Miss Americana, Taylor Swift

Posted byAbPosted inADHD, adoption, FASD, Fun, gratitude, music, Parenting, TorontoTags:, , ,

T and I celebrated the hubby’s birthday with a night out at Taylor Swift’s highly anticipated Eras Tour show in Toronto.

We had purchased the tickets, nosebleed seats, last Fall and were lucky to get them at face value.

The hubby’s sister visited us for his birthday week and it was nice they got to spend time together and she joined us for the concert.

None of us consider ourselves Swifties, but we enjoy listening to her songs on our drives and the massive buzz in the city was inescapable.

The hubby made friendship bracelets for us, which we all proudly wore.

Our show was on a Friday night and a PA Day, so T was both more relaxed and we also didn’t have to worry about the day after.

We took public transit and T was a bit overexcited on the subway, but we all expected it.

If the hordes of fans dressed up for the show didn’t help with wayfinding, the signage at Union Station certainly did!

Rogers Centre got into friendship bracelets too.

After a wonderful opening set by Gracie Abrams, the main event started around 7:30.

And boy, did the stadium filled with 50,000 fans just simply lose it from the opening song, Miss Americana and the Heartbreak Prince, and didn’t let up till the end.

For nearly four hours, Swift sang through fan favourites that spanned all albums from her 17-year career and the crowd was under her spell.

I see and get the Swiftie appeal now. The joyous energy of fans singing and dancing along was both deafening and positively infectious.

T enjoyed most of the show and thankfully, we remembered to bring his noise buffering headphones after forgetting to do last time.

There were moments when the show became too much for him, so he played on the hubby’s phone, or sat on my lap and asked to be hugged, or hugged the hubby. By the last hour, he curled up on his seat to sleep, covering his face with his jacket.

💕💕💕

November is a surreal month for me.

Three days before the show was my sister’s birthday and this was the 2nd birthday we’re observing since she passed away. Three days after the show was the one year anniversary of my dear friend Jenny’s death.

Sandwiched in the middle was the hubby’s birthday and it was a joyful celebration – a reminder that hard times pass and to fill our lives with as many positive memories as we can.

I am grateful we got to experience this special evening with T.

Toronto is the 2nd last stop in Swift’s 2-year, 149-show tour that spanned 5 continents – and we caught the 8th last show of this historic tour.

I only took 1 video during the show and it was of a sweet moment when T was fully engaged with “Style,” his and my favourite Taylor Swift song.

People often remark what a handsome kid T is. I captured a wonderful candid photo of him on the subway that I won’t post but will describe with Swift’s poetic lyrics:

“You’ve got that James Dean daydream look in your eyes… we never go out of style, we never go out of style.”

36 thoughts on “Miss Americana, Taylor Swift”

  5. Unbelieveable! What a memorable way to spend hubby’s birthday! And, yes, November is a surreal month for me too! My heart goes out to you as I am sure you were missing your sister and your friend (more than usual!). It’s funny how life and death intermix and we somehow try to manage syncing it all. PS: I also love the video. Is that you or hubby singing in the background? LOL!

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    1. Thank you Stacey (Anastasia)! Life and death do intermix and one gives the other more context and depth.

      Yes, I was the one singing horribly out of tune but having loads of fun! 😂

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  7. Wow wow wow – love that video you captured. It sounds like an amazing show. Celebrating your Hubby’s bday sandwiched between the anniversaries of your dear sister and friend’s passing – that’s hard. But I love the way you are able to navigate that roller coaster with wisdom, and perspective. And I’m still laughing about the “Taylor Swift” subway sign.

    Happy birthday to your dear Hubby!

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    1. Thanks Wynne. It was a nice way to celebrate his birthday and a surreal way indeed to navigate through rollercoaster milestones. The over the top signage and way the city welcomed Swift was both amusing and endearing!

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  8. I heard so many people wishing they could have gone there, you were lucky to get tickets, what a fantastic birthday gift. Taylor is so talented in every aspect of her business. I love seeing T moving to the music. I’m sure Taylor will be happy when the tour is done.

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    1. Thanks Diane! The hubby and I joked that we could’ve sold our tickets to pay off our debts. But we decided to enjoy the show. We were very lucky to score them. It was like winning the lottery. And it was an amazing show and I can admire both her business acumen and the positive showmanship! 💕 Her shows in Toronto are done now and she has 3 more to go in Vancouver then it’s done!

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  9. OMG, Style is also my favorite Taylor Swift song! There is just something special about the melodies and the lyrics and the music video too. And speaking of lyrics, one of my team members at work is a hardcore Swiftie. She told me she knows the lyrics of all of her songs. When she went to Singapore earlier this year to watch her concert, she dressed up in one of the costumes worn by Taylor Swift throughout her Eras Tour (it’s the one on the first photo of this article: https://www.vogue.com/slideshow/taylor-swift-eras-tour-best-fashion-moments). That photo of T hugging your husband is so sweet.

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    1. Thanks Bama. Style is such a lovely song and it was awesome hearing it live. And yes, the music video is very dreamy. Cruel Summer and Anti-Hero are close on the list of my favourites too.

      Seeing her show in Singapore must’ve been a great experience too and to dress up in costume too. The costumes were top notch this show. I wore jogging pants and crocs. 😂😂😂

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  10. wow!!!! You got tickets! So amazing!!! We watched ERA tour on Netflix- it’s not the same obviously but we could see the energy and fun!

    I thought TS would take a quick trip to buffalo to watch the chiefs last Sunday, but not this time ( after reading her comments she probably won’t come to buffalo for a long time).
    so glad you all got to see this historic concert! ❤️

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    2. Thanks Vickie. It was an excellent show and we did feel quite lucky to have scored the tickets a year ago. Even with nosebleed seats, we had a great view and time.

      I did wonder if she would go to Buffalo. Next time! 🙏

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  11. Oh my goodness…your photos were amazing and I love the celebratory tone throughout, Ab! I haven’t followed much about Taylor’s tour…but I have heard she’s a dynamo. Four hours? I mean…wow! Admiration and then some. I’m so glad the three of you had a blast! 🥰💕🥰

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    1. Thanks Vicki. It was a wonderful show and yes, well worth the time. A five hour show is you include the opening act. Wonderful evening out to celebrate a birthday! 💕

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  13. Lucky you for scoring tickets to one of TSwift’s tour shows in Toronto!! What a fabulous way to celebrate your hubby’s birthday and to create more positive memories to fill such a dark and sad month. Love the homemade friendship bracelets! Sounds like it was quite the event. Glad to hear that T mostly enjoyed it! Four hours is a lot for a kit to sit through, even if it’s an amazing show.

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    1. Thanks Linda. We really lucked out with getting the tickets. It was like winning the lottery. And the timing worked out magically.

      We had so many bracelets. 😂 Gotta love dollar stores. You’ll know one day with baby M!

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  15. Holy mackerel, Ab, what a phenomenal experience!! One none of you will forget … ever! Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. And I say that not as a Swiftie, but just for the amazing experience. You are brave parents to take T to a concert with 60,000 people! Your video clip is awesome. Happy birthday to your husband. I’m sorry for your meaningful losses at the same time of year.

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    1. Thanks Jane. It was a super experience. And I liked that the hubby’s sister visited from Fredericton to spend time with him as they rarely get to do so. It was really a wonderful, if not overwhelming, experience in the most positive way.

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    1. It was an excellent show. And you can very much appreciate the humour in T having a swearing fit during “You Need to Calm Down” cuz the hubby tried to take his phone back from him. 😂 Thankfully the singing horde of fans drowned him out.

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