What a way to spend Fathers Day! Hubby can say he spent FD in NYC. Today was check out day from the hotel in Brooklyn and head to the hotel in Jersey because our plane was leaving at 6am. We wanted to be at an airport hotel so we wouldn't have to worry about being too far away and traffic.
I had gotten my hopes up temporarily that we'd be able to catch a flight home today, but with only 1-5 seats available we didn't want to chance getting stuck w/out our luggage*.
So off we go to the hotel. They were nice enough to let us do an early check in. Once we got to our room at the airport hotel (in Jersey) we looked out our window and we had a better view of Manhattan than we had from our hotel in Brooklyn**. This was the view we longed for while in Brooklyn.
Once we got our bags settled it was lunch. Good grief. We debated on whether to order from room service or go to the food court at the airport. So we hopped on the airport shuttle bus to catch some grub. This lunch was the closest we got to Tex-Mex. It was a restaurant somewhat like Chipotle. After lunch we ended up walking back to the hotel. We waited quite a while for the airport shuttle to come back, but gave up after about 15 minutes or so. We walked back to the hotel. It wasn't really that bad. We didn't have to cross any major highways or anything that scary.
Once back in our room it was movies on demand for us. First up, Oz The Great And Powerful and The Croods. Dinner came from room service. I had a burger and it was actually one of the best burgers I think I've had.
Bedtime was upon us. A little bit closer to home.
Day Seven
I guess we're a glutton for punishment. Or we like to make sure we get on flights. Hubby and I woke up at 3am. It wasn't that hard since neither of us slept all that great. There was a plane to catch at 6am and we were gonna be on it.
The kids did great. We got out of the hotel by our goal time. But it went downhill from there.
This may be the reason I just start advocating we drive on our vacations, TSA. It's 5am and we're shuttled through the TSA checkpoint. The girl with a chip on her shoulder tells everyone that electronics need to be in their own bin. The Momma Bear in me is trying to keep up with my kids and what they might be going through, our ten million bins of stuff and whether it's being confiscated and then I hear, "Ma'am, take off your flip flops and sweater around your waist"***. God forbid, I got scatter brained and forgot to take my sweater off and flip flops. Plus, one hand is holding my boarding pass and drivers license. I didn't want to set that down anywhere, HELLO! So she's there rolling her eyes****.
So I'm throwing flip flops and my sweater in yet another bin. And she's still reminding me she needs to see my boarding pass and drivers license. When I put my hand out to get my DL and boarding pass back from her she kept my DL. She's still holding on to it. When I say "witch" I mean with a capital "B"*****. She had nothing to hold me for and no reason to suspect. Then she accused me of snapping at her. I ain't got time for that. Please.
We finally got on our flight. It was a flight going from Newark to Houston. It's never good to get to your connecting flight just to hear that flights are delayed because of major thunderstorms in your home city. It took everything I had to hold back the tears. Once we found out one flight was full, we went to another gate. On the other end of the airport. For roughly five hours. We even debated renting a car and driving back******. Back and forth til one of the nicest gate agents EVER finally started putting people on the wait list on flights. I think the flight we finally got on was filled with more wait list people than scheduled people. Fine with me.
Spending the day at the airport after spending the day before in a hotel just sucks. Crap happens.
Home sweet home!
I have to give major kudos to my kids. They kept up with us the whole vacation. They never complained. They fared better than me at times. I'm thrilled that they'll have this memory. Vacations were never a priority when I was growing up and we all got to see it together for the first time. My kids make me proud. Proud that God chose me to be their mother. I an one lucky woman!
*When you're ready to be home, you're ready to be home.
**There was NO view in Brooklyn since our hotel had no windows except for the skylights.
***On flying days I dress comfortably. I had a cute little dress on and flip flops. Plus a sweater in case I get cold. Plus, I don't want to have to deal with socks and shoes through TSA. Just get a bomb sniffing dog for goodness sake, you morons.
****If you don't like your job or you can't do it professionally, THEN FIND ANOTHER JOB. YOU HAVE NO BUSINESS IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR. Find a job where you can just sit in an empty room and not have to deal with people.
*****I was vindicated when I heard one of my favorite radio talk show guys talking about the same TSA.
******But we waited it out since our luggage would be waiting for us at the airport.
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
Monday, July 1, 2013
NYC 2013-Day Five
Today started off like all the others. At a leisurely pace. A reservation at Top of the Rock was waiting for us at 2pm. After breakfast we headed off in that general vicinity.
We reached the Brooklyn Bridge and decided it was the perfect opportunity to make our trek across one of the most well known and beautiful icons of the city. The weather couldn't have been more perfect! With a bottle of water and a hot dog in hand we set off for the other side. Along with 5,000 of our not so closest friends.
The views were amazing. People, cars and bicyclists packed on this monstrosity of engineering wonder.
On our way to Top of the Rock we made pit stops into Sephora, American Girl, and Coach. My living dolls got an AG NY t-shirt for their dolls and Coach was just Coach. The Sephora store is worth visiting for the architecture alone. Just go in and look.
Right outside Rockefeller Center is the iconic statue of Prometheus. This is quite a site. Everybody's seen it on tv or in a movie, but when you see it in person, it's a little majestic, with a little bit of over the top.
When you get inside the Rockefeller building for the TotR you go through a tour of pictures of the people behind the building. Pictures of the people whose name is on the building and pictures of the people who were actually doing the hard labor. The elevator that takes you to the top has a clear ceiling to see all the way up the elevator shaft. It's one of the fastest elevators that I've ever been on. But it didn't feel like we were going that fast.
Nothing could beat the views from Top of the Rock. It's a complete 360 degrees of NYC. There are three outside levels of observation decks. Hubby was good with standing close to the building. Nor did he go to the third level.
After TotR we set out for Bloomingdales. I had wanted to see it since the one in Dallas closed over 20 years ago. As soon as we walked in I was overwhelmed*. Each brand had their own "shop" within the store. I'm not a fan of that. If I want to go look for a certain color skirt, I want to see all of them in the same place. I don't want to have to venture through every brand in a different area of the store.When we realized that Bloomies was 7 floors of high falootin' brand names and snotty salespeople, we decided to go straight out the opposite door. We at least made it through the first floor.
When we came out the other side of Bloomies we happened to come across Magnolia Bakery. This was on my list of things to visit**. Sure enough it was time for a sweet treat! Well, the cupcake wasn't any better than ones I've made in my own home. But we can say, "been there done that" now.
After another full day in the bag we decided to head back to the hotel. Off to the subway. Right train. Wrong direction. After we realized we were going in the wrong direction we got off to get on the train going the right direction. Child Two had to go to the bathroom. We came across Enzo's. A great Italian restaurant. We found our excuse to go potty. It was called dinner. We were in another nice area of Brooklyn and the restaurant had tables spilling out into the street. When you go to the back it had a courtyard with tables as well.The people here couldn't have been any nicer.
Too bad we didn't notice the "Cash Only" sign outside the door***. With the tab paid and bellies full it was time to head back to the train. In the right direction. Once we got back to the hotel it was a fun-filled night of laundry and to get our stuff ready to head back home****.
