I Don't Even Know What To Say

or... maybe...I Don't EVEN Know Where To Start.

The week in the lives of The Phillips Phamily has been eventful to say the least. I've got about 15 different things I would like to post about but about 1 post's worth of energy to do it. Let's begin...

The trip to New York was amazing. It was the perfect getaway The Daddy and I needed to start the holiday season. I usually dread it when he has to go out of town on business, so it was a refreshing change to be going with him.

I told you we were going to see a show on Tuesday, and boy, did we! At the recommendation of my best friend from high school and current resident of NYC, we chose Spring Awakening. GREAT MUSIC. Good story. Tried to tackle too many hard-core topics. A little racy. Beautiful theater. Great set design. Simple costume stylings. Character-driven plot. Set in the 1800s. In Germany. With MODERN MUSIC. Did I say VERY GOOD MUSIC?

After the show, we went to a restaurant billed as the ONLY Scottish fare in NYC. It was good and cozy and who doesn't love seeing a man in a kilt?

So my one previous venture to New York involved a bus, a chorus teacher, some chaperones and a bus-load of adolescents. I was one of those teens. Our choral group went on a school "field trip" to sing at the Statue of Liberty in high school, so we rode a bus from Tennessee to New York. Whew! Thinking back, I don't know how the school got any one parent to volunteer to chaperone. The promise of a free trip to New York and tickets to see Phantom of the Opera on Broadway?


Best friend, Katy-on left- and my alternative self in Central Park

Any-whoooooo, my previous experience with the city entailed the typical touristy things with no REAL sense of the city. We were all too scared to jump out of the huddle to see anything we weren't really scheduled to see. The one thing my best friend Katy (click back there to see how amazing her job is!) and I did that was totally selfish and teen-y was to hold up our entire bus group for, I don't know, maybe a half hour, hour, or so because we heard that Audrey Hepburn was going to be at the Macy's soon. We wanted to see her. We wanted to get her picture. We did what we wanted with NO REGARD to anyone else on our trip. Not to mention, we just about gave our chorus teacher a heart attack thinking she had lost two kids in New York.

Here's the picture:


Quality Photography from 1991


Katy and I planned to meet up on Wednesday night while The Daddy did his one business thing on the trip. The Daddy and I rode the subway together to his destination. Thankfully, I had already been advised to visit the Union Square Holiday Market whilst in NYC and lo and behold, what did we find right in front of us when we got to The Daddy's destination! I had an hour until I had to meet Katy, so I got to browse for a few Christmas presents. H.J.'s going to look cute next year in some handmade alpaca from Peru!

I had to walk 10 or so blocks BY MYSELF IN THE DARK to meet Katy. I don't do the unknown very well. But I did this! We met at a cozy place, The Bowery Hotel. Then we had dinner reservations at Mercat, a Spanish restaurant, where Katy knew the chef. He subsequently sent us probably $100 worth of food "compliments" of him. NICE. It was yummy and we could have sat there talking for hours. Chad joined us for dessert after his culinary experience at Olives in the W hotel at Union Square.

We closed the restaurant down and headed to another location. I don't remember the name but we closed it down, too. After a shared cab-ride back to the digs, NY Hilton, I claimed the morning to be mine in bed. The Daddy found another work obligation: breakfast at the Waldorf Astoria. So sad. Must have been awful for him! I stayed in bed until...wait for it...10:00 am! Jealous????

I walked for three days in the city in a pair of high-heeled, pointed-toed boots. AND it was worth it. I'll post pictures tomorrow. And give you an update on the PINK PIG trip, the Santa wish list experience, our Sunday school White Elephant party, the Women's Christmas Brunch, and the Marietta Pilgrimage Home Tour thingy.