Birthday week begins!

I love birthdays so much!!!

I wondered why I went into work on my birthday, but I did. (Note to self, take your birthday off from work.) At least it was fun to be in the office as some floral bouquets arrived to wish me a happy day. My office looked like a floral shop, but I loved it.

After work, I headed out to The Kerryman (my new favorite pub) for some drinks with friends. I had a nice small gathering of people to help me celebrate. There were lots of stories shared, some good shepherd's pie eaten, and a lot of Guinness drunk. Does a girl need anything else?

The birthday celebration continued into Friday and Saturday, as my parents came to Chicago to visit me. This was their first visit to Chicago, and I think I played a pretty good tour guide. Our first stop was the mini bar on Friday night. This is a fabulous wine place, with the best cheese plate I've ever had. We had a bottle of Israeli wine (highly recommend) and fabulous entrees, and the best chocolate bread pudding known to man. We even had the chef/owner come out to our table a few times....he can spot the high rollers. LOL.
Saturday was a busy day that took us all across the city....a visit to the Field Museum and a look at Sue the T Rex from South Dakota, and the Pacific Island way of life. My parents are convinced they are going to lose me to an island/country in the Pacific. They may not be far off. We then headed to the Oriental Theatre and caught a matinee of Wicked. I had seen the show before, but this was a first for my parents. They absolutely loved it. If you have not seen this show, you must get out and see it now. It is such a wonderful spin on The Wizard of Oz, and has some great one-liners. We then ended our downtown excursion with a trip to the Signature Lounge on the 96th floor of the John Hancock building. It was a clear night and the city was lit up like a Christmas Tree. Our final outing of the night was to uncommon ground, a restaurant near Wrigley Field which is a favorite of mine.

I do hope that when you can all visit me in Chicago, I can share with you some of these gems, and hopefully I'll have found more!!

My thank-you's are slow this year, so for everyone who reached out with a card, a phone call, or an email....THANK YOU for your well wishes. It was a fabulous 31st birthday!

Leila - I hope you enjoyed your special day as well. Hopefully you've forgiven me for the card!