Taste of Chicago with Alessia Cara

Once July 4^th weekend was over it was back to work.  That Wednesday it was pretty slow because of the holiday falling on a Tuesday.  Chicago use to host Taste of Chicago during July 4^th weekend, but they changed over the years to fall on AFTER the holiday.  My brother wanted to come downtown with his girlfriend to check it out, and since I work right down the street from Grant Park, I agreed to join them.

What a nice surprise!  Alessia Cara was the big act of the night and she was amazing!  I truly feel blessed to see her since she’s going to be HUGE.  We had a great time!

July 4th Weekend Part 4

On the day of July 4^th my dad wanted us to stop by for a bbq.  As a product of divorce,  I want to be there for both my parents but during holidays it could be difficult.  I spent the early part of the day reading outside on my balcony.  I love being out there.  It’s my tranquility during my most sociable times.

I wore red, white and distressed blue jeans for the bbq.  The weather was perfect to wear jeans since I knew we would be outside.  Mosquitos love me so I wanted my legs covered up. 

My dad is insisting on going to Puerto Rico this Christmas.  I will have to see this to believe it.  In the meantime, I’m sticking to my budget in case he is really serious. 

July 4th Weekend Part 3

I’m sooooooo behind on my posts.  But I am glad to say I am on the right track with my tight budget.  Around my birthday I treated myself with some Versace earrings (mini Medusa heads to be exact) when I got a promo code at YOOX.  Score!  Then I found a pair of Saint Laurent sunglasses at Amazon that I purchased using some points I had accumulated.  I told myself I would stop with the indulgences since I really want to take another vacay.

But then out of nowhere, I went to two music festivals and then had to contribute to a bridal party for one of our friends.  Everything was last minute, and I was getting frustrated that I wasn’t putting away money for what I REALLY wanted to do.  Lol.  I told myself after July 4^th weekend I was going to take it easy.

Believe it or not, I’m slowly getting back on track.  The good news is, here in Chicago, there are tons of things to do for FREE!  Summer is amazing here and I take every opportunity to try to enjoy it.  Back to my recap!

I managed to run my errands and do a light workout.  The weather had dipped a bit back into the 70s considering the day before it was 15 degrees hotter.  What a difference!  My friends made plans to go to Arlington Race track to watch the fireworks show but I wanted to stay behind.  I got invited at the last minute to join my friend on his boat.  He wasn’t planning on taking it out to the lake and figured I could keep him company while he did some work on it.  I picked up some sushi and grabbed a bottle of wine and made my way down there.

He was recently in Bangkok for work.  It was his first time there and he showed me his pictures.  I absolutely LOVE hearing travel stories!!  They get me even more curious about the world in general.

I’m not sure where my next trip will be but I will be narrowing down my choices soon.  Right now, it’s about budgeting, and making sure the time is right for a quick escape.  ttyl

July 4th Weekend Part 2

Yikes!  I'm super behind on my blog.  Time to catch up!

On my last entry I mentioned being socially exhausted from July 4^th weekend.  I am happy to say last weekend was a lot less stressful.  I’ll tell you why once I finish recapping and catch up.

The next day I got up early and had my black dress ironed.  I jumped in the shower and managed to braid my hair so it could have waves for later on, but it still looked pretty limp to me.  Oh well.

Once church was over me and my friends grabbed our stuff and headed back out to the burbs.  It was now crunch time.  We had to get together so we could do the finishing touches for our surprise party.

As usual, we started to run behind, but once we got to the party we had to go to work.  We had some time to play with but this particular day was close to 90 degrees.  EVERYONE was hot and bothered.  Luckily we did the best we could and our surprise guest pulled up and was definitely shocked by all of the commotion.  After a couple of polaroid shots, we went back to the yard to enjoy the festivities.

I wish I could tell you more about our party, but I have to say, it was a sweet gesture from all of us.  We love our friend dearly and this party was a token of our appreciation for having her in our lives. 

