so convenient!). We each had one of our new ciders and played the new Catan dice game I bought. I read a bit before bed.

Kyle & Louison

Our view

28 May - We slept in a bit, ate the very good hotel breakfast and left the hotel ~9:30. We drove west to Schaumburg to go to Ikea. Nick grudgingly went with me and helped me decide on a few things, including a new dining set. We left $380 poorer, but I was satisfied. And, everything easily fit in my Outback. :) We drove to Madison and got lunch at Om Indian. I'm glad I was able to take Nick there finally. After filling ourselves, we headed home. After a quick stop to unload the car, we returned to my parents' house to collect the kids.

Happy 9th Anniversary to us!
{transcribed 1/30/2020}