a perfect winter's day

In the Hamptons,

there are perfect days.

Days where the air is crisp and 

the sky azure.

These days usually occur

in the summer

occasionally in the fall

and almost never in the winter.

Today was one of those days.

It was close to 60 degrees.

The sun was shining.

Long Beach was  gorgeous.

And all was right with the world.

peace on earth

Immediately after we were out of school on Friday,

L, C, & I caught a flight to New York.

We visited the Discovery Museum

on Saturday morning,

where we were enthralled to 

see the Dead Sea Scrolls

and the oldest parchment of the Ten Commandments.

It was amazing to see the brittle pieces of brown parchment

over 2,000 years old

inscribed with tiny symbols

 meticulously deciphered by scholars.

There was also a large stone from the 

Western Wall in Jerusalem.  

We placed prayers on the stone

as if we were at the 

Wailing Wall.

In a Holy mood,

we left there to attend

Sister Act.

It was fun and fabulous.

Later that evening,

as we walked through Times Square,

we observed vendors lining the street.

Some sold talent - music, artist renderings, and 

photography. 

Some sold wares - scarves, bags, and hats.

And one group of 10 men,

dressed all in black with red sashes,

was selling hate.

They stood

in warrior's pose

spouting venom.

Shouting and shaking some pseudo Bible

telling everyone

that God hates white people and Jewish people

and they should all die.

We were stuck next to them as we waited for the light to turn.

I tuned them out,

but my children couldn't.

As we crossed the street and continued walking,

my daughter was shaken and teary.

My son was furious.

The teacher in me tried to explain

that in America, 

we have freedom of speech

and that is what makes our country better than those

that silence voices.

However, it rang hollow

as I also explained that hate is what destroyed 

the Twin Towers.

I recalled the quote:

All that is necessary for the triumph of evil

is that good men do nothing.

(Edmund Burke)

We had walked by

and not confronted these intimidating men.

We were consumed by the things

we wish we had said to them.

It is hard to comprehend how we can have laws against hate crimes,

but allow people to preach hate
against any race, religion, or sexual orientation.

To restore our faith in humanity,

we rose early Sunday morning to 

attended the Time Square Church.

We stood side by side

with people from every race and enthnicity

and sang:

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Luke 2:14

still here

When I accepted my full-time job,

I was concerned that the blog would suffer.

It has.

However,

I'm still here ~

somewhere between

wrestling, cheer,

job, and life.

Where I am not

is here:

Late this afternoon in Sag Harbor,

John snapped a pic

on his cell.

Wish I were there to enjoy

the sunset

at Long Beach.

Maybe I'll just be there

in spirit.

cheer

My daughter had her first 

cheerleading competition 

this weekend.

I'll admit,

I was not a big fan 

of competition cheerleading.

Young girls

wearing makeup 

with insanely big bows on their foreheads

was too

"Toddlers and Tiaras" for me.

However,

C wanted to do it

and I reluctanly 

agreed to let her participate.

I was mortified to tell 

my NY friends that C

was a cheerleader.

Piano, dance, basketball, tennis, horseback riding, and volleyball

seemed much more worthy.

I never attended practice because

I didn't want to see my baby tossed about.

She is what is referred to as a "flier."

Yesterday was the culmination of months of practice.

As I watched the girls perform

I felt my face flush,

my eyes well up, 

and hot tears slip silently

down my cheeks.

I was overcome by what these young girls

had accomplished 

by working together.

The choreography, skill, and stunts

were amazing.

I witnessed 

confident, disciplined girls,

totally committed

and completely trusting of the other girls 

on the squad.

They pushed themselves physically and mentally.

And they loved it.

In the end,

it wasn't what I thought it was

from the outside 

looking in.

