Beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

Well, the forecast said snow, and today didn't disappoint. The first real snowfall of the year always seems magical in a way. Waking up, looking out the window to see everything -- buildings, cars, trees -- dusted with white...it looks just like a Christmas (or some other wintry-type holiday) card!

And then you go out in it. Your feet slip on the pavement, your pant legs become encrusted with dried salt from the sidewalks, the bus speeds by you while you're waiting to cross the street, splashing muddy slush all over your white shoes. Ah, the joys and the hazards of winter in Chicago. It sure is pretty for a little while, though.

(The view from our window tonight -- Sears Tower and WaMu lit in red & green)

The difference between the breezy, sunny 75 degrees it was when I left Florida on Saturday and the wet, grey 23 it is here right now couldn't be any clearer. For some reason, I still choose to return to Chicago (for now). But don't get me wrong, Florida has its charms.

For the record, I had a wonderful vacation. The wedding was spectacular, as predicted.

I've uploaded a bunch of pictures to Facebook and there are more of the reception here if you're at all interested....the best part was the wild techno music and crazy dancing, of course. Unfortunately, I didn't partake due to nerves over the possibility of re-injuring my leg. I'm still not 100% about it and thought booze and jumping around like a mad woman was probably a high-risk combo. Instead, I stuck to the picture taking, which proved to be fun in itself. And as a bonus, there are no embarassing pictures of me floating around from that night (I'm sure there are embarassing pics of me somewhere from some time in my life, but if I don't have to see them, they don't exist, right?).

Speaking of embarassing...my mom showed up last Sunday with her new husband (they eloped last year, because that's totally normal for moms to do, right?) wearing this:

Yes, I got to spend the entire day with Thing 1 and Thing 2. In public places. It was fun. We ate, we shopped, we mini-golfed, we walked around Downtown Disney, we ate some more...it was all good in the end. Pics up here.

Monday and Tuesday were spent with Dan, who came over from Tampa. More shopping, more eating, drinking, saw Bolt in 3D (must've been drinking when I agreed to see a movie with Miley Cyrus in it, eh?), lots of Starbucks and interesting conversations with strangers, etc. You get the picture.

Thanksgiving with Jon's family - do I need to describe the eating? Lots of yummy vegan foods. Nuff said.

Went to Animal Kingdom on Friday which was just beyond cool. If you've gone, you get it. If you ever have the chance to go, take it. I love animals, and this felt a lot more animal-friendly than a zoo. Interesting fact about the park: Jon told me last night that the entire Magic Kingdom would fit inside of the one safari ride at Animal Kingdom.

We waited in line for about 30 minutes and the ride lasted 18 more. Now that's what I call time well spent! Everest was good as well, though far too short if you ask me. Finding Nemo show was great too.

I thought it would be really busy, considering that it was the day after Thanksgiving, but it wasn't at all. I'm guessing everyone was shopping? Or sleeping off the turkey? Or conserving money? Well, whatever the case, it worked out well for us! Pics up here.

That's it for tonight. This took way too long to write/post...which is why I give up on blogging I think. No attention span. Mad props to Walt for posting something every single day in November. I don't think I would have something to say each day, so color me impressed!

And as I write this, Jon is setting up his new 42" TV in the bedroom. It's OBSCENE. I just had a look at it. No one needs a TV that big, I'm sure of it.