Milano giorno due!

I’m recapping my trip in Milano!  Believe it or not, I will be going back shortly to Italy again, and I am very excited!!!  This time I will be meeting up with some friends in Rome.  This will be a different trip for me, since the last few times I’ve traveled I’ve been on my own.  I am already jotting down new restaurants and shops to look into.  I can’t wait!

Back to day two in Milano.  Me and my friend woke up and got ready.  We had an appointment to go to, and luckily it was moved up to an earlier time.  We decided to get that out of the way first.  Once we were finished, we made our way back to Milano.  My friend wanted to go back to the Chanel counter to exchange some makeup she bought the night before, so we went to Rinascente again.  We shopped around some more at the Galleria Vittoro Emanuele, and I found my souvenir T-shirt of Milan.  I am getting in the habit of looking for souvenirs more often because I love to see what cities have to offer. 

I had a craving of gelato and finally got the chance to have some, but I didn’t want to spoil my appetite.  We had dinner plans again.  This time my friend suggested sushi and I was down for it.  Once we finished shopping around we decided to go to a nearby shopping mall to look at some jewelry.  A side note:  Italians prefer 18K gold than 14K.

We went back home to get ready.  I bought a cute button down blouse from Other Stories and wore my black skinny jeans with studded ankle boots.  My friend wore her new black suede ankle boots and a white silk tunic with black leggings.  I wish I would master the-art-of-walking-in-heels in Italy, but it’s impossible for me. 

We went to the Navigli neighborhood and looked for sushi restaurants.  We decided to have a cocktail beforehand and found a cute bar to kill some time.  This bar had a menu of cocktails based on your horoscope sign! 
We settled on Temakinho sushi restaurant and it was delish.  We were seated by the chefs and got the chance to see how they prepared the food.  It was very entertaining!

Afterwards we took a brisk walk over to Gin 012 and had more cocktails.  Considering it was a Monday night, the usually lively neighborhood was pretty quiet that night.  We also assumed the weather had a factor in it as well.  It was cold that night!

Happy Hour at Sunda

In January we had temperatures go up and down.  One particular Thursday the temps touched 60 degrees but then fell back into the 30s the next day.  My friends wanted to take advantage of this warm weather to ge together for happy hour.  A friend of theirs was in town and wanted to meet up.  I brought a pair of jeans to change into after work and made my down to Sunda.  I was in the mood for sushi, but everyone else ordered a bit of everything.  It felt weird being out and about.  I cannot remember the last time I hung out with this set of friends.  I usually hibernate in the winter because I loathe the cold weather but this was a nice break from the norm.  Of course now that I’m recapping this day, Chicago is experiencing a blizzard.  It will snow for 12 hours straight!  I guess winter isn’t done with us yet!

I can’t believe I wore a simple tee and jeans in January!

Cocktails 

And sushi 

New Year’s Eve 2017

I can’t believe it’s already February but I’m barely recapping NYE.  Lol.  I am looking forward to resting up at my apartment this weekend.  I miss being home since I was away.  Not to mention, Super Bowl Sunday is happening and I’m very excited about watching Justin Timeberlake perform!  He’s one of my favs.

Believe it or not, I was not in the mood to celebrate NYE.  The year ended roughly for me and I just wanted the holidays to be over.  I DID cherish my time with my friends, but at night, I felt bad about other losses I encountered.  Sometimes Life throws you curve balls that you were not expecting.  It knocks us off of our feet.  But I was very fortunate to be around my friends and family.  They kept an eye on me.  I think this is what sometimes made me feel guilty.  Knowing that people were hurting while I was in a better mood.  I felt privileged but it made me question everything.  Having a support system is crucial, but I know that there are people who do not have this.  The only thing I can conclude is to reach out and make friends and try to open up to people in order to build relationships.  Life is meant to be enjoyed.  It all starts with YOU!

