My 26th birthday was one of the best birthdays I've had, which may be surprising once you hear that I spent almost the entire day alone. Rob was at the conference the whole day. When he woke up, he snuggled up to me and told me happy birthday. Then he left and I went back to sleep and didn't see him again until late that night.

But I had a great day. First, I ordered room service for a birthday breakfast in bed.

(Note the bacon. A birthday is not a proper birthday without bacon.)

Then I headed into downtown Chicago where I spent the afternoon shopping my way down Michigan Avenue. I had late afternoon tea at the historic Drake Hotel. There was a harpist and it was quite lovely. And then I spent the evening at the Chicago Art Institute, where I took two really interesting tour/talks and then roamed about among my favorite collections: Impressionism, Japanese, and Photography.

This Monet painting gave me pause, and not just because it's one of my favorites. I've actually been there - to Giverny, to Monet's waterlily garden. And as I stood looking at this painting and thinking about the actual place, I realized that I had been there exactly a decade ago. I celebrated my 16th birthday in Madrid, on a high school trip, and just a handful of days later we went to see Giverny. Gazing at Monet's Japanese bridge, which 10 years ago I stood upon, I felt I'd come full circle in a way.

Birthday girl

I guess we do look at history, and especially our own personal histories, almost as paintings. Moments are captured and frozen and yet still contain precise detail and vivid color. The mind becomes a museum of memories, each wing representing a different era of life. And we're adding to the collections all the time.

Eventually I left the art gallery and wandered around the city taking photographs. I swear I could do that all day long. I love to observe and I think there is such beauty in the way a city is a living being. I hung around downtown until the sun set and all the lights began to glow, and then I hopped on the train to head back to the hotel.

I had told Rob I'd be back by 9:00, but I'd happily lost track of time in the art museum. Rob called my cell at 10:00, when he returned after his last session to an empty hotel room.

"Hey," I said.

"Kelly? Oh, thank god. I was worried."

The relief in his voice was palpable. And it's hard to explain why, but I found this touching. It's nice to be reminded that I mean the world to someone. And the hint of fear, and the subsequent relief, in Rob's voice said that better than any Hallmark card could.

Finally I arrived back to our hotel room. We snacked on wine and cheese and told each other all about the day. And then we went to bed.

Rob's conference ended on Sunday and that evening we finally got to celebrate my birthday together. We had dinner in The Signature Room on the 95th floor of the Hancock Center. It was a fantastic meal with a stunning view overlooking the city. And then we took a sunset cruise on Lake Michigan.

All in all, a fabulous start to my 27th year on this planet.