Friday Favorites: Road Trip Planning + Giveaway

Phew. This has been a tough week, and I am so ready for this weekend. Sadly, Chris has to work on Sunday night, but we have some fun plans for Saturday!

/ / One:
Chris gets four weeks of vacation in two-week increments. They even schedule them for him, and he doesn’t really get to pick when he wants to take his vacation.

Anyways, his first vacation is coming up in September, and we decided to do a Circle Tour of Lake Michigan, going to Traverse City, Michigan, Mackinac Island, Michigan, and Door County, Wisconsin, with several cute towns on the way. We had more ambitious plans, but since it is our first vacation taking the dog (there is a canine flu outbreak near us, so we are too scared to board her), we wanted to make it simple and relaxing. Plus, why not see what the Midwest has to offer while we’re here? Needless to say, I am so excited to spend time with Chris for a week!

Guest Post Opportunity: If you are interested in guest posting for me while we’re gone, I would love to have you! Email me at thesiberianamerican@gmail.com for more information.

/ / Two:
My favorite weekday nights are when Chris grills for us on the pool deck. The weather has been perfect lately (in the 70s), and it’s such a fun (and tasty!) way to catch up on our day.

/ / Three:
I have been trying to catch up on my NetGalley books and have read several great books lately. I can’t wait to put together a post and share them with y’all!



/ / Four:
I love wearing Essie’s Sunset Sneaks in the summer. It’s such a fun, vibrant color.

/ / Five:
Remember when I got a pair of Firmoo glasses? Well, I love them and use them all the time! The frames are high quality and super cute. They actually make me want to wear my glasses. Today, I am partnering with Firmoo to give away a pair of glasses to one of my readers! Click here to view your frame options.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! 

Linking up with Amanda, Karli, and the High Five for Friday girls.

 

Ten Random Facts About Me

Hello, friends! I have never written a random get to know me type post, so I thought I would give it a try today.

One. 
I could seriously eat crab legs for every meal and never get tired of them. Sadly, they are super expensive, but Chris knows that I will be happy on my birthday as long as I get to go to a seafood restaurant.

Two. 
I hate Styrofoam. You know how some people can’t stand fingernails on a chalkboard? Styrofoam has that effect on me. Just thinking about it makes me cringe.

Three. 
I am a Baylor Bear through and through. Baylor will always have a special place in my heart because Chris and I met on our first day there. I love Baylor sports and am eagerly waiting for football season.

Four. 
My hometown has a 14-hour time difference with Texas. It made for some interesting phone calls with friends and family growing up.

Five. 
I am a total night owl. I have no problems staying up till 5 a.m. (which becomes an issue when I am reading a good book). Good luck getting me up early the next day, though!

Six. 
Fall is my favorite season. I love the clothes, crisp temperatures, and gorgeous fall foliage. We even went on a fall foliage cruise last year and had so much fun.

Seven. 
When we first moved to Texas, I spent years rejecting all things Texan. Now I say y’all all the time and will happily eat Tex-Mex and barbecue. I will never get used to the heat, though!

Eight. 
I am trying to eat healthy, but I love candy. If I’m having a bad day (or let's be honest, a good day), sour gummy worms or Sour Punch strawberry straws make the world a better place.

Nine. 
I am a total news junkie. Chris gets annoyed with me because I will happily watch (and read) the news all day.

Ten. 
I love blankets, even in the summer. I even keep a blanket in Chris’s car, so I can use it when he’s driving.

Now it’s your turn! Tell me a random fact about you.

Chicago Travel: The Field Museum

When my in-laws were in town, we accidentally ended up going to The Field Museum. We had planned to go to the Shedd Aquarium, but the line looked like it was two hours long, so we decided to give The Field Museum a try.

Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I had originally had it on my list of things I want to do in Chicago this year, but I took it off because Chris told me it was a museum for kids. Actually, it is one of the largest natural history museums in the world and turned out to be one of my favorite things that we did while my in-laws were in town.

The Field Museum was founded in 1893 as a way to display leftover artifacts from the World’s Columbian Exhibition in Chicago, also known at the Chicago World’s Fair. I have been fascinated with the Chicago World’s Fair ever since I read The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson, so I was instantly interested once I knew the museum included items from the fair.

I was especially eager to see the Tiffany collection of gems, which did not disappoint. The exhibit that featured the collection, known as the Grainger Hall of Gems, is both beautiful and interesting. Each case featured a description of a precious gem, including how it is formed and where it is found with gorgeous examples of the gem set into stunning jewelry pieces.

When you enter The Field Museum, you are instantly greeted by “SUE,” the largest, most complete, and best-persevered Tyrannosaurus rex ever found. This fossil is massive, measuring 42 feet long from snout to tail and is more than 90 percent complete. In fact, its skull is so heavy (600 pounds), it is on display upstairs with a replica attached to the rest of the skeleton.

Along with SUE, we enjoyed the Evolving Planet permanent exhibit, which takes you on a journey of four billion years of life on Earth and the Inside Ancient Egypt permanent exhibit, where you walk through a three-story recreation of a matsaba, which includes two authentic rooms from a 5000-year-old tomb. The Cyrus Tang Hall of China recently became a permanent exhibit and is a fascinating journey through China’s dynasties.