Stuff we saw on the subway train:
-People going to work
-People going home
-A girl with a safety pin for an earring
-A girl with a blue streak in her hair
-A girl with all pink hair
-Couples going on dates, with about 100 of their not so closest friends
-A quartet singing Rockin' Robin
All in all, not so much different than people that would ride the DART or that live in my general area. It would be nice if there were more quartets, though.
At this point we're missing home. Here are some specifics:
-Elbow room
-Tex-Mex
-Being able to just get in the car and go(it seems that if you have somewhere to be at a certain time, there is uber-planning involved!
-Tucker
-My own not-so-small corner of the world in Texas
-Blue Bell ice cream (what they call ice cream is not ice cream)
Some things we didn't like about NYC:
-Smokers everywhere
-Sensory overload
-Graffiti
-Nasty dirty
-Scaffoldings seemed to be on the outside of every building we wanted to see
-NYC people, in general are not nice
*No need to wipe your eyes or check your glasses. You read that right. I was overwhelmed and intimidated.
**Yes. A cupcake was on my list. We had come across one at Grand Central Station, but I think we had already reached our sugar high for that day and I just couldn't.
***Yes. We carry cash. But who carries a vacation's worth of cash in their pocket? Thankfully we had it covered.
****This is where I totally ruined my new NY jacket. The red color ran onto the white and I haven't been able to get it out yet.
We reached the Brooklyn Bridge and decided it was the perfect opportunity to make our trek across one of the most well known and beautiful icons of the city. The weather couldn't have been more perfect! With a bottle of water and a hot dog in hand we set off for the other side. Along with 5,000 of our not so closest friends.
 |
| The loves of my life. |
 |
| View of the Manhattan Bridge from the Brooklyn Bridge. |
The views were amazing. People, cars and bicyclists packed on this monstrosity of engineering wonder.
On our way to Top of the Rock we made pit stops into Sephora, American Girl, and Coach. My living dolls got an AG NY t-shirt for their dolls and Coach was just Coach. The Sephora store is worth visiting for the architecture alone. Just go in and look.
Right outside Rockefeller Center is the iconic statue of Prometheus. This is quite a site. Everybody's seen it on tv or in a movie, but when you see it in person, it's a little majestic, with a little bit of over the top.
When you get inside the Rockefeller building for the TotR you go through a tour of pictures of the people behind the building. Pictures of the people whose name is on the building and pictures of the people who were actually doing the hard labor. The elevator that takes you to the top has a clear ceiling to see all the way up the elevator shaft. It's one of the fastest elevators that I've ever been on. But it didn't feel like we were going that fast.
Nothing could beat the views from Top of the Rock. It's a complete 360 degrees of NYC. There are three outside levels of observation decks. Hubby was good with standing close to the building. Nor did he go to the third level.
 |
| View of Central Park from Top of the Rock. |
 |
| Add caption |
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| View of the Empire State Building and lower Manhattan. |
After TotR we set out for Bloomingdales. I had wanted to see it since the one in Dallas closed over 20 years ago. As soon as we walked in I was overwhelmed*. Each brand had their own "shop" within the store. I'm not a fan of that. If I want to go look for a certain color skirt, I want to see all of them in the same place. I don't want to have to venture through every brand in a different area of the store.When we realized that Bloomies was 7 floors of high falootin' brand names and snotty salespeople, we decided to go straight out the opposite door. We at least made it through the first floor.
When we came out the other side of Bloomies we happened to come across Magnolia Bakery. This was on my list of things to visit**. Sure enough it was time for a sweet treat! Well, the cupcake wasn't any better than ones I've made in my own home. But we can say, "been there done that" now.
After another full day in the bag we decided to head back to the hotel. Off to the subway. Right train. Wrong direction. After we realized we were going in the wrong direction we got off to get on the train going the right direction. Child Two had to go to the bathroom. We came across Enzo's. A great Italian restaurant. We found our excuse to go potty. It was called dinner. We were in another nice area of Brooklyn and the restaurant had tables spilling out into the street. When you go to the back it had a courtyard with tables as well.The people here couldn't have been any nicer.
Too bad we didn't notice the "Cash Only" sign outside the door***. With the tab paid and bellies full it was time to head back to the train. In the right direction. Once we got back to the hotel it was a fun-filled night of laundry and to get our stuff ready to head back home****.
Stuff we saw on the subway train:
-People going to work
-People going home
-A girl with a safety pin for an earring
-A girl with a blue streak in her hair
-A girl with all pink hair
-Couples going on dates, with about 100 of their not so closest friends
-A quartet singing Rockin' Robin
All in all, not so much different than people that would ride the DART or that live in my general area. It would be nice if there were more quartets, though.
At this point we're missing home. Here are some specifics:
-Elbow room
-Tex-Mex
-Being able to just get in the car and go(it seems that if you have somewhere to be at a certain time, there is uber-planning involved!
-Tucker
-My own not-so-small corner of the world in Texas
-Blue Bell ice cream (what they call ice cream is not ice cream)
Some things we didn't like about NYC:
-Smokers everywhere
-Sensory overload
-Graffiti
-Nasty dirty
-Scaffoldings seemed to be on the outside of every building we wanted to see
-NYC people, in general are not nice
*No need to wipe your eyes or check your glasses. You read that right. I was overwhelmed and intimidated.
**Yes. A cupcake was on my list. We had come across one at Grand Central Station, but I think we had already reached our sugar high for that day and I just couldn't.
***Yes. We carry cash. But who carries a vacation's worth of cash in their pocket? Thankfully we had it covered.
****This is where I totally ruined my new NY jacket. The red color ran onto the white and I haven't been able to get it out yet.
Monday, June 24, 2013
NYC 2013-Day Four
I think our pattern on this vacation is that every other day will be great. At least start off great. We started off early to catch an 8:30 double decker tour bus. Yes. We were one of THOSE tourist people. There is too much walking to be done in that city and what better way to see the city than on top of a double decker?
After we got to the bus terminal it was almost comical. The driver was arguing with the tour guide on the whole process of when payment takes place and who takes the payment. It was pretty unprofessional if you ask me. There was a time when I asked Hubby if we should just go get on another bus line. There are plenty of tour companies up there. It rained on us a little, but not enough to get the umbrellas out. Unbelievably, Child One fell asleep during the tour. Oh well. Hubby and I enjoyed it. I didn't worry about taking pictures during the bus tour. I just wanted to sit back and take in everything.
After a couple of hours on the tour bus we got off at Battery Park. We planned on going on a boat to see the Statue of Liberty*. If you could have seen the way the pier was bobbing up and down in the water, you would have run the other way like I did in my head. Small boat on a big body of water = me throwing up off the side of the boat.
We decided to walk to the Staten Island Ferry since that goes by the statue and best of all, it's free. And a big boat with a flat bottom means no rocking. And the bigger the boat the smaller the body of water. We rode the ferry to Staten Island then back to Manhattan. Then hopped back on the bus to see the rest of the tour of the city. The second part wasn't as good as the first. We didn't have the same tour guide as before. I don't think we had ANY tour guide on the second part. But at least we weren't having to walk.
