We spent most of today enjoying the treasures in the Art Institute. I’d never been to this museum during my previous two visits to Chicago. They have so many wonderful pieces! I was only slightly disappointed in that Nighthawks was on loan to another museum.

Dragon for Sam

Reference photo for Bens next hair style

I found Nimbus!

Skulking the meat, per usual

We decided to skip the usual overpriced cold sandwiches found in museum cafes. I had seen a couple locations around town for Nando’s peri-peri chicken.

Have you ever been cold and tired and hungry, then sat down at a warm table with delicious food? Soooo satisfying.

Now well-fortified, we admired the Bean from the street as we went back to the museum. We amped up our pace and managed to take in most of the other half of the art galleries. With a laugh we decided to “take a peek” and the paperweights and “miniature rooms” collection on the lower level. The paperweight exhibit was a head scratcher, as in, what makes these worthy of a dedicated space in this otherwise top tier museum? The miniatures, on the other hand, were delightful! I wonder if there’s a book about their creator, because you have to be at least a little kooky to do what she did.

I dragged an exhausted Ben to the only yarn store in the city. Yarnify was adequate for supplies but nothing outstanding. Their shop was lacking in charm, and they didn’t seem to care about presentation of yarns or samples. Still, I got a beautiful green skein from a local maker as a souvenir.

After a quick respite at the hotel we walked to Gyu-Kaku for dinner. It’s a chain restaurant with over 600 locations in Japan. They bring you assorted meats to grill right at your table. I was pleased to find that it doubled as a hand warmer. Very toasty!

Michigan Avenue still has its lovely Christmas lights on display. We ambled up to the historic Water Tower and passed some time shopping (including Uniqlo for slippers-who decided hard floors were a good idea in our hotel room? My tootsies are too cold for that!).

Right across the street we found the Lookingglass Theatre, where we saw The Steadfast Toy Soldier. Amanda raves about this company and I can see why. It was a charming retelling of the Hans Christian Anderson story. They performed mutely, all in pantomime with a four musicians playing the score. We loved the toddler child puppet. They absolutely nailed the physicality, giving us fits of laughter. At 60 minutes run time, I was utterly charmed and left wanting more. I wish there was a company like this in Denver that I could share with my boys.

Time to indulge in some ice cream and hot fudge at Ghiradelli’s. I came prepared with ample lactase. I hope 😉