Mikayla’s Happy Birthday Adventure

Tags

Beauty and the Beast, Birthdays, Boston Bruins, Boston Red Sox, Broadway, Confirmation, Fenway Park, Food, Happy Birthday, Laughter, Rain Delay, sports, The Tomb, The Upper Crust Pizzeria, transportation, travel, turnip, turnip truck, wicked

Here comes the turnip truck!

So, as I’ve mentioned, Mikayla is one of my many godchildren (I have 3) – what I have not mentioned is that I try always to treat my godchildren like gold when I see them for birthdays and holidays and in general throughout the year.

Mikayla recently celebrated her 16^th birthday (October 4, 2011) and so I thought I should get her a really fun gift. After hemming and hawing I decided to buy Mikayla a beautiful silver ring.

But then things changed.

I got busy and I kept forgetting to order the ring and then FALL faded into winter which faded into SPRING.

Mikayla, being Catholic, was confirmed in the spring (April 14, 2012) and seeing that I hadn’t even ordered the ring by that point, I thought it would make a nicer confirmation gift. This put me back at square one in the birthday gift department. And I was running out of time! I mean her 17^th birthday was fast approaching and I still hadn’t made good on the 16^th birthday gift yet!

What to do?

That is when I had a eureka moment!

I will do what I almost always do and take her someplace cool.

Over the years Jim and I have taken Mikayla on many adventures including:

Plays in New York:

Wicked

Beauty and the Beast

An Egyptian exhibit called The Tomb:

A tour of Fenway Park:

A Bruins game:

A Cirque du Soleil show called Dralion:

This time I decided to take Mikayla to a Red Sox game!

Yippie!

 Jim and I decided to buy the extra cheap seats in the bleachers ($20 per ticket) so that Mikayla could bring a friend. Mikayla brought Anne.

Before I go on, I need to stop and insert a picture of Anne’s older sister Rita. Rita will have a cow if Anne is featured on the Turnip Truck before her, as she has been a faithful subscriber for eons and has yet to even get a mention. That said, this is Rita:

Note: this is not really the Rita I am talking about, but it is the picture that kept popping up when I tried to Google her. Sorry, Rita, but at least you got a mention. You can blame Scary Turnip (see the Explained page) and your sister for not forwarding me a picture of you as I asked them to do 100 times.

Back to the story of:

Mikayla’s Happy Birthday Adventure.

So, Mikayla brought Anne…

Jim and I bought the tickets for the Red Sox game the week before we intended to go so that we I could have a good idea of what the weather would be like. You can never be too careful when your view of the game is from the cheap seats.

Jim decided that Tuesday, July 31^st would be the perfect night to go, but I was apprehensive because the weather app on my stupid iPhone had a picture of a cloud and lightning bolts.

Jim said it would be fine.

He was wrong.

Again.

The evening started off lovely enough.  On our way to the ballpark, we stopped and had a slice of pizza at The Upper Crust Pizzeria because Jim and Anne were hungry.

Note: Each of us had a slice of our own. We didn’t share one slice. That would be weird because we barely know Anne.

We then moved on to Fenway Park. When we got there it was just like a carnival outside.

There were souvenir shops.

There were boys hawking programs for exorbitant amounts of money.

There were bands.

There were clowns.

There were rides.

There was food.

Jim couldn’t decide what to eat first!

We finally made it to our seats and we were so happy because it was a warm night and it looked like the rain was going to hold off.

Alas, we should have known it was too good to be true for within a matter of minutes the rain came.

And, oh how it rained!!!

By the end of the 4th inning the bleachers were really clearing out!

We stayed.

We got soaked.

The Sox ended up calling a rain delay in the 6th inning and eventually they just called the game.

The Red Sox won.

We ran back to our car, which Jim parked about 50+ blocks away so he could park for free.

We stopped under every awning and tree we came to so that we could wring ourselves out.

Before we left the house I told the girls to bring a raincoat.

Anne didn’t listen. She brought a skimpy little sweatshirt instead.

Silly girl.

When we finally made it to the car, we tumbled into it laughing hysterically.

