A Whirlwind Weekend in the Big Apple

With a new baby on the way, Thomas and I decided we only had so many months left to travel.  So, when an invitation from a dear college friend came for his wedding on Long Island, we decided it was a perfect excuse for a New York trip.  Virginia stayed behind for a fun-filled long weekend in California while Thomas and I headed east.

The first stop was New York City, where Marriott hotel points scored us a nice room in the Renaissance Hotel right in the heart of Times Square.  Since it had been years since we'd been to NYC, we decided we had earned as much.  It turned out to be a good thing that we saved on the room because theater tickets were sky-high!  It didn't help that I wanted to see one of the hottest shows in town -- Matilda -- which had recently opened on Broadway.  Matilda was based on my absolute favorite childhood novel of the same name by Roald Dahl, so it was a can't miss for me.  It was truly a magical theater experience and an amazing show (made all the better by second row seats).  We even had a chance to meet up with a college friend, Justin Zaremby, before the show for drinks.  And after the show, we had a chance to see another Yalie, Rachel Pasternak, who happened to have Matilda tickets the same night!  Talk about lots of reunions.

Very happy Roald Dahl fan!

Speaking of reunions, as luck would have it, my Aunt Lynn happened to be in New York the same evening too.  She was taking a girls trip to shop and see shows, so we met up with her crew at Sardi's.  What fun!

Sardi's with the girls!

Thomas, Auntie Lynn, and me at Sardi's.

The next morning, we had the opportunity to see even more Yale friends, as we met up with Marc Suskin and his family for brunch.  Marc and Thomas were Spizzwinks and Whiffenpoofs together, and their oldest daughter is right at Virginia's age.  We were sad that Virginia couldn't be there for the reunion too, but I know we will have a chance to see them again soon.

With Marc & Alexa and their girls.

Then it was off to Connecticut for the rest of the day.  We crashed for one night with Uncle John and Aunt Joyce at 1918 and had a nice time visiting with most of the CT Mack family as always.

Finally, the big event -- Roric Tobin's wedding on Long Island.  We drove Sunday morning from Connecticut down to Long Island, where we reunited with even more Yalies for the shindig.  We also had the chance to see our UVa law friend, Brett, who also happens to be Roric's brother (small world!).  We had recently seen Brett and his family in Hawaii in March, so it was nice to catch up with him and his daughters again.  The wedding was a blast and I danced my pregnant belly off.  Best wishes to the happy couple!

Leslie & her favorite boys -- Brian & Peter

The boys doing Blue Steel.  Very little has changed in the 12 years since we graduated at Yale.

With the illustrious Mr. Eric Paul Harding.

Thomas & Brett

More Yale pals.

Thomas and the blushing groom.

Daddy-daughter dancing.  Cuteness.

Virginia, The Flower Girl

Thomas's cousin, Shannon Mack, got married this fall and Virginia was honored to be asked to serve as flower girl in the wedding.  Shannon married a lovely Southern gentleman, Brett Casey, who just happens to be from Charlotte, North Carolina.  Shannon will be moving there after her honeymoon, so she has gotten to be friends with my sister who also lives in Charlotte (along with Thomas's other cousin, Beau, who already has befriended my sister).  Needless to say, it is starting to get hard to unravel these Neeland/Mack friendships and connections!  I was just thrilled that Liz could make the trip to Connecticut too so we got a chance to visit with her and her husband, Dave.

The wedding weekend was a huge success.  Virginia attended the bridesmaids' luncheon, where Shannon gave her a lovely engraved jewelry box filled with all sorts of fun kid jewelry.  We were then off to get manicures and pedicures with the bridesmaids - Virginia's first visit to the nail salon!  She totally ate it up.

Posing with the bride and her bridal party:

Someone was in manicure heaven!:

Friday night was the rehearsal dinner in downtown Stamford.  Virginia desperately wanted to make a toast, but then froze under pressure and exhaustion when she got the microphone.  I'll spare readers the details, but the toast did not end well!  But we certainly entertained everyone, I suppose.

With the bride at the rehearsal dinner (pre-toast meltdown):

Saturday was filled with getting dolled up for the big afternoon wedding.  But we made sure to spend a little time with family and also set off on search of some good Connecticut pizza!

With Dave, Liz, Beau, and Jessica at a hole in the wall pizza joint - the best kind:

And then it was off to the wedding!  Virginia loved her beautiful dress and tolerated the crown of flowers on her head.  We were afraid she wouldn't wear it, but she completely rose to the occasion.  She got to ride in the limo with the wedding party to the church, and she was mesmerized by the lights inside.  She called the limo her "spaceship" and announced we were "ready for blastoff" when the limo started moving.

Strike a pose:

She was so proud to be dolled up like the big girls:

Spaceship limo ready for blastoff:

The wedding ceremony was truly beautiful, and Virginia fulfilled her flower girl duties with grace and charm.  Virginia was accompanied down the aisle by Brett's nephew, Colin, as the ring bearer.  Colin was a little younger than Virginia, and there was some question whether he would make it down the very long aisle in the Gothic cathedral.  In the end, he and Virginia grabbed hands and powered down it like pros.  We breathed a sigh of relief!

