So during our trip east, we took the boys on an adventure in New York. James and I always thought that we'd get back there to live for at least a few months while he was still with Accenture, but alas, it never happened, and we still had to scratch the "city kids" itch. So we set off on what could have been a ridiculous trip, but with a good attitude (and some luck) we had a wonderful day in the city. We took the ferry from NJ and got to see the Statue of Liberty (Seamus recognized it from the This is New York book).
We met our good friend Travis for brunch at a fabulous restaurant (Friends of the Farmer) near Gramercy Park. The kids were great and so was Travis - it was so fun to be with him again in New York. He took us to a great Park after brunch where the kids got to run through a fountain and enjoy a little urban play. We stopped at the ice cream truck and Travis treated the boys to VERY large Popsicles.
From there we walked most of the way (the subway trains we needed we're not running because of problems with the flooding last week) to the Museum of Natural History (Hello, Night At the Museum). Shane met us on the way and helped us navigate the train with three kids and also got us into the museum for free (we owe him a $60 drink some day soon). Giant whales, elephants, dinosaurs...what more could two little boys wants. (And Shane was fun too...)
Shane walked us into Central Park and we said goodbye and headed to meet up with our Brooklyn friends. The boys promptly fell asleep for almost two hours and we walked across the park to the F train. But unfortunately, we took the F train to Queens (a totally rookie mistake that neither James or I could believe we made), but it was fitting because we had just been gloating about how much fun we'd been having and how easy it had all been...
SO from Queens we made it to Brooklyn to visit with Kevin, Amanda, Mike and Aliza. We got to see Kevin and Amanda's new place which was AMAZING and enjoy some time with our shoes off. Amanda made cupcakes for the boys (they immediately fell in love) and we had a nice glass of wine. Heaven. The whole crew walked over to the Brooklyn bridge and we let the boys run around at a park while we all chatted, it was just wonderful night. We ran into a woman who helped us with the stroller at the subway - made it all feel sort of small town. It was all just so much fun...
We left them all around 8:00 and walked over the Bridge - a beautiful night, and a really fun walk that we'd never done before. The walk turned into a pretty brisk hike when we thought we might miss the ferry home, but we made it with 15 minutes to spare.
It was a fun adventure - made us feel proud of the kids and of ourselves. Every once in a while you have to take chances, trust that you know your kids and yourselves and dive into the world in new and different ways.
3 comments:
Sounds like a great adventure! Rob and I were happy to do it sans kids - he he, but your way sounds fun too. Random thoughts:
- how much vacation do the people in your family have???
- glad you had the boys in orange - easier to find in the city crowds
- never got to indulge the "city kids itch" - right, I mean San Fran is sooooo backcountry.... :)
- I think we also visited that same popsicle truck... (probably only one in NYC, right?)
- and because this comment post is sounding snarky, but not intended to, i will conclude with the fact that I always enjoy your stories and your photos. Nothing better than making the most out of life!
It was awesome seeing you guys!
I'm not sure if I managed to provide my full commentary on the Natural History Museum, which is that in my opinion, the Giant Sloth is the best thing (well, that and all the other giant things that once roamed the earth), and the boring old New York State agriculture and ecology exhibit near the entrance is the worst.
If I did manage to squeeze this thought out while we were talking, I apologize for repeating myself.
One question. Did the boys get the tattoos before or after visiting with Mike?
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