This night could have turned into a horrible situation fraught with teenage angst, but it didn’t. Except for the occasional apology from me (I felt horrible that Mikayla’s Happy Birthday Adventure was turning out to be anything but perfect.), there was not a moan or groan to be heard from anyone. The girls took it all in stride and just kept smiling through the unrelenting downpour. Nobody complained about frizzy hair or ruined make-up – not even Jim! We just kept laughing at the craziness of the evening.

I really need to give props to Mikayla (and her little friend too). Even though she is getting older she doesn’t mind hanging out with the older folks me. She never seems embarrassed to be seen with us me.

This is Mikayla and me at her Confirmation:

If Mikayla is embarrassed by our my presence, one would never know it; which makes her a good actor, which then makes me a brilliant director since I taught her everything she knows about the craft. Either way it’s pretty cool and I am grateful.

I hope when Jack is her age he still loves hanging out with me too.

I am thinking about bringing Mikayla to the zoo for her 17th birthday.

I hope she loves it.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MIKAYLA!

Until next time…

I’m turning off the turnip truck.

T

A Delightful Day!

Tags

adventure, B Boys, Boats, Boston, Break Dancing, Carousel, Chef, Clowns, Cost-Effective Trips, Dancers, Day Trips, Eric Hammer, Faneuil Hall Market Place, Fish & Chips, Food, Gazpacho, Get-A-Ways, Habor Express, harbor express, Italian Ice, Lobster, Maine, Mansions, McCormick and Schmick’s, New York, Newport, newport mansions, restaurants, Salad, Shopping, Sightseeing, Slush, Soup, Street Performers, Swan Boats, Todd Sullivan, travel, Trip, turnip, turnip truck, vacation

Here comes the turnip truck!

If you are like me and you don’t really enjoy taking long trips anywhere, then day trips – or weekend get-a-way trips – are for you!

In most cases you don’t have to go far or spend a lot of money to have a good time.

Some of my favorite short trips include:

The Newport Mansions

New York City

Maine

Boston

Recently, Jim and I took a wonderful day trip into Boston, which I will highlight for you now. We decided to go to Boston’s Faneuil Hall Market Place because it is a very happening place that’s close to home and because I wanted to go shopping at some of the stores that are there.

First, we decided that it would be cheaper most fun to take a boat ride into Boston.

A ride on the Harbor Express will cost about $16 per round-trip ticket if you leave from Quincy, Ma like we did.

I love boats. I wish I owned a boat, but I don’t have any money. If Oprah, Tina and/or Ellen would just hurry up and discover me, then maybe I will be able to afford a boat.

GIRLS, I’M WAITING!

Buying a boat is expensive.

After docking in Boston, we headed over to Faneuil Hall to have lunch. Jim got to pick the restaurant and luckily he picked McCormick and Schmick’s.

Isn’t that such a funny name? Schmick.

Eating at McCormick and Schmick’s will cost you some money, but you won’t go broke and the food is awesome.

If you are looking for cheap eats then head inside the marketplace where you will find a variety of foods to choose from.

WARNING: the smorgasbord of choices inside the Marketplace is not nearly as good as McCormick and Schmick’s food selection and it is annoyingly crowded in there and some of the food at some of the places looks like it has sat out for some time; but the choice is up to you.

I’ve been to McCormick and Schmick’s twice this summer. I had a good meal and a nice server the first time, but I had a mouth-watering meal and stupendous server the second time!

My first visit was on Jack’s 1^st birthday, which was a few days before my trip in with Jim.

Happy Birthday, Jack!

What a little man!

During my second visit, Jim and I each ordered a bowl of the Sandia Gazpacho (chilled soup) for an appetizer. This gazpacho has a watermelon base. According to our server, Todd Sullivan, Sandia means watermelon. I believe Todd Sullivan is correct because he looks honest and because he is the best server of all time. I suggest that when you all go and eat at McCormick and Schmick’s in Faneuil Hall, as I know you will because I’m subconsciously using The Force on all of you now, you ask for Todd Sullivan. He really is the bestest. You’ll see.

This is Todd Sullivan:

Sorry, ladies, I do not know if Todd Sullivan is free.

DISCLAIMER: One would naturally assume that McCormick and Schmick’s is paying me for all this free publicity they are getting and/or for the amount of times I mention their name in this article, but they are not. I am doing this out of the goodness of my heart so that my readership will learn about new and exciting opportunities. You are all welcome.

