Tag Archives: Family

Mommy in London, Daddy in Chaos

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Stefanie had been planning her trip to London even before baby Noah came in to this world, and as the weeks passed her departure finally came.   Although, timed perfectly to with snowy, icy, polar vortex weather. She made it out on time, but had to be at the airport 6 hours before her scheduled departure.

Stefanie planned each day for Larissa and I, but the weather threw us some curve balls with early releases, late arrivals and cancelations throughout the school week.   The temperatures were below zero with the windchill for a few days here at home.

The girls missed mommy quite a bit, but not as much as daddy missed her.  We had some fun though, with a Chinese New Year Party, Super Bowl Party and a half birthday celebration for the older girls.

I am sure Stefanie will share some pictures from her week in London, but I wanted to share some of the pictures we had at home.

Chinese New Year’s Party

Emerson playing ‘heads-up’ game with Jack and Grace

Avery facing her fears!

Super Bowl Party

Food and Cheering!  Patriots win another Super Bowl . . . ugh

Happy Half Birthday Girls!

Arlington National Cemetery

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After a rainy dreary LAZY Saturday where showers and dressing in real clothes was overrated, we welcomed the sunny warm day today and being OUTSIDE!  We took the girls to Arlington National Cemetery.  We saw the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and The Changing of the Guard, the John F. Kennedy Gravesite, and walked along the paths of tombstones of those who honorably served our nation.

It was a beautiful day and I love instilling a little bit about our nations history and those who give the ultimate sacrifice to serve our country.

Great Country Farm

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Apple Cider Press Demonstration

Cinderella’s Pumpkin Carriage

Obstacle courses

Slides

Corn Fields

Farm animals including a filthy pig

Cool barns and doors

Rope Swings

Wagon rides

Apple picking

Some were more appreciated than others.

The fan favorites amongst the girls were the roasting marshmellows, the jumping pumpkin, and the roller scooters.  Who could argue with the girls on the roller scooters….that was mom’s favorite too!

Justin’s favorite was the filet at Tuscorara Mill….a spontaneous decision to eat in Leesburg and an awesome surprise to find out that the café section serves the full dinner menu in the evening! 

Happy Daddy!

It was a muddy but great family day at Great Country Farm in Bluemont, VA.

Peter Rabbit

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Not the best picture, but seriously look how grown up they are!  I seriously just can’t believe how quickly the girls are growing up!  Anyway, yesterday we went to see Peter Rabbit, a rare family occurrence for a Sunday afternoon.  We recieved an AMC gift card so we went to the Tyson’s Theatre, which has stadium seating.  Avery deep belly laughed her way through the movie.  Harper smiled and lounged comfortably in her seat through the movie.  Emerson was stoic through the entire movie, but said she liked it.  I was sitting between Avery and Harper and caught myself laughing out loud too.  I don’t know if it was Avery’s deep belly laughs that were contagious (highly likely) or if it was the kid in me (only somewhat likely) or the fact that the movie was truly funny (likely) or a combination of all three (highly likely) that I truly enjoyed the movie and family outing too!

January

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January has been a cold low-key month.  Justin and I did a 21 day meal plan where we ate primarily lean meats, chicken, fish, lots of veggies, fruit, raw nuts, and some whole grains (i.e beans and quinoa).  Honestly, we ate well….I utilized fresh herbs (parsley, ginger, garlic, scallions, cilantro, chives, etc.) to really create some delicious meals. We refrained from drinking any alcohol and no sugar (except natural sugar found in fruit).  We also didn’t eat after dinner even once!  For 21 days, healthy meals and working out were really our priority.  Honestly, I didn’t think I would be able to do it, but having Justin as my accountability partner enabled by success.  We’re going to do some things more in moderation, but overall we liked the way our bodies felt and are going to continue to experiment with similar nutritional meal plans.  At the same time, it was really cold….I think for two weeks straight the temperatures hovered in the teens and twenties.  We were content staying inside.  On weekends, we have been watching movies, reading, practicing sight words, playing board games, and overall just not rushing through the day.  It’s been a nice change of pace….nothing extradorinaiy, but ordinary and great!

