So, we're officially back from our trip to New York City, and it was a great trip!

We drove right into the Scholastic building so that Amanda could register (and get her medal!) and then went to the hotel.

Later that night we went to see Promises, Promises! It was a spectacularly funny show, starring Kristen Chenoweth (original Glinda from Wicked) and Sean Hayes (Jack from Will and Grace) and they were both just phenomenal. We were in row F in the center...in other words, we could see their spit!

The next day we walked around Times Square, and just hung out until going to Carnegie Hall. Amanda had rehearsal at 4, and the ceremony didn't start until 6. It was definitely sad to drop Amanda off alone, knowing Mr. Barry should have been going in with her!

My parents and I went back to the lobby and since it was rainy, we figured we'd just wait the hour and a half until the doors opened. At least we'd get a good seat, hopefully. It was definitely a good plan, because before long, the lobby was packed, and we were lucky and could sit on stairs.

We managed (after dealing with clueless ushers who you would think would direct people to the right seats..) to get front row seats on the second tier or balcony or whatever they want to call it (in private boxes with nice comfy chairs!) and the hall was just amazing!

Apparently the rehearsing paid off (even though it was very long for Amanda) because everything was well orchestrated and looked great. And that's saying something for getting 700 kids to bow on stage in a matter of 5-10 minutes.

Next we listened to speakers, the first being a poet whose speech was wonderful as well as poetic. Most speakers spoke very well, even though the speeches got a little lengthy. But the ceremony itself wasn't that long - only an hour and a half or so. Three actors (from big movies that I knew but hadn't seen) came and read excerpts from the five gold medal writing portfolio winners. There was also a large screen where they went through pictures of the gold medal art portfolio winners. Several past Scholastic award winners were awarded for various things throughout the night, and a random student winner and his or her teacher introduced each one, which was nice.

Luckily we weren't incredibly far from the hotel, but it was still a walk - and the rain didn't help. Rain in NYC basically means...no taxis. Everyone wants one. But we saw the Empire State Building lit in gold in honor of all the winners! (even though the top was in fog...)

On Wednesday we decided to head over to the art gallery during public viewing instead of waiting until five. We figured not only would it be less crowded, but we'd also have more time to get to the show we were seeing that night. Unfortunately we kind of underestimated the distance from our hotel to the World Financial Center where the gallery was...and ended up walking at least 60 blocks, probably around 4 miles. Thankfully it was a very nice day and we finally found the building and the gallery! (Which was an accomplishment considering we only took off in the right direction and had no idea where exactly the street was...)

There was a lot of beautiful work - so many talented young artists! Some we didn't quite get, but some just blew us away. Especially Amanda's portrait!

We had gelato for lunch (delicious!) and took a taxi back (phew). After that we found a restaurant for dinner and then went to see Next To Normal, which proved to be another phenomenal show! The actors and the songs were incredible, and the whole story was just full of intense emotion - there were tears from both the audience AND the actors, especially Alice Ripley, who played the main character (a woman diagnosed with bipolar disorder). It's just inspiring to see someone act with such emotion and passion and know that she does this every single night. Amazing show! I loved it.

After the show we noticed some people standing around the stage door, and went over. There are only six people in the cast, and the four boys came out and signed autographs! It was so great! I even got a picture with two. It was sad that neither actress came out, but it was still awesome to see the actors. About fifty feet away, there was a similar scene at the Memphis stage door, and it's so nice to see that all these actors really appreciate the audience and fans and can come out every night to say hello.

Amidst this trip for Amanda, I'm glad my family took the time to come and see Next To Normal and wait for the actors with me! That was the one show I wanted to see and it was a great night!

And on Friday, we got up and drove home. In all, it was an enjoyable trip! Just one week in the month of Amanda! I think I can speak for everyone when I say we are all very proud of her! :)

And pictures are taking a ton of time to upload so I'll have to add some later!