A Holiday Heat Wave...

Today in Chicago it reached 82 degrees.  So far, it hasn't reached very hot yet, but summer is on it's way.  Unfortunately, the weather will be dipping back into the 60s this weekend.  With the temperatures going back and forth to warm and cold, it's hard to figure out what to put on in the morning.  Regardless, I'm still trying to recap what happened 6 months ago.  Christmas was a special one this year, mostly because we lost a member of the family soon after that.  I'm glad to know that my mom had a chance to be with her husband and share this holiday together.  We started to notice some physical changes after Thanksgiving, which can be a hard pill to swallow when the family gets together.  It is a reminder that no one is ready when their time is ending soon. 
We took a lot of pictures.  We bought a lot of gifts.  My mom bought him a tablet that he enjoyed very much.  I was pretty surprised because my mom is not tech savvy.  Obviously someone introduced her to this fancy gadget.  Looking back at the pictures, I can see how worn out my mom looks.  She looks tired.  During this time, she was working a lot leading up to Christmas.  After that, things died down a bit.  She's in the hospitality business.  Tourism thrives in November and December.  I can't imagine the stress she was going through making sure everything looked festive for her husband.  He did manage to give out a big smile around us.  I hope he enjoyed his time here with us. 

Check out my mom's tree!

Me and my mom...

Me and my brother.  I decided to wear a sparkly blazer.

Time to open up the gifts!

My mom's husband give us a peace- out.  He looks happy here...

 

 

My mom's side of the family has always celebrated Christmas Eve.  On Christmas Day we went over to celebrate with my Dad.  My mom and dad divorced when I was 8 years old.  They both remarried years later.  It was a hard adjustment for our family, and unfortunately, a sign of the times.  Since they both remarried when we were adults, a lot of our childhood was rough.  My mom did her best with the 3 of us, but it wasn't easy on her at all.  It was a tough transition, and I have many difficult moments trying to piece what my life would have been like if they did stay together.  What type of person would have I been instead of who I am now?  I learned to let go of the what ifs and decided to focus on the person who I am today.  And in the present, my father reached out to us to focus on our relationship.  We had a great holiday with him and his wife.  I feel very blessed knowing at that time, my family was safe and together.

Me and my dad.  His dog is hiding in his lap.

My brother with his girlfriend.  They look happy!

Tis the Season for PARTIES!!

Time for another throwback Thursday.  Since I'm still recollecting on December, I didn't realize I attended other parties besides the Holidays.  One of my friends celebrated her birthday at Cafe Iberico for brunch.  This was a fun gathering, mostly because, WHO DOESN'T LOVE CAFE IBERICO??  It has been around since 1992 serving tapas from all over Spain.  I usually take friends that are new to Chicago since you can find something for everyone.  I especially love the mussels and garlic shrimp.  YUMMY!  The sangria is the best in the city too.  We had a great time catching up with everyone.

Birthday flan cake!

Cheese!!

 

Another memorable party was our annual Ugly Christmas Sweater Party!  Our friend usually throws this one every year, but this time it was bitter sweet since she has now moved to sunny California.  We definitely did not want to miss her last farewell to this fun group.  I bought my sweater from Sears, but a lot of people ordered their sweaters on-line.  There are some pretty creative ones, especially the customized versions.  Take a look!

 

My gingerbread cookie Oh Snap! Christmas sweater...

Even Darth Vadar was in the house!

His sweater has an attached teddy bear!

My pregnant friend and her wreath!

Yes these polar bears are doing the naughty!











HOLIDAY PARTY!!

The funny thing about looking back on your life 6 months ago is comparing what is happening NOW in the present.  I work for a law firm and one of the biggest perks is our parties.  We celebrate EVERYTHING!  lol.  We like to have a good time and it's one of the reasons many employees have sticked around for so long.  In this day in age it's unheard of employees celebrating 15 or 20 year anniversaries, but it's not uncommon here.  I love the fact that we've managed to strive with our company's core values.  Regardless, now in the present, we are looking forward to our summer party coming up in July.  It will be held at the Godfrey Hotel at the rooftop.  I can't wait for that one!
Our last holiday party was at the Redhead Piano Bar.  We've hosted it there before, many years ago.  We started to throw some ideas around and it popped up again, mostly because of how much fun we had the time before.  When throwing a party, you need to keep in mind the size of your party and if the venue accommodates everything.  If you book a venue that is too large, the party will look empty, no matter how many people attend.  We've always had a struggle with this because we want the right type of atmosphere so people would stick around.  Believe it or not, if the venue is too intimidating, that affects our audience as well.  Number one in planning a party is to know your demographics.  I'm a single city girl who loves to have a good time, but the majority of my colleagues come from the suburbs from a completely different environment.  They catch the train at Union Station and usually have limited access to commute.  We plan our parties right after work so people could hang around for a couple of hours before catching the last train out. 
One of the reasons I enjoy the Redhead Piano bar is because it's been around for years.  It's a Chicago staple located on Ontario street, which hosts a string of nightlife clubs and lounges.  Who doesn't love a piano bar??  I loved the fact that the party lasted until 10pm when the regular patrons were allowed to come in.  Some of us hopped in a cab and headed to another bar, this time karaoke.  It was a long day indeed, but we couldn't stop talking about it here at work! 

