Find Your Chances

As promised, here is my post about Molly’s Cupcakes in the Lincoln Park section of Chicago.  Since I’m so crazy about cupcakes, I thought it would be a great idea to see what the Windy City had to offer when we visited last weekend for St. Patty’s Day.  Before leaving for the weekend, I did some research about cupcake bakeries in Chicago and came across Molly’s Cupcakes in a Chicago edition of Daily Candy. It had a cute name and it specialized it cupcakes, so I thought we should give it a whirl.

After arriving at O’Hare on Friday , Jared and I grabbed some lunch in Olde Town and then walked to Molly’s Cupcakes on Clark Street. We were greeted by a cute storefront:

And a case of cupcakes that brought a smile to my face and made my saliva glands start to water.  I literally was a kid in a candy shop.  I wanted to try every cupcakes from the Red Velvet Cupcake to the Chocolate Cookie Cupcake.

Fortunately, Molly’s makes mini-cupcakes so we were able to taste four different types of cupcakes.

We also tried Molly’s hot chocolate, which was to die for.  You know a cup of hot chocolate is going to be good when the person making it dumps a ladle full of hot fudge in the bottom of the cup before pouring in the rich, creamy hot chocolate.

According to a complimentary card I picked up at Molly’s Cupcakes, “Molly was my third grade teacher. Whenever one of her students had a birthday, she would bake us cupcakes. Molly was nice enough to pass down the recipe to me.  Just about everyone who tries them thinks they’re the best cupcakes ever.”

In line with this theme, the Molly’s Cupakes bakery is decorated in elementary school classroom and play yard equipment. Jared tried out  the swing at the bar before we left.

And the bonus to all of this?  Molly’s Cupcakes donates much of its profits to schools in the community.  So you don’t have to feel guilty having the second or third cupcake. It’s all for a good cause.

Jared and I had a wonderful time visiting my brother and his friends in Chicago this past weekend. Chi-Town had so much to offer including delicious mini-cupcakes, a florescent green river and lots of St. Patty’s Day revelry!  

After arriving at O’Hare at noon on Friday, we grabbed some lunch in Olde Towne:

Then we headed to Molly’s Cupcakes on Clark Street:

More to come about the fabulous Molly’s Cupcakes in a separate post.  It definitely gives Magnolia a run for its money, though I’m always partial to anything NYC-related.

That evening we enjoyed a delicious Italian dinner at Mario’s and then put back a few 312’s:

Mike @ Wrigley Field

The next day, we headed out on the Chi-Town to partake in the St. Patty’s Day fun.  First stop, the green river:

Mike and me @ the Green River

Next stop Rock Bottom and then onto another meet up bar and dinner at Harmony.  Much fun was had at these spots, but pictures are being withheld to protect the guilty. On Sunday, we had a great brunch and checked out The Shedd Aquarium:

Chicago Skyline

All in all a spectacular weekend in the Windy City.  Special shout out to Mike for being a great host!

Numerous events occurred this week that served to remind me that life can change in the blink of an eye. I’ve always enjoyed re-reading this following quote as it reinforces my resolve to do and see as much as I can in the time that I have.

“Dream what you want to dream; go where you want to go; be what you want to be — because you only have one life and once chance to do all the things you want to do.”             – Bolous

Me @ the Grand Canyon in February 2008

It’s getting late on this Wednesday, but here’s a thought-provoking excerpt from George Eliot’s The Mill on the Floss.

Our delight in the sunshine on the deep bladed grass today, might be no more than the faint perception of wearied souls, if it were not for the sunshine and the grass in the far-off years, which still live in us and transform our perception into love.

–The Mill on the Floss by George Eliot

Where Everybody Knows Your Name! The visit with the BC Girls this past weekend in Boston was–as expected–wonderful! I’m using everyone’s initials in this post to protect the innocent (and not so innocent), but if you know us (or are one of us) you can probably figure out who is who!

We spent Saturday morning at CK’s home visiting, eating breakfast and playing with the baby.

Cute baby alert!

Later, we headed to TL’s apartment and then on a jaunt to Coolidge Corner where we met up with MO and stuffed ourselves with crepes.  YUM!  After spending three plus hours debating where to eat dinner, we finally settled on the Rattlesnake on Boylston Street.

Good times were had by all at the Rattlesnake. MMS started with the Lap Dance, moved on to Sex on the Charles and ended with Spooning.  Just kidding!  Well, not really, but those were actually the names of drinks and entrees at the Rattlesnake.  Sorry MMS–couldn’t help myself!  CK did a few lunges to impress the weak Aussies at the next table who were doing one — yes, just one — push up every time they used their friend’s name rather than their friend’s code name for that night.  Not really sure if I followed that one, but CK put them to shame with her lunges.  MMS even put up $5 for CK to do the lunges and told  our section of the restaurant, “I’m just like Oprah!” as she waved the $5 over her head.

After a few drinks, we headed down the street to Solas next to the Lenox Hotel.  Although the place had a funky fried fish and vinegar smell, we did enjoy our drinks and spying on the speed dating couple. SW also gave us the low down on bikini waxes. All in all, it was a fun and informative night!

ML and TL were good sports about letting SW, MMS and me crash on their couch. Of course, MMS and ML exchanged a few insults over the course of the weekend–but that’s par for the course. Sunday morning it was back to Coolidge Corner for some brunch and shopping. Plus, no trip to Boston is complete without a stop at JP Licks. The weekend was too short, and we were soon parting ways to head back to our respective homes.

The only thing missing from the weekend was LT! But, Bezerkley is a bit far for a weekend trip.  Next time we expect you to be there LT!  To all the BC girls:

Catch Your Acts Later!

Peace Out!

Take Care!

Love You!