Bear Hugs & Piggy Kisses - Baby's 1st Trip ~ Updated 12/6: Aulani TR Started!!!

[Dugette]

Hey, everyone! It's our last night and I was hoping to do some updates, but Dug's using his computer and I'm pretty wiped out anyway. Guess it will have to wait till I'm home. I do have notes and pictures prepped for each day, so that should help. Today should be titled "rain and pain". Probably everyone's roughest day. It was still okay, but hoping tomorrow is better. We have most of the day to do stuff before our evening flight. Catch up with you all soon!

 

[AprilRenee]

Uh oh! Rain and pain doesn't sound good at all
Hope a good nights rest helps and you all wake up refreshed and ready to explore!

 

[Dugette]

We woke up the next morning and Izzy and I headed down to start with breakfast while Dug took his time. Again, loved that she was able to walk with me and take the elevator with me. She actually learned a lot about elevators on this trip, I think!

Izzy started with a nice bowl of scrambled eggs. She did a great job using utensils:



She also enjoyed another yogurt like she had the day before:



As you can see, she abandoned the spoon at some point and decided to eat it by hand. A bit messier! Side note: the guy in the background kept waving at her, but she just looked at him like, "What's up dude? I'm just eating my breakfast here. Mind your own business." Becoming a New Yorker already?

The lady who restocks the breakfast stuff was really nice and offered that we could take some yogurts and fruit cups with us for snacks later. I took a few, but we never ended up using them. Oh, well. Still nice. We also used their milk to fill up her thermos for the day to get her through lunch and maybe dinner.

After breakfast, we had to go back to the room to pack up our belongings. We were headed up to the B&B later that day and would be out and about during the check-out time. While we packed, Izzy enjoyed the window and view:



Nice, huh? Also our destination for that day.

We finished packing and brought our bags down to the lobby to be stored for later. They put them in the back room for us and we headed to the streets.

We were close to the bridge, but had to backtrack a bit to actually get up and on it. We stopped at a street vendor's cart to get a couple bottles of pop for the walk. We also stopped briefly in front of City Hall to check out the protesters on the front steps.

Once we got there, it was a very nice walk over the bridge. Of course, Dug couldn't resist taking a ton of pictures, so this was often what I saw (note Izzy's boredom):



Eventually, the boredom overcame her and she nodded off a bit:



Another in my collection of photos of Izzy snoozing in front of NYC views:



Once we made it over the bridge, our destination was Grimaldi's for some of their famous-ish pizza. We took the exit from the bridge into Brooklyn. There was a small flight of stairs to go down and a nice guy offered to carry the front end of the stroller so we didn't have to take Izzy out. Worked great!

We found the restaurant and there was only a short line outside. We were in within a few minutes. For stroller storage, they had us fold it and put it next to the stairway (hall to the restrooms). We were seated up on the second floor. It was empty up there, but filled in shortly. We got Izzy set up and munching and decided to order a meatball pizza. I borrowed this picture from Dug:



It was delicious! Very cheesy and yummy. We polished it off, but were stuffed. We couldn't convince Izzy to eat any. She just threw a couple of meatball bits on the floor. Silly kid doesn't like pizza!

I'd heard that the service here can be a bit, I don't know, gruff? I found that to be true to some extent, but not bad at all. However, there was a staff member clearing tables and such that was super friendly with Izzy. I guess he had just been to a first birthday party for a friend's kid and had a great time. So, that was cool.

During lunch, Dug talked to the rental car people, as I had our reservation for noon and we wouldn't be there until 2:30 or so. They moved back our time and it was fine (but they were weirdly picky about us having to be on a half-hour time slot).

We took turns using the restroom before leaving. As was often the case on this trip, there were no baby changing facilities. Luckily, Izzy can go for a while without issue, so we headed out.

Walked down to the water and found the Ice Cream Factory. Stopped in and checked out the flavors. Decided to split a dish of Peaches & Cream. Yummy.

We got our tickets for the East River Ferry, which would take us back near our hotel. We saw a nice playground nearby, but didn't have much time before the next boat, so just wandered the dock until it arrived.

The boat ride was super quick, since we were only going to the next stop. We sat at a booth, though, so it would be nice on a longer ride if you brought some snacks or something, I'd think. Izzy enjoyed watching out the window from my lap. She got a kick out of being on the water in a boat. By the way, no need to fold the stroller.