We got off the bus at Central Park. Hubby wanted to rent some bikes and go through the park. I was torn on this. I wanted to take a horse drawn carriage. But the carriages only take you through a small part of it. So two tandem bikes it was. Good gosh, those things are harder than people think. First Child Two got on with me and Child One was with Hubby. The weather had warmed up quite a bit, so we were shedding our jackets.
Going uphill on a tandem is not fun. Especially with a kid who can't reach the pedals. Hubby had to wait to the side for me a couple of times, so we ended up switching partners. By the time the third hill came up, I'm sure Hubby just thought I was whining about the bike ride, but I swear, my bike chain was slipping. And I had Child One as a witness. So Hubby finally checked it and sure enough it was coming off, which is NOT conducive to a bike ride!
Did I mention that before he checked the bike chain, he said that I was out of shape and that I needed to get to the gym? Oh. No. He. Didn't. Yes. He went there. It was on. There were so many four letter words going through my brain, but I kept my mouth shut. I think my anger kept the tears from streaming. Did I mention that we were going uphill? With a bike chain that kept slipping.
Then comes a time when Child Two has to go to the bathroom**. We pulled over at a part of the park where she could discreetly go to the bathroom. Right there in nature. I was thankful I had some napkins with me from earlier in the day.
Apparently I have no clue how to get off a tandem bike. Due to the warm weather I have glistened quite a bit and my jeans are a little clingier than normal. I go to swing my leg over the bike to get off. Then I lose my balance and thank goodness for the hard ground that broke my fall. And my hip. Ever fallen on your hip? If only we had been on a horse drawn carriage....
Obviously, I don't hold my ego in that high of a regard or I wouldn't be sharing some of these things. On we go. Child Two has done her business and we bike and bike. We make it to the lake inside the park. Time for another break.
We finally decided it was time to drop the bikes off, back to their rightful shopkeeper***. I thought Hubby had stopped to wait for me to catch up to him. Nope. He stopped because we were at the street we needed to exit the park. Did he let me know? Nope. Child Two and I kept on biking. My cell phone was buried in the basket under everybody's crap. I kept biking for TWELVE more blocks before stopping to realize Hubby was nowhere to be found.
YEAH! I get to walk the bike back TWELVE blocks to meet up Hubby at the right corner where the bike shop is.
Once we get rid of the bikes we try and find a place for dinner. We stopped at the Brooklyn Diner****. It had wonderful food but no "diner" prices. Child Two got a "15 bite hot dog". It was as long as she was wide. It was one of those places that actually had mouthwash in the restroom. I thought it was soap when I was washing my hands. At least my hands were minty fresh. We enjoyed watching the rain as we ate dinner and thankfully it stopped when we were finishing up.
After dinner it was time to head back to Brooklyn to the hotel. Off we go...
*The Statue of Liberty is closed until 4th of July, due to repairs. Not sure if it's just general maintenance or because of Superstorm Sandy.
**God bless this child on this trip. Whenever she had to go to the bathroom there wasn't one around. Or if there was, they wouldn't let her use it.
***Praise God.
****If I ever see a tandem bike again, it will be too soon!
After we got to the bus terminal it was almost comical. The driver was arguing with the tour guide on the whole process of when payment takes place and who takes the payment. It was pretty unprofessional if you ask me. There was a time when I asked Hubby if we should just go get on another bus line. There are plenty of tour companies up there. It rained on us a little, but not enough to get the umbrellas out. Unbelievably, Child One fell asleep during the tour. Oh well. Hubby and I enjoyed it. I didn't worry about taking pictures during the bus tour. I just wanted to sit back and take in everything.
After a couple of hours on the tour bus we got off at Battery Park. We planned on going on a boat to see the Statue of Liberty*. If you could have seen the way the pier was bobbing up and down in the water, you would have run the other way like I did in my head. Small boat on a big body of water = me throwing up off the side of the boat.
We decided to walk to the Staten Island Ferry since that goes by the statue and best of all, it's free. And a big boat with a flat bottom means no rocking. And the bigger the boat the smaller the body of water. We rode the ferry to Staten Island then back to Manhattan. Then hopped back on the bus to see the rest of the tour of the city. The second part wasn't as good as the first. We didn't have the same tour guide as before. I don't think we had ANY tour guide on the second part. But at least we weren't having to walk.
We got off the bus at Central Park. Hubby wanted to rent some bikes and go through the park. I was torn on this. I wanted to take a horse drawn carriage. But the carriages only take you through a small part of it. So two tandem bikes it was. Good gosh, those things are harder than people think. First Child Two got on with me and Child One was with Hubby. The weather had warmed up quite a bit, so we were shedding our jackets.
Going uphill on a tandem is not fun. Especially with a kid who can't reach the pedals. Hubby had to wait to the side for me a couple of times, so we ended up switching partners. By the time the third hill came up, I'm sure Hubby just thought I was whining about the bike ride, but I swear, my bike chain was slipping. And I had Child One as a witness. So Hubby finally checked it and sure enough it was coming off, which is NOT conducive to a bike ride!
Did I mention that before he checked the bike chain, he said that I was out of shape and that I needed to get to the gym? Oh. No. He. Didn't. Yes. He went there. It was on. There were so many four letter words going through my brain, but I kept my mouth shut. I think my anger kept the tears from streaming. Did I mention that we were going uphill? With a bike chain that kept slipping.
Then comes a time when Child Two has to go to the bathroom**. We pulled over at a part of the park where she could discreetly go to the bathroom. Right there in nature. I was thankful I had some napkins with me from earlier in the day.
Apparently I have no clue how to get off a tandem bike. Due to the warm weather I have glistened quite a bit and my jeans are a little clingier than normal. I go to swing my leg over the bike to get off. Then I lose my balance and thank goodness for the hard ground that broke my fall. And my hip. Ever fallen on your hip? If only we had been on a horse drawn carriage....
 |
| Views from the lake inside Central Park |
Obviously, I don't hold my ego in that high of a regard or I wouldn't be sharing some of these things. On we go. Child Two has done her business and we bike and bike. We make it to the lake inside the park. Time for another break.
We finally decided it was time to drop the bikes off, back to their rightful shopkeeper***. I thought Hubby had stopped to wait for me to catch up to him. Nope. He stopped because we were at the street we needed to exit the park. Did he let me know? Nope. Child Two and I kept on biking. My cell phone was buried in the basket under everybody's crap. I kept biking for TWELVE more blocks before stopping to realize Hubby was nowhere to be found.
YEAH! I get to walk the bike back TWELVE blocks to meet up Hubby at the right corner where the bike shop is.
Once we get rid of the bikes we try and find a place for dinner. We stopped at the Brooklyn Diner****. It had wonderful food but no "diner" prices. Child Two got a "15 bite hot dog". It was as long as she was wide. It was one of those places that actually had mouthwash in the restroom. I thought it was soap when I was washing my hands. At least my hands were minty fresh. We enjoyed watching the rain as we ate dinner and thankfully it stopped when we were finishing up.
After dinner it was time to head back to Brooklyn to the hotel. Off we go...
*The Statue of Liberty is closed until 4th of July, due to repairs. Not sure if it's just general maintenance or because of Superstorm Sandy.
**God bless this child on this trip. Whenever she had to go to the bathroom there wasn't one around. Or if there was, they wouldn't let her use it.
