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Fall Colors: Choosing the Perfect Pumpkin
Two-for-one experiences make me feel like I’m getting a little extra out of life. What better, then, than a duel apple picking and pumpkin patch experience at Jonamac Apple Orchard for my birthday weekend this fall? We loved it! Suited up in our rainboots, we wandered through the patch looking for the perfect orange gourd,…
Read MoreFall Family Time: Children’s Activities at Jonamac
While the adults take time sauntering among the apple trees at Jonamac Apple Orchard, the little ones they brought along, with their 10-second attention spans, prefer the lively children’s area. Filled with a number of interactive experiences, kids can participate in family fun like tractor rides around the property, a tricycle maze, miniature playhouses, a…
Read MoreThe Art of Glass Blowing: A Beginner’s Guide
This summer, I was obsessed with the Netflix show “Blown Away,” which is three seasons of glass blowing experts creating the most elaborate glass sculptures I’ve ever seen. They compete for cash, the title of champion, and a coveted guest artist residency at the Corning Museum of Glass in New York. To celebrate my autumn…
Read MoreOpening Day at the Museum of Ice Cream Chicago
It’s opening day at the Chicago Museum of Ice Cream, that means unlimited treats! Have you been to a MOIC near you? This popular tourist attraction also exists in New York City, Austin, Singapore and Shanghai, with occasional pop ups in places like San Francisco and Miami. Each experience is fine tuned to reflect the…
Read MoreGrilled Octopus and Calamari at Coda di Volpe
My coworkers will be the first to tell you that Brandon and I haven’t quite got the hang of Chicago-style pizza yet. I find deep dish too cheesy and pub-cut too messy. And why, may I ask, add the toppings on the pizza before the cheese?? It just doesn’t make sense to me. Forgive me,…
Read MoreLevi Strauss pt 1 – The History of American Jeans
When I married my husband, I didn’t realize how much his Jewish heritage would play a role in our life together. Brandon’s mom is Ashkenazi Jewish on her mother’s side, a fact the family learned late in their history. This discovery transformed the way the family thought about themselves, their traditions, and their relationship with…
Read MoreLevi Strauss pt 2 – Retro to Modern Jeans
Welcome back to the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco! Now that you have read about Levi Strauss’s history as it began in San Francisco (click here to read that blog post, if you haven’t yet), your reward is to see all the beautiful and abstract ways these iconic jeans have evolved over the recent…
Read MoreAsian Fusion Brunch at Little Goat Diner
See that little goat spinning up there? She’s the one we’re having brunch with. She’s the mascot of Little Goat Diner in the Fulton Market District of West Loop, Chicago, an upscale diner that serves breakfast all day. Our kind of place! Founder Stephanie Izard is well known for being the first female winner of…
Read MoreGetting Fancy and Dancy at the Bridgerton Ball
We’re ready for the ball! The interactive Bridgerton Experience in Chicago gave us a rare opportunity to dress up in a way we haven’t since prom night (and our weddings!) I, of course, wore my best pineapple costume jewelry with a glitzy green dress from Amazon. All it required was sliding the straps to an…
Read MoreFierce Bowling Competition at Punch Bowl Social
One recent Saturday morning, I met up with my good friends Hallie and Jamie for a quiet time of contemplation and clothes folding at a retro laundromat in Chicago’s West Loop district. JUST KIDDING! What looks like a colorful wall of dryers is actually a clever façade at Punch Bowl Social, the hottest bowling alley…
Read MoreEating Mochi Donuts in Another Dimension
When I first heard about the 2d café phenomenon in tourist cities around the globe, I imagined stepping through a swirling portal to another dimension, trillions of cells in my body morphing and twisting, compressing into a flat paper doll. Is there anything thinner than paper? In this new 2d realm, I would sidestep to…
Read More11 Reasons to Love Winter in Chicagoland and Beyond
It’s bundle season! Shout out to our good friend José for hooking us up with these parkas from The North Face. They easily keep us toasty in zero degrees. The biggest difference between living in California and Chicagoland is obviously the cold weather, which starts around November and can last until early May. That’s a…
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