Christmas Activities, Shows & Events for Families in Chicago

MACY’S  (MARSHALL FIELD’S) on State Street all decked out

MILLENNIUM PARK ICE SKATING – We have already written about the fun of skating downtown among the skyline, but I will say it again, grab your skates and head over to the McCormick Tribune Ice Rink on Michigan Avenue in Millennium Park. The 2009-2010 season runs from Nov 20 — March. (also fun around Valentine’s day)

SANTA’S HOUSE & Photos With SANTA – Sit on Jolly Ol’ St. Nick’s lap, tell him what you want for Christmas and get a picture. Daley Plaza, 50 W. Washington, (312)744-3315. Nov 26-Dec 24. Free.

RUDOLPH THE RED NOSED REINDEER – The classic tale of Rudolph in a funny, family-friendly retelling of said story. The Annoyance Theatre, 4830 N. Broadway, (773)561-4665. Nov 27 –Dec 18. $15, $10 for kids under 12.

WONDERLAND EXPRESS MODEL TRAINS – Eighty model trains travel through Chicago landmarks, waterfalls and holiday trees in this 10,000-square-foot exhibit, tiny trains wind through more than 80 miniature Chicago landmarks, waterfalls, holiday trees and more. New on the map this year is Barack Obama’s Hyde Park home and Michelle Obama’s childhood home. Chicago Botanic Garden, 1000 Lake Cook, Glencoe, (847)835-5440. Nov 27-Jan 3. $6-$10.

CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY FLOWER SHOW – Garfield Park Conservatory has more holiday flowers than you can dream of. Fields of poinsettias and other holiday plants are in their vast and amazing greenhouses for viewing. Come see this horticultual treasure in Chicago. The Garfield Conservatory, 300 North Central Park, (312)746-5100. Open Nov 28 –  Jan 10. Free, but donations appreciated.

WINTER WONDERFEST NAVY PIER – Keeping the tradition of elaborate holiday tourist traps alive, Navy Pier transforms itself into a winter wonderland complete with a skating rink, inflatable games and a bungee run. Santa and his elves will be on hand every day ‘til Christmas to listen to kid’s holiday wishes. Navy Pier, 600 E. Grand, (312)595-PIER. Dec 4-Jan 3. $16-$19.

THE OSMOND BROTHERS – If you are in the SW suburbs Wayne, Jay, Jimmy and Merrill Osmond will celebrate their fiftieth year in entertainment with this Christmas show at the Rialto Square Theatre, 102 North Chicago Ave in Joliet, (815)726-6600. Dec 15, 7:30pm. Tickets are $29-$47.

SONGS OF GOOD CHEER – Chicago Tribune’s Eric Zorn and Mary Schmich and musicians head a caroling party at the Old Town School of Folkmusic. Old Town School of Folk Music, 4544 North Lincoln, (773)728-6000. Dec  18 –  19 @ 7:30 pm, and Dec 20 @ 5 pm. Tickets are $36-$40.

WELCOME YULE! – A holiday concert featuring members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, as well as the Welcome Yule! Children’s and Dance Ensemble. Symphony Center, 220 South Michigan Avenue, (312)294-3000. Dec 18th — Dec 23. Tickets: $20-$98.

The 26TH ANNUAL CHRISTMAS SING-ALONG AND DOUBLE FEATURE MOVIES – Come see two favorite classic Christmas Movies and sing some carols too —“It’s a Wonderful Life” and “White Christmas”— at the Music Box Theatre, 3733 North Southport Ave, (773)871-6604. Dec 18 — 24. Tickets are $16 for the double feature, or $11 for the single.

VICTORIAN CHRISTMAS HOME TOURS – Tour Frank Lloyd Wright’s Oak Park home, decked out for the holidays, and learn about the Wright family’s Christmas celebrations. Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio, 951 Chicago Avenue in Oak Park, (708)848-1976. Dec 19 at 9am-11am. Free!

via 25 Christmas Actvities Shows & Events for Families in Chicago | Chicago Weekend Fun!

Enjoy Chicago’s Annual Holiday Traditions

Daley Plaza: Christkindlmarket Chicago
Thursday, November 26, 2009 through Thursday, December 24, 2009
Opens daily 11a.m.;
Closes Sunday through Thursday 8 p.m.; Friday and Saturday 9 p.m.
(Closes at 4 p.m. on November 26th and December 24th) Admission Free!

Daley Plaza is transformed into a little piece of Germany. At the Plaza, Chicago’s iconic Picasso sculpture is surrounded by red and white crested huts glowing with warmth and overflowing with curios. You’ll find nutcrackers, cuckoo-clocks, beer steins, European chocolates, toys, jewelry, clothing, holiday ornaments and much more for sale at more than 50 booths.

Millennium Park: Caroling at Cloud Gate
Fridays, November 27, 2009 through December 18, 2009, 6 p.m.
Free Admission!  Enjoy choral presentations by the Apollo Chorus of Chicago, the Chicago Children’s Choir, the Old Town School of Folk Music and the Wooten Choral Ensemble and join in a holiday sing-along.

