Magnificent Day

I spent the day today on and near the Magnificent Mile. Christmas shopping can be had at its finest on the Mag Mile. Cartier, Van Cleef and Arpel, Nordstrom, just to name a few. Then there are restaurants, many fine restaurants. We ate breakfast at a restaurant a little off the beaten path called The West Egg. Although off the beaten path, it sure is popular. We had to wait quite a while for a table, but it was worth it. We ate and made a bit of a gameplan for the day. After breakfast, it was a walk down the Mag Mile, looking in various windows, occasionally walking into a store that we wouldn't be able to find at home. We went into what we thought was Nordstrom's only to find that was but one store in a three or four story mall. When we came out of the mall it was snowing and blowing. Then we walked down to the theater district and found out that the 2:00 p.m. performance of Wicked was sold out, and that tickets, if available, are $37 - $97. So no theater for us today, so we went to the Art Institute instead. We spent three hours wandering through various exhibits and still didn't come close to seeing all its wonders. Then we took a bus north to have an early dinner at P.F. Changs. After dinner, we still had almost 2 hours before we had to leave so we shopped at Trader Joe's. I bought a gingerbread house kit so N and I can have our traditional decorating afternoon together. Our final stop was Garrett's for both caramel and cheese popcorn. Then we boarded the bus for the long icy trip home. Fun times.

What a great day! And now I'm exhausted. Goodnight everybody.