Girl Squad takes Broadway!

Lucky me!  

                         I got to spend the weekend in the big apple with some of my favorite girls!

And this is what happens when you ask a bunch of theater peeps to pose for a pic... "lets pretend like we are in the poster...everyone pick a person and be them!"

As a bonus to our girls on Broadway weekend, my favorite group Naytronix was in town to kick off their tour. Here goes the incredibly talented Josh Fink on synthesizer kicking off the tour at Winter Jazziest.  Josh learned quickly that maybe he can run three states away, but not hide from his super fan club.

Mary took this photo of myself with Josh and Nate Brenner after the show... she pointed out that it  looks more like I'm dropping my sons off at college than hanging out with the band which is very true....once a mom, always a mom- even while chillin' with very coolio musicians. 

Tess, Lilly, Lilli, Mary and Kia  before seeing Hamilton

On Saturday morning we made our way to the Richards Rogers Theater to see the play that Mary and Lilly are quite obsessed with... Hamilton.

It's a musical based on the life and times of our Alexander Hamilton, yes that Alexander Hamilton, founder of our financial system and the very first United States Secretary of the Treasury. Which doesn't really sound like inspiration for a hit rap musical... but it was AWESOME!

Lilly and Mary have been listening to the soundtrack on repeat pretty much since October, have memorized every lyric, and both have developed huge crushes on Alexander Hamilton who most definitely is the "Foxiest of the Federalists" 

And they have also declared Lin-Manuel Miranda, who created the musical, some kind of intense genius...and I completely agree.   

Lilly, and her pals, Lilli and Tess waiting for the show to begin... I have never seen three girls more excited to see a show... their excitement was infectious and we all had to hold hands and take deep calming breaths so we wouldn't faint.
 It was really the most fun I have ever had getting ready to watch anything.

And post show... happily exhausted from the emotional roller coaster that was their beloved A. Hamilton's life...and super angry at Aaron Burr for killing him in that fateful 1804 duel....  

"dueling is the dumbest way to die!"

Here is Mary after the show with the immensely talented actor Daveed Diggs who played Marquis de Lafayette in the first part of the show and Thomas Jefferson in the second. 

You meet the most amazing people when you patiently wait by the stage door post show.  

Christopher Jackson aka the very tall and handsome president George Washington came out and visited his fans too... he signed autographs and posed with these two very happy girls. 

To my theater girls, meeting Christopher and some of the the cast of Hamilton was like meeting a Beatle and they were a bit beside themselves. 

I loved it.

Mary also had her chance to get all wound up and star struck when she got to meet Anthony Ramos... her very most favorite broadway actor who happens to have a very most gorgeous smile.

I think they make an adorable couple in this photo and she thought I was absolutely right.   

To calm down after all of that celebrity excitement we took a little walk to Rockefeller center and I got a photo with my two girlies in front of Radio City Music Hall. 

I was thrilled to get to meet the fabulous daughter of one of my very first friends from way back when. Emma lives close by and very graciously agreed for her and her sweetie to join us for a delicious Italian meal... I am still in happy disbelief that I got to spend a Saturday night in New York having dinner with super cool 20 somethings. 

I have Tess's mom Maureen to thank for such a great restaurant recommendation...Forlinis on Baxter Street was the perfect place for my girls squad. 

And as an aside, I enjoyed calling my girls my squad again and again...they probably didn't think it was as cool of a nickname as I did,   

The next morning we climbed to the top of the Empire State Building...well, took an elevator up- but still it was exhilarating. The view! And because we were still all jazzed up from our patriotic Hamilton afternoon... we couldn't help but channel the Schuyler sisters (the women in Alexanders life) and sing our praises to New York City... the Greatest City in the World!

Then I calmed down a bit and had to reminisce about the last time I was at the top of the Empire State Building when we were visiting my bro Charlie and sis in law Christine... Mary was five years old  and loved the wind of being up so high. Mary has no memory of her windy early visit, this but did indulge me in a selfie. 

Lilly, who was only a twinkle in my eye the last time I was atop the building, also indulged her mom with a quick pic.

Just when I thought that my weekend couldn't get any more exciting...my dear friend since our Buckeye days, Terry, and her gorgeous daughter Christa, came down from Philadelphia and met us at our lunch spot.

(The Cowgirl Hall of Fame- thanks Christine!) 

Then it was time for our even bigger and better girl squad to go to another show... here are the youngers waiting to see Finding Neverland. 

Which was beautiful and incredibly moving and made all of the mothers in the audience weep and some of the kids too. Matthew Morrison played the part of J.M. Barrie, a playwright and author of Peter Pan- he was excellent in the part, but I could help but remember his years as Mr. Schuester in Glee. 

And afterwards we waited by the stage door and Mr Schuster/J.M Barrie/ Matthew Morrison came out to sign playbills and was very gracious and kind in meeting his fans. 

The older daughters of the girl squad... Kiah, Mary and Christa on Times Square in the snow. 

The younger daughters... Lilly, Tess and Lilli channeling their own Peter Pan after Finding Neverland. 

Thanks to a fantastic hotel recommendation, (thanks again Christine!), 

this was our evening view, by telescope from our hotel.

Lady Liberty is indeed glorious.

To keep things classy, I had them pose with with a far more peculiar, and a lot less glorious Lady Liberty in Times Square.

The entire trip was a blast... we had no problems and a really fantastic experience. The only hiccup in the trip happened during the very last hours of the trip when I learned that our flight La Guardia flight  to Cincinnati was cancelled and the next one out was in 8 hours... which ended up being delayed. So while Mary and Kiah happily boarded their on time flight to Chicago, we waited and waited some more. Which gave the girls plenty of time to study for their midterms and giggle and study some more.