Charleston Trip – Dec 2017

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We spent four full days in Charleston, SC. We had a good time. I can’t say it was fabulous, but it was good. What made it not be fabulous? I don’t know that I can pinpoint it exactly as it was more a combination of things and not one thing in particular.

  • The Weather – The weather was much colder than the average temperatures for this time of year.  Most days were in the mid 40’s and cloudy with no sun in sight. While mid 40’s isn’t that cold, it felt brutally cold outside at times. I don’t know if it is because my expectations were that it was going to be warmer or if it was because the wind chill and the real feel made it feel significantly colder.  Either way, except for the last day (which was mid 50’s and sunny) it was pretty cold outside!
  • The Bickering – The girls seemed to bicker more than we liked.  While they normally butt heads, especially at home, we want to see even less of it while we are on vacation.  And while we did our best to apply our guided principles parenting techniques from the book “One More Time”, the application of the process proved to be challenging.
  • The Parking – One reserved spot came with the Airbnb rental.  The condo itself was great…newly renovated 2 bed/2 bath.  The location, price, and amenities were a perfect match for us.  The whole condo building was recently renovated so the parking spaces hadn’t been paved yet.  It was a park on a first come/first serve basis.  And while there were supposed to be enough spots for every unit, there clearly weren’t.  The first time we couldn’t find a spot, we contacted the owner and within minutes he responded back.  While we did an easy alternative with the help of the owner, the parking situation remained the same for the rest of the trip.  The morning after we parked in the alternative spot, the caps for the tires had been stolen. And the following morning, our car was blocked in by a truck doing renovation on the building next door.  So while we always ended up finding a spot, I know the parking situation was always on the back of Justin’s mind.
  • The Duration – We stayed for four full days and designated two days for driving.  While four days initially didn’t seem like a lot, we ended up having more downtime than some other vacations.  This was in part due to the cold weather (i.e. we didn’t spend as much time as anticipated at the beaches).  While the downtime was good and allowed us to not rush through everything and even allowed for the girls to watch a movie two evenings and spend some time on sigh words, it also meant more time for bickering.
  • The Food – The food!  The food was good!  I spent countless hours reviewing blogs, reviewing restaurant reviews, reviewing menus, and trying to secure reservations.  The food in Charleston is really really good and there are a lot of spectacular restaurants.  Honestly, I probably spent a minimum of 10 hours deciding where to eat!  While the food was great, it was southern.  Southern food (even the healhier options) are not that healthy….and when in the south, it is essential to do as the Southerners do!  For the most part, we only ate one meal out a day; yet, I still feel as though I ate my way through Charleston.

