Three days after returning from Europe we found ourselves once again on a jet, this time bound for Chicago. A Chicago with snow in the forecast…

That night we checked into the W hotel. They had somehow run out of rooms with a king bed, so we accepted a queen bed in exchange for some drink tickets. Leandra ordered us champagne just before last call while I moved our bags to the room…

The very swanky lounge in the lobby of the W

The next morning we had breakfast at Yolk with a friend from graduate school, then walked through the snow to see Millennium Park.

Leandra and Cloud Gate (aka “The Bean”)

Saturday evening we met up with Leandra’s family for dinner at Blackbird, including a surprisingly good endive salad and a cheese plate with some of the best cheddar I’ve ever had (Widmer’s Cheese Cellars ‘8 year cheddar’).

Legendary cheese is second from the right, Leandra’s note: Eric was guarding this carefully.

Sunday morning we braved the cold to check out the Macy’s window displays, made from layers of construction paper and telling the story of ‘Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus’.

Leandra (and her new hat!) checking out the display

After our brief foray, Leandra’s dad treated everyone to brunch on the 95th floor of the Hancock Building.

Love the shadow of the building on the lake

Thankfully, Sunday was clear with no snow and we got home, to a very excited schnauzer, on time. You can see more photos of our Chicago trip on E&L Gallery.