Chicago?

We've been to Chicago a few times, and it is a great place to visit. This picture is from a year and a half ago when we rode the bus up to Chicago with Chad and Angelina for a whirlwind trip. It's an awesome city. It has incredible things to do and see. I love their world-class art museum, and I could spend days at a time in the science museum.

Still, I have to admit that I was shocked when Nick opened his match letter. I had not kept Chicago on my radar at all. I was too busy thinking about the dozen other cities we might move to, where we could buy a house, have a garden, and let the dog run in and out of the doggie door all day. I thought it impossibly improbable that we would end up in Chicago, the only other metro area with St. Louis-style problems, but with sky-high real estate prices.

Except now we KNOW we're Chicago bound, so I'm adjusting my expectations. Instead of owning a house with a doggie door, maybe we'll find an apartment that allows pets. No garden, but maybe we can live close to a park. Life will certainly be different in Chicago than it would have been in one of my dream cities, but it can be great. Just as I'll be sad to leave St. Louis this summer, I'm sure it will be hard to leave Chicago in five years.

Oh, and did I mention that in 8 weeks I'll be married to a doctor? Pretty incredible. I think Nick's junior high and high school teachers would be particularly shocked.