WHERE WE ATE

  • Hominy Grill – Hominy Grill is a hot breakfast spot.  It also happened to be a 5 minute walk from our condo.  We beat the crowds and arrived by 8:45.  I ordered the special, which was a shrimp and hominy omelet with a tomato gravy and a side of home fries. I normally don’t eat shrimp for breakfast and don’t know that I will start. With every bite, it grew on me more and more.  I definitely enjoyed it.  Justin had the country biscuit (2 eggs over easy, cheddar grits, and biscuits with gravy).  He said his was delicious too!  Avery and Harper split the pancakes and Emerson ordered an egg and bacon biscuit sandwich, eating around the biscuit.  The place was packed with people waiting when we left at 9:45. I would definitely go back here again!
  • Butcher and Bee – Butcher and Bee is rated 4.5 stars on tripadvisor.  It is moderately priced and a hot breakfast and lunch spot. We went for an early dinner!  Our dinner reservations were at 5:30.  We made it to the restaruant at 4:50.  We decided to walk there since it was less than 2 miles from our aribnb.  What we did not know, is that much of that walk was through some not so great neighborhoods. We saw an old man with blood dripping down his face who appeared to have just been beaten up.  We saw an undercover drug “bust”.  And we received a lot of looks!  So while my intentions were to take our time and explore King Street, we were definitely on the wrong side of the tracks.  Once we made it to the restaurant, we decided going inside might be wise.  We got an uber home for $10.  The food was really good….it was tapas style and Justin and I shared everything….hummus and pita, bacon wrapped dates, falafel, squash pancake, lamb kabob, mixed green salad, and a crusty baguette with seasoned olive oil for dipping.  It was all delicious.  The bacon wrapped dates and the green salad…so yummy…I could go for those again right now! They had a kids menu, but it was a little too healthy for the girls liking. The grilled chicken was not a hit.  Emerson ate some salad and pita, bread, and French fries along with Avery and Emerson.
  • Slightly North of Broad (SNOB) – Turns out I had been here before…the last time I was in Charleston for a work event with co-workers for dinner. We had a 2:30 reservation.  The place was packed and we had to wait until 2:45 before we were seated.  Justin ordered the famous shrimp and grits and I had the special, which was swordfish with kale, rice, a few potatoes, with a sunflower puree. It was delicious although I think the sunflower puree actually took away from the dish more than it added to it. And there was corn bread…I ate a lot a lot of cornbread.  They had a kids menu…Emerson ordered the grilled cheese with a side salad.  She doesn’t really like grilled cheese that is made with a lot of butter panini style so she attempted to pick out the cheese.  Avery and Harper shared a plain bowl of pasta.  When Harper devoured her half in less than two minutes and asked for more, I ordered another to the tune of $8 a bowl….for just plain pasta!
  • Kitchen & Craftsman Tap House – We stopped in here shortly after 3:00 after our horse drawn carriage ride.  The beer selection is extensive…12 pages of beer!  The food was better than average bar food but I think it fell slightly short of what it could have been.  I think they are trying to be somewhat of an upscale bar based on the menu choices and presentation.  Avery’s pizza was very good as were the potatoes that came with the burgers.  The burgers themselves were slightly overcooked and weren’t made with the best quality ground beef. The beer selection was great though.  I had a local flight plus one more local beer.  Justin had three beers.  We had fun…and this spot was exactly what we needed for that afternoon.
  • Poogan’s Porch – While this place had openings, they had no openings for a party of five. We walked by this restaurant the previous day and I noticed that this restaurant was right next to several of the restaurants that were on my restaurant “list”.  I figured we would check out the situation if we were by the restaurant since there would be other options nearby.  There were people waiting….lots of people waiting!  When I asked if there was availability for a party of five, she said the wait was already longer than when the place closed (which was about 80 minutes away).  In the same breath, she said that there was seating available at the communal table at the bar.  We jumped on it!  We got seated right away and we took up half the table!  We ordered the fried green tomatoes…I felt like we had too!  The only other time I had fried green tomatoes was at Tuscorara Mill and they were barely fried.  The ones at Poogans were delicious, but they were definitely heavily fried.  I enjoyed every bite but I likely won’t rush to order fried green tomatoes anytime soon.  Justin and I both ordered the pulled pork benedict.  I ordered homefries on the side and Justin ordered the grits.  It was very good too, but I didn’t love the barbecue pork….I think I just wanted to order outside my norm.  I probably should have ordered the salad with fried chicken.  They are known for their fried chicken and it was delicious.  One of the kids items we ordered was chicken tenders and Emerson and Harper devoured the fried chicken.  Oh yeah…and we ate more biscuits!!
  • King Street Cookies – This was a quick stop in on the last day as a way to break up the final part of our walk home.  They had every cookie under the sun at this place.  Ironically, Emerson and Harper ordered a slushee and Avery ordered ice cream.  I took one for the team and ordered a chocolate chip cookie!
  • Carmellas – We stopped at this dessert and drink bar one evening after we ate a late lunch at the bar.  Since this was technically dinner, we let the girls go all out.  They all chose gelato, while I chose a coffee and a slice a chocolate cake and Justin had gelato and a real drink. My cake was good…certainly not to die for…I probably should have saved the calories for something else!
  • Christopher Artisan Chocolatier – We stopped by here about an hour before closing on Thursday. The place was busy and the amount of fresh treats remaining were limited, but the girls still managed to find something they all liked.  I passed on dessert this time; I think if more items were still available, it would have been harder to pass up.  I did enjoy a cup of coffee though.