Most things

never are.

where i wasn't

Last night,

John was here:

"On November 1^st 2011, The Swedish-American Chamber of Commerce in New York will host a Royal Gala Award Dinner. We are very proud and honored to have Swedish royal presence with H.R.H. Princess Madeleine and H.R.H. Prince Daniel attending as our Guests of Honor. The exclusive Dinner will be held for 250 guests, including high profile guests such as Martha Stewart who will be the Key Note speaker, Star Chef & Food Activist Marcus Samuelsson, Tim Zagat, Andre Heinz, Director of Sustainability at PepsiCo Dan Bena, rising Star Chef Magnus Nilsson (featured in the Sept issue of Bon Appetite Magazine) and Sweden’s Minister for Rural Affairs. The exclusive dinner will be held at the famous IAC HQ in Chelsea and is made to order for this special event. More specifically, our caterer is growing and producing everything on his local farm to honor the sustainable theme of our Green Summit that will take place the following day. Our Fourth Annual Green Summit this year will focus on sustainability in the food chain, with the title ‘From Farm to Fork’. The Green Summit with over 30 high profile speakers participating will be held at Citibank’s Headquarters onPark Avenue."           (from our invitation - wolffer provided the wine pairings for this event)

He said it was wonderful.

He loved the people at "our" table.

He sat with JP Morgan's great-great grandson.

I just couldn't get away

to be there...

Instead,

I was at Las Palmas

with L & C.

I couldn't have had better people at "my" table,

but I will admit...

I was a little jealous. 

the styleliner

Joey Wolffer, entrepeneur, has opened what has become

 one of the most recognizable stores in the Hamptons. 

 It's a refurbished potato chip truck 

called

The Styleliner.

Joey, a jewelry designer and stylist,

 has traveled around the world gathering unique items to sell

from her boutique on wheels.

 Joey's innovation is no surprise to those who know her;

she's just following in the footsteps of her great-great-grandfather,

once a peddler, 

who ended up starting the legendary

Marks & Spencer 

in the UK.

Joey divides her time between

the Hamptons, Palm Beach, 

and New York City.

If you are lucky enough to see her truck,

stop by.

I promise you'll find a treasure.

styleliner.com

Check her out on Bravo tonight

at 10:30 on Fashion Hunters!

nashville

The only request my daughter had for her birthday last week,

was to spend it in New York with her best friends Reilly & Maddie.

Fall Break fell 3 days after her birthday, so it would seem like a no-brainer

but...

C had a cheerleading competition scheduled during the break.

And for that reason, we reluctantly planned to sit tight in Georgia.

As you know,

even the best laid plans,

don't always work out.

Two days before the break,

the competition was cancelled.

It would have been perfect, 

but the airfare to NY was prohibitive.

We had to come up with a Plan 3.

Where could we go that was close by,

but fun and interesting?

We decided on Nashville.

A short 3 hour drive and yet,

I hadn't been in many years

and my children and John 

had never been.

We arrived on a balmy fall day

and went straight to the Ryman Auditorium.

As you can see, the kids were thrilled...

The Ryman was home to the Grand Ole Opry for many years.

Inside is Hallowed Ground for 

Country Music Fans.

Johnny & June Carter Cash memorabilia

My kids had never even heard of

the Grand Ole Opry

or 

any of the singers honored inside.

But they did like the stage.

Both kids

made recording in the Ryman.

However,

after hearing the cd's later in the car,

we Strongly encouraged 

them to stay in school.

Music does not appear to be in their future.

We walked around downtown

and listened to live music 

pouring out of every venue we passed.

Later that evening,

we went on a ghost tour.

We ususally hit one in every city

because it's always a fun adventure for our whole family.

This particular tour was in an open air hearse -

and it was freezing!

Room 711 

at the Union Station Hotel

is said to be haunted.

Isn't the architecture gorgeous?

To avoid the haints,

we stayed at the
Gaylord Opryland Hotel.
It was enormous.
Here are a few pics
from one small area of the hotel.

It was definitely a slice of cheezy Americana.

On Saturday afternoon, we visited the
Belle Meade Plantation,
 built in 1853.

It was interesting
to learn about the workings
of a horse farm in the 1800's.
Secretariat's great-great-great
grandfather was purchased by this farm.

