Ten years ago, I turned 30. (Maths.) I then conned my family into taking a train to downtown Chicago, meeting up with my birthday twin, cousin Connor, who was living in Chicago at the time. I remember shopping, the German Christmas market, and a joyous weekend to mark a new decade. I have very few photos except this one – a selection of us eating a pretzel at the market.
This year, this past Friday, I turned 40. So I conned my husband into taking the train to Chicago for a night. (Conned, not really. He was more than willing.) Since we moved to WI from MN, we live 20 minutes from an Amtrak train stop … and we haven’t gone once. It was time to take the hour long ride to Union Station.
But first, let’s start with Friday. The actual day. I took the day off of work so I could prep soup in the slow cooker, get groceries, and clean the house. No joke. I haven’t had a full day at home since probably, oh, early October; it felt like the best gift to give myself.
We took the 11:30 train on Saturday, grabbed some lunch in the food hall at Willis tower, and then headed downstairs to The Color Factory. (The first of two factories we’d visit this day.) What colorful fun. Lots of photo opps, laughs and treats. A conveyor belt of macarons to begin. A series of different rooms/experiences that link color to taste, sound, and compliments.
The line to the Christmas market was about a block long so we decide to continue on towards the hotel. We stopped at a Paper Source store I didn’t know existed downtown. (Love Paper Source!) We ditched our overnight things and headed further north to our second factory – The Cheesecake Factory. A super delicious dinner and cheesecake to go.
Today (Sunday) was an international day of sorts. We started at Eataly which is a coffee bar, Italian market, bakery, deli, restaurants, etc. etc. (The croissants were so very tempting.) We came home with pasta straight from Italy, chocolates, and coffee. We found that HMart, an Asian grocery, was just a few blocks past Union Station and thus we decided to take a gander and purchase a few things, both known and unknown. (Photo below: Italy on the left, Asia on the right.)
In conclusion: Turning 40 for Lindsay means spending a free day running errands, preparing food, and cleaning the house. It also means walking 12 miles around downtown Chicago, stopping not in their fancy department stores but rather purchasing groceries at international grocery markets. If this is life in this next decade, I’m not mad about it.
there's no place like gnome. 
Sounds like an exhausting weekend but lots of fun!
Wonderful Birthday Celebration. You both look awesome and so happy. 12 miles of walking would not work in my world but I love seeing that is others. Chicago was a place I visited when my three granddaughters were in American ‘girls dolls. Spent a few day