Our Firm's Christmas tree!

Old Hollywood glamour sets the tone for The Redhead Piano Bar

Sing along with the piano man!

 For our holiday party, we are allowed to wear jeans to work.  I wore my red jeans instead for a more festive look.

 

Zoo Lights!

I got a chance to go to Zoo Lights in Lincoln Park Zoo back in December.  This was one of the fun holiday outings I've been to in a long time.  Chicago in the winter is a beautiful place.  Despite the cold weather, all you have to do is bundle up and enjoy the light display!  If it gets too cold, head inside to the gorilla house or reptile building and get in touch with the locals.  lol

 All bundled up with some hot coffee.





David Bowie IS

Back in December the Museum of Contemporary Art was having the David Bowie Is exhibit for a limited time only.  Me and my friends decided to make our way down there before the holidays crept up on us.  I'm glad we did.  We went on a Friday night and we had a blast.  Nothing like a night of art, music, and wine to end the work week!  The presentation was a chronicle of David Bowie's career.  I knew of David Bowie's music back in the 80s, but looking at his earlier work and how his style has changed over the years was truly inspiring!  He was a super talented individual, whose career extended into films as well.  I was very impressed with the exhibit, which was very successful in Chicago.  Afterwards, me and my friends decided to head over to Drumbar at the Raffaello Hotel for some cocktails.  My girlfriend decided to have her birthday party here the following month.  We had too much fun dancing around!  I am a lover of the arts and I must do more of this in my life.  Even if I have no one to go with, it shouldn't stop me from doing the things that I enjoy...

David Bowie worked along Alexander McQueen.  I think it's a coincidence I wore my scarf to his exhibit!

Girls Night Out...

Since today is Happy Hump Day Wednesday, I thought it would be fun to mention my girls night out back in November.  Don't get me wrong.  There are times where me and my friends like to get together for some drinks to catch up with one another.   But that month in particular, everyone needed to go all out for some much needed fun!  One night in particular, our friend invited us out for a sushi night at Butterfly Sushi.  She had just settled in her new apartment and has been out of the loop for a bit.  Since I hurried on home from work, I switched into jeans and wore my Halloween headpiece AGAIN to spice up my look. lol.This was a nice time to catch up since the upcoming holidays were going to be hectic for everyone.  I wasn't in the mood so much to hangout because my throat was hurting.  The winter of 2014 was definitely not my healthiest.  I was sick 3 times before I finally gave in and went to the doctor.  I tried to ride it out with lots of green tea but it was kicking my butt.  Regardless, I went along and had a good time.  We ended up down the street at The Dawson for some cocktails afterwards. 

 I LOVE my friend's fur vest from Argentina!



Once Thanksgiving was over, Black Friday was the talk of the town.  I opted NOT to join in the madness and do some online shopping instead.  I usually find pretty good deals.  Regardless, in the nightlife scene, this weekend is a difficult one because a lot of people are either out of town or spending time with family.  What did we do?  We decided to paint the town red!  lol  We figured we could hop around and get a chance to enjoy new venues.  We first started off at the rooftop at The Godfrey Hotel for some drinks and conversation.  Our group of  3 quickly escalated to about 10 in a matter of time.  I had fun running around and meeting new people.  We took a little field trip down to Parliament nightclub and danced the night away!  I also had my first drink of Dom Perignon and I must say, I was impressed!  I'm not a fan of champagne but that was good.. 

We were photo bombed by the bartenders!  Too funny!

Our group is slowly growing...

At Parliament getting silly...

 

The next day our girlfriend was going to entertain her co-workers to a night out.  I was pretty beat from the night before, so I knew I was going to take it easy.  My other friends joined in the festivities, and I was happy to see them.  It's hard to get everyone together in one place.  I told myself that this was the last night of the remaining year that I will wear my Halloween headpiece.  It was time to retire this trendy accessory and save it for another occasion.  But in the meantime, I matched it up with my gold leather pencil skirt and off I went.  We headed to Bevy nightclub for some hip hop and ended up at The Mid for some major EDM.  Cassette was djing, so the place was packed!  Overall, both nights were long and crazy, but I loved every minute of it!  Sometimes the unexpected moments are the most memorable ones...

  




A Moment of Thanks...