Back to the food … if I’m being honest then I’m telling you that Jim and I didn’t expect the gazpacho to be so incredible. I mean it is just chilled soup (topped with huge chunks of avocado and real crabmeat). Sadly, we wolfed it all down before I thought to take a picture of it.

For his main dish, Jim ordered the tasty fish and chips, which I recommended after having ordered it during my first trip to the establishment.

I ordered a lovely lobster salad. My Lord, it was so delectable!

Next, we shared a delicious key lime pie for dessert.

Chef Eric Hammer was responsible for all this scrumptiousness. I figured he was so busy cooking up a storm in the kitchen that I didn’t want to disturb him for a photo, so I decided to include a symbol for him instead.

Here is Chef Eric Hammer’s symbol:

Jim really loved taking in all the sights throughout the day.

 

Sightseeing is free.

After lunch, I decided to do a little shopping and Jim came along and pretended to enjoy it. That’s my Gnomeo!

 

Shopping will cost someone a few dollars depending on the shopper and his/her inclination to buy everything in sight.

We also got to see a plethora of talented and/or weird street performers!

We saw clowns:

Clowns are technically free, but they ask for money.

We saw singers:

Singers are also technically free, but ask for money.

But our favorite street performance was the group of B BOYS we saw. We gave them all our extra money … that amounted to about $8 in total.

They were awesomely fun.

Imagine cool thumping music in your head as you look at the next few images.

If you are not one of those cheapo people who pretend they don’t even have a dollar bill on them, then this activity will cost you anywhere from $ 1 to ? – It depends on how generous you are.

For more information on this wonderful group of dancers you can visit www.yakcrewent.com or go and find them in Faneuil Hall.

There are even a couple of carousels for you to enjoy on your Boston adventure.

Jack, RiRi and Ally took a spin on the carousel across from Faneuil Hall for Jack’s birthday.

The carousel is about $3 per person to ride.

To finish out the afternoon, you can grab a slushy and enjoy it on the boat ride back while you ponder your very delightful day!

Expect to pay about $3.50 per slushy.

Wherever you decide to go, I wish you loads of fun, plenty of memories and safe travels!

Until next time…

I’m turning off the turnip truck.

T

Watch Your Back!

Tags

celebrities, Ellen and Portia, Ellen Degeneres, entertainment, Margaret Hyde, Pedestal, Portia de Rossi, Toni Ruscio, travel, turnip, turnip truck, vacation, Wendy

Here comes the turnip truck!

Hello Followers!

For this post I’ve chosen to feature one of my favorite people in the whole world: Wendy S.

This is a hand-drawn sketch of Wendy S.:

Wendy S. is a Turnip Truck subscriber and friend to my husband Jim. In a recent phone conversation with Jimbo, Wendy S. said something like: “Toni is so funny. I love her. I would rather be friends with her than with you. I just know that she is going to be on The Ellen [DeGeneres] Show one day.”

 As you can imagine, this compliment tickled me pink and made me feel like I was on a VERY HIGH pedestal!

When I am tickled pink and placed on a VERY HIGH pedestal I like give props to the people or person that made it so. Therefore, Wendy S., you are currently my favorite subscriber and as such I will allow you to sit on the bench down the street from my VERY HIGH pedestal! This way you can have a nice view of me and relax while reading my blog on your Smart Phone at the same time.

Oh, and please know that I will try very hard to remember to give you a shout out when I am on Ellen!

Ellen, here I come!!!

I hope that Portia de Rossi is there the day I meet Ellen. Portia is so pretty and talented. I love her.

Oh, Wendy S., I should warn you that you are now going to be hated by the rest of the Turnip Truck riders, but none more so than Margaret Hyde. I told Margaret about you and she was VERY agitated. She kept mumbling something about you watching your back if you know what’s good for you.

Alas, I wouldn’t worry about it too much – she doesn’t even know your full name and she has no idea where you live or work (I won’t tell her) – though she might recognize you from the above drawing. Yikes! I would stay away from public places where psychos can easily get their hands on sharp objects or weapons of mass destruction.

On the off-chance that you do bump into Margaret Hyde in a dark ally – RUN!

Until next time…

I’m turning off the turnip truck.