What other restaurants were on my list that we didn’t visit: Husk, High Cotton, 82 Queen, The Macintosh, 5 Church Charleston, Toast, and Jenis Splendid Ice Cream. I mean you can only eat so much in one trip!

WHAT WE DID

  • Boone Plantation – I don’t think I have ever been on a Plantation before.  I had heard that there were better plantations in Charleston; however, this one had the famous Avenue of The Oaks….as well as several scenes where The Notebook, my favorite movie, was filmed.  I had to see it!  It is crazy to think about life on a planation…both from the perspective of a wealthy white person as well as a slave.
  • Patriots Point – We toured the U.S.S. Yorktown, an aircraft carrier, and a submarine.  As I grow older, I appreciate history more and more.  Thinking about what life was like back then during World War II just blows my mind away.  There was also a destroyer; however, I think the girls had reached their limit so we opted not to explore it.  There was also a Vietnam Memorial that Justin explored while I took the girls back to the car.  He said it was amazing.  I found a groupon online so we spent half as much on tickets from the regular price of admission, which was another added bonus.  I think overall Justin and I enjoyed it a little more than the girls.  Emerson said only boys would like it…since only boys like planes!
  • Isle of Palms – We went here Thursday morning after the cold weather and precipitation left a coat of icing in Charleston!  Several of the entrances to the beach were closed off for safety reasons.  While it was cold, the girls had fun playing on the beach.  Avery didn’t let her clothes get in the way of building a sandcastle.
  • Horse Drawn Carriage Ride – This was totally worth the money.  The architecture in Charleston is beautiful.  The town is so rich with American history dating back to the 1700’s and it is amazing that our country fruitfully and lavishly existed without so many of the modern day amenities that we have in today’s world. Honestly, it amazes me!
  • Downtown Charleston – We went into historic downtown Charleston three times.  We walked and explored often with no destination in mind.  We strolled by College of Charleston, Marion Square, The Market, Charleston Waterfront, and along King Street and other parts of the town. Harper wore her new hippie hairband the entire trip, along with her many bracelets.  Avery fell and hurt the same knee over and over again…thus the rolled up pant leg.  I came into contact with my own Noah Calhoun:).  We had some downtime in the condo too. The girls enjoyed their Christmas gift! Overall, it was a good trip.  But I am glad to be home…and I think Justin would agree.  My body needs a break, a refresh – some downtime, healthier food, and real workouts.  And as much as I hate to say it, a break from my kids!

Family Pictures 2017

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Ever since we did family pictures two years ago, I knew I wanted to do them again…not necessarily annually, but not too much longer of a time lapse than that.  We liked Bridgette and her pictures from two years ago, but they were very expensive and this time around I really wanted pictures of the whole session for a much smaller price.  After looking around for honestly six months, I finally found a photographer that I liked and Justin liked.  We booked her in June for our October session!  Our session was a set fee for 25-30 edited images.  She ended up giving us closer to 70 images!  I don’t think she was as talented as Bridgette yet I am quite happy with the end results we got in terms of the number of images and the price.  I don’t think she really captured Avery or Emerson’s true personality.  Emerson is difficult to photograph period; however, Bridgette managed to connect with her and bring out her personality, where as Allison did not.  Avery was also wearing a new pair of glasses and the tint was a little lighter than normal which didn’t make for an apple to apples comparison from the last time either…although that had nothing to do with her deep belly laugh personality not really emerging during the session.  Anyway, after thinking about this session for what seemed like eternity since we booked it months in advance, I was so happy when we were done in a sense…I had spent more time than I should probably admit deciding on the location, outfits, and spent the day of the pictures afraid to move since I didn’t want my hair that I had gotten done early in the day to get messed up!  With all that said, here are the pictures from our session!