It was a "three lollipop wedding!"  All the sugar limits went out the door as we tried to keep Virginia quiet through the ceremony - Catholic services are a little longer than we Methodists are used to!

With Mom outside the gorgeous church:

The kids after the service - Virginia's "twin" cousin Jones and the ring bearer Colin:

After the church service, we went to a reception like no other!  It was held at the Westchester Country Club, which was beyond impressive.  There was a candy station and photo booth, among other surprises.  The kids joined us for the cocktail hour, and we then got some much-needed adult time when the kids went upstairs with a babysitter during the dinner and dancing.  Thanks, Aunt Ellen, for hiring that sitter!  Virginia, Colin, and Jones apparently had a blast, while we danced the night away with a very fun band.

The Charlotte contingent, Dave, Liz, Jessica & Beau:

Sisters, sisters, there were never such devoted sisters:

These boys might have gotten into some trouble over the weekend.  No comment:

Doug and Thomas, with a happy and relieved father-of-the-bride, David Mack:

Virginia and Colin conked out with the babysitter before the night was over:

We finished the wedding weekend with a Sunday brunch at the hotel with family and friends.  Then it was back to California!

Virginia adored cousin Beau.  She spent most of the brunch negotiating with Beau and his wife Jessica about how she was going to take a plane flight by herself to Charlotte to visit them!

I got my one photo with the bride and groom.  Don't they look happy to be married?!:

Virginia with Aunt Meg:

Labor Day in CT

We had quite the Labor Day adventure this year... we arrived in CT just days after the entire Northeast was devastated by Hurricane Irene.  The power was still out in half of the state and as luck would have it, 1918 was still in the dark.  But we were determined to have a great time and to enjoy our visit with all of the Mack family!  We luckily had the good fortune to have a free night at a Marriott hotel, and we booked a room down the road at the local Residence Inn for the first night.

The following day, we imposed upon the generous hospitality of Uncle Peter and Aunt Nancy (and Cousin Sarah!) and moved down to Southport for two nights.  Aunt Nancy was smart enough to have saved all of her little girl toys in the attic, and Virginia put all of them to use: baby carriages, play kitchens, tea sets, and more!  It was a little girl's dream come true.  When the power finally was restored to 1918 and it was time to move on, we had a hard time getting Virginia to agree to move out.

It was nice to have a few nights in 1918 as well (for the uninitiated reader, 1918 is Thomas's grandmother's house, and it is about to become the home of Thomas's Uncle John and Aunt Joyce).  Virginia spent plenty of time splashing in the pool and remarking about the fallen trees that the hurricane left behind.  Thomas and I spent lots of time going through old photos and boxes in an effort both to help John and Joyce clean out decades of Mack family junk and also to find information for our ongoing genealogy efforts.

The weekend was filled with lots of Mack socializing... a trip up to Yale for a Thai Taste lunch, dinner at the von Eulers' home, a visit to Rawley's (of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives fame) for milkshakes, and a cookout at the Steven Macks.  Virginia loved seeing all her cousins and we were amazed at how quickly she learned everyone's names.

Yale 10th Reunion

Thomas and I took a weekend off from parenting in early June to travel to New Haven for our 10 year Yale Reunion! We had a blast, and we heard that Virginia didn't have too bad of a time her self spending the weekend with GayGay (pony rides, trips to McDonald's, and lots of time with Phoebe dominated the weekend).

As for us in Connecticut, we stayed quite busy with Mory's trips, singing with the Whiffs, trips to Thai Taste and the Elizabethan Club, visits with the Mack family, and lots of catching up with friends at the reunion events.

Connecticut

Last weekend I flew back to Connecticut to visit Gram and the Macks. I make a point of being there every summer. We had originally planned to be there earlier this summer, but our schedules refused to comply. With the August days ticking away, I seized the moment and caught a flight for a long weekend.

I managed to arrive just in time for the best Connecticut weather of the season, the kind of summer weather that makes every other moment of the year look inferior. Apparently Connecticut had alternated between sweltering hot and stormy for most of July and August. But this weekend, the sun shown down with complete and perfect benevolence. Afternoons achieved that ideal combination of slanting warm sunshine, a welcome accumulating layer of radiant heat, clean dry air, and occasional tickling breeze. We all sat around the pool holding sweaty bottles and chatted.

It was great to see Gram. Gram has been living at Carolton for some time, so on weekends the Mack gatherings around lunchtime typically occur at her room. Gram had had some difficulty the day before I arrived, but she recovered steadily over the weekend. On Saturday she mostly rested and listened as we all chatted together in her room. By Sunday, she had gathered back much of her strength and by all accounts was significantly better. I was grateful to have a good talk with her.

On Saturday, Uncle John and Aunt Joyce orchestrated a full-blown Bavarian cookout, complete with brats, knockwurst, potato salad, traditional slaw, pasta, sauerbraten (beef dish), German beer, and fresh rye bread and rolls. I piled my plate high.

Hard to say what was my favorite, but I definitely had seconds of the mild veal and pork brat on the right.

A few of the cousins were around too, including Buzz (up from NYC for the weekend), Sarah, and Katie Jane, who is just back after a summer of working at her camp in the Adirondacks. Katie used her Herculean strength to open up the pickle jar.

It was a great, great weekend. I wish I were back there already.