***Praise God.
****If I ever see a tandem bike again, it will be too soon!
Saturday, June 22, 2013
NYC 2013-Day Three
I think Hubby won the lottery today as far as woman/girls on the oh so crazy train of hormones. The estrogen card carrying members of the family were not to be reckoned with.
It was pretty much a late starting day. There was no rush out the door for anything. I think that was part of the reason I could have been in a mood.
We were headed to the World Trade Center Memorial. We left early enough to see what else was in the general vicinity.
For a long time it felt like we were walking in circles. It seemed that google maps was playing a cruel joke on us, and people we would ask we couldn't understand.
Security to get to the memorial was serious. They don't play games. Once we went through the maze of fencing, people with serious armory and bullet proof vests, there it was. It was humbling. It took us back to where we were the moment it happened. I happened to be holding a six week old baby and watching it happen on my favorite twenty four hour news channel. The world saw the face of evil that day. I'm not sure it will be one of those days I'll soon forget.
The weather was rainy and cold. It never fails that I told the girls three times to pack a light jacket. Did they? Nope. We tried to find a jacket for the girls at Century 21. I hated that store. Six floors of cramped and crowded stuff. The trick to go from the street level to the other floors was a sad, sad joke. Believe it or not, I don't deal well with New York department stores. So we ended up going into one of those places that has NY souvenir stuff. We found everyone a really cute jacket*.
We visited St. Paul's Chapel. There is still memorabilia from 9/11 everywhere. All at once you feel sadness, yet hope. In the face of tragedy people brought forth compassion, comfort and a message of love. We had taken two umbrellas from our hotel because of the rain**. Once we were done in St. Paul's Chapel we came out to see that our umbrellas that we had left on the front porch were gone. I guess they needed them more than we did. It had stopped raining once we left.
We had made our wall to Wall Street. The buildings alone are amazing.
Nevermind the snipers on the roof. You don't mess with them, they won't
mess with you!
We found our way to Central Park. In the middle of a concrete jungle, how could anyone get tired of this?
This was just a quick dip into Central Park. There's more to come later. We left the park to try and make it to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Fifteen blocks away. By foot. We finally got there. At closing time.
Earlier in the week we walked to the Museum of Modern Art. But that's not our thing.
I think today was the day that we realized we would need a lot longer than a week to see everything we wanted on our list. And we should have stayed in the city. I've mentioned that. Everything you will want to see is in the city. Just stay there.
I don't think I've walked so much in my life. I thought surely I would lose some weight on this vacay with all the walking we're doing. Nope. But at least I didn't gain any!
*Only to find out that mine wasn't color fast and the red ran on the white and just ruined it the first time I washed it. Of course I noticed the "Made in Pakistan" tag long after we bought them. Now I'm just hoping and praying we didn't contribute to helping fund terrorism.
**We didn't steal them. There was an umbrella stand by the door with several in them. =)
It was pretty much a late starting day. There was no rush out the door for anything. I think that was part of the reason I could have been in a mood.
We were headed to the World Trade Center Memorial. We left early enough to see what else was in the general vicinity.
For a long time it felt like we were walking in circles. It seemed that google maps was playing a cruel joke on us, and people we would ask we couldn't understand.
Security to get to the memorial was serious. They don't play games. Once we went through the maze of fencing, people with serious armory and bullet proof vests, there it was. It was humbling. It took us back to where we were the moment it happened. I happened to be holding a six week old baby and watching it happen on my favorite twenty four hour news channel. The world saw the face of evil that day. I'm not sure it will be one of those days I'll soon forget.
 |
| North Tower Reflecting Pool |
The weather was rainy and cold. It never fails that I told the girls three times to pack a light jacket. Did they? Nope. We tried to find a jacket for the girls at Century 21. I hated that store. Six floors of cramped and crowded stuff. The trick to go from the street level to the other floors was a sad, sad joke. Believe it or not, I don't deal well with New York department stores. So we ended up going into one of those places that has NY souvenir stuff. We found everyone a really cute jacket*.
We visited St. Paul's Chapel. There is still memorabilia from 9/11 everywhere. All at once you feel sadness, yet hope. In the face of tragedy people brought forth compassion, comfort and a message of love. We had taken two umbrellas from our hotel because of the rain**. Once we were done in St. Paul's Chapel we came out to see that our umbrellas that we had left on the front porch were gone. I guess they needed them more than we did. It had stopped raining once we left.
 |
| The cemetery right outside the chapel. |
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| Flag of Honor with the names of the victims of 9/11. |
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| NYSE |
This was just a quick dip into Central Park. There's more to come later. We left the park to try and make it to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Fifteen blocks away. By foot. We finally got there. At closing time.
Earlier in the week we walked to the Museum of Modern Art. But that's not our thing.
I think today was the day that we realized we would need a lot longer than a week to see everything we wanted on our list. And we should have stayed in the city. I've mentioned that. Everything you will want to see is in the city. Just stay there.
I don't think I've walked so much in my life. I thought surely I would lose some weight on this vacay with all the walking we're doing. Nope. But at least I didn't gain any!
*Only to find out that mine wasn't color fast and the red ran on the white and just ruined it the first time I washed it. Of course I noticed the "Made in Pakistan" tag long after we bought them. Now I'm just hoping and praying we didn't contribute to helping fund terrorism.
**We didn't steal them. There was an umbrella stand by the door with several in them. =)
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
NYC 2013-Day Two
It's amazing the benefits of a great night sleep. Hubby and I usually hate planning trips for the sole reason of crappy beds. Our hotel room actually had a firm bed. Hallelujah!!
We started off with breakfast in our room. With the groceries we had gotten on Day One, we were good to go.
The only thing on the schedule was Wicked at 2pm*. We set out to see everything in the general vicinity of The Gershwyn Theater.
Hubby navigated the subway like he had been there a hundred times. We came across a Five Guys burger joint and decided to stop for lunch.
We then came across one of the sweetest place on earth. We found the Hershey store in Times Square. The smell was so sweet as if chocolate was oozing from the walls. Of course we filled a bucket with our favorites.
Next we saw the M&M/Mars store and saw M&Ms in every color imaginable.
Finally 2pm was calling and the curtain came up. To everyone's excitement, it fulfilled every expectation we had. We were close enough to see every expression on the actor's faces.
After Wicked we were able to see Radio City Music Hall, FAO Schwartz and the NYC Apple store**. We came across St. Thomas Episcopal Church, and we were blown away. How could anyone not walk in and not feel reverence for the one, true God? We reached the south end of Central Park before deciding it was time to grab dinner and catch the train back to the hotel. And nothing says dinner like McDonalds***.
I'm not sure I've ever walked so much in my life. But it sure beat Day One.
*Just thinking about it still, I hear the soundtrack in my head.
**Look who I'm married to. Of course the Apple store. Good grief. There were MILLIONS of people in it.
***I was shocked at how much it cost the four of us to eat in NYC.
We started off with breakfast in our room. With the groceries we had gotten on Day One, we were good to go.
The only thing on the schedule was Wicked at 2pm*. We set out to see everything in the general vicinity of The Gershwyn Theater.
Hubby navigated the subway like he had been there a hundred times. We came across a Five Guys burger joint and decided to stop for lunch.
