If you follow me on Twitter or Insta, then you probably already know that Ben and I ventured out to Illinois last Friday. We were only there for four days, but it was four days full of all of the wonderful fall things I was craving: tailgating, football, cool air, layers, pumpkin patches, and apple orchards. My boots and I were in ALL of our fall glory. They were the only shoe option I packed after all, with the temps ranging in the 60s during the day and between the 40s and 50s at night. Just another reminder to myself that I am SO not made for the Sunshine State, and I require those things called seasons.
Our main reason for our trip up to Illinois was to visit Ben’s old stomping grounds at the University of Illinois for some bar hopping and a football game with friends and his family. We try to make it a point to do it every year since he’s graduated college, and so far we’ve stuck to it. Granted, he’s only been out of college for three years – but I’m hopeful we’ll keep this tradition going for the years to come. I mean let’s be real, who doesn’t love a weekend of reliving college?
Sunday was spent at a pumpkin patch and an apple orchard. This was a first for this Florida girl. Someone walking by us dubbed the location “instagram central”, and she couldn’t have hit the nail on the head any harder. iPhones were out everywhere with girls trying to capture the perfect fall-esque pictures, and I was obviously no exception. Luckily, Ben gets it and he snapped some pictures of me posing with pumpkins and apples and ALL OF THE FALL THINGS (he really is just the best). We sipped apple cider, and picked apples which we were able to take back home to Florida with us. I’m not exaggerating when I say Publix has nothing on these.
The last day of our trip was spent in Chicago. We walked up and down Michigan Ave, made a quick trip over to The Bean, and hit up Revolution Brewing for burgers, wings and everything else that our waistlines definitely did not need #worthit. With all of the walking we did during the weekend, I’m hoping it all finds a way to balance out.
This was our last planned vacation of the year, and we made it well worth it. It’s back to routines, shorts, and flip flops for us.
