It’s early on a Friday. Seven of us walk to a gate at Harry Reid International airport. We had just come from checking bags, an activity that anyone who reads this knows I hate. But it was necessary. Leaving the cold of the desert for the cold of Chicago requires a slightly different wardrobe.

A quick flight and we landed in Chicago at just after lunchtime, hopped an Uber, and headed into the city.

The weather was supposed to decent. Cold, but limited precipitation. So far, that’s out the window. The cold part was true, but the current rain made me think the prediction about no precipitation might have been wrong. We had planned on layers. We had planned on limited rewearing of clothes. Working with wet had been dismissed. But, we knew, the weather here changes quickly.

Friday afternoon was low key. Get to the hotel in the Loop. Get unpacked. And head to an early dinner.

Some of us have a soft spot for real Chicago deep dish. But others hadn’t had the privilege. Given that travel had prevented any real proper meals – too early for breakfast and in the air for lunch – we pulled a blue hair special and got a table at Giordanos for 4:30pm. And you know what? It was awesome. The kids crushed the appetizers, with help from the adults, and the pizza came out on schedule. The table went quiet while everyone turned their attention to the 1,000+ calories in front of them. There were some doggie boxes, but pretty much everything was consumed.

Next was a stop at 360 Chicago and The Cloud Bar on Michigan for views and drinks. Upon arrival there were signs stating that it was cloudy and there was limited visibility. Eh, let’s go, the weather changes quickly. The views were awesome. Watching the clouds go by, the lights playing peek a boo, perfect views to surreal clouds. Great night to be up there. The Cloud Bar? That was cool, but more expensive than necessary. The girls had some cloud drink infused with looked and smelled like bubble gum vape. They liked it, which is all that matters.

After the elevator ride down, everyone crashed. Early bed time, good night sleep, and ready for a busy day.

Up first: bagels from Taste of New York. A traditional NYC bagel joint in ChiTown. We ordered them through DoorDash and they showed up on time and just as delicious as expected. Any day I can start with NY style lox on and everything bagel is gonna be awesome.

First stop was the Adler Planetarium. We had heard 90 minutes was plenty for a visit. That person is obviously not familiar with nine year old me the space geek – who still exists today in a much older body. The whole experience was great. Even the corny show that gave us a tour of our solar system. Four of the seven took a nap. I sat next to my 10 year old nephew who loved it. No wonder I like the little guy: our little space geek selves are totally friends.

Dragging ourselves away from Adler, we headed to Yolk on Michigan for lunch. Or breakfast. Either way. Both were available. We had coffees and crepes and omelettes and pancakes and corned beef hash or some combination of all of them. We left stuffed. And I have to say the food was great, but the service was next level. They were on their game. Polite and everything was tended to quickly without asking. Can’t recommend it enough. Try some of the unique items, you won’t be disappointed.

What does every vacation need? A little culture. Does that fit with this group? Apparently.

The Art Institute of Chicago is a facility that seems infinitely larger inside than is possible from looking at the outside of the building. Maybe that’s part of what makes it special. We had a list of what we wanted to see, and did a decent job navigating it. We got to see some truly special pieces by Money, Matisse, Picasso, and many others. We really enjoyed ourselves.

For three of us, we got to see the second of the three The Bedroom paintings by Vincent Van Gogh. The first was in Amsterdam, now Chicago, sounds like Paris is coming soon…

Back out into the cold and a walk back to the hotel with a flyby of the bean and a photo op of the kids riding the bronze cow.

The girls and kids chose to head to the ice skating ribbon at Maggie Daley Park, but the guys went the other way to Elephant & Castle for pints and snacks. The girls say they had a blast, I still think we got the better end of that deal. Freshly made crisps with dips and perfect Guinness pours or sliding around in the cold with sore feet? Argument solved.

Quick change of clothes and walk to Labriola for dinner. Huge meal of great Italian food. It was loud, the wine was good, and we left having eaten more than we thought possible. If you go, skip the citrus flan. It’s a swing and a miss. Fine, we ate it, but we wouldn’t again. Unless it showed up. And then maybe.

Bellies full and spirits high, we headed back to the hotel. Still laughing and happy at the events of the day. And again we crashed.

There was a lot to get ready for, namely Bears versus Falcons at Soldier Field on Sunday. In what should have been a cold and cloudy day. But that had been replaced with a winter weather advisory running up through game time…