We then came across one of the sweetest place on earth. We found the Hershey store in Times Square. The smell was so sweet as if chocolate was oozing from the walls. Of course we filled a bucket with our favorites.
Next we saw the M&M/Mars store and saw M&Ms in every color imaginable.
Finally 2pm was calling and the curtain came up. To everyone's excitement, it fulfilled every expectation we had. We were close enough to see every expression on the actor's faces.
 |
Lauren petting one of NYPD's finest |
 |
| At the altar of St. Thomas Episcopal Church |
I'm not sure I've ever walked so much in my life. But it sure beat Day One.
*Just thinking about it still, I hear the soundtrack in my head.
**Look who I'm married to. Of course the Apple store. Good grief. There were MILLIONS of people in it.
***I was shocked at how much it cost the four of us to eat in NYC.
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
NYC 2013- Day One
It's been a while since my gang and I have planned a vacation. It's a love/hate relationship with vacations. I want to see the great things this world has to offer, but I don't want to leave home*. I may be the only one who feels that way.
One of the places I have always wanted to see is New York City. It's the polar opposite of where I live. I'm going to write a day by day account of our trip, so it's not one of THOSE extremely long posts.
DAY ONE aka 6/11/13:
Our day got started at the butt crack of dawn. The alarm was set for 3am and it didn't disappoint. We were able to infuse caffeine and we got our day started. There was a 6:30am flight to be caught and we didn't disappoint. The kids did awesome! I just let them sleep in the clothes that they wanted to wear the first day of our trip. And we got them up and headed out the door with breakfast in hand.
Our first stop landed in St. Louis. The flight was pretty uneventful. We quickly made our dash to the next gate to fly into Newark. As in Jersey.
On our second flight I was lucky enough to meet the flight attendant from h*ll. She griped at me after assuming that my phone was on. Have you ever had your phone in your hand and the screen lights up? That's what mine did. I'm sure if we had met under different circumstances we might have liked each other. But I'll never know. And I won't spend too much time dwelling on it.
But the fun was just beginning. After we got our luggage we learned all about how to get a cab. Someone told us to look for the yellow cabs. But where we came out of the airport, there were none to be found. We took what was there. Huge mistake. It didn't take long for Hubby to figure out we were getting fleeced. On the cabby's direction thing, he didn't choose the first and shortest route. He chose #3. Awesome. There seemed to be some hangup on the highway and we hit a miles long backup. The cabby chose to put his car in park every time we came to a pseudo-stop. That was just odd. And circles. That was another thing that was odd. And infuriating. Even in another state where I've never been things that we would pass were becoming familiar. Yeah.
We finally got to our hotel around 3:00. We hadn't eaten lunch yet either. Awesome. We couldn't decide what to do. Crash. Eat. Eat. Crash. After a lot of hemming and hawing we decided to find our way to Grimaldi's for a very late lunch or early dinner. After Hubby (off of his phone) showed the next cabby how to get there we finally went in.
Grimaldi's was highly recommended by people that we know. We were looking forward to it. It was over-hyped if you ask me. The pizza was good, but the customer service sucked. We waited for 10 minutes for someone to take our drink order. Hubby got tired of waiting and went to ask somebody if they could take our order. The kicker was that it wasn't even that busy inside.
After dinner we went to walk around the hood. That was the redeeming part of the day. We were in the section of town referred to as "Dumbo"**. It looks to be like an up and coming type of neighborhood. We walked along the East River. We were able to see the Statue of Liberty from a distance.
I stomached the East River Ferry to get back to the hotel. We walked past a grocery store to grab some items for our room and headed about 7 blocks to crash for the night.
Lessons learned from the day:
1. Tell the cabby to take the shortest, most direct route.
2. Stay in Manhattan. Everything you do is in Manhattan, so just fork out the money for a hotel in Manhattan.
*That and hotel beds just suck. They really do. I can't stand mushy beds. I am by some standards, old. And my body needs support. Surprisingly our hotel had a great bed.
**I once saw an episode of Selling New York that featured selling the penthouse apartment of the Dumbo building. Everything about it was exquisite! The views were amazeballs as well.
One of the places I have always wanted to see is New York City. It's the polar opposite of where I live. I'm going to write a day by day account of our trip, so it's not one of THOSE extremely long posts.
DAY ONE aka 6/11/13:
Our day got started at the butt crack of dawn. The alarm was set for 3am and it didn't disappoint. We were able to infuse caffeine and we got our day started. There was a 6:30am flight to be caught and we didn't disappoint. The kids did awesome! I just let them sleep in the clothes that they wanted to wear the first day of our trip. And we got them up and headed out the door with breakfast in hand.
Our first stop landed in St. Louis. The flight was pretty uneventful. We quickly made our dash to the next gate to fly into Newark. As in Jersey.
On our second flight I was lucky enough to meet the flight attendant from h*ll. She griped at me after assuming that my phone was on. Have you ever had your phone in your hand and the screen lights up? That's what mine did. I'm sure if we had met under different circumstances we might have liked each other. But I'll never know. And I won't spend too much time dwelling on it.
But the fun was just beginning. After we got our luggage we learned all about how to get a cab. Someone told us to look for the yellow cabs. But where we came out of the airport, there were none to be found. We took what was there. Huge mistake. It didn't take long for Hubby to figure out we were getting fleeced. On the cabby's direction thing, he didn't choose the first and shortest route. He chose #3. Awesome. There seemed to be some hangup on the highway and we hit a miles long backup. The cabby chose to put his car in park every time we came to a pseudo-stop. That was just odd. And circles. That was another thing that was odd. And infuriating. Even in another state where I've never been things that we would pass were becoming familiar. Yeah.
We finally got to our hotel around 3:00. We hadn't eaten lunch yet either. Awesome. We couldn't decide what to do. Crash. Eat. Eat. Crash. After a lot of hemming and hawing we decided to find our way to Grimaldi's for a very late lunch or early dinner. After Hubby (off of his phone) showed the next cabby how to get there we finally went in.
 |
| Our hotel room was like a small apartment. The bathroom is right behind the kitchen. It's furnished completely by IKEA. I looked at the tags. |
 |
| The master bed is behind that half wall. It has skylights right above the bed. The skylights were great at night. Not so much in the morning. The kids slept on a pull out sofa. |
 |
| The windows by the bed were not real windows. That was just an odd part of the hotel room. |
Grimaldi's was highly recommended by people that we know. We were looking forward to it. It was over-hyped if you ask me. The pizza was good, but the customer service sucked. We waited for 10 minutes for someone to take our drink order. Hubby got tired of waiting and went to ask somebody if they could take our order. The kicker was that it wasn't even that busy inside.
After dinner we went to walk around the hood. That was the redeeming part of the day. We were in the section of town referred to as "Dumbo"**. It looks to be like an up and coming type of neighborhood. We walked along the East River. We were able to see the Statue of Liberty from a distance.
I stomached the East River Ferry to get back to the hotel. We walked past a grocery store to grab some items for our room and headed about 7 blocks to crash for the night.
Lessons learned from the day:
1. Tell the cabby to take the shortest, most direct route.
2. Stay in Manhattan. Everything you do is in Manhattan, so just fork out the money for a hotel in Manhattan.
*That and hotel beds just suck. They really do. I can't stand mushy beds. I am by some standards, old. And my body needs support. Surprisingly our hotel had a great bed.