The Field Museum also features several special exhibitions that change throughout the year. While we were there the special exhibits were China (which is now a permanent exhibit), the Vikings, Mammals and Mastadons, and the Underground Adventure (all about dirt and bugs, no thank you!). I loved the Viking exhibit, which included everything from a boat replica to what the Vikings ate.

With so much left to see, Chris and I could easily spend several more days at The Field Museum. We might have to do just that when the special exhibition on the Greeks arrives in November.

California Road Trip: San Diego Zoo Tips

I’m slightly embarrassed to say it has been two months since I have written a California road trip post, but our move to Chicago has been dominating this blog. I have been really looking forward to sharing our day at the San Diego Zoo with y’all because it was so much better than I expected.

I love animals, but a zoo is not usually the first place I want to visit in a city. However, Chris loves zoos and had always wanted to visit the San Diego Zoo, so I added it to our itinerary. I knew the San Diego Zoo was known as one of the best zoos in the country, but I expected to be disappointed. I loved our private tour (which I will discuss in another post), and the zoo had many unique animals…and absolutely adorable babies. I came away thinking I wouldn’t mind visiting the San Diego Zoo again next time we’re in San Diego.

The thing about the San Diego Zoo being one of the best zoos in the country is that it is often crowded. Here are a few tips to help you beat the crowds and make the most out of your day at the zoo:

Get there before it opens 
Get to the zoo about 30 minutes before it opens. The crowds are smaller first thing in the morning, so it’s a great way to see the most popular exhibits.

 

Visit the pandas and koala bears first 
Speaking of popular exhibits, many visit the San Diego Zoo just to see the pandas and koala. We went to see the pandas first, and there was no line. Later, we walked by the exhibit again and the line was over an hour long. We visited the koalas a bit later in the day, and it was really busy. Our timing worked well for us, though, because a koala had just been moved to a new habitat and was awake during the day (very rare for koalas), so he could spread his scent.

Do research about exhibits before you arrive 
The zoo is constantly rotating exhibits, so check online to see what is happening while you will be there. I was eager to see some babies and was really excited when I found out that a baby hippo had been born two days before the visit, and a baby gorilla was with its momma in the gorilla habitat. Seeing the babies was a highlight of our time at the zoo. The baby hippo was adorable, and I loved watching the momma play with her little one. The baby gorilla’s mom brought her little one close to the glass and played with it in front of us.

Next, I will share our private tour of the zoo (and why we went on one in the first place).

 Catch up on our California Road Trip:

Quick Thoughts

Seven-Day Itinerary From San Diego to San Francisco

Exploring Old Town San Diego 

San Diego Old Town Trolley Tour 

La Jolla Cove

Are you a big fan of zoos? Have you ever been to the San Diego Zoo? 

Life Update: Two Months in Chicago

You know how I said I wasn’t going to update y’all on every month we spend in Chicago? I changed my mind. It’s a fun way for me to look back on our adventures over the past month.

In July, Chicago really started to feel like home to us. We love where we live and have gotten to know our way around our area. I can’t wait to show our home to friends who visit.

Speaking of visitors, we got to see both sets of parents this month. My in-laws came into town for a weekend, and I had a great time exploring Chicago with them. Chris happened to get one of the days they were here off, so we went to the Art Institute of Chicago and the Field Museum. My brother-in-law really wanted to do the Skydeck at the Sears Willis Tower, which I had purposefully left out of my list of things to do in Chicago because I am scared of heights. I loved it. It was so neat to see the view of the city from the 103rd floor. I’m glad we went at night because we got to see the sunset and the beautiful city lights.

My parents happened to be in town on my birthday (They had been visiting friends near Milwaukee and had flown in and out of Chicago. The crazy part is my dad booked those tickets before we knew we were moving here. It was a total God thing), so I got to see them in the morning for a couple hours. I loved being able to show them our new place.

July was a festival month for us. We started off by going to Taste of Chicago, and then we went to the Pierogi Festival in Whiting, Indiana on the weekend after our birthdays and anniversary. The pierogis were delicious, and it was the kind of silliness we needed after a super week full of night float.

Speaking of night float, this month was our first experience with Chris constantly working nights. He had one night earlier in the month, but for the past two weeks and a half, he has been working from 5 p.m. to 7 a.m. every day. No fun. I tried to switch my schedule to match his, and the results have been entertaining. He is finished on Tuesday, and I am jumping for joy!

Before night float started, we went on our first day trip adventure to the Indiana Dunes. Chris, of course, picked the only trail marked rugged, so we were hiking in deep sand in sandals. Each step felt like I was doing the stair stepper machine at the gym, but the gorgeous views of Lake Michigan were worth it.

Have I mentioned how much I love Chicago in the summer? I am not missing the 100-degree temperatures back in Texas (though my in-laws brought the heat with them when they came. Our day doing the hop on hop off bus was scorching). I am enjoying the beautiful weather here while I can!

I could honestly say a million more things about our July in Chicago, but this post is already long, so I will end it here. Here’s to another great month in Chicago!