Navy Pier: Winter Wonderfest
Friday, December 4, 2009 through Sunday, January 3, 2010
December 4th – December 19th Sunday-Thursday: 10 a.m.- 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday: 10 a.m. – 10 p.m.
December 20th- January 3rd Sunday-Thursday: 10 a.m.- 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday: 10 a.m. – 10 p.m.
Free Admission.
$16-$19 for wristbands required to participate in rides and attractions at Navy Pier’s 8th annual holiday extravaganza. This holiday tradition features more than 750,000 holiday ornaments, hundreds of decorated trees, an indoor Ferris wheel, Musical Carousel, North Pole E-Wish Center, Large-Scale Inflatable Games and Giant Slides, Winter WonderStage, Carolers, and more!

City Hall Concert Series: Young Voices Deck “The Hall”
Tuesday December 1st through Friday, December18, 2009, 12-1 p.m.
Free Admission!
Get into the holiday spirit while listening to the classics sung by children’s choirs from throughout the city. Concerts are given every weekday from noon to 1 p.m. in the lobby of City Hall (121 N. LaSalle) near the LaSalle Street entrance. Children from all over Chicago participate in this program. Performers include James E. McDade Classical School Choir and the Taylor Elementary School Children’s Choir.

Mayor Daley’s Sports Festival Sunday
December 27, 2009 and Monday, December 28, 2009, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
McCormick Place in Halls A and B Admission
Free Admission!
Highlights of this annual Sports Festival include the following interactive zones: trampolines, golf, climbing walls, football, chess, obstacle course, tot’s zone, bowling, table tennis, inflatable tumbling, tennis, badminton, boxing, a pitching zone, fishing ponds, footbag, giant slide, 40-Yard dash, skateboarding area, wrestling, and open courts for volleyball and basketball. The Halftime Stage features special performances and demonstrations from 12 to 4 each day.

Celebrate This Season at Chicago’s Zoos and Museums

Museum of Science and Industry: Christmas Around the World and Holidays of Light
Friday, November 20, 2009 through Sunday, January 3, 2010,
9:30 – 5:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 11 a.m. -5:30 p.m. on Sunday.
Closed Christmas Day, December 25th.
Christmas Around the World is  Museum of Science and Industry’s time-honored celebration. The exhibition includes more than 50 trees and displays decorated by volunteers from Chicago’s ethnic communities to reflect holiday traditions from around the globe. Holidays of Light, a multicultural display of holiday traditions that celebrate light or enlightenment, such as Diwali and Hanukkah, also illuminates the Museum’s halls during this time.

———————–

Adler Planetarium: Star of Wonder
Monday, November 23, 2009 through Sunday, January 3, 2010,
Daily Show Times Vary.
Sky Theater
Rediscover the story behind the “Star of Bethlehem” in the Adler Planetarium’s longest-running sky show and one of Chicago’s favorite holiday offerings. Star of Wonder examines various theories behind the celestial event that prompted the Magi (Three Kings) to travel to Bethlehem.

———————–

Lincoln Park Zoo: Zoo Lights
Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights beginning November 27, 2009.
Nightly December 18, 2009 – January 3, 2010 (excluding Dec. 24 and 25)
5-9 p.m.
Admission Free!
Lincoln Park Zoo transforms into a dazzling wonderland with a series of free seasonal festivities. Enter a winter wonderland illuminated by the laughter of children and more than two million lights at Lincoln Park Zoo’s annual ZooLights presented by ComEd and Charter One. Animal exhibits stay open late as guests roam the beautiful grounds to take photos with Santa, prepare family crafts and enjoy the zoo’s incredible animals immersed in an atmosphere unlike any other.

Holiday Theatre Productions in Chicago

Chicago Cultural Center: Dance Along Nutcracker
Sunday, December 6, 2009, noon and 3 pm
Preston Bradley Hall, Chicago Cultural Center

Admission Free!

Young and old alike are invited to hit the dance floor as sugar plum fairies and toy soldiers dance and sing along with music from the Lakeside Pride Symphonic Band, including selections from Tchaikovsky’s beloved Nutcracker Suite.

————————-

The Joffrey Ballet: Robert Joffrey’s The Nutcracker
Friday, December 11, 2009, through Sunday, December 27, 2009
Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University

One Chicago’s most popular holiday traditions, Robert Joffrey’s production of The Nutcracker again transforms the Auditorium Theatre into a land of beauty, fantasy and wonder. The Tchaikovsky masterpiece features the full Joffrey company, local children’s choruses and more than 120 young dancers.

————————-

Goodman Theatre: A Christmas Carol
Friday, November 20, 2009 through Thursday, December 31, 2009
Goodman Theatre

For three decades and more than a million people, Charles Dickens’ classic story, the exceptional actors and the miraculous stagecraft have made Goodman Theatre’s A Christmas Carol a perennial holiday favorite and beloved Chicago tradition. Every year, audiences delight in the “Bah, Humbugs,” the arrival of the ghosts, the music and dancing and Scrooge’s joyful discovery of life and love.

