Ditka vs. a Hurricane, Who Would Win?

I find it extremely profound that I have written 20 posts on this blog thus far without once mentioning one of my greatest passions...THE CHICAGO BEARS!!!  I know I'm not alone when I say that football season is hands down the best time of year.  It's the only time of year when it's socially acceptable to have buffalo wings and potato skins as a meal.  The months of September through January are the only times I strategically plan out my Sunday outfits.  If you're on the west coast, it's totally normal to start your FIRST pitcher of beer at 10a.  And finally, if there was some way to measure the statistics, I'm pretty sure there would be a spike in random high-fiving and hugging of strangers during football season.

My outfit was a little retro, so we decided to be groovy
for a picture

To embrace the season and milk the football festivities as much as possible, the DuPont family has started a wonderful tradition of heading out to Chicago for an annual football game together.  But this year, our trip to Chicago was even more eventful as we also flew in town for a reunion for my mother's side of the family.

Garrett and I with Aunt Dorothy!
Sweetest lady in the world

Unfortunately my maternal grandmother passed away before I was born and when my mother was young. So my mom organized a wonderful event to bring all of her side of the family together to reminisce and celebrate everyone who could make it and remember those who were looking down on us from heaven.  The weekend kicked off early Saturday morning with the family reunion lunch with some of the best Italian food I've had in a long time.  The turnout was wonderful and it was great to see family that I haven't seen in years!  It was also the first time Michael was able to meet so many family members from my mothers side of the family all at once.  Last time I saw a lot of this family, I was so young!  And now I am married!  I hope that we can have events like this more often.

Surrounded by the wonderful world of Ditka...my heaven

After the reunion lunch we packed up in the mini van that we rented for the weekend.  I think my Pops had a LITTLE too much fun driving the minivan (we never had them growing up).  But we moved the party to downtown Chicago where we checked in to the Hilton AKA the same hotel that the Chicago Bears stay at the night before the games.  My beautiful mother was so organized in making the reservations for the family, but somehow Michael and I got upgraded to a beautiful lake view room on the penthouse floor, and the rest of the crew was cozy in their double room.  So needless to say, Mike and I volunteered our room as the "party room" as we were equipped with a wet bar and mini fridge.  While our room faced north, it was still fun to have everyone up to the room for happy hour and prosecco as we watched the color change into night time over Navy Pier.

As if we didn't have enough to celebrate, our very dear family friend Marissa Mazza who also lives Downtown announced to everyone that she passed the Bar Exam!!!!  So we continued the party with the Mazza family at Ditka's Steakhouse.  Would you believe that after 27 years of my life and being an avid Bears fan, I have never been to Ditka's Steakhouse?   The restaurant is one of the most magical places I've ever been in my life.  I was like an over stimulated child at Disneyland!  I wanted to take a picture of every "picture".  There were hundreds and thousands of vintage posters and autographed pictures.  It was seriously a Bear's fan's Mecca, at the risk of sounding cliche.  It was the happiest any restaurant has ever made me.

Mike had a hard time deciding what to eat as the menu was a barrage of cleverly named entrees including: the "fridge" burger, da pork chop, and the fullback sized filet mignon.  My husband's decision was made when he heard the special  was "the tomahawk prime rib".  It was an aggressive move, but when in Rome!  And no meal is complete without a nice bottle of Ditka's finest Pinot Noir...which Mike and I


drank by ourselves....whoops.   There will never be a trip to Chicago where I go without a visit to Ditka's from now on.  I feel terrible that I've missed out on it this my whole life, but the experience was probably heightened by the amazing company and great family friends who joined us for our meal.

Sunday was the big day.  Sunday was the day I've been waiting for since the day we booked this flight.  My head wasn't feeling too hot, but I woke up with Chicago Bears pride in my heart and excitement for the big game.  The sun was shining, the day was beautiful, and the city was painted in navy & orange.  I was so excited for the weekend that I stressed for weeks over my outfit to the game...but Mike and I chose beautiful matching Ditka shirts that were one-of-a-kind.

The stadium was one of the most beautiful sights I've seen in a while.   I love the Bears, and the only think I love more than the Chicago Bears is being around OTHER people who love the Chicago Bears just as much as I do.  So to be in a stadium full of people sharing my enthusiasm was electric.  Not to mention, we got to see a phenomenal game which included a defensive interception, Devon Hester setting the record for the most punt returns, and most importantly, a big fat W.  I enjoyed every point scored and every time I got to sing "Bear Down" whilst wearing my over sized foam Bear claw.

Unfortunately we had to fly back immediately following the game, and I vow to never leave on game day ever again.  But we did get home to see our little boy and to get just enough sleep to start the work week with out missing a beat.  It may be another year until I get to go back to Soldier Field, and we may not have a Super Bowl team this year, but I leave you with this last piece of Bear Pride:


Bear down, Chicago Bears, make every play clear the way to victory;
Bear down, Chicago Bears, put up a fight with a might so fearlessly.
We'll never forget the way you thrilled the nation with your T-formation.
Bear down, Chicago Bears, and let them know why you're wearing the crown.
You're the pride and joy of Illinois, Chicago Bears, bear down.