Thursday, May 14, 2015

Nyc/DC vacation

Bryce left for nyc two Saturday's ago and for one week I plowed through life as a single parent, he'll bent on changing life as we know it when Bryce gets back.  Needless-to-say life with two kids has somewhat distanced Bryce and I and we were not slowing ourselves down to enjoy one another.  

Then came the following Saturday where we did just that.  I went to nyc without the boys to spend 5 days with just Bryce.  It was just what we needed.  We found so much joy in one another's presence and less and less fault in ourselves and each other every day.

Here is the run down.  

Day 1:  I got to NYC around 2.  We hung out with Ted and Mason.  Mason went swimming and we took delight in watching our 6-year-old nephew swim and cannon ball and be just an amazing little boy.  Then we went out to dinner with them for some more family conversation.  Ted is such a great dad and it showed while we were there.  Bryce and I finished the night by going to the Broadway musical "a gentlemens guide to love and murder" suggested to us by cheri and Jonathan.  We had fantastic seat, the kind where you see the sweat droplets and Broadway suddenly seems so real.  The show was hilarious!!!  Totally worth seeing if you ever find yourself in NYC.  



Day 2:  We started with breakfast at the apt with Ted and Mason.  I really wanted to go boating so we walked across Central Park with Mason on his scooter.  However the boats were not yet out for the season.  So we looked at the Alice in wonderland statue, watched some toy sailboats and walked back.  Then we went down to Goldman Sachs where Ted works and he showed us his office area.  It was pretty impressive with a smart elevator and great views.  It was right beside the new World Trade Center, which will open for visitors at the end of the month, and the memorial which we visited after getting lunch.  Ted and Mason then went to the park and we tried to decide what to do eing it was Mother's Day.  We decided to go to another show, Wicked.  Our seats were not bad, but far enough away it seemed more Broadway.  The show was great though.  Prior to the show we also went to Rockefeller center and couldn't resist the lego shop, even without link.  We ate at rosa Mexicana, a favorite or ours near their apt and then got to see Lori when she came back from California that evening.


Day 3: We took off early to hop on the bolt bus down to Washington, D.C..  The bus ride was about 4 hours, but nice.  There was some wifi and lots of time to relax.  When we go to union station, we went to our hotel, the w.  The w is a kind of rock star hotel.  We stayed in one if san fransico once and there were funky Buddhas everywhere, in DC, it was funky presidential things.  The hotel was right next to the White House and the rooftop bar was open and the view of the mall was fantastic.


Day 4:  We met a high school friend of mine, Tyler Lechtenberg, at the White House for a private tour.  He is a speech writer for the Obamas and actually could only accompany us half of the tour because he had a meeting with the First Lady that afternoon.  There were no pictures and it was a work day so the west wing was closed, but we got to see the east wing and the main floor of the White House center.  Tyler's tour was casual and one do funny.  "This thing is cool" etc.  


We had a little more time before we had to journey back so we walked to the mall and popped into the American history museum.  We weren't sure what was there, but we were delighted to find the Washington God statue and Julia child's kitchen.



At Union Station that afternoon we boarded the Bolt Bus again.  I'm not sure if he told me then or not that a bolt had caught fire that morning or not, but either way I'm glad we got on because our other option was Amtrak.  Midway through the trip Bryce saw on the news that train had jumped the track and people had died.  So weird having just passed them hours prior s they lined up to board.



Day 5:  my birthday.  We stayed that night with Bryce's editor, John Biggs and family.  We talked a little with his wife, Asia who had just left her job and then went to park slope to meet Bryce's friend Laura, who had just left her job.  Later that day we realized these two worked together and quit together.  Small world.  Before meeting Laura and her adorable, two-year-old Wade, we took breakfast at this cute chain restaurant or Belgium quinine.  We also went to a couple of toy stores and I picked out a push puppet for my birthday present.  We went to a book store and when we entered Bryce told me he knew the cashier.  I told him he didn't, but he decided to introduce himself anyway.  Turns out they did know each other, though this was the first time they ever met.  Phillip is a write Bryce has illustrated for, he even writes limericks for "wait, wait, don't tell me".  When Bryce introduced himself, Phillip jumped up and gave him a hug.  After those small shops where I was in heaven (I should open a children's book and toy shop, I adore them so much) we walked around prospect park and then up to a pie shop to meet Laura.  I had birch beer float pie which was great.  Bryce had a lemon chess.


Then, we went home









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