**I once saw an episode of Selling New York that featured selling the penthouse apartment of the Dumbo building. Everything about it was exquisite! The views were amazeballs as well.
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
Day-in/Day-out
Walking with God in the day-in/day-out course of life swells your assurance that God is faithful and inconceivably enjoyable even when a request goes unmet. Recognizing all the other works God is doing in your life will prevent discouragement as you await your answer.
-Beth Moore, Jesus The One And Only
-Beth Moore, Jesus The One And Only
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
A Great (Short) Read
I have to admit that when the name Peter Farrelly is mentioned, I can only admit to seeing a couple of his films. As a writer/producer/director his films don't quite fit into the comedy basket that I like when I want to pull out a film and just laugh.
When I read this on the Huffington Post recently I was in awe. I had to share it right away with Hubby. Is the article groundbreaking? Certainly not. I'm sure it's been written about countless times This one just happened to catch my attention.
Hubby needs to unplug. I need to unplug. Kids need to unplug. Do you? What would happen if you actually got on the dirt road a little more often? Work will still be there in the morning.
When I read this on the Huffington Post recently I was in awe. I had to share it right away with Hubby. Is the article groundbreaking? Certainly not. I'm sure it's been written about countless times This one just happened to catch my attention.
Hubby needs to unplug. I need to unplug. Kids need to unplug. Do you? What would happen if you actually got on the dirt road a little more often? Work will still be there in the morning.
The Addiction
Posted: 01/14/2013 8:27 am
I don't have a cellphone. Never
have. I'm not bragging. Fact is, I realize that to most people this makes me
Dooshy McDouche.
'What the hell is wrong with you,'
they say, 'what if your wife or kids need you?' 'Well, I do have an office
phone and built-in car phone, I just don't have a cellphone -- you know,
something I carry in my pocket.' 'But what if you're not at work or in your car
and your wife wants you to pick up milk?' 'Well, milk's not really that good
for you anyway.' 'And what if it's an actual emergency, what then?' 'If it's an
emergency then my wife can call whoever I'm with and they'll hand me their
phone.' 'But what if she doesn't know who you're with, or you're not with
anyone?' 'Then she'll do what wives have done for thousands of years and she'll
just have to wait until I get home.'
Half of them turn on me right there.
'Yeah,' they go, 'but this isn't a
thousand years ago, Dooshy -- aren't you going to want to know where your kids
are the next time there's a flippin' (sic) terrorist attack?' 'Correcto,' I
state confidently, weighing whether to cave or wrack my brain for a response,
'but, um, in the 1950s and '60s weren't we constantly on the brink of atomic
war and didn't daddys get by without cellphones?' 'Okay, what if someone close
to you died and no one could reach you,' she says, slapping down her trump card,
'how would you feel then?' 'Well, how would it hurt to get a few extra minutes
of happiness before getting the bad news?'
Look, if I just found out about 9/11
today, I'd be on my back counting my breaths. But I guarantee I would've had a
better last decade than you. While everyone was on pins and needles waiting for
the next blow, I was a care-free idiot.
Remember when cops used to throw
drunks out of bars and then help them to their cars? They'd plop us in the
driver's seat, start it up, and point me in the general direction of home.
Well, that's where you guys are right now. You're completely out of control
with the cellphones and nobody's taking the problem seriously. The worst drug
addicts on that God-forsaken street in Vancouver have a vague recollection of
sobriety. Not you. You all look at me like I'm the nutcase. People say, 'Wow,
must be weird not having a cellphone,' and I tell them, 'Well, not really. It's
just like how it was for you before you had a cellphone.' 'But how do you
text?' 'I don't,' I say, and I get that empty look which reminds me how alone I
am.
And let's admit something else --
they're not really cellphones anymore. Calling an iPhone a phone is like
calling a jumbo jet an oven. Yeah, there's a phone in there somewhere but
that's really a computer your kids are staring at when you're cruising past the
Grand Canyon in your Odyssey. Doesn't that make you a little mad? What happened
to driving in a car and just looking out the window? Your kids are giving up
the entire physical world for this narcissistic/sychophantic/addictive need to
follow someone or see who's following them.
I'm not a complete technophobe. I do
email and got lasik surgery and I like those new, vaporizer one-hitters that
you can use in restaurants, and I've even done a few tweets from my computer
this year. And, like I said, I have phones at home and at work and even built
in to my car, but you know when I don't have one? When I'm walking down a
country road or on a beach or at a football game.
I know the arguments -- I'm just an
old man, horse and carriage, etc. Until recently my kids were embarrassed by my
refusal to come on board. My little daughter would say, 'You're stupid! Why
won't you get a cellphone, everyone else's dad has a cellphone!'
And I'd say, 'Well, because if I had
a cellphone, honey, I'd be on the phone right now instead of sitting here with
you, deciding whether I want to fight your mother for custody.'
Actually, my daughter doesn't talk
like that and I'm not getting a divorce, I don't think, but for a long time my
kids were upset that I didn't have a phone. My wife, too. She keeps suggesting
that I get one and just keep it turned it off. But everyone would know it's
still with me. Isn't there an implicit understanding when you have a phone that
you're going to check in periodically with the other phone-carrying people?
I admit, there would be some
advantages to having a cellphone -- like being able to hound my kids any second
of the day no matter where I was. But I also know myself and I'm weak. If
there's a chocolate cake in my house, I eat it, and if I had a cellphone I'd be
on it all the time. I'd be checking scores and injury reports and emails and
stocks and I'd be Tweeting and Vextstering and Instagraming and, even when I
wasn't on my phone, the anticipation of incoming information would be
cluttering my brain and distracting me and keeping me from ever just sitting in
a room with my kids and talking, like I do now.
I get this a lot: 'You're lucky. The
rest of us have to have phones, we don't have a choice. We need it for our
jobs.'
Which is another thing -- why are
workers suddenly expected to have their cellphones on them pretty much all the
time? And why is no one questioning that? Your lunch break isn't really a break
if you're electronically tethered to your boss. Even if he doesn't call, he's
there. And when you go home or out with friends, you're not really away if
you're at the mercy of someone's fingertips. Remember the old
reach-out-and-touch-someone phone ads? Now you're being molested!
So today, right in this newspaper or
whatever you call it, I'm starting a movement. What I'm proposing is simple:
Every human being should have the right to unplug. There should be laws,
amendments, legislation. When you leave your place of business, you should be
done. Seven o'clock should mean seven o'clock and a phone call from your boss
after that should count as a pinch in the ass -- that would make them think
twice. And when you're on the golf course or at the movies and your wife or
husband call about nothing, that should be viewed as some form of verbal abuse
that would be admissible in court later.
One night this week when you go out,
try leaving your cellphone home. Pull off the information super-highway and
come back to the dirt roads for a while. It'll be hard at first, like quitting
drinking for the month of February, but after a while it'll get easier and
quieter and you'll find a clarity that you've probably forgotten about. I don't
know, maybe this movement already exists. I don't have a cellphone so I'm not
up on a lot of things.
Mommy Growing Pains
Warning. This may get heavy. So, if you're not in the mood for heavy move along.
