It's hard to believe we had never been to Chicago, so it was nice to actually set foot in the Windy City (I know, I know, real Chicagoans would never call it that). We were staying downtown, which was very convenient. After checking in to our hotel we walked a few blocks to Eataly. Eataly is a favorite spot in NYC, so we were more than happy to check out the one in Chicago. Even better was meeting friends there for a delicious sit down meal. And of course we had to check out the pastries.

We were full on tourists in Chicago, so it was imperative we visit ̶T̶h̶e̶ ̶W̶i̶l̶l̶i̶s̶ ̶T̶o̶w̶e̶r̶ Sears Tower. We walked there in the late afternoon so we could watch sunset and experience the transition to night from the observatory and Skyledge (103rd floor). Very cool views!

We started our full day in Chicago with a Chicago Architecture Foundation boat cruise - we loved it! This was one of the most recommended activities for Chicago and I can see why. It was neat learning the history of the buildings and city and the views were terrific. After the cruise we took a moment to cool off and grab a snack at the Nutella Cafe on our way to Millennium Park. The Bean (aka Cloud Gate) is another tourist must and we took the obligatory pictures there. We wandered around the park for awhile and also saw Crown Fountain, BP Bridge, and Buckingham Fountain. I thought it was a wonderful park and we might have spent more time there if our faces weren't melting from the heat and humidity. So we retired to the hotel for an afternoon break. Then it was showtime - we saw Hamilton! I had seen the show in NYC (always have to add that I saw it with the original cast - woot!), but Norah had not seen it yet and the tickets were easier to get in Chicago. Of course it was awesome. After the show we took the subway to Chinatown for bubble tea and a snack before retiring for the night.

Before we departed Chicago on the third day, we spent the morning at the Museum of Science and Industry - awesome place! We watched a chick hatch, visited the storm room, went through the mirror maze, and watched the robotics assemble a toy top. A half day was not nearly enough time, we could've spent hours here. Maybe on a return visit. We loved Chicago and had a great time (even if too brief). This concluded our "city" portion of the trip - now on to the heartland and friends and family time.

On our way to Port Byron, IL we met a friend at Culvers. It was great to see Robyn and this also marked the start of a love affair between Norah and Culvers (just ask her about the cheese curds). We would visit Culvers several more times on our trip and Norah was delighted to find they had a restaurant in Flagstaff as well. We stayed with Chris and Mark in Port Byron for two nights. We mostly spent our time chatting, but also did a lunch cruise on the Mississippi with Adrienne and Darren and stopped by the John Deere Pavilion. After our go, go, go itinerary it was nice for some downtime.

We had more family time the next few days at our next destination of Cedar Rapids, IA. We had a good time visiting with Sandy, John, and Richard and Norah happily consumed more cheese curds. We had one last stop in Iowa - Des Moines. We stayed with Kristina and Fred and had a wonderful evening with good food, wine, and company. We were happy Connie could join us from Kansas - so much fun with these ladies! We also loved the four cats - especially Kevin. The next morning we watched the US Women win the World Cup, had lunch, and were on our way to Nebraska.