The Surprise

I did my best to keep the destination under wraps all the way until the day of the actual trip. There were a few times when I wasn’t thinking and I almost let the destination slip off my tongue. Luckily, I was able to hold it in and upon arrival at the airport, I gave her one hint: I pulled a single bean out of my pocket and handed it to her. Since my wife had a few hunches of where we could be going, she was able to guess it pretty quickly: CHICAGO!

The Windy City

They don’t call it “The Windy City” for no reason. We left what would be 70 degree temperatures at home and traded them for a 40 degree day with 26 mph winds. Luckily, that was just on Friday and on Saturday it warmed up a little bit. But needless to say, it was windy and COLD! Despite the weather though, we had an absolute blast exploring the city.

We arrived Friday at about noon and headed to our hotel at the Hyatt Regency. Because our trip was going to be pretty short, I wanted to find a hotel that was pretty central, and I have to say, this one was perfect! And on top of that, we had the most amazing view from our hotel room, I mean check this out!

Pretty impressive right? It made leaving our hotel room a little bit tougher, but we managed.

The Food Scene

From our hotel room, we could spot a Giordano’s just across the street. I must admit, the pizza scene at Chicago was one of the things I was most excited for, and it was a pleasant surprise to see one of the most popular pizza places in the city just steps away from our hotel. Being hungry after our flight, we made our way straight there to get in on the deep dish action!

The deep dish did not disappoint at all. We ordered a fresh spinach deep dish, which was absolutely incredible. I loved their marinara sauce. It had a salty flavor to it that made it pop and taste incredible. It was very cheesy as well, which I’m usually not the biggest fan of, but in this case, it tasted amazing. If you ever go to Chicago, don’t miss out on a deep dish from Giordano’s or Lou Malnati’s (I would recommend the former, and my wife would recommend the latter. Both are incredible options though). And if you aren’t in the mood for pizza, try out the Signature Berry Bliss French Toast at Wildberry Cafe (which was also conveniently located just steps from our hotel).

What to Do for Quick Weekend Trip

Besides eating delicious food, we of course wanted to see as much of Chicago as we could as we could! Because we essentially only had a day and a half there, I tried to find activities that would maximize our time in the city. Once again, the location of the hotel was a game changer. It was about a 5 minute walk from Cloud Gate, which is also known as “The Bean” since it resembles a gigantic, reflective bean with amazing views of the city.

Besides being close to the bean, our hotel was also very close to a Architecture River Cruise (in fact, it was literally across the street/river). This is one activity I think is a must if you want to see Chicago and don’t have a lot of time. The tour itself took about 1.5 hours and it was super interesting and took you right through the heart of the city. A tour guide explains the various styles of the architecture you see throughout the city and gives some historical facts as well. It was really neat to be able to see so much of the city while relaxing on top of a boat.

Another thing we did that gave us great views of the city was visiting the 360 Chicago observation deck. Be warned, though, because the lines to get in can be quite long. If you buy the Chicago City Pass, you get to cut the line but take a look to see if the benefits of the pass outweigh the costs. We personally did not buy it, but then again, I didn’t research it much either.

The views from the observation deck are incredible! When you are in a big city, it’s a must-do to get a higher vantage point to oversee the city. Minus the long line, we really enjoyed the views. The walk to get to 360 Chicago was also pretty fun! It takes you into the heart of the city and there is a lot of shopping and cool churches in the area.

Experiences to Remember

Overall, this trip was a blast! Although it would’ve been awesome to have more time, we felt like we were still able to see and do so much in such a short time. It confirmed to us that gifting experiences can be so meaningful. We love to travel, and doing stuff like this creates memories that we will never forget. So when you are debating what to get loved ones in the future, consider gifting experiences! It doesn’t have to be a trip like this, but find something nearby that allows you to spend time with each other and do things you may not do otherwise! This will create awesome memories for the future and won’t be forgotten or lost with time as most gifts do.

Check out our video we made of our trip to Chicago! We love to make videos and plan on making many more in the future of our travels and activities around home! If you like the video, feel free to subscribe to our channel!

In a world where most people ask, “what is in it for me?”, why is it important to give? And how can I give?

Why Should I Give?

As a child my parents taught me to give 10% of my increase as a tithing to the church. I was taught that the money I had was a blessing from God and paying a tithing was giving back a portion of what I was blessed with. I am grateful for this habit I have of giving that was established at a young age.

When I was in college and barely able to pay for both food and gas, I got to a point where I was no longer paying tithing. After a few months of not giving, I decided that I wanted to start again and make up the money during the time that I had not been giving tithing. It took some time of saving and tight budgeting, but once I was paying tithing again, I was amazed at how much easier it was to pay for the things I needed without receiving a raise at work. Between budgeting and making an effort to give, I was blessed with the ability to pay for both my wants and needs. Giving helps us to look outside of ourselves and have a greater appreciation for our gifts and blessings.

In the book Smart Money, Smart Kids by Dave Ramsey and Rachel Cruze, they explain how money, and all we have, are gifts from God and that we are stewards entrusted to mange and improve upon those things which we have been given. Therefore, everything I have including my money, time, talents, etc. are not my own. I am a steward over these things and it is important that I learn to manage them and improve upon what I have. I have not always been willing to give generously because I work hard for everything I have. However, this paradigm shift of viewing myself as the steward instead of the owner has helped me become more generous.

How Can I Give?

There are so many ways to give, but often the hardest part is just getting started. I would say the first step is to express gratitude for what you have. Then get creative!

Giving and having an attitude of gratitude go hand in hand. Gratitude creates feelings of joy and contentment. This helps me to look outside of myself to spread those feelings. I think it’s interesting that Thanksgiving comes right before Christmas, the time of giving. We have a season to reflect and show thankfulness for what we have preceding a season of joy and giving.

For many years growing up, my parents along with aunts and uncles would find a family in need. All of us would gather together food, jackets, other necessities and toys that we could give to the family. We would try to deliver these gifts anonymously. I always wanted to see the look on their faces when they received our gifts, but my parents never let me be there when the gifts were dropped off. I didn’t like that at the time, but this practice of anonymous giving taught me to enjoy the act of giving without the need to be thanked or recognized. It just felt good to give.

How can we continue the attitude of gratitude and spirit of giving throughout the year?

• keep a gratitude journal
• say prayers of gratitude
• look for the good in bad situations
• plan service projects
• offer help

If “[you] make a life by what [you] give”, what kind of life are you making? We can all be better at giving and being generous. If you are struggling to start, try this: sometime this week, go out of your way to give generously to someone without expecting something in return! You can give somebody your time, or you can donate to a good cause, or do anything that makes someone else’s life better. Whatever it may be, start ASAP! Giving is the most fulfilling part of wealth building and it is something we should be doing along the way, and not just when we have “arrived.” If you can’t give now, how will you be able to give later? The more you give, the easier it becomes and the happier you’ll be.

How have you found happiness in giving? Please comment below.