Photos with Santa at MetroVet December 6, 2014Clic

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Metropolitan Veterinary Center, 1556 S. Michigan Ave. #100, will host free pictures with Santa on December 6, 2014 from 2 – 6p.m. Each participant with get a free 5” x 7” framed photo with Santa. Pets and children welcome.

Last year’s event was a hoot. People brought their pets dressed up as elves and reindeer. We expect this year to be just as much fun.

For more information, call MetroVet at 312.583.1921.

Merry Christmas from South Loop Connection!

The south facing lion in front of the Art Institute decked out for the holidays

Photos with Santa at MetroVet

Metropolitan Veterinary Center’s second annual Photos with Santa is this Saturday, December 7, 2013, 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. MetroVet is located at 1556 S. Michigan Ave. If you have any questions or need additional information, call 312.583.1921. Pets and children welcome!

You can follow Metro Vet on Twitter and you can like their Facebook page.

Christmas Candlelight Tours Of The Clarke And Glessner House Museums

Glessner House Museum, located at 1800 S. Prairie Avenue in Chicago’s South Loop neighborhood, will conduct its annual Christmas candlelight tours on Saturday December 14 and Sunday December 15, 2013, with tours offered at 5:30, 6:00, and 6:30 p.m. each evening.

These special 90-minute docent led tours will highlight Christmas customs and decorations of the 19th century. The Clarke House will feature decorations of the 1850s, when the celebration of Christmas as we know it today was just starting to take root. The Glessner House will feature more elaborate decorations of the late 19th century, including a live Christmas tree decorated with glass and paper ornaments, and the dining room table set for the elaborate holiday feast. After the tour, participants are invited to stroll over to the landmark Wheeler Mansion (now a boutique hotel) for light refreshments and to view their beautifully restored rooms decorated for the holidays.

Glessner House Museum is a National Historic Landmark and the last surviving work by H. H. Richardson in Chicago. Completed in 1887, the museum is recognized nationwide for its groundbreaking architecture as well as its important decorative arts collection.

The Glessner House main hall

The cost for the tours is $18 for adults and $14 for children 8 to 12.  Prepaid reservations are required and may be made by calling 312-326-1480. The museum is easily accessible by taking the #3 or #4 bus south on Michigan Avenue to 18th Street, and then walking 2 blocks east.

Merry Christmas from South Loop Connection!

Something for the holiday season. Have you ever experienced or been part of a flash mob? These folks obviously nailed it and got the crowd going. What do you think?

Christmas on Prairie Avenue: Nineteenth Century Style

This Christmas card depicts the Glessner House decorated for the holiday.

When Prairie Avenue was home to the “sifted few” back in the late nineteenth century, Christmas wasn’t the extravagant celebration it is today. Oh, sure, they exchanged gifts and had parties, but home decorations weren’t as elaborate or displayed as long as they are today. In fact, it wasn’t until fairly late into the 19th century before Christmas trees displayed were over three-feet tall. During most of the century, small table-top trees were the norm. Decorations for the tree were often hand-made, even on Prairie Avenue!

Tasteful Celebration
The Glessner House at 1800 S. Prairie, and one of the few surviving mansions from those glory days, helps shed some light on the Christmas traditions of the period. If you were to visit the home during the 1888 celebration, you’d have seen a small tree in the schoolroom, where Glessner children George and Fanny would have had it displayed on their desktop. For many years, holiday decorations were displayed mostly in the schoolroom. In later years, the Glessners had a large tree shipped by train from their estate in New Hampshire. The tree was displayed in the main hallway of the home. When you visit the museum today, you’ll see a large tree in the main hall. You’ll also see greenery tastefully hung throughout the house, as illustrated in the photograph here.

Collectable Christmas Cards
If you haven’t sent your Christmas cards yet, there’s still time. And you can purchase the Christmas card seen here at the Glessner House Museum gift shop. For information on these collectable Christmas cards call 312.326.1480. And for more insight into nineteenth life along Prairie Avenue, visit the official blog of the Glessner House Museum, The Story of House. You can also find the Glessner House Museum on Facebook and follow them on Twitter.

2011 Condo, HOA Co-op Expo

Exhibit Hall B at Navy Pier

The 2011 Condo, HOA Co-op Expo was at Navy Pier today, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Over 100 exhibitors were there: property management companies and any kind of service that a condo or town home community might need or utilize were on display. There were also educational seminars on “Condo Lending Guideline Updates,” and “Getting Along: Conflict Resolution for Boards and Managers.” The Expo, sponsored by The Chicagoland Cooperator was free.

Outside, Navy Pier was getting ready for Christmas.