NY to Vienna to MD and Flowers

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Saturday we decided to turn Vienna into our own little NY. We had a few places we wanted to visit in the heart of Vienna and a few errands we needed to run in Vienna as well. Justin had also wanted to go on a family hike in the near future. After breakfast, we decided to forgo the gym. We packed a backpack (thanks Justin for carrying it for 6 hours straight) and set out to Vienna through our backyard and the path that Justin had cleared in our backyard leading to it. The girls each took a plastic bag and collected leaves along the way there. The three-mile walk to Vienna took us one hour and 15 minutes. We caught the tail end of the Vienna Halloween Character event grabbing a small free cotton candy for the girls along the way. They wanted to go in the moon bounce but it was closing up as we got there. Meanwhile Justin and I were scoping out the historic Vienna area as a possible location for our family pictures next weekend. We then headed to Potomac River Running so I could get some insoles (per the orthopedist’s recommendation) for my running shoes. I even had a $25 coupon that I was able to use, which was awesome since I had forgotten about it until we were steps away from the store that. Next, we made our way to Cuppetts where Avery tried on new tap shoes. They were out of the size she needed so we put our order in; on the bright side we didn’t have to carry them with us through town the rest of the day. Next stop was Walgreens, where Justin got his flu shot. Justin had taken the girls the day prior for theirs and it was not a pretty sight. Emerson tried to hide behind the chairs in the doctor’s office and all three girls screamed. Justin told them to be brave; he told them he would show them how it was done when he got his. After Walgreens, we headed back to Church Street Pizza for lunch. We ordered a bunch of slices and when we were done headed over to Glyndon Park. Justin and I wanted to scope it out as another alternative for family pictures. The girls meanwhile had fun playing on the swings, monkey bars, and slide. Last stop before heading home was Ritas where the girls indulged in some frozen ice and Mommy and Daddy shared a kid size soft serve ice cream. It was also a form of bribery not to whine on the long walk home. The walk home we spent counting and doing math problems for the first half making the walk go by quickly. We were home by 4:45…just in time for Daddy to spend another hour mowing the grass. The girls played on the swing set for a little before showering and putting on their pajamas and staying indoors the rest of the evening. The girls and I walked nine miles that day…Justin probably an additional three with the lawn mowing!

Sunday afternoon we had planned on going to a farm with a pumpkin patch, apple orchard, and petting zoo. When the weather was raining in the morning, we almost scratched that idea and went to the local Reston Farmer’s Market. Miraculously, the sun came out and the forecast said it was going to get up to 80 degrees so we decided to stick with our original plan and go to Homestead Farms in Maryland. It was a huge place with a large orchard, a petting zoo (including goats who walked above ground), a lake, a pumpkin patch, a tractor for hayrides, a general store, and a market.   It really was a great place. Our experience wasn’t as carefree and appreciated as much as it should have or could have been. Emerson wasn’t impressed from the moment we got out of the car despite the fact that she could barely see the farms offerings from that vantage point and distance. We had to backtrack after being in the farm all the way out to the last row of the parking lot to get a wheelbarrow for our apples and pumpkins. It became hot…very HOT as in 90 degree hot very quickly and that isn’t something that was anticipated in mid-October! Then when we got deep into the orchard, Avery had to go to the bathroom and claimed she couldn’t hold it.   Apple picking was over for Avery and me. Meanwhile on the way back to the porter potty (yes, I went in one a total of four times while we were there), the shoes I was wearing gave me the WORST blisters. I could barely walk. Finally, when Justin got back the girls picked out some pumpkins but I truly don’t think any of us were into it. While Justin was waiting in line to pay, I shopped in the market and got all my fresh vegetables for the week (kale, green peppers, poblano peppers, cherry tomatoes, orange tomatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans…oh yeah, and some snacks for the girls). Homestead Farms had the potential to be great, but unfortunately our attitudes took the amazing experience factor down slightly.