———————–

Victory Gardens Theater: The Snow Queen
Friday, November 27, 2009 through Sunday, December 27, 2009
Victory Gardens Biograph Theater Zacek McVay Mainstage

The Snow Queen is sledding back for her fourth season as Chicago’s #1 alternative to traditional holiday fare. Based on Hans Christian Anderson’s beloved winter tale about a boy lost in the cold and the girl who won’t give up until she finds him, The Snow Queen is the rare family musical that sings to children, and speaks to adults.

“Eat, Gift and Be Merry” at IHOP This Year

IHOP, one of America’s favorite restaurants for breakfast, lunch and dinner, has announced that now through January 3, 2010, guests who purchase an in-restaurant $25 gift card will receive a $5 coupon for a future visit at participating locations.

Guests can purchase gift cards in restaurants, online at www.ihop.com, or, for added convenience, at more than 22,000 retail partner locations. Cards are sold in denominations from $5 to $50. The $5 coupons are accepted at participating restaurants and must be redeemed by January 31, 2010.

Carolyn O’Keefe, IHOP’s senior vice president, marketing said, “Providing guests with even more value at this time of year with our $5 bounce back coupon makes an IHOP gift card the perfect way to give… and receive.”

All IHOP locations nationwide will be also open on Thanksgiving Day. For more information or to find an IHOP restaurant near you, please visit www.ihop.com.

The Bagel Restaurant on Broadway in Chicago and at Old Orchard in Skokie!

New Chicago Restaurant Serving Healthy Pizza And Chicken

60 varieties of Stone Hearth Pizza

Brazilian Charbroiled Chicken Gourmet Salads.
Deliveries and Catering.
M-Th-11-10
Friday and Saturday 11-11
Sunday 11- 9

926 W Diversey Chicago, Il 60614.

Phone:773-880-8052

Kingston Mines Chicago’s Largest Juke Joint

Regular Weekday Schedule

Sundays – Now Open at 6 PM for DOC BLUES JAM Free Admission ’til 9pm Charlie Love & the Silky Smooth Blues band/ Linsey Alexander & L.A.B.B.

Mondays: Carl Weathersby / J.W. Williams & The Chi-Town Hustlers

Tuesdays: Quintas McCormick / Joe Barr & the Sole Purpose Blues Band

Wednesdays: Maurice John Vaughn, The Jimmy Burns Blues Band

Thursdays: FEATURED HEADLINER / Joanna Connors / Early Acoustic Set 8 to 9Pm

Tuesday thru Saturdays: Your Master of Ceremonies – Frank Pellegrino

December 18th & 19th Billy Branch and the Sons of Blues \ Joanna Connors

Sun-Thur-Students 21+ Free

Thurs-Saturday 8PM Guitar Set

2548 N Halsted

Open 7 Pm 4 AM
Sat to 5 AM

773-477-4646

Tuesday-Saturday Frank Pellegrino MC

A World Famous Chicago Landmark Kingston Mines

Sports Bar-Cheap Pizza and Beer-Lincoln Avenue

College and NFL Games on All Weekend

Mon: Burger & a Pint night – get a Black Angus Burger and a Pint of Draft Beer just $5

Tues: Retro Night – Retro Dinners & Retro Beers Featuring weekly dinner entrees inspired by TV dinner classics for just $6.95 and retro beers (PBR, Schlitz, Hamm’s & High Life) just $2.50

Wed: Midwest Micro brews – Michigan Month Every Wednesday in October Michigan Draft Brews will be just $3.50 each. Featuring Bell’s, Dark Horse, Founders and New Holland Breweries + 2 for 1 pizzas all night

Thurs: Team Trivia Night $5 shots of Jim Beam & Cans of High Life, 25 cent wings

Fri: $5 Jameson drinks, 1/2 priced appetizers before 8 pm

Sat: $5 Stoli drinks, 1/2 priced pizzas before 8 pm

Sun: $2 well drinks, $4 Bloody Mary’s, 25 cent wings

*Have your party or corporate event from 20 to 200 people
at Fizz. We will create a fun and memorable time for your guests.
*Ask for Dan to discuss the details.

Fizz Bar @ Grill
3220 N Lincoln Ave. (corner Lincoln, Belmont, Ashland
Chicago

Ph 773-348-6000

THANKS

Chicago’s Booth Manufacturing

In business since 1981, Chicago Booth Mfg (based in Chicago, Ill.) primarily manufactures restaurant furniture (including booths, tables, and chairs) for commercial customers, but the company also makes select commercial-grade items available directly to consumers, including booths and tables.

The booth featured on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition may be viewed at www.chicagobooth.com.The episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition will air Sunday, May 8 (7:00 – 8:00 p.m. CT) on the ABC Television Network.Chicago Booth Manufacturing Inc. is located in Chicago, Ill. and ships restaurant furniture across the United States.

More information about Chicago Booth is available at www.chicagobooth.com