We just took the fastest trip we’ve ever taken as a family and while how it came together was a comedy or errors, the result was a *magical* less-than-24 hours in New York! First, the back story.

A few months ago David got word of a work meeting in January in New York City. Around the same time I saw an ad that Tom Felton would be apprising his role as Draco Malfoy in Broadway’s Harry Potter and the Cursed Child for a brief stint. As huge Harry Potter fans, there was only one logical conclusion- this was fate!

David and I decided it would be a fun surprise for the girls and I to fly up to New York and meet him at the tail end of his work obligations. We planned to do dinner and the show, stay the night, explore the city (Museum of Natural History? Bus tour? Central Park?), then get another dinner somewhere fun and fly home late that night.

Well, a few weeks ago we found out that the work meeting fell through and that threw a wrench into our plans. However, cancelling was not an option because our Broadway tickets were nonrefundable and nontransferable, so we booked David a flight to join us and grabbed a hotel room for the night.

With flights and a hotel room secured, our plan was back on track… until the prediction of a massive winter storm began to firm up and we decided we needed to pivot again. The only flight option to switch to was a 9:00AM flight on Saturday so we scooped it up.

Feeling better about our return timeline had our excitement increasing as the day approached. The girls had never been to NYC so with a single carry on bag for all four of us, stuffed with a pair of pajamas and a show outfit, we boarded our flight from Greenville. Side note: Greenville is my new favorite airport. It’s small, clean, convenient, easy to navigate- big fan.

By 1:00 PM on Friday we were on the ground in New York and hauling a Lyft. It was fun to watch the girls as we drove into the city, all wide eyed with so much to look at. We checked into our room at the Intercontinental Time Square. We opted for a suite with a king bed and a pullout couch, which suited our needs well and offered a great view with a lot of windows. We dropped our bags and walked the block over to check out Times Square.

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Back at the hotel, we changed and headed down to the hotel restaurant, The Stinger, for a snack and a drink- both we excellent. From there we walked the 5 minutes to our dinner reservation at Joe Allen, a restaurant picked for its proximity to the hotel and the theater with promises of a classic New York feel that was good for families.

It delivered! I’m glad we had 5:00 reservations because it was bustling when we arrived, but we were taken right to our table. The vibe was cozy yet energetic, a warm atmosphere with a kind and competent server that added to the experience. We kicked things off with a little fun- escargot, since the kids had never tried it! The verdict? “Couldn’t even taste the snail!” Ha. Though I doubt either one of them would order it again on their own.

The girls had burgers, David, a steak, and the Branzino for me. It was all very good and we enjoyed a lively conversation on dream travel destinations. A perk of tweens and teens is that dinner conversations only get more engaging and fun the older they get. The meal moved along at a great speed to get us out the door in plenty of time to arrive early to the theater.

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We walked the five minutes to the Lyric Theater where we joined a herd of people also eager for an early entry. The exterior display was striking and only added to our excitement. The girls and I were downright giddy upon entering, as the whole theater was outfitted to the theme, with Hs on the carpets, stars on the ceiling, and themed snacks and drinks for purchase. We got chocolate frogs, of course, and made our way to our seats.

The show began with strict instructions of no video or pictures, and it was kind of nice just to put it all away without feeling the need to snap a perfect picture to capture it all. And honestly? There would be no way to capture the experience on film or video, as it was a phenomenal production with so many special effects that it felt like a hybrid magic show!

Fortunately both girls had read the screenplay and were able to follow along easily, as the storyline moves crazy fast. Within the first 5 minutes of the 3 hour experience, Harry Potter’s son was already at his third year at Hogwarts. Fortunately I could keep up and H kept whispering bits of the storyline to David to help him along.

All in all, we loved it! We are still baffled at how they pulled off some of the costumes transitions and the dementors… wow. But no spoilers alerts, here.

We extended the experience as long as we could and were among the last of the audience to leave the theater. K was really hoping to get to meet Tom Felton, but had to settle for cheering him on in a standing ovation at the conclusion of the show. What an evening!

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It was frigid by the time we walked back onto the streets and beelined it back to the hotel. The girls were cold and ready for bed and I couldn’t convince them to head back out for a slice of New York’s finest, but I was able to persuade David. We went a block over to grab a slice of margherita which absolutely hit the spot.

We all slept well enough and we up at 6:15 to head to the airport. We felt so grateful that there were no hiccups in our travel and landed back on the ground before noon to salted streets but not a freezing raindrop insight.

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I’m grateful we switched our flights because we checked our original flight status that evening to see it had indeed been cancelled. We were very happy to be back at home, showered and prepared for the ice storm instead of stuck in a hotel elsewhere.

We’re now waking up to our second day without power, but we’re doing just fine thanks to those solar panels David talked me into. We’re having a family sleepover downstairs, limiting our electricity consumption, and hoping power is reinstated soon. Praying that everyone else effected by the storm stays safe and warm!