New York City ~ 2011

During the second weekend of December, I spent a fast and furious weekend with my bestie, Paige, in New York City as a very belated Happy 35th Birthday to us both.  (Just ignore that we're both very close to turning...gulp...36.)

We had both been there before and had seen most of the usual sites and attractions.  So knowing this trip would only give us 48 hours in the city, we had to be strategic.  Our goals before we left were to see at least one show (we'd be thrilled if we saw two), eat great food, see the store's Christmas windows, and spend some time at the MET.  As the overachievers that we are, we met and exceeded all of those goals!  :)

The running joke throughout the trip is how it was serendipitous.  We had a very short amount of time and a hotel reservation.  That was it.  No other dinner reservations or show tickets purchased ahead of time.  From the very beginning (including me running late to the airport and absolutely NO traffic on 114 at 7:30 a.m.), it seemed that everything went our way on this trip.  It was perfect, and we both loved every minute!

Paige left Little Rock at the crack of dawn and met me at DFW.  A great flight to Newark, and we were off.  Our shuttle took us right to our hotel just a couple blocks from Times Square.  We ran in, threw our bags in the tiny, adorable mod room and headed out to the big city.  It was late afternoon, and we were very hungry.  But time was short, and we had to move fast. 

First stop...the tkts booth in Times Square (1/2 price tickets to Broadway shows).  I got a little panicked when seeing the hundreds of people in what looked like a 2+ hour line.  And then the serendipitous moment of the Express Play Line...which meant NO line.  We were up for seeing a play instead of a musical and were very happy to not wait in line.  Perfect!  Our plan for picking shows was to see something we could only see in New York since most of the really big, popular shows have great touring companies.  

Once we had tickets for that night, we allowed ourselves to eat.  Dedication, I tell ya.  So we needed somewhere nearby and had several recommendations for John's Pizza.  It did not disappoint...and not just because I hadn't eaten since breakfast and was so incredibly hungry that I almost stole leftover food from a table as we waited.  Good thing Paige talked me out of that.  The restaurant is in a charming restored church building with some delicious pizza.

After we ate, we headed to the theater.  This was my fourth time to be in New York City, but I had never been to a Broadway show before.  I have to admit at getting a little teary when I walked in (no surprise really).  Such a fun experience.  I was shocked by how small the theater was but that just added to the appeal.  So our first show was a fun slapstick style, Relatively Speaking.  It was comprised of three one-act comedies, one of which was written by Woody Allen.  The familiar names in the show were Steve Guttenberg, Marlo Thomas, and the actress that does the voice of Marge Simpson. Marlo Thomas was hilarious.  

And to be a total cliche, we headed to Sardi's for dessert afterwards...New York Cheesecake!

By the time we got back to the hotel and to sleep, it was close to 1:00 a.m.  After a full day of travelling, this trip was not for the faint of heart.  We were up bright and early again and headed to breakfast at Sarabeth's Central Park.  Oh. My. Word.  It was pure yumminess!  I had the Fat & Fluffy French Toast, and I'm convinced it was the best French Toast I've ever had. Delish!  

Of course when you do a trip to NYC in 48 hours, there are so many things you wish you could do but just don't have the time.  We walked by Central Park several times, and it looked so pretty.  And I loved how they put the Christmas trees in the Central Park fountain...cute!

We decided to make a quick stop at FAO Schwartz for goodies for the kiddos.  The first time I ever went to New York was with my family the summer that the movie Big came out.  I remember walking in the store totally mesmerized.  And of all of my pictures of this trip, the one with the Lego Statue of Liberty is Tate's favorite.

Next we headed back to the tkts booth to see what they had available for the matinee.  Same exact experience.  HUGE line for the musicals...NO line for the plays.  We'll take it.  Another set of half-price tickets with wonderful orchestra seats.

One of my favorite New York moments was walking by the fire station that was just a block from the hotel. These two firefighters were hanging a giant wreath.  You probably had to be there but this was the conversation I overheard in full-on New Yorker accents:  Fireman #1 - "Does this look like it's hanging straight?"  Fireman #2 - "It's a circle.  It's not going to be straight!"  Hilarious.

We had about an hour to kill before the matinee and had been in constant crowds and walking all over the place.  So we found a coveted window seat at a Starbucks and did some people watching.  Pretty sure I could do just that for an entire weekend in NYC.  Paige enjoyed some SB coffee, and I snuck in my Diet Coke and sidewalk pretzel.  And we also loved eavesdropping on all of the conversations around us...agents, assistants, actors...fascinating.