Despite that, I still wanted to stop at the winery that we had seen on the way in that was a mile down the road. It was called Rocklands Farm. We only stayed for a short time, but enough time to do a wine tasting, buy two bottles of wine, a strip steak for Monday night’s dinner, use the rest rooms, and take in the scenery. I absolutely LOVED the feel of this winery. It was rustic with an amazing barn. I didn’t tell Justin this, but if we were to have our wedding again….I think this is the type of venue I would have it at. Deep down, it spoke to me. We were also there at 4:45 so the sun was creating great light….just gorgeous. It was only after we got home that night that I decided to read the reviews on trip advisor. While rated pretty highly overall, there were a few reviews that rated the winery poorly due to the $12 wine tasting and the below average volume wine tasting pour. I definitely noticed both but I didn’t vocalize nor did it consume my thoughts after the initial second I thought it until I read the review. It was that moment in time that I realized that I finally wasn’t trying to see the flowers…I was seeing the flowers:)

Maddys Take on Manhattan

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Our family took a mini vacation this long weekend to NYC.  We really have the travel bug and want to take advantage of the girls time off of school to explore places. Justin and I used to love going to NYC, which we did a few times a year when my sister lived there.  The last time we were in NY was seven years ago!  It doesn’t seem like that long ago but it was a few months before I became pregnant with Avery and Emerson and the last year my sister lived in NY before moving to London. Crazy how time flies!  Anyway, Justin and I like walking and exploring, taking in the scenery and the free stuff, and eating good food.  So that was our mission with kids while still trying to keep it exciting for them.

We took Emerson out of school early Friday to leave for NJ where we spent the night at Mary and Russell’s house.  Avery was out sick Friday as she had been the prior two days at school, thus we didn’t need to take her out early.  We arrived at Mary and Russell’s around 7:00 and enjoyed their hospitality and company as always.

Saturday morning Russell graciously drove us into the city and after we checked in at our hotel, drove us to the Metropolitan Museum of Natural History.  The girls had a great time exploring the space and mammal exhibits.  After staying there for a few hours, we crossed the street and entered Central Park right by Strawberry Fields.  The girls experienced a NY hot dog! Then we leisurely strolled around the lake coming out by the Boat House and then walking through Central Park Zoo.  I thought maybe we would go in, but that was before I realized it wasn’t a free zoo. We then made our way back towards the hotel stopping in Bloomingdales along the way for a bathroom break and then at Serendipity, where I thought the girls would get a  kick out of having a massively beautiful milkshake, but apparently I wasn’t the only one with that same idea.  It was 4:30 so I thought with the off time we would get in, but the amount of people waiting was so abundant that I didn’t even bother asking what the wait time was.  The girls were disappointed, I promised we would find the girls ice cream somewhere else but as you know when you are specifically looking for something is the only time you can’t find it!  We arrived at our hotel before we found ice cream so again the promise of ice cream was made for later.  We actually wanted to fill the girls up on dessert since the place we had dinner reservations at later in the evening was truly an indulgence for Justin and I with very little on the menu that would be appealing to the girls. Once we arrived back at the hotel, we checked in our room.  We were told the happy hour started in 5 minutes so we quickly unpacked so we could partake in the “free” happy hour.  We downed a few glasses of wine and nuts before we freshened up and headed to our dinner reservations.  Our dinner reservations were at Tolache on W. 50th.  It was perfect because we got a chance to walk through Rockefeller Center and by Radio City Music Hall.Dinner was good but Justin and I certainly didn’t enjoy it as much as we would have had it been just the two of us.  The staff didn’t appear to be too keen on the fact that three of the five persons in the reservations were kids.  While it certainly wasn’t a kid restaurant, there were a few others who also had kids so the fact that our waiter really didn’t even make an attempt to connect with us, was disappointing. They rushed us out the door…in seriously in less than an hour, we were done with dinner. The food itself was great and Emerson loved the flank steak, rice and beans.

After dinner we were in Times Square.  Justin and I normally don’t go to Times Square as we aren’t keen on the big tourist attractions and Justin is always weary of crowds for security reasons, but I felt like the girls needed to experience it…at least for a few minutes. We then stopped in the M&M store since Mila had told the girls about it and they wanted to go. Not certain of the pouty faces…perhaps it was the disappointment of Justin and I not letting them buying anything. 

