It’s time for another look back at a winter getaway to the Chicago area!

Last Thursday, we hit the road at 4:15 a.m. (yes, you read that right) so Ryan could be in Elmhurst to help set up for Frosty Faustings before 10. Even with some poor weather along the way (fog, fairly heavy rain, and snow), we made good time, and were there before 9:30, which was perfect timing, because once we dropped him off, the Fab Five and I headed to Brookfield Zoo, and were there pretty much right when they opened.

I was a little worried about visiting the zoo on a cold, and still somewhat snowy, January morning. It was a free admission day, though, so we only had to pay for parking, and I figured we wouldn’t lose too much if the trip was a bust. You can imagine my shock, then, when we had what was probably my best visit to any of the zoos I’ve ever been to! Between the weather and the fact that it was a weekday, we pretty much had the zoo to ourselves, and despite the cold, the animals were out and so active. We had a great time and got to see some animals that the St. Louis Zoo doesn’t have…in the end, we walked around for about five hours! It was a great zoo trip!

By the time we were done at the zoo, our hotel room at the Hilton Chicago/Oak Brook Suites was ready. As soon as we saw the lobby, we knew we were in for a treat:

Our room(s) did not disappoint. We had both a living/office area with a sleeper sofa, and a bedroom with two beds. We also had what I think is the biggest bathroom I’ve ever seen in a hotel. Our eighth floor room was on the corner of the building, so we even had two different views!

We were pretty worn out from our very long day, so we let Ryan have the van for the rest of the afternoon/evening, and we settled in for a pleasant night of watching the Food Network on the hotel’s cable TV. It was a relaxing way to end a very busy day!