Well, I made it to Dallas last night, flying out of ORD on United Airlines.  We finally made it out of Chicago after switching planes at the gate and then upon arrival at DFW we had the delightful experience of sitting on the tarmac for about 40 minutes before a gate opened up.  The waiting continued as I had the nerve-racking experience of having my checked bag being one of the last onto the baggage claim carousel, thankfully I have all of my luggage.
Another note, I didn’t have any issues with any of the batteries that I brought with me, but we’ll see what the TSA has in store when I fly home on Jan 2 after the new restrictions come into effect…
Now to enjoy my two days before the Cotton Bowl on New Years.