"Traveling in the company of those we love is home in motion." ~ Leigh Hunt
An English critic and journalist from the 1800's, Leigh Hunt's quote is one of my favorites! I really believe anywhere can be home if you are with the ones that you love and that proved true as we enjoyed a long weekend in New York City with Katie, Carleigh and Elisabeth!
The origins of this trip go back to Thanksgiving and the Macy's Day Parade. The parade is a tradition and the highlight for Katie and I are the Broadway acts at the beginning of the parade. This past year, Jonathan Groff and the cast of Just In Time blew us away with "Splish Splash..." I then researched the show and shared some commentary out loud, Don made the surprise statement that he would go see that show. Imaginem the shock...my anti-Broadway husband was willing to travel to NYC with the girls and see a show! It helped that it was based on the life story of Bobby Darin, and Don and I both grew up listening to his music through our parents.
Before the parade was over a date had been decided that worked with Carleigh, Elisabeth and Katie. Show tickets had been purchased and Elisabeth and I had researched hotels and train tickets...took advantage of some good Black Friday deals, and purchased. The 5 of us were heading to NYC in March!!
Fast forward and here we are! Returning from that big weekend that we had planned 3 months ago. I'd say it was a success and much needed! Don and I have been traveling a lot since he retired in June, yet we hadn't had a true getaway with the 5 of us. I was so excited to spend time with the 3 girls and laugh and create more memories.
I like to ask my clients what is the WHY for your vacation and I help families DREAM about, DESIGN and ultimately DEPART on vacations. I spent some time thinking about my why for this NYC trip...
1. to reconnect as a family of adults together away from the stressors of our daily lives
2. to find my inner peace - there have been a lot of big things in my head recently and I needed a reset! I needed to step away and focus on me for a few days.
3. I needed some time to feel the emotions that I've been pushing down for the last few weeks and a getaway with Don and MY GIRLS was the perfect way to do that.
4. Another big goal of this trip was for Katie to show us around, after spending a lot of time here over the summer and in December, she has become very comfortable in the city. We were looking forward to giving her the opportunity to share some of her favorites with us.
We laughed til we cried. We had powerful talks at midnight in the hotel lobby. We explored new places together and revisited some of our favorites from years past. This trip was about reconnection and reset for me. I feel like I achieved those goals and am ready to face whatever is put in front of me.
I love my family so much and this was the medicine that I needed!💓
So come along on our adventure to New York. Don's first trip back since about 2008, and the first time for all of us together since 2008.
Friday:
We started with battling morning rush hour traffic to get to Katie's apartment in Arlington. We were leaving our car there and leaving on Amtrak from Union Station in DC. We were successful and arrived in New York before 2:00 pm.
We made it to our hotel. We were staying near Central Park and had a great city view from our room.
Don's only WANT on this trip was to wander around Central Park. So that turned into our only goal for Friday. Carleigh and Elisabeth weren't arriving until later in the evening, so we headed out after finding a fun pizza place, Pop's Pizzas, for a quick slice to eat across the street in Central Park.
Though it was still chilly and wet, we thoroughly enjoyed about two hours exploring and being guided by Katie all over the park. There was still a lot of snow on the ground from the massive blizzard that NYC had only a few weeks ago.
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| Don called it his "bench tour" and found many spots to sit and "appreciate." |
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| Alice in Wonderland |
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| Imagine |
After about two hours and 5 miles of walking, we heard from Carleigh and Elisabeth, their train was delayed and they would not be arriving until later. So we now had the whole evening in front of us, and I knew if I wasn't active then I would deefinitely fall asleep before they arrived.
So we decided to PIVOT! (appropriate for NYC! 😆
We found another bench to sit and discuss our options, after some talking in circles and practicing compromise and flexibility, we had a new plan.
- Cancel our later dinner reservation.
- Find a place for dinner near Central Park for an earlier dinner.
- Return to the hotel and drop Don off to appreciate the peace and quiet of our nice hotel room.
- And...spontaneously decide on a Broadway show that had tickets available, at a reasonable price for Katie and I to go to.
- We would get out of the show at about the same time that Carleigh and Elisabeth would be arriving at Penn Station.
After dinner we expedited the journey back to the hotel by hopping on the subway. This was a first for Don and I. Katie was a pro (and later Elisabeth), so we ventured forth!
I let Katie manage getting the tickets for a show. She had an app that she had used when she was in NYC for an extended period over the summer. We went through the list and identified our top wishes. Then we looked at prices and availability. That quickly knocked some of them out.
We finally landed with CHESS with Lea Michelle. It had gotten great reviews had some good seats available (a little more than we wanted to pay, and reflecting on my why for this trip...I decided my 'reset' was worth the higher cost. :) )
We returned to the hotel, and regrouped, then Katie and I had 20 minutes to make it uptown to Times Square area to the theater. We made it with 10 minutes to spare!
The show was amazing and I learned a lot about chess! LOL! The narration did a good job of explaining what was happening and made it even more enjoyable by finding humorous ways to bring the present day into the political discussions about the Cold War from the 1970s and early 1980s.
After the show was over, we headed to the stage door. We got to meet two of the leads....Lea Michelle came out first and was great! She smiled and signed for everyone at the stage door. The next was the actor that played the Russian chess player, he was awesome! He and his bodyguard stopped at each group and had lengthy conversations and took individual photos.
We then made our way back to the hotel after a quick stop in Times Square, and a stop at Juniors for some desserts for the hotel!
Carleigh and Elisabeth were just about to the hotel, so we met them and made plans for the morning and then to sleep! The girls were in a room 19 floors beneath ours. We had a great view from our room on the 33rd floor!
Saturday:
Saturday started out with a great breakfast at Applejack Diner, right around the corner from our hotel. We then were off the explore beyond Times Square and visit some of Katie's favorite places.
We started by riding the subway to Washington Square and walking around that part of NYC, away from the crowds and the hustle and bustle.
We then made our way to the Stonewall Jackson Monument and checked out the visitor center and area.
Katie had sent us pictures of "Little Island" when she had visited previously, and I wanted to see it first hand to understand how it was designed. We walked all around and the architecture and design that made an island right at the end of the pier was pretty cool.
On top of Little Island!
The structure below commemorates the spot where the survivors of the Titanic returned. The steel structure is what they walked under upon return to NYC.
We then headed to Chelsea Market and wandered through that for a bit before finding a great deli and having a picnic in a nearby park.
Don returned to the hotel and Katie and I wandered around Times Square and Rockefeller Center before getting ready for our Saturday night show. Elisabeth and Carleigh were also wandering on their own.
Time for dinner at Carnegie Diner and then off to see Just In Time with Jonathan Groff - the reason for our NYC weekend!
The show was amazing and happy to say that all 5 of us really appreciated and enjoyed the whole show. The music was so much fun and the way the actors interacted with the audience like a real 50s or 60s lounge show was awesome!!
Then back to the hotel before catching the train on Sunday back to Virginia.
Sunday:
Sunday started with brunch at Sarabeth's, near Central Park and then wandering Central Park together for a bit.
Then back to the hotel, check out and head to Moynihan Train Hall at Penn Station for Amtrak back to Virginia.
It was a great weekend and fun to have the whole gang back together for a few days. I love the time we spend together as a family with adult children and can't wait for the next time!!
Speaking of....
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