We decided to go check out the neat playground we'd seen the other day (with the fancy tall boats behind it). Once we looked more closely at it, we realized it wasn't very toddler friendly and would just get her all full of sand. Turns out that it was the Imagination Playground, which I'd actually read about online when I was looking up the Pearl Street Playground. Seems like a really fun place for kids a bit older than toddler age. We decided to go with the original plan and go to the Pearl Street Playground instead. They had a great little toddler play structure that Izzy loved:









After dragging Izzy away (crying), Dug started back to the hotel with her to get our luggage. I made my way to Enterprise (near the park) to pick up our rental car. I got there right on time, but it was lousy timing. Two people working and two customers that they had just started with (one was a "regular" who was probably a 40-something in ridiculously high heels and flashy leggings and an accent - renting a car to pick up her friend at the airport after her around-the-world travel for modeling). I waited for quite some time, but they eventually got me into a Nissan Altima.

The hardest part of driving back to our hotel was the stop signs. Because pedestrians were coming at a steady flow and it was hard to see traffic. I eventually made it to the hotel, no trouble. Dug had been waiting for a bit by then. He and Izzy enjoyed the fresh cookies the hotel had out.

In general, I have no complaints about the hotel (Best Western Plus Seaport Inn). I see why it was highly rated on Trip Advisor. Great place, super staff, decent location, nice rooms. I recommend it. We were sad to go.

I went in and used the restroom and grabbed a cookie before leaving. And we bought a couple bottles of pop for the road. And we were off!

I think it was around 3:30 by then. We got on FDR Drive and things weren't too bad. Dug decided to take us the scenic route along the Hudson, going by things like Sleepy Hollow. It was a nice drive through some pretty areas. At some point, we stopped at a Dunkin Donuts, because it seemed like the thing to do (we don't have them around here). Got some drinks and a chocolate glazed donut. Used restroom. Izzy ran around and was generally not very happy:



I tried to interest her in the bunny decorations (for Easter). She was just impatient and a bit out of control. We headed back to the car with our items to go. Izzy did settle down for a nap during the drive.

We got off the scenic route and on a tollway in the rain. Eventually got off on some small country roads and made it to the B&B. We had been told that dinner was a buffet and available from 7-9pm. I think we arrived around 7:30pm and Dug's dad was just starting to make a little speech, so we got called out for walking in during it. We grabbed a table and listened and ate and visited with everyone. Izzy enjoyed dinner:



In general, the food was great all weekend.

Izzy had a great time meeting her second cousin, I'll call her BL, who is 5 years old. They became fast friends. BL brought me napkins to wipe Izzy's drool. Izzy imitated all of BL's moves - trying to jump, etc. And Izzy just loved watching her run around the room. Giggled and pointed. BL is going to be getting a little sister soon and I think she'll be a great big sister. Izzy and BL had a great time together throughout the weekend.

Izzy also enjoyed using her high chair as a jungle gym after eating (one of those standard wooden ones at restaurants). She was climbing under it, hanging from it, etc. Good times.

BL told us to go outside for s'mores at the bonfire. I took Izzy out and we visited with some friends of the couple who had an 11-month-old and this was their first time away, so they were missing him. Izzy munched on some graham crackers. When we headed in, we let Izzy explore some of the main building/house and she found this toy (and decided to carry it around):



When we got to our room (in another building/house), it was super hot. Sauna-like. The house was fine, but you could feel the heat the second you opened our room's door. Turning the thermostats down didn't help. We finally got the room comfortable by turning both thermostats completely off, opening the window (it was chilly out), and turning on a small fan we found in the closet.

We set up Izzy's Peapod in the corner and she was happy to see it. She went to sleep pretty quickly and slept all night in it:



Up next: Wedding Day!

 

[Dugette]

Got up that morning and got Izzy all showered up for the big day (no bathtub):



We ate some breakfast (yummy) and played inside briefly. Izzy found a piano to play:



Izzy's favorite part of the weekend had to be playing outside. Last time it was nice enough to do that, she was too little to run around in the grass. This was her chance and she was giggling and having a blast running around as we visited with long-distance relatives that were there:







That tent wasn't used all weekend, by the way. I'm sure some weddings use it, but we didn't.

At some point in her running around, Izzy fell and bumped her head on the deck. She was fine, but got a nice bruise on her forehead for the wedding. Toddlers...

Izzy liked the adirondack chairs. She also liked the "puppy bunny" given to her by the bride's mother:



I was also still drinking my bottle of pop from the drive the day before. Every time I set it down, Izzy would rush to give it to me. Silly kid - she knew Mommy's bottle and wanted me to have it.

