MMS graduation

Baseball games

moving to wayne ave

Lindsay turns 20!

This was definitely one of my most favorite birthdays.  On Saturday, Randi, Chris, Meme, Mommy, and Jenny all wished me a happy birthday.  We had cake and I got some presents.  Randi made me a really nice video on iMovie, and Chris got me a flashdrive.  On the flashdrive was a powerpoint card which was really cute, and my real present: a ticket to the Phillies Game on April 11th!  I was really excited.

Chris slept over, and on the next day, my 20th birthday, we headed to New York together.  I went to a dress rehearsal for a performance of the Mozart Coronation Mass in Carnegie Hall and Chris went to the MoMa with Renata.  I still have the card she gave me, which I thought was really sweet.  Bryan also called Chris while I was in rehearsal to wish me a happy birthday which was so thoughtful.  

After my dress rehearsal, I met up with Allie and Jackie, two sisters who I went to high school with.  It was Jackie's birthday, too.  We walked through Times Square, and when I stopped briefly outside of the Virgin Record Store, I saw five CDs wedged in the lid of a garbage can. SWEET!  I got some free CDs for my birthday.  I eventually found Chris who had brought me some breakfast bars so I could have a little nosh before my sound check and concert.  

After the soundcheck, Jonathan asked me if there was a Starbucks nearby because he was craving a latte.  I told him there was one just east of the backstage entrance to Carnegie Hall of 56th street, so I ran down there with a 20 spot.  This was the first thing Jonathan had ever asked me for, and the Starbucks was closed!  But...the stars were aligned that day.  The guy who was closing the store let me in and gave me a free large latte for Jonathan!  It was awesome!

I told Chris to meet me outside after my portion of the concert because I thought it was the second half, but it wasn't.  I snuck up to the box seat he was sitting in, but he had left!  I called him and he came back, and we heard a Haydn piece in G Major, and another piece that brought tears to my eyes.  Box 35, where we were sitting, is smack in the center of the tier.  The sound was amazing and I'll never forget this wonderful birthday present.

After the concert, we went to Rosie O'Grady's and had a huge dinner.  An old buddy of mine, Chuck, was there and I hung out with him.  The Soprano soloist and her family were there.  This is especially interesting because she is a Temple graduate and her parents went to Virginia Tech.  I went up to the bar and they wouldn't serve me (long story), but that's why I have Christopher! I handed him a dollar a couple of times and he turned them into Cosmos.  It was a great night and great birthday...one of the best ever.  

Valentines day

The Secret Trip

I couldn't wait to go on the Secret Trip!  Since Chris didn't like that we didn't leave at a reasonable hour for the Vermont trip, I told him that he could plan the next trip without me.  I thought I had an idea of where we might be going, but the truth is that I really didn't know at all. 

We got up pretty early and drove in the rain towards our first stop...McDonald's breakfast! Chris kept telling me that we were going somewhere I had never been before on the first day, so eliminated that we would be going to Cooperstown, NY to see the Baseball Hall of Fame.  Even though I had been there twice, that was our first stop on the Secret Trip. The Hall was empty which was really cool because I had time to look at and read all of the exhibits.  

After we finished up at the Hall of Fame, Chris and I got in the car and drove through some pretty crazy weather with tons of fog and rainbows.  It turns out that we were on our way to Rochester to spend the night at his house.  When we got home, we had some dinner with his dad.  Guida's pizza was delicious.  That evening, we hung around his house where I met his dog, CJ, and all of the birds.  We played some Scrabble in the living room with Chris Sr. until we went to bed.  Before we went to sleep, Chris asked me where I thought we were going on the next day, and I was right when I guessed Niagara Falls!

Going to Niagara Falls was a blast.  We parked in a nearly empty lot on the New York side, then walked around to take a lot of pictures and purchase shot glasses.  I decided I was starting a collection.  It actually wasn't too cold that day, so we were able to do a lot of walking around.  We took many funny pictures, and then I convinced Christopher to walk to Canada!  At the time, you didn't need a passport to go from the US to Canada.  We beat the deadline by about 20 days, so we were able to cross over and have lunch where the grass was greener and no one carded.  *Note: If you go to Canada and order a pint of Molson, you will receive not 16 ounces of Molson, but 19.3.  Gotta love the metric system.  Also, the alcohol content of Canadian Molson is higher than American Molson.  It's wonderful (until you get your tab).

After I was nicely buzzed, we walked around Canada for a while.  I bought my 2nd shot glass for my collection and we eventually walked back over the bridge to the US where we encountered an unhappy US Customs officer who wanted to know what we were doing together if Chris was from Rochester and I was from Jersey.  I think she was just bored.  We played a little more Scrabble that evening and before leaving on Sunday morning. 

Christopher really did a great job planning this trip.  

Holidays 07 - NYC

Renata's B-day

New years in TS

gingerbread houses

Christmas Present #1: Peter Nero and the Philly Pops

Lindsay:

Chris and I got all dolled up to go out on the town for a night of fun.  First, Chris took me to a really nice restaurant that he wanted to go to across the street from the Kimmel Center.  Before we got there, we stopped at CVS for a disposable camera.  Unfortunately, those pictures have never been developed.  After a really nice dinner, we went across the street to the Kimmel Center.  I enjoyed this concert more than any other concert I had ever been to.  There was a phenomenal gospel choir, and when they sang the Hallelujah Chorus after the gospel music, one of the members continued to snap his hand over the choir loft which I thought was pretty amusing.  After the concert, we explored the Kimmel Center.  We discovered a big room with lots of plants and an awesome view of Philadelphia high up above the actual auditorium.  The echo of voices from far below us sounded really cool.  It took about 10 minutes for anyone else to make it up to the garden room with us.  

Chris:

after my final exam, I figured it was time to stop neglecting my girlfriend, so we went out for dinner and the pops.  Soto Varalles restaurant on Broad street was reasonably priced for its lvel of class and had special seatings for Kimmel center patrons so we went there first and had a very nice dinner.  For the concert, we had fantastic seats, front and center on the balcony.  It was a very uplifting and cheerful concert, with a wide range of musical styles and audience participation.  We both had a good time, so this one will probably become a tradition

Christmas at Longwood

Lindsay: A word to the wise: Never go to Longwood Gardens in December without a winter jacket.  I loved this trip, but oh man, did I freeze.  Chris and I went to Longwood Gardens to check out their Christmas display.  We walked around in the brightly lit gardens for hours in the dark. The display was really cool because there were so many Christmas lights.  There is a very famous organ at Longwood Gardens, and the man who plays it ever year at Christmas time played and the audience sang Christmas carols.  I loved this so much.  We also saw an ice skating show which was kind of corny, but still fun to watch.

On the way home, Chris and I tried to stop for dinner at a Japanese restaurant, but everything on the menu looked absolutely disgusting so we left.  It was pretty funny.  I know, we're classy.  I remember stopping at Target because I wanted to get a frame for a present I made Christopher. It was a collage with a whole bunch of ticket stubs and maps from places we had been.  I can't tell you if we actually found something to eat on the way home, but I'm entirely sure that we did not starve.  This was a great trip and I hope we do it again.