Even though we didn’t go to bed until close to 11:00, we had a pretty good nights sleep.  Harper slept on the pull out couch by herself and Avery and Emerson took turns sleeping with Justin and I alternating nights.  Rock Paper Scissors determined who took turns sleeping with who.

Sunday morning we slept in later than I thought we would.  My alarm went off shortly after 7:00 but after I saw everyone was still sound asleep and the black out curtains made it feel like it was still the middle of the night, I hit snooze several times until close to 9:00!  I hopped in the shower while everyone still slept.  Slowly everyone else woke up and showered.  It had been raining so we were purposely being slow as the forecast said the rain was going to taper off.  When the rain didn’t let up as early as anticipated, we opted to go to brunch right around the corner from the hotel, The Smith.  The wait was an hour and a half but they had some spaces at the communal table, which we were able to snag up right away eliminating our wait time. The food was good, although pricey…very pricey!  Emerson’s apple juice cost $6!  After breakfast it was still raining some so we headed back to the hotel room for a little longer.  By 1:00 p.m. the rain stopped and we were on our way.  We walked to Grand Central Station.

We then went to the Empire State Building, although we didn’t go to the top. We then walked to Madison Avenue Park on 23rd and the girls had fun playing on the playground.

Next we walked to Union Square where the girls enjoyed the street performers, specifically this man juggling.  He was actually pretty darn talented!  

When his performance was over, we told the girls it was ice cream time!  We had promised them ice cream the day before and when we were unsuccessful in finding it, the promise rolled over to Sunday.  They hadn’t asked about it in quite a few hours so I wanted to show them that they didn’t need to pester us about things for them to happen.  Avery and Harper and along with their dresses and hair indulged in chocolate ice cream.  Emerson indulged in blackberry and true to her nature stayed pretty clean.

It was after 3:00 by the time the girls finished their ice cream.  We decided we didn’t have enough time or the girls enough stamina to walk to Battery Park so we hopped on the Subway.  We took the 5 but as usual I didn’t understand the limited weekend subway service and it didn’t stop at Battery Park.  We were forced to get off at The Brooklyn Bridge if we still wanted to be in Manhattan!  We decided since we were so close to go for a short stroll on the bridge but with the need to go to the bathroom, that stroll didn’t last too long.  We then made our way to South Seaport.  The girls were getting a little tired and cranky so when they saw a playground and asked if they could go in, we said yes.  Two minutes after they were playing I spotted one of my sister’s friends and her family.  I had never met her before but I recognized her from my sister’s wedding and pictures I had seen of her before.  Anyway, I introduced myself and we chatted for a few, took a picture together to send to my sister, and she told us about the free bus loop that would take us to Battery Park from South Seaport!  After the girls played for a few, we headed to South Seaport. The girls each bought themselves a fidget spinner (the latest craze) from a street vendor (I negotiated 3 for $10) with their own money and they were ECSTATIC!  Seriously, they were so excited to have their own fidget spinners.  Honestly, I thought they would ask for something else since they still had birthday money remaining, but they were quite content with their purchase. Justin and I then grabbed an adult beverage (or two) at an outdoor bar while the girls played with their fidget spinners.  We were sitting at a big picnic table in a cool location; weather was beautiful, and it was chill and awesome.  Honestly, it was amazing.  I’m sure the fact that I was buzzed after one beer had something to do with it, but it is moments like this with my family that I feel so content and happy.  While we were hanging out there I got blessed by a Hasidic Jew.  Emerson had previously called me out on it when I earlier said no thank you to a Hasidic Jew on the Brooklyn Bridge asking me if I was Jewish.  (I thought he was trying to sell me something).  Anyway, Emerson and I talked about it afterwards and she asked me if I would say I was Jewish the next time.  Well the next time came when Justin was grabbing us beers.  My Hebrew was so horrendous….I’m sure the Hasidic Jew boy with peach fuzz was internally laughing hysterically. By the way, the Hasidic Jew families with young kids are the cutest families ever.  Anyway, after our drinks, we were going to scratch Battery Park but when the free bus was literally at our feet and the ride was less than 10 minutes away, we hopped on.  Where we hopped off, we could see The Statue of Liberty from afar.  We took a picture of it on the phone so Avery could see it.  We honestly stayed there for less than 10 minutes but at least the girls could say they saw The Statue of Liberty.  Justin had fun taking pictures of the girls.