Soon, it was time for lunch and then we had to cram in a nap for Izzy before the photos were starting. It wouldn't be her normal 2 hours, but we'd try to get in as much as possible. She napped well in her Peapod and Dug napped in the bed, while I was on here updating. We had to wake her up to get her dressed and ready for photos. Got her in her cute outfit and then she wanted back in the Peapod:





We headed out to meet up with family and await the photo session. Izzy test drove a golf cart:



She was also given a basket and flowers. I tried to teach her what to do and she went from not even wanting to touch the basket to holding it, throwing flowers, and then...picking them back up! Since we were practicing, we had to pick them up and that's what she learned to do:







We took some pictures outdoors, by the stream and Izzy roamed around with her flowers for a bit. I did my best to keep her from falling and getting her dress muddy. She did get a bit of dirt on the knee of her tights, but not too much. Eventually, guests gathered and the wedding began. I carried Izzy up to the aisle, then let her go, hoping for the best. She held her flower basket and walked up the aisle. No throwing of flowers, but that was okay. Super cute. I grabbed a seat in the front row and sat her next to me for the ceremony. She did pretty well with the assistance of her snack cup of Cheerios, a couple pacis, and her favorite Ariel Duplos. Also, one of the couple's dogs was the Ring Bearer, complete with bow tie:



The ceremony was nice, we now have a new SIL, and it was followed by a cocktail reception (outdoors). Before attending that, I took Izzy back to the room for a diaper change. The cocktail reception had a ton of cheese options, so that was awesome. Izzy roamed to the other end of the lawn and I tried to lure her back to our table with a cracker (my drink was at our table and I was thirsty). She wanted the cracker, but would get upset when I wouldn't just give it to her. She was acting a little silly (happy, sad, mad, happy, etc.) and I said something like, "Izzy, you don't know what you want, do you?" Well, BL was nearby and said, very seriously, "I think she wants the cracker right here." Well, she was right. Izzy got the cracker. I eventually got back to my drink, right before the reception ended. But Izzy had a good time (with BL), so that's what matters.

We moved to the barn for dinner and the reception and dancing. Izzy had fun table dancing with BL (who insisted on sitting by her, even though she was assigned to another table). Izzy did pretty well through dinner and the speeches (including her Daddy's, since Dug was Best Man). However, during the video/slideshow, she was starting to melt down. There were stairs near where we stood to watch and she wanted nothing more than to go up and down them endlessly, since she loves stairs. We did a few times, but when I cut her off, she freaked out and was almost impossible to hold. I had to leave with her shortly thereafter.

She went to bed in her Peapod and slept all night long!

Up next: Heading back to NYC.

 

[Dugette]

Sunday morning, we had to pack our stuff up for another hotel move. The wedding weekend was ending and we would be in Midtown for the rest of our trip. We also headed to the main building to eat breakfast and say goodbye to everyone. It was really nice to visit with long-distance family and friends and the time went by too fast. After eating, we got the bags in the car and tried to get going. Dug's mom (I'll call her Nana) wanted a picture of Izzy in front of the little pond full of frogs, though, so we ended up waiting around (i.e. - me chasing Izzy around outside) for a long time while she finished dealing with her luggage, etc. Finally, we managed to get in the car and go (we wanted to get into the city at a reasonable time).

The drive was easy, as we just stayed on the main road. Izzy did some napping.

We planned to stop at an Oasis for a break/lunch. We saw a sign for the last one on the tollway, so we went there, even though we weren't crazy about the food selection. We ended up getting some wraps from McDonald's, even though we never go there in real life. They were fine. Izzy ate her lunch too:



After lunch, I think Izzy napped some more, but was also upset at times. Back and forth. Dug kept tossing more pacis back to her, which would help for a short time. Naturally, she was screaming and upset when I most wanted to concentrate upon driving into the city. Had to just tune her out.

We came in through the Lincoln Tunnel. $13 toll, wow! Plus, of course, the tollbooths all merged to one lane after, so that was a mess of vehicles. I managed to stand my ground and get merged without incident, though.

We got to the hotel just fine. I made sure that Dug gave me very careful directions, including the lanes to be in. I didn't want to make any wrong turns. And it worked!

When we arrived at the hotel, the street parking in front was full, but someone was unloading a cab and it would probably be pulling away soon. Since the road was wide enough, I was able to wait there a few minutes and then snag that spot.

We got out and started unloading. I discovered that Izzy and her clothes and her carseat and some of her toys and pacis were covered in Cheddar Bunny mush. I couldn't tell if she had thrown up or if it was just really messy snacking. Cheerios don't turn to mush like the Cheddar Bunnies that she had in her snack cup that ride. It was quite gross. She seemed to be feeling fine, though, so I'm not sure if she'd been sick or not.

The hotel's greeter told us that we could leave the car there as long as we wanted and he'd keep an eye on it. That was unexpected, but gave me a chance to help clean Izzy up. We got up to our room and changed her outfit and cleaned her up. I asked Dug to try to clean her carseat while I returned the car (he did a good job!)

