Family Traditions
To celebrate the New Year, Mom booked us tickets to Le Mis and the
Walnut Room!
I woke up a respectable time, despite a night of tossing and turning.
We took our time, and got ready at a leisurely pace. Mom curled her
hair like a Disney princess might, and Tab broke in her new tweed
dress by dancing around to 70s disco. Tabitha and Mom ate some of
the pierogis that we had made the day before for breakfast. They
were so delicious-- I love post-Christmas ham pierogis with sour
cream and applesauce. Its the perfect food for the cold winter.
Luckily we didn't have to wait terribly long outside (though Tab and
I were jumping in place to stay warm at one point). After grabbing some
sprite and licorice (the old theater standard) we made our way into the
beautiful main room. Our seats were right up against the door, but
actually provided a great view.
Of course, the ornate theater called for an impromptu photo shoot.
Tabitha begged mom to take photos instead of me, but I dare say they
turned out pretty decent!
I gotta admit....though the set was beautiful, I just couldn't
get into Le Mis. It was a lot of "French" and not enough "revolution"
for my tastes. Upon discussion, we found most of the characters terribly
uncompelling, except the little boy they set up to die at the end.
It was just a lot of melodrama, and the characters were always doing
things that didn't make sense (why are you fighting on the front lines?
Why aren't you with your daughter you swore to protect? Who tf cares
about her day-old bf??). It was dark in that theater, but my mom
told me she could feel me rolling my eyes. I'm glad they agreed--
Hamilton is more our speed!
Luckily we had a fantastic lunch to look forward to. If you don't
know what the Walnut Room is, it's basically the restaurant on the
7th floor of Macy's on State Street. Around the holidays, they do
it up super fancy with this gigantic Christmas tree and roving
Christmas fairies who grant visitor's wishes. Its adorable and
one of our favorite holiday traditions~
I really enjoy the food at the Walnut Room. To start, we each got a
salad-- cesar for Tab and I, and mandarin for Mom. For our main course,
Tab and I ordered the classic pot pie, and Mom got a lemon caper
chicken dish with mash potato and green beans.
The photos don't do any of these dishes justice, ofc. Walnut Room
pot pie is one of the most warm, comforting foods you could ever
try. I believe they've been serving it since the late 1800's? Makes
sense, its delicious. It tastes like the last days of Christmas break,
when the stress of the holidays has passed, and all that's left to do
is consume as many calories as possible to fight the frigged cold.
It's the perfect meal to chat over. Mom points out the reflections
of the Christmas tress in the windows of the skyscrapers across from
us, still twinkling. I hope the decorations stay up longer. They are
so magical.
Speaking of magical-- our fairy stopped by! She sprinkled glitter
on Tab and Mom's heads and cast a wish spell!
Overall, it was a lovely day out. When we got home, we were tuckered
out, which meant it was time to blow up the air mattress and nap in the
front room. God, I love that air mattress. It takes up our whole
living room, basically transforming our bed unto the floor. A lovely
way to end Christmas break~
