Twelve Dates of Christmas: Downtown Exploring {Date 1}

I am going to attempt to get back on the regular blogging bandwagon, and this little challenge seems like a good place to start! I saw the idea for the Twelve Dates of Christmas here, and decided that would be a fun and festive way for Joe and I to enjoy the holiday season together. Some of our dates might be a little less date-like (I'm thinking cookie baking date, double date, sit-on-couch-and-watch-Love Actually-date), but since I started this challenge on December 2 or 3, we will pretty much have to average one date every other day. So... be prepared for some adorable holiday ideas!

The first date was Chicago-Style Christmas at its finest. We started downtown at Macy's, checking out the holiday windows and beautiful decor inside. I even managed to get a new watch for an early Christmas gift... I am too spoiled! The windows are always fun to look at, but we all agreed that this year wasn't our favorite. They were pretty whimsical, though, and the world can always use more whimsy!

Then we went over to Christkindlmarket, a traditional German Market in Daley Plaza. It's a yearly tradition for us, and we love looking at the booths full of German ornaments, decor, and housewares. The food is great, too! Brauts, strudel, giant pretzles... what else do you need?!  It was a pretty quick visit this year, since we were meeting up with some other people, so Joe and I have already talked about squeezing in one more trip before Christmas. It is a crowded cluster on any weekend in December, but that's what the holidays are all about, right?!  (We might go back on a weeknight after work...)

I love the red & green lights all over downtown!

Our first date of Christmas was actually a double date, because our friends
Jess and Henry were visiting from Colorado.
It's always fun when the four of us get together!