Now came the part where I got to drive in the "scary driving" area alone! It actually went just fine. Yay for Sunday afternoon and preparation, I guess. Due to the one-way streets, I had to go around a couple blocks. The first couple streets felt like I could have been driving in downtown Minneapolis. Pretty standard. Then I turned onto 7th Avenue. And it was a sea of yellow taxis. I knew where I needed to be, though, and just drove confidently in my lane, making sure not to lag behind and only letting in others that were forcing their way in. I did fine and didn't even get honked at! I made the correct turn and arrived at Enterprise and pulled into their garage. It was a super-quick and easy drop-off. I was in and out within minutes. Also, I got a phone call later that my bill was even less than I thought, since they knocked off the 2 hours from my 2 day and 2 hour rental. Nice! Great deal!

I walked back to the hotel easily, even though the Enterprise lady recommended the subway. It was nice to just go for a walk by myself with no baby and at a faster pace than Dug goes. Soon enough, I was back to the hotel.

We did a bit of unpacking and organizing, since we'd be there for a few days. Got Izzy's Pack 'n' Play set up. There was only room to put it right between the bed and couch, but it worked.

Dug's family decided to meet for drinks/dinner down the street at 5 Boro Burger. We met them there and had a nice dinner and good burgers and drinks. Izzy had some dinner too:



Dug and I tossed around ideas with his family of what to do that evening, but everyone had different goals. His sister and BIL wanted to walk around and grab some drinks, no specific plans. His mom was all over the place on what to do, but wanted to do it together. His dad wasn't up for a lot of activity. I wanted to go to the Highline Park. I won. Dug's sister and BIL were going to go out on their own, Dug's dad (Papa) decided to hang out at the hotel, and Dug, Izzy, and I were going to walk to the Highline. At the last moment, his indecisive mom (Nana) decided to join us. Which was nice, but also challenging in some ways.

As we started out, this was what I was dealing with:



Like mother, like son...both taking pictures of everything.

Dug doesn't move very fast with his back issues. I admit that it's hard for me to not get way ahead of him. But I manage. His mom just couldn't slow down, though, and the pace was driving her nuts, since she didn't want it to get dark while we were walking unfamiliar streets. I wasn't so concerned, as I felt that we'd be to the park before dark and it would be a safe place, then we could decide the safest way to get home. And the area seemed halfway decent. However, it was a much longer walk than what Dug had told us. The "5-6 blocks" turned out to be more like 10+, but we eventually arrived.

Took an elevator up and were in a pretty cool elevated park. We ended up walking the whole thing as the sun was setting. Very pretty. Izzy got out of the stroller at some point and I caught this shot of her and her Nana:



Too cute! She also broke free of hands and ran off as often as she could. I chased her around as she explored:



She just had a blast! However, she kept running in front of people and not watching where she was going, so I had to institute a "hold my hand or ride in a stroller" rule. She wasn't crazy about that one, but she'd already fallen down and bonked her head, so she needed to be under tighter control. At one point, she found a bench that had a little ramp on the side to walk up it. She apparently thought she was in her tumbling class and walked right up and across the bench as if it were a balance beam (holding my hand). She loved that and repeated a couple times before I had to carry her (unhappily) away to catch the others.

Dug had been in touch with some people he (virtually) knows that were at a web design conference in town (that he wished he was at). A couple people were out walking around and he managed to coordinate us meeting up with them a few blocks away. We all chatted and made our way to a subway station. Nana and the friends already had passes and Dug and I decided to buy the unlimited 7 day passes (in retrospect, we could have saved a bit of money with a stored value card, as we didn't use them a ton, but it wasn't a bad deal).

We discovered, while we waited, that Izzy LOVES trains! She could not stop laughing and pointing each time a train went by. Or even if she heard one coming. The whole trip, she got a huge kick out of them. So cute!

We had a good ride and walked a bit more to get back to the hotel. Dug helped get Izzy ready for bed while his friends used the restroom, then he headed down to the lobby to spend some time with them (and Nana went back to her room at the same hotel). I think Izzy did really well staying out late that night. She was generally happy and having a good time, even after bedtime. I put her to bed in Pack 'n' Play and she had another full night's sleep without wake-ups!

 

[AprilRenee]

What a great time you guys are having!! Izzy reminds me so much of Caden! It's the age. Especially the meltdowns every time she had to stop doing something fun sounds VERY familiar!! Lol

Love the pic of her behind the pizza. Haha. Hilarious!

Can't wait to hear about the rest of New York! (I'm glad you guys went ahead and sprung for the subway!)

 

[dtr_angel]

Wow I can't believe how much you were able to do in NYC with a toddler, that's great! I'm really loving your NYC TR!

 

[olafgypsy]

Wow, I'm having so much fun revisiting NYC through your mini TR. Also really, really impressed with what great restaurant experiences you're having. Barely a line at Gramaldi's?

I don't blame Dug for taking tons of pics of the Brooklyn Bridge - it is so majestic! Hubby and I actually got married at City Hall which is RIGHT there, so we had a friend take post-wedding photos on the bridge. Pretty spectacular. Glad you got to experience it!

