Just Returning From the Emerald City!!

Ever spend 12 hours in a car with a 5 yr old, a 6 yr old, (both boys... which makes a difference), a 10 yr old, and a husband? With school just about to start, the Hott Family winds down a summer of adventure which included visiting 6 beaches in 10 different states, nearly 7000 miles in the Surburbanmobile, and 80+ hours of travel time!

And we would do it all over again! You see, Dan and I received the unbelievable news on April 28th that his heart needed an ICD (internal cardio defibrilator) due to a crazy rare illness called Brugada Syndrome. Yes, I really thought that we were on an episode of Dr. House! Seriously! This heart condition was actually featured as SIDS (Sudden Instant Death Syndrome) on an episode of Miami Medical just this past April, the week Dan thought he was having a heart attack.

So, every now and then, life throws you some hurdles and makes you realize that the most important thing that matters is the time you spend with each other. Grateful to have another summer vacation together, we decided to celebrate life and go on some vacations! Cocoa Beach, Myrtle Beach, Kitty Hawk, Virginia Beach, NYC, Cape Cod..... see the trend?

Now, here's the icing on the cake. For my 45th birthday on August 4th, Dan surprised me with Broadway tickets to see WICKED! Just as Elphaba says on her way to see the Wizard, your one and only Hott Mama here has waited her whole life to see this production. A drama major in college and a Wicked fan, I never thought that I would be able to see it... ever! Really, who would watch our youngins so I could go to New York City? An occassional dentist appointment maybe, but a trip to Broadway? I just never thought it would happen.

Until last week! The FedEx truck showed up on our mountain with a package conaining 4 Broadway tickets to see Wicked! I read all Gregory McGuire's books and memorized the soundtrack. Coming from an old UMass theatre major from 1987... I literally exploded!

I can't tell you how much Dan honored me by such a precious experience. Not every day does a Hott Mama of four get to spend her first afternoon on Broadway seeing her favorite musical. Not only that, he agreed to listen to the soundtrack for a five hour car ride to NYC! And he's the one diagnosed with a fatal heart arythmia!

So, my dear "I've heard it said
That people come into our lives for a reason
Bringing something we must learn
and we are lead...
Like a comet pulled from orbit
As it passes a sun
Like a stream that meets a boulder
Halfway through the wood
Who can say if I've been changed for the better?
But Because I know you
I have been changed for good...


Thanks for the most amazing summer... and birthday ever!