Yeah, the title of this post is a little cheesy, but I seriously believe that Chicago is pretty freaking magical during the Holidays.
In my family, every December we head into Daley Plaza to the authentic German Christmas market aka Christkindlmarket. If you want to check out the website, here it is: http://www.christkindlmarket.com/en/
If you don't want to check out the website, just know that Christkindlmarket is basically this: Daley Plaza, with its giant red, green, and white Christmas tree, is transformed into a little slice of open-air German Holiday market heaven! There is authentic German food (a lot like my Grandma used to make!), German beer and wine, and tons of German-made goodies from ornaments to scarves to beer steins.
My sister Ellie, my mom, and I wandered (with mugs full of warm beverages) around Daley Plaza checking out all the goodies. We feasted on potato pancakes, curry sausage, brats w/ kraut and candied nuts. We admired hand crafted nutcrackers, hand painted ornaments, and hand carved Cuckoo clocks. When our bellies were full and our feet were starting to get tired, we hopped in a cab and were off to the second part of our yearly holiday tradition: Zoo Lights at Lincoln Park Zoo.
If you've never seen Lincoln Park Zoo lit up for the Holidays, you really NEED to look at this link. http://www.lpzoo.org/events/calendar/zoolights Scroll to the bottom and check out the photos. You've never seen such glorious Holiday lights. I swear it! And Lincoln Park Zoo and its lights are of course, as always: FREE.
Zoo Lights can get ANYONE into the Holiday spirit. Seriously. Every single year, we walk through the same entrance to the zoo, and every single year, I am 5 years old all over again.
I gasp. I stare. It. is. gorgeous.
I could easily spend 2 or 3 hours there each year. And this year was no different. Mom, Ellie and I walked, hung out with the animals, talked and sang along to the Christmas carols for a good 2 and a half hours on Saturday.
And this year when my sister, mom, and I hailed a cab back to Daley plaza, I smiled to myself...nah, more like grinned. I grinned not just because my heart, in all of its German market Zoo light Christmas cheeriness, felt like it had grown 3 sizes that day.
Nope. I grinned because I realized that in a few short weeks, Will and I will call this city, and all the magic that comes with it, home.
In my family, every December we head into Daley Plaza to the authentic German Christmas market aka Christkindlmarket. If you want to check out the website, here it is: http://www.christkindlmarket.com/en/
If you don't want to check out the website, just know that Christkindlmarket is basically this: Daley Plaza, with its giant red, green, and white Christmas tree, is transformed into a little slice of open-air German Holiday market heaven! There is authentic German food (a lot like my Grandma used to make!), German beer and wine, and tons of German-made goodies from ornaments to scarves to beer steins.
My sister Ellie, my mom, and I wandered (with mugs full of warm beverages) around Daley Plaza checking out all the goodies. We feasted on potato pancakes, curry sausage, brats w/ kraut and candied nuts. We admired hand crafted nutcrackers, hand painted ornaments, and hand carved Cuckoo clocks. When our bellies were full and our feet were starting to get tired, we hopped in a cab and were off to the second part of our yearly holiday tradition: Zoo Lights at Lincoln Park Zoo.
If you've never seen Lincoln Park Zoo lit up for the Holidays, you really NEED to look at this link. http://www.lpzoo.org/events/calendar/zoolights Scroll to the bottom and check out the photos. You've never seen such glorious Holiday lights. I swear it! And Lincoln Park Zoo and its lights are of course, as always: FREE.
Zoo Lights can get ANYONE into the Holiday spirit. Seriously. Every single year, we walk through the same entrance to the zoo, and every single year, I am 5 years old all over again.
I gasp. I stare. It. is. gorgeous.
I could easily spend 2 or 3 hours there each year. And this year was no different. Mom, Ellie and I walked, hung out with the animals, talked and sang along to the Christmas carols for a good 2 and a half hours on Saturday.
And this year when my sister, mom, and I hailed a cab back to Daley plaza, I smiled to myself...nah, more like grinned. I grinned not just because my heart, in all of its German market Zoo light Christmas cheeriness, felt like it had grown 3 sizes that day.
Nope. I grinned because I realized that in a few short weeks, Will and I will call this city, and all the magic that comes with it, home.
I think you have a real talent for writing. I am a fellow medical wife, found your blog while looking for other med wives blogs. Looking forward to reading along.
ReplyDeleteGlad you found me and that you're enjoying my blog so far. :) Hopefully it gets even better in a few weeks when we're actually in the city!
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