And forgive me if you've already mentioned this, but is Izzy sleeping in a regular peapod or a peapod plus? I'm thinking of getting one for when we go camping with ds, and I am just not sure which size to get.

 

[Dugette]

I will get to responding to all comments eventually, but just a quick one here since it's a specific question that I have thoughts about:

And forgive me if you've already mentioned this, but is Izzy sleeping in a regular peapod or a peapod plus? I'm thinking of getting one for when we go camping with ds, and I am just not sure which size to get.

It's the regular Peapod. I compared and read reviews, etc. to try to decide between them. What it came down to for me is how we intend to use it and the size of our kid. We probably won't go camping (though, if we do, we'll use it), but we intend to use it in hotels/other people's homes for nights and naps when away. The regular one is made for kids 1-3 years old. The bigger one goes up higher - I think like 5? At any rate, I'm thinking that by the time she's 3, she'll be able to handle other sleeping arrangements in hotels (i.e. bed with rails?) and probably won't need it (and also, she's on the small side and may be able to use it past 3 if we wanted). Also, the regular one fits in a carry-on and I'm not sure the plus does. So, the regular suited our needs better. However, the plus seems to be well-loved also, so if it fits your needs better, I'm sure you can't go wrong.

For what it's worth, the regular is much bigger than I expected. It takes up almost the same amount of floor space as a Pack 'n' Play (just oval shaped). And I actually can fit in it, if I curl up! Izzy has tons of room. But the nice thing is that I was able to fold it and put it in the front pocket of my checked bag during this trip. The pocket! Crazy. No complaints here, as it worked great for us.

One thing that I think helped us was that I tried to get her comfortable with it before really needing to use it. We started with using it to play in. The thing that most helped was playing peek-a-boo through the mesh with her zipped in. She got a huge kick out of that and wasn't at all upset about being contained. Then we put it in her crib (just barely fit) and had her nap in it. She loved it, so we stopped at that and she was totally good with it on our trip. I would imagine it would be great when camping too. Hope this helps!

 

[IheartDDuck]

Great pictures of NYC. Still haven't been there before, so I love seeing photos of it!

That picture of Izzy peering from behind the pizza is just the cutest.

Toddler bruises are definitely a rite of passage.

Okay, being someone without a kid, I think that Peapod is totally cool! Like a baby tent. I'm very easily amused.

I'm an extremely fast walker, so I totally get where you're coming from with slow moving people. But you deal with it, right?

 

[Dugette]

Monday morning, we intended to get up early so we could make it to the Empire State Building as close to the 8am opening as possible, in order to avoid the worst of the crowds. However, we ended up running later than planned and then we ran into Dug's family at breakfast, making us even later. Oops. We did have a nice time visiting with Dug's family at breakfast, though. And the food was good too - nice breakfast sandwiches, especially. Izzy enjoyed the meal:



After eating and parting ways with Dug's family, we popped Izzy in the Ergo and set off for the Empire State Building. The lines weren't too terrible yet, but there were so many of them! Every time you completed one line (i.e. - getting tickets, security, elevator 1, elevator 2, etc.), there was another line for something else. It got somewhat ridiculous. Going back in time, even though I'm cheap, I probably would have sprung for the express pass on this one. I think the cost was $50/each vs. $29/each (and Izzy free), but it would have saved us so much time that we could have used for other things (you skip all the lines). Not to mention having to keep a toddler happy in all those lines. And we didn't buy tickets in advance, since we'd been planning to be there so early (but I think it was maybe 9 or so by the time we arrived, oops). One thing that helped us was using a credit card to buy tickets. They pulled a few of us out of line to use a super-quick machine and we bypassed a lot of people there (were all these other people really paying with cash/check? ).

Also, at some point between lines, there was kind-of a display/museum area and it really felt like I was in Epcot, maybe waiting for Test Track. Just had that feel to it for some reason. Oh, another random note: I was allowed to wear Izzy in the Ergo through security. That was really nice!

So, one elevator takes you up to the 80th floor, but you have to take a second one up to the observation deck on the 86th floor. Well, there was a 25 minute line for that one and they were encouraging people to climb the 6 flights of stairs instead. Despite Dug's back, we decided to do that, as we couldn't stand another long line by that point. It was slow going, stopping to rest every couple floors, but we got there. Thank goodness I had Izzy in the Ergo, cause that wouldn't have been an option with the stroller.

It was so nice to finally be up there. It was very windy, but felt good after all that climbing. We walked around and checked out the views from all sides. Izzy liked looking down at the tiny taxis and such. She sure loves transportation!

I took a picture of us in the reflection up there:



We were able to take the elevators down. Dug snapped a picture of us with my phone on the way out:



We were thirsty and saw a Walgreens on our way out, so grabbed some bottles of Diet Coke there. Made our way back to the hotel to gather the stroller and other things before setting off again. While we were packing things up:



She figured out how to climb in there from both the bed and the couch (since it was sandwiched in between). Better climbing in than out, I guess.