As a mother of girls, I'm struggling. I struggle at times to feel like I'm making a connection. And that's critical. I am well aware that a connection needs to be made. Does it have to be at all times? Is that asking too much?
Believe it or not, even though I may seem as old as dirt, I remember how it was growing up girl. Awkward at times and not necessarily what we all think childhood/growing up should be. Is it ever? That's why I have tried to do things a little different than when I grew up. Have I done things differently everyday? Definitely not. Sometimes I do feel like I am creating the situation that I grew up in. And I have to fight it. But when frustration kicks in, it makes me crazy.
How can I make my kids understand I only want what's best for them? Is there a way? I am the adult and I have to act like one. But it's so easy to treat them the way they treat me. But I can't.
For whatever reason showers were not had last night before bed. So, the kids had to take showers before school this morning. It's snowing this morning so I told the girls their hair must be dry before leaving the house. Was it? Nope. And one of them looked like they had a rats nest growing in the back. And this was acceptable to them. I'm sorry, it wasn't acceptable for me.
I couldn't let her leave the house the way she looked. Is it that I care too much about looks? Honey, my hair usually isn't brushed and I'm in my pajama pants and sweatshirt when I left to drive them to the bus stop/school. I don't have time to care about my looks before 7:45am. Does that make it a double standard? That early in the morning and this time of year, it's dark outside. Nobody sees me. But when I do get ready to go somewhere, I'm ready.
When I made one of them come with me to my bathroom to dry and fix her hair you would have thought I killed the dog*. I was trying to show her (in a very calm voice, mind you) that if she brushes her hair back away from her face while drying it she will be able to train her hair to naturally fall away while growing out her bangs**.
With my other child, I can't get her to tell the truth at times and that scares me. During dinner one night I could tell she was on the brink of having a cryfest***. She said she was fine. So later when I heard her crying upstairs I went to check on her. She came up with some reason as to why she was crying. But you know those times when the alarm is sounding and it doesn't quite ring truth? This was one of those moments. Turns out that around 9:30pm rolls around (she's supposed to be asleep at this point) and she's still awake. I think it's because the truth hasn't come out yet and she's trying to come up with a way to get it out. But not quite. She said she was too hot upstairs. I'm not sure how much cooler we could go upstairs without the girls freezing so I just pretended to turn down the heat. But when I got to the reason of why she was so upset, we took care of the problem and she fell right to sleep.
Within these walls is a safe place for them. I'm not sure how to get my kids to understand that.
We are at the brink of the teenage years for my oldest. At the end of the day, I'm still Mom. I will try and correct their path and guide them. I will not let them run over me and control every situation.
Girls, you may not believe it, but I'm on your side. I truly am. You are smart. You are sweet. And you are wonderful young ladies in training. I couldn't imagine my life without you and I only want what's best for you. You make me proud. With you, it feels like I have done something right in this world. You bring such joy. And I love you very much.
God, figuratively I'm scratching my head so much I'm afraid I might scratch a bald spot in the back of my head. I need patience and wisdom. I need strength to get me through the difficult times. I pray that the girls get what they need from me as a parent and don't hate me for it later. There needs to be a balance that can only be achieved by focusing on Your grace and mercy. At the end of my journey I want my kids to look at me and say, "Thank you for everything. Thank you for loving us and being a great mom to us." But now I'm so unsure of asking for a thank you. Is it motive? Is it wrong to have a motive of your kids wanting to say "Thank you"? God, only You can handle this. Please handle this.
*Which after eating two more socks and regurgitating them on my dining room rug yesterday, I'm very tempted. If Golden Retrievers are so smart, I'm ready for him to catch on that eating socks is BAD.
**Growing out bangs, what a royal pain in the arse!
***Don't we all find ourselves on the brink of one every now and then? Sometimes it does the mind good just to get it out.
As a mother of girls, I'm struggling. I struggle at times to feel like I'm making a connection. And that's critical. I am well aware that a connection needs to be made. Does it have to be at all times? Is that asking too much?
Believe it or not, even though I may seem as old as dirt, I remember how it was growing up girl. Awkward at times and not necessarily what we all think childhood/growing up should be. Is it ever? That's why I have tried to do things a little different than when I grew up. Have I done things differently everyday? Definitely not. Sometimes I do feel like I am creating the situation that I grew up in. And I have to fight it. But when frustration kicks in, it makes me crazy.
How can I make my kids understand I only want what's best for them? Is there a way? I am the adult and I have to act like one. But it's so easy to treat them the way they treat me. But I can't.
For whatever reason showers were not had last night before bed. So, the kids had to take showers before school this morning. It's snowing this morning so I told the girls their hair must be dry before leaving the house. Was it? Nope. And one of them looked like they had a rats nest growing in the back. And this was acceptable to them. I'm sorry, it wasn't acceptable for me.
I couldn't let her leave the house the way she looked. Is it that I care too much about looks? Honey, my hair usually isn't brushed and I'm in my pajama pants and sweatshirt when I left to drive them to the bus stop/school. I don't have time to care about my looks before 7:45am. Does that make it a double standard? That early in the morning and this time of year, it's dark outside. Nobody sees me. But when I do get ready to go somewhere, I'm ready.
When I made one of them come with me to my bathroom to dry and fix her hair you would have thought I killed the dog*. I was trying to show her (in a very calm voice, mind you) that if she brushes her hair back away from her face while drying it she will be able to train her hair to naturally fall away while growing out her bangs**.
With my other child, I can't get her to tell the truth at times and that scares me. During dinner one night I could tell she was on the brink of having a cryfest***. She said she was fine. So later when I heard her crying upstairs I went to check on her. She came up with some reason as to why she was crying. But you know those times when the alarm is sounding and it doesn't quite ring truth? This was one of those moments. Turns out that around 9:30pm rolls around (she's supposed to be asleep at this point) and she's still awake. I think it's because the truth hasn't come out yet and she's trying to come up with a way to get it out. But not quite. She said she was too hot upstairs. I'm not sure how much cooler we could go upstairs without the girls freezing so I just pretended to turn down the heat. But when I got to the reason of why she was so upset, we took care of the problem and she fell right to sleep.
Within these walls is a safe place for them. I'm not sure how to get my kids to understand that.
We are at the brink of the teenage years for my oldest. At the end of the day, I'm still Mom. I will try and correct their path and guide them. I will not let them run over me and control every situation.
Girls, you may not believe it, but I'm on your side. I truly am. You are smart. You are sweet. And you are wonderful young ladies in training. I couldn't imagine my life without you and I only want what's best for you. You make me proud. With you, it feels like I have done something right in this world. You bring such joy. And I love you very much.
God, figuratively I'm scratching my head so much I'm afraid I might scratch a bald spot in the back of my head. I need patience and wisdom. I need strength to get me through the difficult times. I pray that the girls get what they need from me as a parent and don't hate me for it later. There needs to be a balance that can only be achieved by focusing on Your grace and mercy. At the end of my journey I want my kids to look at me and say, "Thank you for everything. Thank you for loving us and being a great mom to us." But now I'm so unsure of asking for a thank you. Is it motive? Is it wrong to have a motive of your kids wanting to say "Thank you"? God, only You can handle this. Please handle this.
