Hamilton!!

Today I turn 42.  Not yet.  I still have four hours before I was born, so I'm relishing these last few minutes of 41.  I had an awesome year.  On any given day, I had special times with Little Lewie, date nights with my husband, and shopping dates with my mom.  In the midst of work, school, swim lessons, roller skating lessons, Cub Scouts, and plenty of pool parties, we still managed a few overnight trips, including our great escape to the Grand Canyon.

This weekend was yet another AMAZING experience.  My husband's good friend Michael  scored us tickets to see Hamilton on Broadway at the Richard Rodgers Theatre.  These were not just any tickets.  They were Row C (the third row away from the stage)!!  We saw the acting, the singing, the dancing, the costumes, the props--EVERYTHING--up close and personal.  We laughed, we cried, we applauded, and in the end, we gave the cast a standing ovation.  The actors, actresses, dancers, and musicians were beyond talented.  They kept us engaged for three hours, teaching us the good, the bad, and the ugly scandals of our founding fathers.  At the end, you came away recognizing that our founding fathers were brilliant, but, nonetheless, human.  They had human interest stories of their own.

At the end of the show, we had the pleasure of meeting up with Michael for dinner.  Our other good friend, Paul, the costume designer for Hamilton, couldn't join us (he's working on another production in London).  Still, seeing Hamilton made us have so much appreciation for his work.  We spent the evening talking about the experience and how much work goes into a great performance like that.

We took the 8:36 p.m. train from Grand Central back to Connecticut and arrived home around 10:30 p.m.  I always love visiting the city, but this time it was extra special...all thanks to our very good friend, Michael.

A Quiet Start to 2017

So far this year has been, well, quiet.  We met up with two of my best friends from grammar school (and their families) to welcome in the New Year, and the next day (New Year's Day), my mom treated us out to eat at our favorite restaurant--the G.W. Tavern; (the G.W. stands for George Washington).  

This weekend, it snowed and was bitter cold, but Lew and I took a drive back up to the Northwestern Hills of Connecticut for our bi-monthly date.  This time we treated ourselves to the Boathouse Restaurant in Lakeville, CT--a new favorite.

One thing that I adore about our relationship is that we both love old, rustic places--and there are plenty to be found in New England.  The G.W. Tavern was once a colonial home (circa 1850) that contains a fieldstone fireplace and hand painted murals from around that time.  We love its charm. (Many homes in the town of Washington are even older--from the 1700's.)

The historical ties of the Boathouse Restaurant building is less known.  It appears to be from the 1800's, but the town itself, Lakeville, goes back to pre-Revolutionary times.  Some of the homes around the restaurant are from the 1700's, and the prestigious Hotchkiss (Boarding) School (right around the corner) was founded in the 1890's.

Here are just a few pictures of the G.W. Tavern, courtesy of their website:

The G.W. Tavern

The G.W. Tavern w/ its fieldstone fireplace and tribute to George Washington.

Here we are on New Year's Day at the G.W.

Here are pictures of the Boathouse Restaurant...

The Boathouse Restaurant in the summer... Picture it covered in snow...

Besides being quiet, I guess the start of this year has also brought some great dining opportunities. Rarely do we get a chance to eat at our favorite restaurants two weekends in a row!  It's probably not helpful with upholding my New Year's resolutions, but the ambiance, the company, and, of course, the food is oh so good!

Day Date with Hubby

I have not had a “day date” alone with my husband since Lil’ Lewie was born 22 months ago. Sure we’ve done a few things at night (movies, restaurants, roller-skating) but a day date was different.

It all started when my sister-in-law volunteered to take Lil’ Lewie to a toddler birthday party that was held yesterday. “I know he’d have a lot of fun with the other kids,” she said. “What do you think?”

Lewie and I looked at each other and took a moment to bring our jaws back up to the floor. “Really? You don’t mind taking him for the day?” I asked again because it sounded too good to be true.

“Really. Plus, Sarah (his four year-old cousin) would love spending time with him,” she answered.

If my sister-in-law volunteered to watch Lil’ Lewie a year ago, I would have declined the offer. Parenting was still new to me, and I had a hard time entrusting anyone else with the responsibility of watching him. Now that he was older and not so fragile, my worries dissipated.
“Sounds great!” I exclaimed. “What time does he need to be ready?”

My husband and I could hardly contain our enthusiasm. Sure we just had a wonderful trip to the Bahamas, but we couldn’t actually do anything together. One of us had to watch Lil’ Lewie while the other one was given free time to read, relax on the beach, swim, or soak up some rays. Now we could do whatever we wanted TOGETHER!

Like two teenagers planning our first date, we quickly went over our list of possible options—beach, hiking, Margaritas, outdoor concerts, amusement parks—and yeah, I almost forgot—sex.

After some scrutiny, we chose our day plan in this order.

--Lunch out on the patio of the GW Tavern/Restaurant

--A long hike at Steep Rock Reservation

--Intimate time at home

The plan, to us anyways, was a dream come true. My husband had never been to the GW Restaurant, and I couldn’t wait for him to try the food and see the exquisite view from the patio. Hiking was a great plan because Lil’ Lewie was still too young to go with us, and at a healthy 33 lbs. we weren’t about to try carrying him on our backs or in a sling. And finally, after some much needed emotional bonding during lunch and our hike, it would only be right to then have some physical intimacy as well.

During our lunch and our hike, we reconnected on both an emotional and spiritual level. We talked about our marriage, about our first dates, our trips, our honeymoon, our Lil’ Lewie, and the prospect of having more kids. We talked about life, death, change, hopes, dreams, and fears. Our time together, in essence, reminded us of why we became best friends and chose each other as life partners to begin with. I was surprised by how easily our conversation flowed, and for once out of twenty-two months, we really had something more meaningful to say to each other instead of the usual…

Me: “Are you going to help me with the dishes?”

Husband: “After I finish watching my show.”

Me: “You know you’re going to fall asleep in that recliner and not help me with the dishes.”

Husband: “I promise I will do the dishes. Okay, Nagarella?”

When we pulled up into our driveway after the hike, Lew’s sister was already in the driveway waiting for us. Lil’ Lewie jumped out of the car like a wildman and spoke in such animated gibberish that I was certain he was recounting the events of the day.

“I guess it looks like the sex is out,” my husband whispered, sounding obviously disappointed.

“Remember, we’re married now and have a kid,” I teased, “we’ll try again when Lil’ Lewie is grown and moves away to college.”