Next, Dug had connected with someone else he "knew" in the city and wanted to meet up with. We arranged to have lunch at the Shake Shack in Grand Central, so we walked that way. Here we are on our way to lunch:



Shake Shack was very crowded and did not appear to have any open tables. Dug met the person he had come to see and they grabbed a table out in the open area past Shake Shack while I stood in line to order for us. Right after I got in the long line, a greeter-type person was there and I asked him if they took credit cards, just to make sure, since Dug had just walked away with all my cash. He was very friendly and said something like, "We sure do! Anything to keep you happy here at Shake Shack!!" Something a bit overboard, but whatever. So, a couple minutes later, I pass a stack of high chairs. I text Dug to see if he found one and he said no, so I told him where they were and to come get one (the other guy watched Izzy, I guess). A minute later, he came and got a high chair and told me where their table was. For some reason, the "nice" greeter-guy kinda freaked out on him for taking the high chair beyond the Shake Shack seating area. Dug explained that we were getting our food from Shake Shack and there were no tables open. It was just weird. He took it anyway, with the greeter looking exasperated as he left. I understand not wanting to bring it to another restaurant, but it was a few feet away, in a common area, and they had 5-6 high chairs there, so no shortage. And we returned it. Anyway...

We got some food (burger for Dug and hot dog for me) and a shake to split (black and white - vanilla with fudge) and some fries to split. All was good. Izzy decided that ketchup was tasty enough to eat with a spoon:



Dug visited with the guy we met up with during the meal and then we walked with him back towards his work. We passed Rockefeller Center on the way:



Surprisingly, they still had ice skating on a 70+ degree beautiful day:



We passed the NBC awning:



We split up somewhere along the way and Izzy was just barely hanging on shortly after:



Moments later, nap time:





We made our way up to Central Park, planning to walk around while she napped. We got to the entrance and sat on the benches for a few minutes, making plans and watching the carriages go by:



We headed in and wandered around. We were thirsty and found a little food place. We just wanted something to drink, but when I asked at the window, they said we had to wait for a server to come to our chairs. We waited, nothing happened, we moved on. Too much work for a Diet Coke.

Walking through the park, Izzy missing out on things again:



We came across a street vendor cart with pop and I wanted to get some, but Dug was determined to forge ahead because Tavern on the Green was up there. I told him that my limited knowledge of the place, probably from TV shows, was that it was a fancy place and not somewhere you'd go just for a quick drink. He insisted. We walked up a giant hill. Then Dug saw that the restaurant was closed for refurbishment. And I got to go back down the hill, retrieve our pop, and go back up. Yay.

We kept walking:



To be continued, since Izzy is up from her (late) Easter nap!

 

[Dugette]

After about 45 minutes worth of napping in her stroller, Izzy started waking up and crying periodically, still in a semi-sleep state. She just could not get herself back into a solid sleep. I tried walking her around really fast and it would only work for a minute, then she'd start crying again. Eventually, we ran across a lawn area where some kids were playing and there were some balls to play with, so I took her out to play. She had a great time playing in the grass:









Notice the people taking wedding photos in the background of that last one, by the way.

Izzy was not happy when we eventually had to force her to drop the balls and end playtime. Thankfully, her snack cup can almost always stop the screaming:



By this time, it was getting into the later afternoon and we still had to see the Museum of Natural History. So, we made our way there and had maybe an hour and a half to tour it. They recommended that we start at the top and work our way down, I believe.

Izzy wanted out of her stroller to run around. Since it wasn't too crowded, I let her. I spent most of our visit running after her as she checked out the exhibits in random toddler fashion. She really got a kick out of things, yelling "wow" and pointing, as well as sometimes saying "hi" and waving to various critters. Some pictures of our explorations:

(saying Hi)





(she loved this guy - sat down by him and "read" his info card)

(waving)



(more waving)

Eventually, she started running out of steam, so I got her back into the stroller with a snack cup of Cheerios and she was a happy camper.

By the time we finished, the museum was just about closed for the day. As we approached the door, there was a guard lady directing people out (and by directing, I mean yelling at people that went the wrong way). There was also a restroom and Dug asked her if he could use it quick before leaving. Her response? "Well, I guess I can't stop you." After he went in, she muttered something about wanting to go home. Guess someone didn't love her job. I also heard her asking other guests "what floor are you going to?" to which they replied, "well, we're trying to get to the [something or other]" and she snapped, "I said what FLOOR!" Oh, okay. Yikes. Anyway, Dug came out and we got out of there.

However, that must not have been the exit to the building, maybe just an area, because I know we encountered another guard at the actual exit. He was just the opposite, kind as can be, not rushing us, playing with Izzy. Much better!