Next up...our second show!  Great orchestra seats again to see the dramatic comedy, Seminar.  The big names in this one were Alan Rickman (my favorite...the Colonel from Sense & Sensibility...or the guy from Harry Potter to the rest of you) and Jerry O'Connell.  We loved it and even were crazy rule-breakers by getting a quick picture.

We knew we didn't want to waste the little time we had left waiting in line for the musicals at tkts.  So on a whim, we walked across the street to the Billy Elliott-The Musical Box Office to see if they had any tickets available for that night.  And they did!  Again half-price, orchestra, great seats, no line....serendipity!  :)

The only time things didn't quite work out was when we could not get a cab to head to a restaurant that had been recommended.  It seemed that every person around was trying to get a cab at the same time, and none were available.  So instead we found a cute, little Italian place and enjoyed the quiet for awhile before Billy Elliot.  And that show did not disappoint, either.  The dancing was incredible, and the story was so wonderful.  I had to try hard at one point not to go into the ugly cry.  Absolutely loved it.

It is fair to say our theater plan was a success.  Before the trip I was nervous we wouldn't be able to get any good tickets.  And we ended up seeing three great shows all at 1/2 price...success!

At this point, it was close to midnight, and we were spent.  Headed to the hotel to get some sleep before the next early wake-up.  These pictures are from the hotel window.  The bright lights are from Times Square.

We woke up on Sunday trying not to focus on the fact that it was the last day.  We got going early and did some walking up to Herald Square to see the Christmas window displays.

From there we took a cab up to Central Park & 5th Avenue determined to enjoy a good 'ol New York bagel.  There are some beautiful condos/apartments in this area, and they looked SO cute with the Christmas decorations.

And we were just thrilled to be walking city streets in the quiet without bumping into all kinds of people.

After the bagel breakfast, it was time for our last stop of the trip.  In all of my other trips, this was a place I had also never been.  The hard part was that we only had 90 minutes to cover it.  Pretty sure you need an entire weekend.  But what I saw, I absolutely loved!  I really did not expect such an incredible museum.  And I was pleasantly surprised to learn you could take pictures as long as there was no flash.  I definitely enjoyed the beautiful paintings, but I was very surprised with how interesting the Egyptian and Medieval exhibits were.  Loved it and definitely want to go back.

And sadly by noon, it was time to head to the airport.  Sigh...the whirlwind adventure was over.  I am so thankful for such a wonderful experience.  I loved everything about the city...the culture, the energy, the diversity, and the excitement.  Don't think I could live there...but for 48 hours...I loved it.  Plus I got to spend a couple of days with one of my most favorite people.  Wonderful serendipity...

Christmas at Preschool

The month of December is a fun time at preschool.  I always say the teachers should get paid double.  Lots of adorable crafts, fun games, parties, treats, learning, and more fun.  I still can't get in my head that this is Tate's last year at preschool, which sadly means his last year of the Christmas preschool festivities.

The Christmas program was great again.  His class sang Go Tell It On The Mountain.  The version they sang was much more upbeat then what we kept hearing on the radio.  Tate would say the people on the radio were singing it wrong. :)  He is on the back row and second from far right.  As you can see he doesn't have much stage fright and is all in.

They also got to visit with Santa one day at school.  My friend sent me this picture, and I could not get over how BIG he looked.  Growing up so fast.

And on the last day was the Christmas craziness...I mean party.  :)  Lots of fun playing a dice game, making a Christmas tree out of an ice cream cone, frosting, and candy.  And then the hilarious book exchange game.  Such a fun day with some sweet kiddos and pretty amazing teachers.

Tate is 5!

Most of the time I write a birthday blog post, it starts by stating that I can't believe he is this old.  Oddly enough, I have not had that feeling with Tate turning 5.  He has changed so much in the last year (including growing almost 4 inches taller), and now he seems like a 5-year-old.  He seems older, looks older, and acts older (most of the time).  :)

Tate is the kind of kid that if you've spent much time around him, you are quickly considered his friend.  It started early as a toddler, but he typically knows no stranger.  He truly enjoys being with other people.  He is outgoing, friendly, and talkative.  He is full of energy, full of life, and starts the day ready to go.