July 4th Weekend Part 1

I’m already lagging behind on my blog and I was doing so well!  What can you do?  Regardless, summer in Chicago can be amazing.  July 4^th weekend was a little hectic for me.  I was glad we had a short work week following up.  Luckily, I got a chance to relax at home before I headed out in the evening.  I had a great weekend over all, but let me recap the holiday…

I love to see my friends and have a good time.  But like the saying goes, too much of a good thing can be bad thing too.  Because of my job, I am at the front and center of clients walking in, hence, I have to be sociable ALL THE TIME.  I don’t have a problem with that, especially since I’ve been working here so long.  Between handling high volume phone calls and addressing clients, by the time Friday rolls around, I want to be left alone (just for a short time).  Whenever I have a party to go to or an event that lasts all day, I get tired.  Tired in the sense of being sociable.  I want to be at home blasting my music and not talking to anyone!  It’s the Gemini in me.  We’re introverted/ sociable people who live inside our heads.  The funny thing about that is if we’re alone “too long” then we go a little crazy because our thoughts are still running 24/7.  We need to express our thoughts through verbal communication, and if we don’t have anyone to talk to, we get depressed.

That weekend in particular I was already feeling frustrated.  I knew I had two back to back parties out in the suburbs.  I usually spend my Saturday afternoons lounging on my balcony, followed by cleaning up the apartment, and then heading to the gym to do an afternoon workout.  It’s been my routine for a while and I love it.  Just me and my little apartment.  All alone.

Because I knew I had a party to go to in the burbs, I decided to do a little window shopping for a black dress I needed to wear for Sunday’s party.  I was told about the details earlier in the week when I saw my friends for drinks, but I wasn’t sure what I had in my closet.  Since it was the holiday weekend, there were sales everywhere.  I figured I would walk down State Street and see if they had anything, but I had no such luck.  I knew I had to make something work from my closet.  Once I got home Friday night, I cleaned up my apartment.  I stayed in knowing I had a full day the next day.

Once Saturday came around, I snuck in my lounging time on my balcony and did a load of laundry.  Sure enough, my friend picked me up earlier than expected, but luckily I was ready and off we went to Skokie.

My friend chose the Skokie Exploratorium to host her son’s 2 year old birthday party.  Since it fell on the holiday weekend, friends from all over managed to make it in for his birthday.  It’s adorable seeing his face look in wonder.  I think it hit him later on that this party was for him.  Regardless, the birthday boy was enjoying every minute of it.

The party finished around 5pm but afterwards, me and a friend had to get some stuff for the following day.  We decided at the last minute to throw a party for a friend of ours who was in town for the weekend.  It was a surprise, but we still needed to get some finishing touches.  By the time we got what we needed, it was getting near 7:30pm.

I came home and went to the gym in the evening and did a light workout.  I got a chance to do everything I needed to do.  I was pooped but knew in the back of my mind, we had to do this all over again tomorrow.  YIKES!

Baby Shower at the Ukrainian Cultural Center

I hope everyone enjoyed their Fourth of July holiday weekend!  I did a lot, so I’m glad we have a short work week.  Let me recap the last Sunday of June…

After that eventful Saturday at Mamby at the Beach, the next day I had to attend a baby shower.  I was pretty exhausted.  I made it to church then headed back home to get ready.  The temperature dropped a bit to the 70s, so I wore pants and a cute top I won off ebay from BCBG.  

I FINALLY figured out how to wear a milk braid (lol) so it was nice to do something different to my hair.  I’ve noticed as I have gotten older that my hair is not as full as it once was.  Sometimes a ponytail looks too stringy.  I miss having full curly hair.

My friend looked beautiful on her big day!  It was a complete surprise to her.  She enjoyed catching up with everyone.  Pretty soon her life is going to be very busy with the baby.  It’s going to be an adjustment but the happy couple is eagerly waiting for her arrival. I’m so happy for them!