After we exited, we sat outside for a brief time, touching base with Dug's family to see what plans were being made, etc. Hanging out:



We planned to go to Ellen's Stardust Diner that night, but none of Dug's family members wanted to go with. However, Dug had been talking to yet another web design person who was in town and that person and his family were willing to join us. It was the guy, his wife, and their son that is about 1 month younger than Izzy. Fun, baby date!

We took the subway to Times Square and headed over to the diner. No reservations are allowed and there was quite a line. We got in line and asked the person working there, who said it was about 1 hour. However, it was a nice night and we didn't have other plans, so we decided to stick around as long as it moved. Which actually didn't happen for quite some time, but it did eventually get going. Izzy amused herself by removing her shoes:



I had changed her into these shoes, thinking they'd be harder for her to remove than her Minnie Mouse shoes. But, no, she figured it out anyway.

She also decided to plug her ears for no apparent reason:



About halfway through the wait, the other family made it there and joined us. Waiting with two toddlers who were up late and hungry, good times. They actually did pretty well and Izzy had already gotten compliments on her behavior from the other people in line near us. And their son had just woken up from a nap in the carrier and was still drowsy. We finally made it to the front of the line (in about an hour from when we got there, I believe, so fairly accurate wait time) and we had to wait a bit there, watching other families get taken in before us, due to not having a table with room for two high chairs. The toddlers amused themselves by doing a "mine!" battle over this pole:



Seriously, it was like the most prized toy ever, even though there were two of them. That was THE one to each of them. And it could NOT be shared. Toddlers...

Oh, and they also both stood by the entrance and applauded a couple times. Too cute!

Eventually we got in and were seated along the rail on the second floor. We put the kids by the rail so they could see the action downstairs. Izzy watching and enjoying her milk:



Oh, yeah, I ordered milk for her here and they brought a big glass that was impossible to pour into her sippy cup without spilling. I had to wipe up a lot of milk. Oh, well. Also, the table was really tiny for a party of 6, so none of us had much room, especially trying to keep knives and breakables away from the kids.

Izzy and her new little friend shared their munchies. I had a chicken pot pie and Izzy took her little fork and started digging in right off my plate. Because, obviously, the same food on Mommy's plate is WAY better than the portion of that food that is on Izzy's placemat. Hey, whatever works.

The meal was fun. The performances were neat, but there was one in particular that was outstanding. She was having so much fun involving the audience heavily. Not a great picture, but you can see her here, in a booth, against a customer, with her feet up:



That performance was a blast!

Our waitress did some singing and, at one point, she put the microphone to Dug and he got to sing a couple words. Pretty cool.

We finished up and headed out. We walked into Times Square with the other family. They had been there already, but we enjoyed looking around at all the lights and such. We split up from them after that, since we wanted to pop into the Disney Store (they were actually big Disney fans too, by the way).

Once we got Izzy in the store, we let her out of the stroller to explore. She went straight to the Mickey plush display and continued the liberation process that she'd started in Club Cool in December. She climbed completely through this shelf, pulling out all the Mickeys:



She was handing them to me and my arms were getting full. A Cast Member came over to assist her in her mission. She also held Mickeys for Izzy. She fully encouraged this, so that was fun. Once Izzy had cleared all the Mickeys, she was on to other things while the CM replaced them.

Showing off a Minnie that she'd freed:



She ran around some more and then drew in her breath as she caught sight of a wall filled with plushes:



Out of all the choices, she rescued a Winnie the Pooh. She loves her teddy bears!

After that, while I was trying to show her the princess castle and figure out how to activate the magic mirrors (never did figure that out), Izzy found a prized pink Minnie. She ran around and around the store holding it. She ran over by the cashiers and one of them was just heading out with a bag full of toys, including an identical pink Minnie on top. Izzy stole it right out of her bag. The CM laughed. I asked her if the Minnie was going somewhere and she said yes, but let her have it. Okay, then. So, Izzy ran around having a blast with her two Minnies. She even took them into the Clubhouse:



I eventually convinced her to put them back in the shelf and head out. We waved goodbye to the Minnies and made our way back to the hotel and to bed. Once again, she slept all night long. I think this trip actually wiped her out so much that she learned to sleep through the night from it. Prior to the trip, she was usually waking up once per night and very occasionally sleeping all the way through. She only woke once this whole trip (that second night) and has only woken up once since we've been home. Hoping this keeps up! Being able to routinely stay in bed from the time I go to bed until the time I get up for the day sounds awesome after 19 months of seldom getting that "privilege".