*Which after eating two more socks and regurgitating them on my dining room rug yesterday, I'm very tempted. If Golden Retrievers are so smart, I'm ready for him to catch on that eating socks is BAD.
**Growing out bangs, what a royal pain in the arse!
***Don't we all find ourselves on the brink of one every now and then? Sometimes it does the mind good just to get it out.
Monday, December 31, 2012
Goodbye to 2012
What a whirlwind 2012 has been. And that silly Mayan calendar? Puh-leeze!
This year has had many ups. A few downs. Lots of in between.
Is there anything I would change?
I think I would have slowed my roll on hosting duties over the summer. It was great getting settled in our new house. But I guess there was this stupid self-imposed need to have people over just about every weekend. I'm not sure there was a weekend that went by that there wasn't someone at our house. We were getting to know new people in our neighborhood, while still maintaining previous relationships.
Looking back, there wasn't a weekend where we went to someone else's house for a get together. Is anyone obligated? No. But then I guess I'm not either. I'm not saying that that's the reason to have people over. Some would say I'm keeping score. So be it. Call it what you like. But if people don't reciprocate in any way, the friends who host them often may feel that the interest in friendship is not really mutual. Everyone wants to feel valued. At the time, I thought I enjoyed having people over. It was a lot of work but I fooled myself into thinking I enjoyed it. I've had my fill of kids who can't respect someone else's property to adults who can't pick up after themselves.
On a bright August day, right before school started, my youngest daughter fell from the backyard playset. I felt like a heel, because at the time I thought, "Oh she'll be fine". It took our landscape guy who was chopping down a tree for us to tell me, "I think you should take her to the ER." Am I a bad mother or what? One hot pink cast later and she's all better.
There was a time when my oldest daughter thought it would be a good idea to have the dog pull her on the scooter. That wasn't such a great plan. The dog changed course, the dog leash got stuck in the scooter wheel and then my daughter went flying face down on to the concrete. If I could go back, I would have told her that it could end in disaster. Can I protect my kids from everything? Nope. But that would have been a time I wish I could have!
We've had our share of physical mishaps this year. If I could wrap my kids in bubble wrap, I would.
A highlight for this year was one day during the summer, me and a friend took our kids out and distributed bottled water and snacks to people waiting at bus stops and some homeless people. The day also happened to be my friends birthday. In the middle of July. It was a wonderful way to spend the day.
In 2013 I will be more understanding when it comes to the hours my husband works. He works a lot to provide a roof over our heads and food on the table. He is good at what he does and I am proud of him. He has a lot of responsibilities and I am thankful that he has been entrusted with them.
I wonder if 2013 will find me employed?
In 2013 my kids will be more than jpegs.
In 2013 there will be no science fair project partners. And said project will be finished before the kids get out of school for Christmas break.
This Christmas season found three of the four of us with the flu. We didn't get to do very many activities that we like to do as a family since Hubby and kids were sick. I'm entertaining the idea that we get the flu vaccine next year. I did manage to watch A Christmas Story for the first time. Eh. I'm not sure why people are so hooked on it.
In 2013 I'll be a little less stressed about Christmas. And plan a lot better!
2013 may bring some distance between me and whatever I choose. I will give myself permission to say "No" a little more often. And I won't feel guilty about it. My heart needs a little more guarding. I am no longer anybody's verbal or emotional punching bag.
I see less "pinning" and more completed projects in 2013.
Yep. 2012 has been a whirlwind. It's been up and it's been down. I hope to take the time to notice more around me and not to hurry through this next year. I hope to listen more and talk less. I have to accept what I cannot change. The past is just that. The past. I can only move forward. I hope to extend the grace that has been shed for me. I hope to be the example that my daughters deserve. I want to assure them they are loved and that they can come to me for anything. That I continue to grow into the wife, Hubby deserves.
So raise a glass to what was and is to be. Here's to 2013.
This year has had many ups. A few downs. Lots of in between.
Is there anything I would change?
I think I would have slowed my roll on hosting duties over the summer. It was great getting settled in our new house. But I guess there was this stupid self-imposed need to have people over just about every weekend. I'm not sure there was a weekend that went by that there wasn't someone at our house. We were getting to know new people in our neighborhood, while still maintaining previous relationships.
Looking back, there wasn't a weekend where we went to someone else's house for a get together. Is anyone obligated? No. But then I guess I'm not either. I'm not saying that that's the reason to have people over. Some would say I'm keeping score. So be it. Call it what you like. But if people don't reciprocate in any way, the friends who host them often may feel that the interest in friendship is not really mutual. Everyone wants to feel valued. At the time, I thought I enjoyed having people over. It was a lot of work but I fooled myself into thinking I enjoyed it. I've had my fill of kids who can't respect someone else's property to adults who can't pick up after themselves.
On a bright August day, right before school started, my youngest daughter fell from the backyard playset. I felt like a heel, because at the time I thought, "Oh she'll be fine". It took our landscape guy who was chopping down a tree for us to tell me, "I think you should take her to the ER." Am I a bad mother or what? One hot pink cast later and she's all better.
There was a time when my oldest daughter thought it would be a good idea to have the dog pull her on the scooter. That wasn't such a great plan. The dog changed course, the dog leash got stuck in the scooter wheel and then my daughter went flying face down on to the concrete. If I could go back, I would have told her that it could end in disaster. Can I protect my kids from everything? Nope. But that would have been a time I wish I could have!
We've had our share of physical mishaps this year. If I could wrap my kids in bubble wrap, I would.
A highlight for this year was one day during the summer, me and a friend took our kids out and distributed bottled water and snacks to people waiting at bus stops and some homeless people. The day also happened to be my friends birthday. In the middle of July. It was a wonderful way to spend the day.
In 2013 I will be more understanding when it comes to the hours my husband works. He works a lot to provide a roof over our heads and food on the table. He is good at what he does and I am proud of him. He has a lot of responsibilities and I am thankful that he has been entrusted with them.
I wonder if 2013 will find me employed?
In 2013 my kids will be more than jpegs.
In 2013 there will be no science fair project partners. And said project will be finished before the kids get out of school for Christmas break.
This Christmas season found three of the four of us with the flu. We didn't get to do very many activities that we like to do as a family since Hubby and kids were sick. I'm entertaining the idea that we get the flu vaccine next year. I did manage to watch A Christmas Story for the first time. Eh. I'm not sure why people are so hooked on it.
In 2013 I'll be a little less stressed about Christmas. And plan a lot better!
2013 may bring some distance between me and whatever I choose. I will give myself permission to say "No" a little more often. And I won't feel guilty about it. My heart needs a little more guarding. I am no longer anybody's verbal or emotional punching bag.
I see less "pinning" and more completed projects in 2013.
Yep. 2012 has been a whirlwind. It's been up and it's been down. I hope to take the time to notice more around me and not to hurry through this next year. I hope to listen more and talk less. I have to accept what I cannot change. The past is just that. The past. I can only move forward. I hope to extend the grace that has been shed for me. I hope to be the example that my daughters deserve. I want to assure them they are loved and that they can come to me for anything. That I continue to grow into the wife, Hubby deserves.
So raise a glass to what was and is to be. Here's to 2013.
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