Chicago Mommy & Me Style

I was so sure I would be having lots of time to blog my little life away during summer  break and here I am again, struggling to make it happen at uh….11pm on Monday! Well, I’ve decided to straighten the priorities once again and Le Blog didn’t come in first, nor second or third but it’s high up on the list still and I hope you’re happy about it!!

A couple of weeks ago Bella and I went up to Chicago to work in a  photo shoot for Holly & Tanager handbags and since my bestie Kris was heading up there two days earlier to catch a flight to Brazil I decided to anticipate our trip, give Kris a ride, get a cheap hotel and enjoy my favorite Midwestern city with my oldest baby!!

Needless to say we had an amazing time and almost cried when it was time to leave (yes we both cry on commercials and stuff so yeah it’s not hard to make us cry….whatever, you get the point!!)

First stop Le Hotel, I’m not savvy when it comes to finding hotel deals online therefore I waited for Kris to join in and find us something since she’s so good at it. We go through Priceline and choose the express deals option which means you know the general location of the hotel and how many stars and it’s amenities but you don’t know which hotel you’re getting until you pay for it. We got Hotel Indigo in the heart of the Gold Coast. Not a great place although it’s clean and that’s most important, what I truly LOVED about it was the location. I had never stayed up North while there, we usually stay around Michigan Ave. or close to the millenium Park. O.M.G what was I missing?

The Gold Coast has the best little restaurants and incredible shopping and people watching. Oak Street has the best luxury shopping ever, think Barneys New York, Prada and Hermés to name a few (lots of window shopping for me!) and our hotel was right by Rush Street which is lively and well-known for it’s fun nightlife. I remember back when I was dating Brian I asked to go up to Chicago and he said, only if we stay at Rush Street 😉

The hotel street is definitely picture perfect so there we went clicking like crazy!!!

That night we ate at Carmine’s on Rush St because we love to seat outside and the patio is super cozy and cute. The place is known for its large portions so when Bella ordered a pizza and I a salad we ended up wrapping up most of our dinner…just a heads up – under order at this place!!

Next day we had breakfast at Le Pain Quotidien, a tip from my friend Camila! Delicious food in French portions, don’t go there expecting an american feast!

On the way to breakfast we had to stop for more pics….can you get the feel why this neighborhood is a dream?!

It was a good day to pay a visit to my beloved Zara and to my contentment it was full of new stuff and great price tags! It’s always a hit or miss going to the store and I was sure happy this was a total hit!!! We walked around stores, tried on clothes, and tried to walk by the lake but due to the strong winds (hello windy city) and not being able to cross over we headed back to the hotel to change (mama here needed as many outfit pics in the city as possible, and Bella did get a bit annoyed…oops!)

To compensate for Bella’s picture-taking and us not being able to walk by the lake I told her we could go to the Navy Pier and take a ride on the Centennial Wheel – “Navy Pier’s Centennial Wheel is an iconic part of the Chicago skyline and a treasured piece of Chicago cultural history. Soaring to heights of nearly 200 feet, the Wheel offers visitors unparalleled, 360-degree views of Chicago and Lake Michigan.” My tip is to go on the afternoon of a week day, we went on a Wednesday and were able to get our own wagon. Weekends are super crowded.

At the Navy Pier we met up with my dear friends Sonia Carrillo and Luis Carrillo from Focal.Vision to have dinner and let our girls play! Every time I have a change I love visiting with these guys, best souls!!!! Here’s a couple of shots Luis took of me!!

On the third day was my photo shoot so we decided to check out from the hotel and leave our belongings there since the car was parked right by it (that’s one great little feature about the hotel, next door parking!). See previous posts for more pics and the whole nine yards on this day…here’s jus a little taste!!

I truly hope you guys enjoyed this post. It’s so hard to gather the info and put it all together in a way that makes sense and it’s enjoyable to read through. My main goal with travel posts however is to give you insights on the places, tips for places to eat and hang outs! Even though I’m not even close to be an expert on the subject I love traveling and hope I can transfer that passion into a fun read!!

Love you guys!! Beijos,

-K