Windows! Lunch! Santa! Pickpockets?

Oh, how much fun the Nelson Sisters have when they kick off the holiday season

 with a visit to State Street! 
Seeing the Macy's windows (minus cold temps and crowds),
eating lunch in the Walnut Room by the Christmas tree (again, no long lines and big crowds)

and visiting Santa (without dirty looks from parents with kids) makes for two very happy sisters!

The added bonus this year was thwarting off a pickpocket --- more on that later.

 

Here we are on the main floor of Macy's.


The windows at Macy's are especially sweet this year with memories of past Christmases
at Marshall Field's - insert a moment of silence for this dearly-departed Chicago institution here.

In this window we see a waiter doing a mad dash around the tree in the Walnut Room.

 

No mad dash was required for us as we were seated next to the tree in the Walnut Room!

 

 

 

Once our lunch was completed we headed off to Santa Land...

 

Yes, we really did go visit Santa.

Though our combined ages equal far beyond one hundred years, we

are making up for lost years when there were no visits (or belief) to Santa Land. 

Santa forgot to even ask us for our wishes and desires, so World Peace will have

to be acquired elsewhere.

 

Then, off for some shopping.  We both scored finds for some of you on our lists.

 

 

After such a lovely afteroon together, we headed home on the Brown Line train.

That's when the tables were turned and I was the target of a pickpocket attempt!

 

Earlier this summer, my sister was the target, too, but her fate was more unfortunate than mine.

What happens is this:  you are in a throng of people trying to get into the boarding train and a person trips right in front of you, falling down in the process.

When the person attempts to get up, your purse is vulnerable and items are removed.  Then the fallen person quickly escapes the train and you are left with an open purse with fewer items inside.

 

So, getting into the train I was being shoved and couldn't move.  Then the man fell down right in front of me.  Others came to his aid and he rushed OUT of the train.  Hmm.

When I found my seat on the train my wallet purse was open.  Fortunately the wallet purse had no removeable parts and the cards and cash were safe.

This is exactly what had happened to Diann.

 

Maybe Santa had granted me a wish of safety after all!

Fun times, as always, with my sis.