Valentine's Day in New York City
About a month ago, I was in Brooklyn on business travel and enjoying chicken and waffles at Sweet Chick, the greatest dining establishment in the history of modern civilization. I sat alone at the bar, texting Beth to explain how incredible the meal was, using a mix of adjectives and emojis that just couldn't do it justice.
Sweet Chick — much like visiting New York City — is something you have to experience firsthand to really appreciate it. Unfortunately, Beth had never enjoyed this heavenly chicken-waffle combo, nor had she ever taken in the Big Apple.
So, the day I returned from the work trip, we decided to book flights and hotels for NYC to spend our first Valentine’s Day together since we got married in 2012. (The previous three years I was out of town for work.) Over the course of four short days, we managed to squeeze in a lot:
- We checked out typical tourist traps like Times Square, Grand Central Station, Rockefeller Center and Central Park.
- We visited the Museum of Modern Art to see Picassos, Van Goghs, Matisses and Rothkos.
- We visited the 9/11 Memorial Museum — a somber, but masterfully curated installation.
- We attended mass at Saint Patrick’s Cathedral in Midtown.
- We enjoyed Sweet Chick (twice), Valentine’s Day brunch at Jack's Wife Freda, as well as Korean, Chinese, Mexican and New York-style pizza sans real cheese. (Beth has a dairy allergy.)
- On a whim, we each got tattoos inspired by the song we chose for the first dance at our wedding. Very YOLO, we know.
- We walked a total of 30 miles in wind, rain, sleet and snow. (Uphill, both ways.) Beth nearly froze to death at one point, while I nearly sweated to death. Pretty common situation for us, actually.
We've seen several friends who are expecting set off on so-called "babymoons" — exotic trips during the third trimester as one last hurrah before activating Parent Mode. Planning such a well-timed trip is a little more complicated when you're waiting to adopt. Our trip worked out perfectly because it was highly unlikely anything major would change within the space of three weeks from booking it. However, if we were to plan a big trip for sometime in the summer, for instance, we couldn't be as confident nothing would happen.
We're not dwelling on this fact, however. We actually hope to travel as a family as often as possible when we become parents. There's really no better way to understand the world around you then to go out and see it — the culture, the traditions, the landscapes. Perhaps the New York City banking titan David Rockefeller said it best:
"I am a passionate traveler, and from the time I was a child, travel formed me as much as my formal education."
We hope the same is true for our children.
So, maybe it's only appropriate that on the last day of our trip our return flight was canceled, forcing us to stay another night to catch a 6 a.m. the next day. It was a great reminder during this adoption process that plans change, and usually those unforeseen changes are completely out of your hands. You just have to adjust course, remain patient and enjoy the ride.
