home again
Oh my word am I glad to be home!!!We got home from a trip to New York with our family on my hubby’s side this Wednesday and I am so happy about it. Not because the trip wasn’t fun, it was amazing!! But this was the end of a very busy summer for us and felt like most of what I did was pack, travel, get home, unpack and do laundry so we could turn around and pack our stuff up for the next adventure. Speaking of packing, I took way too many clothes!!…when will I learn?!!! But to be fair, the day before we left I moved Tate back up to college in the morning and moved Paige and Matt to their new place in the afternoon/evening. Got home around 9pm, did a couple of haircuts and got up at 1am to make our flight. Somewhere in the middle of all that I threw some clothes into a bag, so I guess there’s grace for my lack of planning in the outfit department:)The reason we went to New York was because my father in law was raised in Brooklyn and had always wanted his kids to see where he grew up, so they not only invited us but paid for us to go. Wasn’t that so nice?! Seriously, so generous of them to do that for us!!!Thank you so much Liz and John!!!Before we left I had done a little research about the things that I really wanted to see. The usual sights, like the Statue of Liberty, Times Square and of course Central Park to name just a few, and I was super eager to see the place where the man who welcomed me into his family and loved me well spent his growing up years. What I was surprised by, was how all of it FAR exceeded my expectations!For starters, the Statue of Liberty is massive and boy is she ever a beauty! Seriously, I was kinda thinking, “of course I’ll want to see it, it’s iconic for Pete’s sake”. (and who even is Pete anyway???:) But I was not prepared for how much I loved it. Seriously… so spectacular.
Unfortunately the day was not my favorite in terms of weather. It was pretty overcast (obviously it was bright since you can barely see our eyes because of our squinting:) but it did burn off a bit by the time we left so we got to see her with some blue sky behind her amazing beauty.
Then there was Times Square. Where do I even begin??? It is complete craziness! From the naked cowgirls painted bodies, to the enormous amount of people and every possible kind of food to eat, to all of the massive signs that are lit up 24/7 and constant honking,it's utter chaos. And a people watcher's dream!
Times Square at night feels like it is daytime because of all the lights. It really is the city that never sleeps.
Also sidenote, be sure to watch for Mike and I in the Avengers 4 movie! We ended up being extras in a dance scene! True story:) I'm sure it'll probably be cut out but it was fun anyway.Part of what Liz and John did for us was purchase, for each of us, the 3 Day New York City Pass. This pass got us into all the major attractions and gave us discounts on some of the others. You have to use it 3 days in a row though for it to be valid so by the time we were done with that we decided to go up to the Central Park. We had spent the majority of the week walking anywhere from 5-9 miles and thought how nice it would be to go hang out in the park. Well, as many of you know, if you want to actually see the park, you are going to have to walk….A LOT. But, even with all the walking, it was breathtaking!!! Seriously, the most beautiful, serene haven right in the middle of the biggest bustling city in the United States. To say that I loved it is an understatement. It is totally picturesque everywhere you look.
This is me and my sister in laws, Jenni and Kathy. Aren't they adorable?!
And one more...
But out of all of that, I have to say the thing that was most meaningful for me was our very first day in New York. We woke up on Sunday morning, headed straight for the Subway and caught the yellow R train to Brooklyn. With each step, as we climbed our way out of the subway station, I watched my father in law get younger and by the time we made our way to sunlight I felt like I was standing next to the 13 year old boy who had come home. There he was, back in his old stomping grounds with his own family, ready to take us down the roads of his history. Over the last 20-30 years I have heard stories of where his life took place but now here I was walking alongside him as he shared the memories of his past with me……it was right here that I shined shoes on the corner when I was 5 years old. (can you even believe that?!..5 years old!)
…this is PS94, the place where I went to school. There’s the window where I sat in 1st grade.
…here’s the street I grew up playing stickball on.
…this is my house.
and across the street the Hickey family lived with 16 kids!
…right next door is the house my cousins lived in. (and one of them still does!)
Story after story of the places and people that shaped this man into who he is today. I loved that day. I totally enjoyed seeing all of those places but what I loved most was watching John get excited to share parts of his world with us. No longer stories of a far away place but actually standing on the very sidewalk that decades ago carried the weight of the little boy that would one day be father to the man that would become my husband and the father to our children.I have always loved John and been so grateful for how he welcomed me from day one into his family. Even when I was that crazy 18 year old party-girl, full of fear and shame and trying to figure out what it meant to be a grown up. He loved me from the very beginning and he has continued to love me over the last 30 years. But today, I love him even more. And it’s not because he paid for me to go on an amazing trip, although I’m super grateful! I love him more because he let me in and I feel like I know him better.That’s what happens when we share our stories.We let people into the deeper places in our hearts and somehow there’s a connection made that doesn’t happen any other way. John is not a sappy kind of guy, at all! In fact, I would say he’s a pretty private man and quite possibly wouldn’t even like me talking about him on the internet:). But somehow in this walk down memory lane, maybe without him even knowing it, he opened the door just a little bit more and gave me a peek into his world and I feel super privileged to have been invited inIt's good to be home because there’s no place like it. The place where we can be at rest with ourselves and our families and yet, I’m so glad that I got to go home with John. Back to the beginning with him to the place where his earliest memories began to shape him into the man who would become one of the safe men in my life.I love you John Levang. Thanks for the gift of you!