Luckily a friend of mine reached out and invited me to Booze Box.  I was invited to my family’s as well as another family gathering, but I did not want to be at an intimate setting.  I knew people would bring up the past year and recap but I needed the noise to distract me.  Booze Box was perfect, plus it gave me a chance to catch up with my friend since we last spoke.  I needed the attention on him.

In the end, the music helped out a lot, as well as laughing with random strangers.  I survived 2017…

Mommy Birthday!

Since I landed that Sunday during Labor Day weekend, my jet lag was starting to catch up to me.  Even though I broke night and caught my flight at 11am, I still had to fly to Dublin before I landed in Chicago.  I got home around 7:30pm.  I was exhausted.  I wanted to take a shower so I could freshen up in time for me, but I found myself on my bed, butt naked, waking up to a phone call.  Apparently I must have gotten undressed and was going through my luggage to grab my toiletries and I somehow landed in bed.  I do not remember how I got there.  My friend wanted to check up on me, but I could hardly talk to her because I was lethargic.  We got off the phone right away, but I called my mom to let her know I landed and then crashed hard. 
I tried getting up at a decent hour and stayed awake on Labor Day Monday.  I wanted to adjust to Chicago time so I could be ready the next day to resume my work schedule.  I would definitely advise anyone who travels overseas to make sure you set aside some time to rest up before going back to your regular routine.  If you do not travel often, it can mess up your body clock.  Not to mention, I broke night 3 times during my vacation so I never had enough sleep to begin with. 
The week went by quickly.  That Thursday the girls wanted to get together for our friend's birthday.  We decided Hot Woks sushi on Pulaski would be the best place to go to because it was nearby for everyone.  Plus they offered us the room upstairs to ourselves so everyone could bring their kids.  My friend's babies range from 6 months to one year and a half, and because some of them have different needs than others, it's hard finding a place where we can have some space.  The fact that a restaurant could accommodate us for our party was very sweet of them.   
Birthday sushi is definitely a favorite for us.  I love the fact that we have similar tastes and that helps a lot.  My other friend had went to Serbia earlier than me and another friend is going to England and Ireland in a few days.  We all exchanged stories on our adventures.  It's interesting to hear the contrasts between each country we've visited along with our experiences.  I missed my friends!  We had a good time catching up with one another... 

YUMMY!!!

Birthday cupcakes from Sprinkles!

My friend brought rakija from Serbia as souvenirs...

A Belgrade wine topper!

Posing for pictures with kids can result in taking multiple shots...

The winner!  With filter of course!  hahaha

Baby Shower In the Burbs!

I can't believe July 4th weekend is here already!  We had our last softball game for the season this week.  We came close to having some wins this year, but it was a tough situation trying to get people to participate.  Our firm kept a lot of attorneys busy in May which made it difficult getting a solid team going.  Regardless, there's talks it might be our last season.  I made a lot of wonderful memories with my co-workers.  I'm hoping it's not so but it's out of my control.  All good things must come to an end.

That goes to say the same for traveling.  I am growing afraid of the times we live in now.  What happened in Istanbul is unfortunately our new reality and it's occurring too frequently.  It makes me feel uneasy because I will be overseas soon, but part of me knows I have to overcome this fear.  Feeling afraid, or skeptical of people in general is not the way to live your life.  Everyone has differences, but in the end, what we have in common is the same general needs we all want for ourselves:  love, health, the safety of our friends and family.  I feel the world needs to reintroduce themselves to each other again and discover how wonderful we all truly are.  I want to meet new people, make new friends, take the opportunity to discover new places.  It's what brings us closer to one another; to love.  I pray that the violence will stop.  I know we can live peacefully within each other.  We need to do this!

Last Friday my friends wanted to come over to celebrate my birthday.  I told them it was over already and that it wasn't a big deal, but they insisted.  They came by with a ton of wine and sushi and of course, their babies!!  We had a great time catching up with one another.  There are so many changes coming up in the near future.  We are trying our best to make some time for each other.  I'm excited for their plans but it does bring a certain sadness knowing we won't be able to do this all the time.  Hopefully we'll be able to continue our group textes.  Sometimes those are enough to bring a smile to your face.

