• Best Thing Ever,  Confessions,  Do I Really Want My Readers To Know This?,  Music,  Tough Questions

    We’re Gonna Need A Bigger Speaker.

    I love music. If you know me at all, this is not news. I listen to music all day long. I have Sirius XM radio in my car and I am a Spotify addict, with different offline playlists downloaded to my phone than the ones downloaded to my iPad, for those occasions when I have no WiFi and have to limit my choices (on a plane, on a road trip, etc.). I used to make fun of Jim for walking around with music blaring from his iPhone. After a while, I realized he was onto something there (sorry, Jim). We never ever ever ever use the stereo iPod/iPhone doc that…

  • Amazing People,  Best Thing Ever,  Blessings,  Favorite Things,  Food,  Friends,  Fun in Chicago,  My Friends Have Mad Skillz,  Pretty Pictures,  Something That Could Change Your Life

    I Nearly Nailed @MomoFali In The Eye With A Gummy Bear Last Night.

    Honestly. It was close. More on that in a bit. The 2015 BlogHer Food conference is in the books, and it was awesome. I loved that it was in my hometown for many reasons, not the least of which was that a bunch of my local friends (some food bloggers, some not) were in attendance. Working a conference on my birthday when work doesn’t seem like work AND I’m surrounded by so many people I love wasn’t too shabby of a gig, I have to say. My friend Aimee Giese of Greeblehaus, who I’ve known online since 2008-ish but with whom I’ve never spent more than a minute or two…

  • Best Thing Ever,  Food

    (I) Like A Ninja

    Disclosure: Ninja sent me a Nutri Ninja® Auto-IQ™ Pro Compact System to try out and keep. They didn’t insist that I write about it but obviously hoped I would. And here we are.   A couple of years ago, I got a juicer. It was a big joke around here (but not really “funny ha ha”: the other kind…*waves to Jim*) because I had wanted it so badly but then once I got it, it sat unused for months. When I finally used it, I discovered that perhaps I hadn’t made the right choice. It was bulky, not the most attractive small appliance, and the worst part? It was such…

  • Best Thing Ever,  Something That Could Change Your Life,  Working On My Fitness

    Go Float! (Part 1)

    Disclosure: I am writing this post in exchange for flotation therapy at Anicca Float Club, which I can’t wait to tell you about. As usual, all opinions are mine. I had no idea that floating was a thing. Well, maybe I did. I can’t imagine that it has been a thing since the 1970’s and I could never have heard of it. Maybe I had gotten wind of it at some point but if so, I stuffed it into the recesses of my brain. I have too many other things to think about/obsess over…which is probably why I ended up floating. Confused? Let me explain. I am in a constant…

  • Best Thing Ever,  Food,  Fun in Chicago,  Travels

    Chef’s Tasting at Rural Society: So Decadent!

    The last time I visited the new-ish Loews Chicago hotel in the Streeterville neighborhood, I was with Liz and her middle daughter and we were too busy with the sightseeing to enjoy a meal at Rural Society, their Argentinian steakhouse. It was a bummer but I made a promise to myself that I’d get back there as soon as I could, to try it out. As it turned out, it happened even sooner than I thought it would! The kind people at Loews Chicago wanted me to come back too, so they offered to treat Jim and me to a Chef’s Tasting. Naturally I said yes. (You would, too!) I…

  • Best Thing Ever,  Favorite Things,  Fun in Chicago,  Travels

    Homegrown Inspiration at Loews Chicago Hotel

    As many of you know, my dad spent more than forty years in the hospitality industry, as a hotel manager. I loved being the daughter of a hotel manager for many reasons, and I know that spending so much time as a hotel kid contributed greatly to who I am today (someone not fond of camping, for one thing! *insert rim shot here*). I even blogged about my childhood hotel history, if you’re interested in reading it. The links are at the bottom of this post. Since I lived in hotels for months at a time when I was a kid, it’s understandable that I feel right at home in…

  • Amazing People,  Best Thing Ever,  Favorite Things,  Food,  Friends,  Fun in Chicago,  I've Got Mad Skillz,  My Friends Have Mad Skillz,  Skydeck Chicago,  Travels

    Life In The Fast Lane Surely Make You Lose Your Mind

    It just hit me on Tuesday evening, right after I dropped Liz and her middle daughter off at the airport (how much I hate goodbyes could be a whole other post, ugh), how much I had done/accomplished/enjoyed in two weeks. It made me dizzy, and perhaps piled on more exhaustion, on top of my exhaustion. It also made me smile. The last two weeks of July just might have been the busiest two weeks of my entire life, but I’m not complaining. It was a blast. First there was the BlogHer conference in NYC. I went into it exhausted; the weeks leading up to conference weekend are crazed for our…

  • Best Thing Ever,  Blessings,  Family Fun

    On Holiday

    I just returned home from out of town, again. I spent the last couple of days in Madison, Wisconsin to attend a conference for women in leadership (more on that next week). I’ve visited Madison a few times this year, since D works and lives there, and I’ve truly fallen in love with it. It’s an awesome town with beauty everywhere you look, radiating out from the center of town and the Capitol building. Last night we were lucky enough to catch this sunset on the campus of UW-Madison. No filter!! I am terribly blessed to have the ability to gallivant all over the country; traveling is one of my…

  • Amazing People,  Best Thing Ever,  Favorite Things,  Food,  Friends,  My Friends Have Mad Skillz,  My Kid Has Mad Skillz,  Proud Moments,  Something That Could Change Your Life,  Travels

    My LTYM Travel Season, By The Numbers

    Yesterday was Mother’s Day, and it also happened to be the last day of the 2015 LISTEN TO YOUR MOTHER season. Each year I have driven to see some other shows, not only because I like hearing the stories live but also because I like to see how other cities do things (every city, while having to stick to certain national guidelines, creates a show that reflects their community), and it’s a way for me to support my fellow producers and meet up (on their own turf) with some of the teams I’ve coached as the LTYM National New Cities Mentor. This year, Jim was slightly astonished when I told…

  • Amazing People,  Best Thing Ever,  Blessings,  Favorite Things,  Fun in Chicago,  My Friends Have Mad Skillz,  Pretty Pictures,  Proud Moments,  Something That Could Change Your Life

    All Over Again.

    It’s all over, again. Every year, the experience of bringing a LISTEN TO YOUR MOTHER show to the stage in Chicago seems to fly by with more speed. On Sunday, our fourth show took place at the beautiful Athenaeum Theatre and, while it was about ninety-five minutes long, it seemed more like ten. Add the three actual hours of pre-show stuff (photos, run-through, etc.) and you have…about twenty virtual minutes. Each year I find myself trying to figure out how to freeze time a little bit. Each year I also struggle to write a recap that adequately captures everything about show day, and frankly it’s impossible to do so. Expressing…