Summer Vacations

This last weekend I was pleasantly surprised to have had an enjoyable summer break in Chicago. I had been secretly anxious, but my husband had been wanting to go for years and we were offered a cabin by the lake by some friends. So I said yes and we went for just 3 nights. It is always a schlep to pack all the extra medical stuff and making sure that I didn't forget anything. I have a check list that helps and we headed off for the 5 hour drive.

On highway 90 we passed the Wisconsin Dells and thought it sounded lovely and stopped for lunch. EEAAKK, it was a bawdy holiday jungle of crowds, lights, noise and attractions which was very overwhelming, so we headed back through heavy traffic and carried on to our destination.The cabin was lovely and it was a joy to be alone with my husband and to see him relax. Thankfully the weather was perfect; dry, sunny and a high of 75F. Any hotter and I start to flag but it was lovely and we took the train in to town in the morning, which was really great and I was blown away by how lovely the downtown was.

We caught a taxi to the  architectural boat tour (It makes sense to save energy and worth the cost) and spent a fascinating 1.5 hours travelling on the river and learning about the buildings and Chicago history. So very worth it to just sit and enjoy the ride. We then walked to Millennial Park which turned out to be a bit hard, so I sat in the shade while my husband scouted things out and we headed into the Park restaurant and enjoyed a cool off, rest and great meal. The 'bean' was great but my favourite was the Laurie perennial garden and as a gardener it has been an inspiration. I happily sat while my husband did a little more exploring. 

We headed in the next day by car in the afternoon after a good rest and drove along the water to Lincoln Park and had a lovely  time there too. I found that pacing myself is the key as well as making sure that my husband had the freedom to explore while I rested. The 3rd day we chilled at the cabin and though I was tired, it was the good kind and we vowed to do it again, next time taking in some of the museums in colder weather. I felt like we managed the whole thing well and I think short breaks may be the way to go, it felt like I wasn't missing out on life and that it was something we could both really enjoy.