I was thrilled when the folks at Target asked me to write a post about one of my favorite Chicago area holiday traditions. After they provided me with a gift card to purchase items that I thought could enhance the fun, they just turned me loose and let me do my thang. (Thanks, Target! This was fun!) All words and opinions are mine, as usual! Oh, and stick around for the end: I’m giving away a $75 Target gift card to one of you lucky readers!
-
-
How To Have The Perfect Thanksgiving*
Going along with my family’s method of sticking to “new old traditions“, we did Thanksgiving our way. Perhaps you might want to change it up sometime, too? Here’s how. 1. The very first thing you do is make reservations at your favorite Brazilian steakhouse, which is also known as a churrascaria. 2. Start talking excitedly about “Meatsgiving” and make comments about the stretchy pants you’ll need to wear after it’s all over. Also, debate whether it’s best to starve yourself during the hours leading up to dinner or if it’s best to continue normal eating practices, thus keeping your stomach in practice. 3. Spend Thanksgiving Day completely relaxed and smiling.…
- Confessions, Do I Really Want My Readers To Know This?, Friends, Fun in Chicago, I've Got Mad Skillz
Just Noh.
I’m in a mood this afternoon, because I scheduled a workout for 4:30 p.m. and one of my least favorite things to do is drag myself away from whatever I’m doing to go take an afternoon class. I used to do my workouts mostly in the evening or at 5:30 in the morning almost exclusively, so it’s not like I’m new at this, but I’m a creature of habit and changing up my schedule today hurt. I’ve grown quite accustomed to doing my 8:30 a.m. class and then being finished for the day. Actually, the fact that this is bothering me so much really tells me that I probably need…
-
Survival Skills
There’s a saying about how Chicago has only two seasons, winter and construction*. My little corner of my western suburb has been experiencing construction year-round for nearly two years now (even through the winter months), thanks to a gutting and extensive reconstruction of a major state route that happens to be one of the few roads that runs through my entire town from all the way north to all the way south. By the way, that state route happens to border my subdivision. The city planners back in the day had absolutely no idea that eventually Naperville would be the fifth largest (by population) city in Illinois and naturally, didn’t…
-
Return To The Chicago Food Swap
Yesterday, as my title indicates, I returned to the Chicago Food Swap. I used to attend monthly, but it’s been literally a year since I could get my schedule to mesh with the monthly weekend. Yes, it’s a weekend commitment for me. The Chicago Food Swap may only last two hours or so on a Sunday afternoon, by my usual M.O. is to spend the entire day before in my kitchen because I can’t keep from overdoing it. Even though I was SO! SICK! of my kitchen by Saturday night… …I survived my marathon baking session and made it to Sunday. Shew! My sister and I headed to the Broadway…