Over the years, I've spent many New Year's Eve celebrations at church Watch Night services or with family playing games. Recently, I've spent many of them falling asleep on the couch as making it to midnight can be a real feat most days. But this year was special...For Christmas this year, Susan and I decided to not waste money on gifts we really didn't need and we decided that it was time to drop the kids off at Grandma and Grandpa's house (which requires a trip to Niagara Falls) and get away for two days.
We enjoyed a Mediterranean dinner overlooking Lake Ontario with some good friends, spent some time in an Irish Tea Room in Niagara on the Lake enjoying a Scone while we debated whether or not to get some matching Irish wedding bands that possessed the symbol for eternal love. (The bank book didn't allow for the bands on this trip) We also enjoyed some time having lunch at a Tim Hortons where I got to use my new Tim Hortons Fast Pay Card that I got for Christmas. (It doesn't sound like much, but it's exciting to me...)
But... the highlight of the few days was the time spent in Toronto on New Year's Eve. It was a beautiful sunny and cold winter day (we had gotten about eight inches of snow the night before) and this multi-cultural city glistened in the sunlight. We spent some time shopping at the Eaton Centre (No Centre is not spelled wrong...) and then parked our car to pick up our tickets at the Prince of Wales Theatre. From there we walked about 10 blocks to the Old Spaghetti Factory for a fun Italian dinner. We then ventured out into the cold night (about -15 Celsius with the wind chill) to head back to the theatre. We laughed the whole way back as we shivered, ran and slipped the whole way back to the theatre. As we walked the streets of downtown Toronto, we couldn't help but reflect on all the fun things we have done in that city with one of our favorites being the Kenny G and Peabo Bryson concert we attended on our honeymoon 15 years ago.
At 7:30, we finally sat down to watch one of Susan's favorite stories, The Sound of Music. I'm not a huge fan of the musical, but I must confess that I absolutely loved the show and still find myself singing "I am sixteen going on seventeen..." for some strange and scary reason.
As we drove home to be with the kids by the time the ball dropped in New York, I could not help but give thanks unto God for my wonderful wife and the great evening at the theatre we enjoyed together. This New Year's Eve is one of those memories that will not soon be forgotten and definitely ranks there right at the top. It has also kept me determined to keep the romance alive in my marriage and enjoy every day the Lord gives me with my beautiful wife!
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