As we made our way to the Subway, we saw behind us Freedom Tower. Justin had wanted to go to the World Trade Center Memorial but we knew it would spurn to many questions from the girls, and while the time will come that they will be exposed to harsh truths, they are still at an age where we can foster their innocence without sacrificing their knowledge…that time won’t last long though so we are savoring the days while we can.  We got off the subway at Grand Central Station and on the way back we looked for a pizza joint that was appealing.  We did have dinner reservations at The Stanton Social but I cancelled them…it was hard to do because I felt like we scored with getting these reservations but the truth was it wasn’t a kid’s restaurants and we had already subjected them and ourselves to that the previous night.  So we settled for a slice of pizza at $3 a slice.  It was fine…not to die for, but not bad.  We finally made our way back to the hotel room close to 8:00 p.m.  A few minutes later we went back out for one more drink.  We didn’t want to go far so we went to a restaurant down the block.  The reviews said it was good but overpriced.  While that normally would have turned me off, there weren’t many options right around us and we literally wanted one drink.  I figured even if it was overpriced it really wouldn’t add up too much. Justin and I each ordered a beer and I ordered cookies off the dessert menu for the girls.  The cookies were disappointing!  I expected overpriced, which they were ($10) but I still expected them to be good…i expected warm melt in your mouth cookies and these were definitely already at least a day old).  We were back at the hotel by 9:00 where Justin gave the girls a hose down in the shower while I packed.  NY is dirty and seriously dirt was just caked on the girls!

Monday morning we went to NY Jumbo Bagels on 56th and 3rd.  We opted to go somewhere that was good, reasonably priced, but that wasn’t insanely popular with lines out the door. Avery enjoyed her plain bagel, Harper her plain bagel with cream cheese, and Emerson her bagel with lox.  Justin and I equally enjoyed our bacon, egg, and cheese on a whole wheat everything and a cup of steaming hot coffee.  We stopped at Buttercream Bakery on the way home for some dessert as I hadn’t yet indulged in any NY dessert.  We got cupcakes to go…two for me….a pumpkin that I ate with the rest of my coffee when we got back to the hotel and a chocolate buttercream.  Both were absolutely delicious.  Russell picked us up at the hotel again, which was awesome, and then after a quick bathroom break at Russell and Mary’s house, we were back on the road.  We made great time and even made it back in time for Avery and Emerson’s ballet class.

I can’t stop thinking about the fact that we ran into my sister’s friend. It wasn’t so much the specific friend but when you think about the chances of it, it is just crazy.  We took a few turns and changed our plans slightly that day…had we not done that, we wouldn’t had run into her.  It makes me wonder about all the times that you just miss someone too and have no knowledge of it. Anyway, it was just so symbolic of life….and how all things, even the so called “wrong turns” happen for a reason.

What would I have done differently:
– paid a donation instead of the suggested fee for the Museum of Natural History.  Since we were only there a short time, I totally would have been okay with that.  Not to mention that the primary reason we went there (the Hayden Planetarium) was a special exhibit and I had thought it wasn’t…thus I didn’t even purchase the ticket that allowed us to experience it.
– Stay at the same hotel…but book for 4 persons allowing us to stay in a smaller room with two queens (the girls can triple up for one weekend)! Also, potentially ok directly with the hotel versus Expedia.

A Day At the Ballpark

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The girls first time at a ball park! Despite the Nats loss, the girls had a fun time!  Eating cotton candy and hot dogs were probably their highlight…even Harper didn’t turn down seconds of cotton candy after vomiting at the bottom of the stairwell in the fifth inning😂.