T

Set Your Course For Adventure…

Tags

40, adventure, Bricker, castanets, Charo, cry babies, crying baby, divine inspiration, follower, Gopher, gutter, Isaac, Julie McCoy, little babies, Love Boat, MBB, memory lane, Stubing, to give props, travel, turnip, turnip truck, woman in my life

Here comes the turnip truck!

Hello Followers – new and old!

Yes, folks, the turnip truck has a new passenger! And she is a complete stranger to me. Never met the woman in my life, but she subscribed to my lil’ ole blog anyway. She apparently heard about us through a short little grapevine and from someone who is not even an official subscriber herself. Imagine!

Her name is Erin from Massachusetts.

This is Erin from Massachusetts

Not only is Erin from Massachusetts my very first Stranger-Subscriber, she was the 40^th person to sign up for the ride. That makes her extra special. Welcome aboard, Erin from Massachusetts. Most of us are glad you decided to take the trip.

What is your prize, Erin?

It’s a trip down memory lane!

First, I should warn you, Erin from Massachusetts, that most of my followers hate your guts now. Many of them have confronted me and demanded to know when they will be featured in an Under the Turnip Truck article. I told them they will be featured when and if I deem them worthy. I have not done this yet and because I have not done this yet people are crying like little babies.

In addition to Erin from Massachusetts, I also had another stranger “like” my last post! And I don’t even know anyone who knows her! She doesn’t even live near me – she lives in another state. I learned that she also writes a blog, so I decided to creep on her WordPress site and discovered that she is a real writer – talented. I was a little intimidated at first, but decided that she is adding some esteem to my blog just by riding on the turnip truck one time! So, go and visit her site – those of you who like to travel and experience new adventures will love her work.

http://lesleycarter.wordpress.com/

In writing about these recent stranger-followers, I realize I’ve been remiss in acknowledging my very first subscriber-follower. I want to take a moment now to give props to my friend, MBB. MBB was the first person to subscribe to Under the Turnip Truck. MBB even has sleeping dreams of me becoming a famous person. In her dreams she sees me becoming an award-winning author when I grow up. I think she is right. MBB is very connected with our Lord and I believe that if she dreamed of me being famous then our Lord must have told her it will be so.

Who am I to question this divine inspiration?

MBB and I have always gotten along like peanut butter & jelly. We have so much in common. She is Holy and I strive to be Holy. She has an amazing singing voice and I make pretend I have an amazing singing voice. And she is besties with Charo – one of my most favorite entertainers in the world – and I would love to add Charo to my besties list.

Margaret Hyde is getting her car ready now; but, don’t worry, Charo, she will never find you.

MBB met Charo during a benefit concert at which they were both featured performers. Following is a publicity poster from that show.

Proceeds from this concert went toward the preservation of a musical instrument called castanets. MBB and Charo fear that castanets will one day become extinct if they don’t do something about it now. So, help these girls out – go out and buy a pair of castanets! They are fun to clank around and a great stress-reliever … for the person clanking them.

All this talk of Charo, strangers and the adventure-seeking traveler Lesley Carter at http://lesleycarter.wordpress.com/ reminds me of a dream I had as a young girl, a dream which fell into the gutter when I was trying to “find myself”, but found Jim instead. Once upon a time, I wanted to be just like Julie McCoy! Julie McCoy was the best cruise director that ever sailed the open seas.

Do you all remember Julie?

And Gopher? And Isaac? And Doc Bricker? And Captain Stubing?

They were awesome.

Don’t they look sharp?

I applied to every existing cruise line twice and was ignored by all of them each time. That’s when I met Jim, forgot I was looking for myself and consequently that dream rolled into the gutter.

Que Sera Sera, I guess.

For those of you who are too young or too forgetful to remember, Julie McCoy, Gopher, Isaac, Doc Bricker and Captain Stubing staffed the fictional Princess Cruise Ship called The Love Boat. The Love Boat wasn’t the ship’s real name, but as they never used the real name on the show everyone just assumed it was called The Love Boat.

Can you guess who my favorite Love Boat guest star was?

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CHARO!

Yes, my favorite guest star was by far Charo! Charo played a saucy Spanish entertainer named April Lopez. According to Wikipedia, she made 8 appearances on The Love Boat.

 Here is Charo singing The Love Boat theme song – Charo style! I think she stole some of those dance moves at the end of the song from me. Seriously.

Until next time…

I’m turning off the turnip truck.

T