Birthday sushi!

The next day I had dinner and drinks at Cantina Laredo.  I've always passed up the place, but I must say, I enjoyed my night there.  It was SUPER hot that weekend, and there were a ton of people in the city.  I realized I haven't had the chance to walk around River North in months.  I had a nice time.

The next day I had to get up early for a baby shower out in Morton Grove.  It was at the Arboretum.  These are the kind of occasions I dread because I never have something to wear.  Luckily I found a dress on ebay and everyone loved it.  I know I have to step up on my wardrobe, but I have a big trip coming up and I have to save up for that.  I cannot spend my money foolishly.

It was a great time of fun and games, plus, lots of pictures!  I cannot wait to see how they came out.  They had a photographer walking around and we happily posed.  Since it was 90 degrees that day, we didn't have a chance to walk around and checkout the Arboretum, which is a shame because it did look very pretty out there.  Hopefully one day I can make my way out to Morton Grove again.

I love this picture!  We had so much fun that day!

Hope everyone enjoys their holiday weekend.  Due to the terrorism acts in Istanbul, America is in high alert.  Remember if you see anything fishy, call the police and get help!  We have to stick together and help one another.  The violence in Istanbul could have had more casualties if the police didn't intervene.  Be safe and love one another! 

Time Flies When You're Having Fun...

Happy Friday world!!  I took a trip down memory lane yesterday by looking at some photo albums off my Facebook page.  Boy does time fly!  I was quickly saddened by all the changes that occurred in such a short amount of time, especially from 2011-2012.  I saw pictures of me and my ex, my other friend with her husband.  We all looked very happy together.  Obviously me and my ex broke up not long after and my friend and her husband are currently separated.  I found a group picture of a woman who passed away last year.  She is one year older than me.  The weird thing is we are still  going through the motions from those years.  You don't have enough time to adjust before something else happens.  It's the sad reality of life.  It DOES move fast, and sometimes staying afloat is all you can do.  I left work bummed out, only to receive a silly video text from someone currently on vacation.  He is truly living it up out there!  It made me feel warm inside knowing he's enjoying his time off.  Embrace it, I thought to myself.  You never know what's around the corner that can change your whole life.
Last week was a short work week due to Martin Luther King Jr.  I took down all of my Christmas decorations.  I am pretty satisfied with the my holiday décor and am looking forward to what retail shops will be offering up next winter.  It's a joyous season, but now that we're in January, my focus is mostly shifted to my resolutions:  what I would like to get out of the upcoming year.  Since I'm aware of the changes that have happened in my life in the past, I really want to manage my money better and build up my savings.  For what?  Who knows.  But at least I can get a head start with the financial aspect of it.
I did some damage control over the weekend.  I'm not proud of it either.  It is a reminder to me to not get too carried away for it to become a habit or else I'll really be in big trouble.  What started out as a simple dinner plan grew into a full blown night out on the town.  I wasn't prepared for staying out so late, especially since I already had plans the next night for a birthday party.  UGH!!!  Regardless, who can resist Union Sushi and some cocktails?  Yes I am guilty of such, but I DO want to tone down the nightlife scene.  We made our way to Concord Music Hall to check out Morgan Page and Borgeous only to end up at The Mid later on to catch the same show!  LMAO! 

 The Skinny Geisha Cocktail!

I'm not a fan of oysters, but I DO love how they garnish these at Union!

We ordered a lobster and had this dish FIRST! 

The lobster bisque came SECOND!  This was DELISH!!

Finishing up the last of the lobster via rolls...

HUGE turnout for Morgan Page and Borgeous...

These guys were a fun crowd...

I can't believe we went out after this show.  No pictures of The Mid because my phone died out.  We didn't stay long...