What remains of the 5,000 acre estate is
still beautiful.

Last,
but not least,
we attended the
Grand Ole Opry.

We saw
Kellie Pickler
and Lauren Alaina
along with some old standbys
such as Little Jimmy Dickens
and Ronnie Millsapps.

The show was fantastic.

It took me back to a time
in my childhood -
fond memories
of Sunday nights
at my grandparent's house
watching Hee-Haw
and looking forward to watching the
Wonderful World of Disney
with my cousins.

I hope we are creating some fond memories for our children.
We're trying...

the harvest party

I attended the Wolffer Estate Vineyard Harvest Party

on Sunday.

Each fall, I look forward to this event.

To me, it's the quintessential fall experience.

In fact, the Harvest Party is so wonderful,

that a few years ago

the Today Show filmed a segment on it.

L & C participated 

and of course, loved it!

(I loved going in the Green Room

at NBC with Hilary Swank

& Kevin Bacon!)

 I also loved meeting Meredith.

 The Harvest Party always brings good weather

and this year was no exception.

The sun was bright, the sky Hampton blue,

and it felt more like summer 

than a crisp fall day.

Clinton Curtis played 

all afternoon.

They were the perfect band

for this event -

providing a great mix of classic rock,

folk, blues, and reggae.

The food stations were mouth-watering.

And everyone gathered -

food, wine, and friends

on long picnic tables.

The Derby's

Jump Off was the first event

and it was pure pleasure to watch the riders.

The winners!

Watching the Barrel Rolling was great fun!

(Even if John didn't retain his championship...)

We spent the afternoon with

good friends.

Jenn & Geoff

Kerry & Mike walked over after riding.

Jenn & Babi

As always, having fun!

And as the sun began to set,

we gathered on the terrace

for the last few minutes 

of good conversation

until we meet again.

So long, Wolffer.
I hope to be back soon!

jiminy cricket!

The other day, 

in my second grade classroom,

I heard a shout.

"There's a CRICKET!"

"I SEE a cricket!"

"A REAL cricket!"

"It's ALIVE!"

Other voices joined in.

"We have a LIVE cricket in our CLASSROOM!"

Students began jumping up from their desks
 & running across the room

to view this aberration.

Chaos ensued.

"A CRICKET!"

"It REALLY IS a CRICKET!"

As I tried to restore order,

I heard a tiny voice say,

"I wonder how he got out of my pocket..."

wicked

Mom, C, and I went to Atlanta yesterday

to see the play Wicked.
It's been on my "must see"

list for ages. 

So when it came to Atlanta,

we decided to have a girls day

and finally see it.

Sunday was one of those
scorching HOTlanta fall days.

The sky was a vibrant blue

and steam was rising off the pavement

like it was July and not almost October.

I love Atlanta.

It is such a modern city.

Everything feels new and fresh,

and crisp and clean.

We parked and walked over to the 

Fabulous Fox Theater.

I had forgotten that the Fox is an

extraordinary theater.

C was enchanted

by the skyline

and the canopied ceiling.

She exclaimed,

"This is nicer than Broadway!"

The show exceeded our expectations.

Both storyline and talent

were fantastic.

Afterwards, we walked several blocks

 to Mary Mac's Tea Room for lunch.

Mary Mac's has been around since 1945,

and it's legendary for quintessential southern cuisine.

We loved looking at the wall

of celebrities that have visited Mary Mac's
over the years.

It seems everyone in the world has known about this place

- except me.

Our meal began with

collards and cracklin' corn bread.

I had never had either, 

but I can assure you I will again.

The fried chicken was heavenly,

the mac 'n cheese decadent,
the creamed corn, the whipped potatoes...
(Just thinking about it makes me hungry!)
C loved her entree of chicken and dumplings,

and they tasted just like the ones my granny used to make.
The food was accompanied by large glasses of refreshing sweet tea
~ essential to any true southern meal.

All in all,
it was a wonderful day
to share
with two very special people.

Happy Monday.