I can see the wheels spinning in his little head all of the time as he asks lots of lots of questions.  About the weather, about which bugs are eaten by which bugs, about why people go to jail, about heaven, about how to spell all kinds of words, about which superheroes are bad guys.  The list could go on and on.  He is in that stage of just soaking everything in.

I love that although he has a side of him that is definitely all-boy, high-energy, craziness, he seems to love to learn.  I hope and pray we can continue to foster that in him.  He still loves to be read stories each night.  He has recently started sounding out words and figuring out how to spell them, recognizing several sight words, counting to 100, etc.  He looooves going to Discovery at preschool and learning the weekly science lessons.  And just in the past few months, he has seemed to enjoy coloring more.  For the longest time, he had no desire but now actually asks to color and definitely enjoys drawing people...and monster trucks.

He loves playing and watching any sport.  It's part brainwashing by Daddy and part his genuine interest, but he has impressively figured out most of the NFL logos and which team goes with which one.  Pretty sure I had nothing to do with that life skill.  Jason Witten is already his hero.  He loved playing soccer and T-ball this year.  I definitely see a competitive nature to him, which if I'm honest, makes me a little nervous.  Praying to always help teach balance.

Tate has taken to being a big brother well.  He rarely objects when asked to help.  And he is great about trying to entertain Will when needed.  And the feeling is mutual.  Will loves much prefers when Tate is in the car with us and always thinks he's hysterical.

(picture taken on his actual birthday before our Movie Date to see The Muppets.)

This video is an interview I did with him the day after his 5th birthday using the questions from the Your Birthday Book that I fill out each year. We made it through all of the questions, but I wasn't sure it we would at times.  It is clearly December (birthday and Christmas=lots of presents talk), and he gets a little silly/inpatient at times, but I love getting to capture him each year.



I love this boy with every ounce of love in me.  At the same time there are days it takes every ounce of patience I have, but we are all figuring this out together.  I'm reminded every day that the Lord creates us each unique and wonderful.  I'm excited every day to think of the bright future ahead of him.  I'm thankful every day that I get to call him mine.  Can't wait to see what this next year brings!

(Continuing the superhero theme, this was the family birthday dinner with a Superman cake)

Party Like It's Your Birthday

Tate decided months ago that he really wanted to have a superhero theme party for his 5th birthday at the place he goes for summer gymnastics camp.  It ended up being the perfect place and a great party.  He had a huge smile on his face every single second and was surrounded by his best buddies....and superheroes!

This was definitely one of the easiest parties for me since the gymnastics place did everything.  And even better, all of the kids had such a great time.  The coaches make it lots of fun for everyone.

 

And no lie, his exclamation at this point..."Look guys, it's a card!"  He does not lack in enthusiasm.  :)

I was so bummed that I forgot to take some pics of the kids with their party favors...superhero capes.  During the Strzinek family Thanksgiving, we had an assembly line of capemaking.  They were a hit, and the kids looked cute.

We are so thankful for all that made it out to celebrate with Tate.  He is a very social kid and loves being with his friends.  It made his day to have you all there having fun with him!  Next post on the big day and the 5-year-old himself.  :)

Family Day

After a fun but very busy Thanksgiving weekend, we decided on Sunday to have a day for our little family of 4 at the zoo.  We got there early and were pleasantly surprised to see no crowds at all.  Could of also had something to do with the 30 mph winds and 40 degree temp.  Hmmm?

Despite the cold, we had a great time and enjoyed seeing several animals up close and personal.  Including this crocodile who hung out by the window floating around.

Will has always like to watch birds.  Maybe a future in birding?  :)  So he was in bird heaven when we went into the huge aviary full of hundreds of birds flying around, who you can also feed.  I was in the opposite of bird heaven as they totally freak me out.  I tried to suck it up and be brave for my kids, but there was still some squealing and jumping when those crazy things swarmed me as I pulled out the seed stick.  I still have the heebie jeebies.  But this little guy thought it was all pretty great.

And the animal highlight of the trip came right as we were leaving and walked through the primate exhibit.  All of the gorillas and orangutans are usually outside but were in some small, temporary rooms.  So we got up close and personal.  Kind of amazing and a little creepy at the same time.  Thankful for the very thick sheet of glass separating us.

It was a fun, cold, relaxed day with my little family, and I loved every minute.