In the last few months, several people have asked when Jon and I want to have kids. Truth is, we would like to wait. At this point in our lives, we want to be "selfish" and enjoy life with just the two of us (and doggies) for a few years. What's the rush, right?! Of course we want to travel, be spontaneous, and something that we have discussed doing is trying a new food/restaurant twice a month. I know, we are W*i*L*d, but in all seriousness, I think it sounds fun. From a tapas bar in Chicago, or a BBQ shack in Tennessee. We've always wanted to eat our way through the southern states-- this being motivated from watching hours and hours of Food Network and Travel Channel marathons.
For Jon's birthday, we drove out to Galena that last weekend in July. We left early Saturday morning and made pretty good time. Jon was driving and got behind a truck that was frustrating him. Then he made a sharp turn into a gravel parking lot and pulled into a space with a sign in front of it that said, "Horse parking ONLY".... yes, I made him move to another spot because in Elizabeth, Illinois that could have been a legitimate sign! The Broken Yolk was simple inside. Several mismatched tables and chairs, but not in that way that restaurants will do to be "cute", but most likely because it was practical for them. The menu was awesome. Great breakfast foods, and something they called the Juicy Bootsie (not to be confused with the Juicy Lucy in Minneapolis, MN). It was a cheese stuffed burger, Jon got his with a fried egg, bacon, cheese, and hot sauce. He gave me a bite, it was SO good! I ordered some eggs that came with "pancake wrapped sausages"..... those were the best pancakes I have ever had. They had almost a cinnamon taste to them, but they were amazing. So amazing, that on our way home Sunday morning, we stopped in again.
We highly recommend!
Galena is beautiful. It's hard to believe that you're still in Illinois. I took Jon there for the first time last year on his birthday. We did just a day trip last year and he loved it. Hiking along the Mississippi River, strolling down Main Street-- browsing in the little shops, stopped at a vineyard that makes the only wine I've enjoyed drinking. This year we stayed at a hotel that was about 15 minutes away from the downtown area. I sacrificed location for scenery; well worth it. The hotel was a ski resort, but in the summer they have these slides you can go down with a sled, then take the ski lift back up. Jon and I are big babies so we just rode the ski lift. At that time, I learned that I am terrified of heights. It was a 20 minute round trip ride that every bump made my pulse race a little. *Once upon a time I was young and adventurous, I bungee jumped and would go on extremely high amusement park rides, but not anymore* I had planned for us to get a couples massage. It was Jon's first, and he really enjoyed it. After the massage they put us in a recovery room with chocolates and champagne, a very nice touch! We had done some shopping down the main street in Galena. I found our cake topper there, a two-in-one keepsake. A pleasant surprise, the vineyard that we stopped at last year just opened a shop on Main Street, so we stopped in and did a wine tasting-- Massbach Ridge Winery. For dinner, we went to the Galena Brewery. They had a tapas menu, which I am a huge fan of. As we were eating, this guy started playing live acoustic music. I wish I could remember his name, he had a really good voice. We got so homesick after dinner and considered checking out of the hotel and heading home that night, but we toughed it out.... and went to bed at 10pm so we could get up early and head home :) I worry about how we will do on our honeymoon. Our pups are like our children. But it was a great getaway and just what we needed before the wedding chaos.
Jon tested his love, he's WILD
Main Street
Ski lift down, that's the mighty Mississip!
(heart rate increasing...)
Ahhh, that's better.
Lens flare! 7am, drive home.
Midwest valley.
Last weekend, Jon and I took Mo and Bob to dinner at Seasons 52 in Schaumburg. A co-worker has gone there a few times and really seemed to like it. The menus changes seasonally, and all of the meals are under 475 calories! The portions are just right, not too big or small, and everything was great. It was well worth the trip, and we will definitely go back once they have their fall menu.
Random blog post? They will most likely be that way. Our summer was so busy I want to be sure I made plenty of memories. There might be more of these reminiscent entries. :)
