A very good day

We spent the auspicious Black Friday in Chicago with all of our children. I hope they all had a good time, because for me it was an awesome day.


We started out picking up Andrew and Sarah in Urbana. Sarah volunteered to drive and off we went, headed straight for the Talbot's Outlet Store in Park Ridge. Heaven on earth for Megz and Sarah. They went through that store with a fine toothed comb (hate that analogy), found some great deals, used a coupon and we headed for the minivan.


Then we were off to the Loop, in downtown Chicago. Parked in the underground parking at Grant Park, and ate lunch at a great Italian fast food deli across the street. "No trip to Chicago is complete," says Andrew, "without a visit to the old Marshall Field's (now Macy's) on State Street." Since Grandma Durst worked there in the early 1940's, she always asks if we were there. So we had a walk through the store, rested in the Levenger department in their amazingly over priced chairs and then off to the bargains at Nordstrom Rack (Peggy scored a badly needed winter coat!) and H&M.


We took the free trolley to North Michigan Avenue, shopped at an amazing number of stores and had a great time.


The city was beautifully decorated for the holiday, my family was all together and it could not have been better.


Steve and I had fallen behind the kids (I'm the slow one) as we walked down Michigan Avenue. Ahead of us were: Sarah, Andrew, Meghan, and Charles all walking with arms linked.


That sight was Thanksgiving and Christmas all wrapped up together.