Back in November, so many things popped up here and there, I didn't realize I was in social overload.  The holidays can be a non-stop party train that leads up to New Year's Eve.  Luckily, Thanksgiving helps keep you centered with family.  I'm realizing now, how much these holidays bring those you don't see very often together in one place.  This year, we were doing things differently in my household.
My aunt usually hosts Thanksgiving dinner at her house.  It's big and allows more people to sit more comfortably.  But this year my family were all doing their own thing.  My mom's husband was diagnosed with a terminal illness earlier in the year, and has been in hospice care for months.  My mom did not want to leave him alone to be with family on Thanksgiving, so she opted not to go to my aunt's.  I couldn't bear the thought of the two of them hosting their own little dinner, so I invited myself over to join them.  Hey, sometimes you have to push your way into people's hearts to let them know you're there for them.  That move made my two brothers follow as well, and our step brother joined us, too.  We all had Thanksgiving dinner together.  A smaller and more intimate group, but bitter sweet for all of us.  Luckily, after dinner, the rest of my family made pit stops to my mom's to wish us happy Thanksgiving, and to participate in our annual Christmas grab bag.  Every year we add our names to a bag and each randomly pick a name out of a family member to splurge on for a gift.  It has helped us save money and the hassle out of figuring out what to get everyone.  I am blessed we managed to see one another in the end.     

 LOVE my mom's cooking...

Me and my cousin...

 Just us enjoying our time together...

Me and my brother.  He's my rock...

SURPRISE!!!

I am slowly moving along the past 6 months of my life to catch up to what's been going on now.  Looking back I realized how grateful I am for these "mini vacations" to pop up, mostly because my family was going through some tough times.  It may seem selfish but in reality, you need to realize that LIFE DOES GO ON.  Moments spent with friends and family don't happen very often as we'd like, so when you DO have the opportunity to interact with them, DO IT.  It's something I'm learning along the way, and don't ever feel bad about it either.  It's the only time you feel ALIVE, and it's important for your well being. 
The following weekend after the baby shower, my uncle was throwing a surprise birthday party to his life long significant other.  They've been together for over 30 years, and although she does not believe in a traditional marriage, they're very much in love and have built a wonderful life for themselves. With the help of her friends, they rented a room downstairs at Rick Bayless'Frontera Grill.  I was SUPER EXCITED because Rick Bayless is a Chicago icon in the restaurant scene.  I brought along a pair of black skinny jeans and tall boots to change into after work and hurried on over to the party.  That's my usual party-proof staple if I'm going out after work.
Once I arrived, a couple of more people showed up, but we were hitting the deadline close.  My uncle sent out her friends to lure her in the restaurant unknowingly.  Then, SURPRISE!!  She was completely in shock!  I loved every minute of it.  Luckily she wasn't angry either.  Hey, some people don't like surprises.
My mom was there and was very excited to be out.  She needed this break.  Luckily they had servers walking around filling up on margaritas.  They were to die for.  We sat down for a pre-fixed meal and munched away.  I loved seeing my family out and about and not at someone's house for a change.  I understand how going to a downtown restaurant might be a bit too much for families, but sometimes the experience is worth the memories.  For this night, I loved seeing my mom's smile light up the room.  For me and my brothers, we loved running into our old childhood friends.  For the birthday girl, seeing her friends and family all together was an emotional one.  And for my family, it was a special moment we all shared together. 

 SURPRISE!!!

 My beautiful cousins...

 My brother with my cousin...

 My mommy...

 Me and my brothers with our childhood friends...

  A picture collage my mom made for the birthday girl. 

Baby Shower Bonanza!

We welcomed November to a baby shower for our friend!  Believe it or not, she planned her own baby shower, but if you knew her, you would understand.  She is the definition of a true planner!  She rented a room upstairs at a pizzeria which also included a bar and a couple of flat screens for the Bulls game.  Nowadays, most baby showers are co-ed, and sometimes children are invited too!  It's a time where friends and family come together to catch up, and people have a hard time getting a sitter as well.  With all of that in mind, trying to keep the festivities joyfully for the length of time you have the space can be a tricky thing.  That's where the games come in...
First up, trying to figure out what type of baby food it is.  There are so many variations of baby food out there!  Every guest where to check-in and try to guess what they were looking at.  NO TASTING ALLOWED!!!
You can't have a baby shower without trying to guess the size of her baby bump!  This game is infamous, and a fun way of getting a prize to whoever gets the closest estimate.  Remember to bring extra yarn or ribbon!
To spice things up, we had a couples race where one sits on a chair and the other stands in front of them blindfolded.  Once the clock starts ticking, the one standing has to feed the one sitting baby food and whoever finishes first wins.  NO HELPING!!  And bring extra bibs so there's no food falling all over the place...
I was still in love with my headpiece from Claire's so I wore that with a tunic and black skinny pants.  The headpiece looks better with my hair curly and I got lots of compliments on it.  I like funky accessories to spice up a look!
We had a good time at the shower and even continued at the bar next door for some dancing and fun.  One of our good friends is having her baby shower coming up this Memorial Weekend, so I'm excited about that too.  I have the responsibility of thinking up games to play at this shower, so I'll share with you what I came up with.  Planning a party is hard work!