Up next: rain and pain

 

[Dugette]

We woke up this morning to Izzy crying around 8am. She'd gone to bed crazy late, around 11pm, so not even close to her normal 12 hours. We got ready and headed downstairs, meeting Dug's family for the tail-end of breakfast. Not sure why we were so slow, but the breakfast ended at 9am and it was almost that time, so they were out of and/or taking away a lot of things. They didn't even have her normal Cheerios, so Izzy got to try Corn Pops for the first time. She and her Papa enjoyed sharing them:



I didn't get much to eat because there was almost nothing on the buffet by the time I'd gotten Izzy set up to eat. They did still have the breakfast sandwiches, though, so that was good - but I was already not in the best mood. After breakfast, we headed back to our room to try to figure out what to do this day. Two factors were changing our plans: Rain & Pain. The forecast was for rain all day long. Yuck. And Dug had really overdone it and could barely walk (his back pain radiates into his leg). He was talking about staying back, but I wasn't thrilled about being out on my own with Izzy all day long. We spent a lot of time trying to work out some kind of plan while Izzy played with her teddy bear, amongst other things:



Dug decided he'd try to go with us, as I didn't want to go alone and he didn't want to miss out on things. However, we decided to take the subway as much as possible and I'd shoulder most of the load up/down the stairs so it wouldn't cause him more pain. And I was able to do that, but it did wear me down throughout the day. Our subway routine was: get to stairs, take Izzy out of stroller, fold stroller (one-handed, yay stroller!), Dug carry her bag, me carry Izzy in left arm and stroller in right hand by handle down the stairs (or up), hand Izzy to Dug and have him take her through turnstile and me take stroller, me take both back and manage them on subway (sometimes putting her back in stroller, if a long ride), then same thing upon exit. I know it would have been easier to manage without a stroller and just using the Ergo, but we would be out all day and I knew we'd want the stroller for napping and to give me a rest and also for Dug to push, as it helped him walk when he was hurting most. So, yeah, we did this routine a lot on this day. In the rain. When I started the day without a full breakfast. And - spoiler alert - we're late for/miss out on lots of things this day. It really just doesn't go that well. But we still have a nice time at what we get to.

So, we set out from the hotel in the light rain for the subway station. Not heavy enough to use the umbrellas yet, but we had them along. Put Izzy's canopy up to keep her dry. Did subway routine. Got to FAO Schwarz.

Fun store! Izzy loved the giant-sized animals. Here she is meeting a giant panda bear:





As you might imagine, Dug got a kick out of the Star Wars section. While he was checking things out, I took this for him:



Izzy also enjoyed hugging a giraffe (strangely enough, she got to do this again at a local mall yesterday while we were out with friends):



There was so much stuff in this store. Really fun. There was a floor for baby stuff, which was just too adorable. I got Izzy a toy wind-up train, since she loved the subway trains so much. I have yet to give it to her, but hopefully she'll enjoy it. That was our only toy purchase. Dug also bought a treat on the candy floor: a bacon chocolate truffle. Interesting. I enjoyed looking at the giant-sized versions of common candy. I thought about buying the giant-sized Reese's Peanut Butter Cups to bring to work as a souvenir to share, but didn't want to deal with fitting it in my luggage and making sure it didn't melt, so I skipped it. We had fun at that store. When we left, we walked by the Apple Cube, but decided to skip going in.

As had been happening, Dug was in touch with people and had arranged another meet-up. This time an old friend who was now living in New York. He only had a short time between meetings, but said he could meet us at Cosi in Union Square for a drink. Dug sold me by saying we could go to Max Brenner's afterwards. I had been interested in that (a restaurant specializing in chocolate? Sign me up!), but we had not previously had any plans to be near it, so weren't going to go.

We met his friend at Cosi and he offered to buy coffees. I don't drink coffee, so I got a hot chocolate. Ironic, considering what was next door. They had a nice chat and we sipped our drinks. Soon enough, his friend had to go back to work.

We headed over to Max Brenner, debating if we'd sit and eat or just get something to go. Turned out there was almost no wait, so we decided we might as well eat quick (we didn't have a ton of time, since we had to get to our "stroller tour" of the Guggenheim). Naturally, Izzy had JUST nodded off in her stroller, but I woke her up to sit and eat. She was okay with this, but I hate waking a baby who needs a nap. Oh, well.

She enjoyed perusing the menu:



We got delicious things here and I only wish that we hadn't been so rushed to get to our tour. I ended up eating really fast. Dug had a burrito with mole sauce, I went with chocolate cherry waffles (it's vacation - why not?), and we shared a sea salt caramel dark chocolate shake. Yum! I shared a bit with Izzy:



I'd say she liked it! As a side note, the tables were VERY close together, but it was okay. And they had stroller parking for us.

After we rushed out of there, we took the subway and then walked the rest of the way to the Guggenheim. Even rushing and sending me and Izzy ahead at a faster pace, we were still late. There was a big line of people waiting to get in, but I asked a greeter about the stroller tour that we were registered for (at 3pm) and they let us right in. It was about 10 after 3 at that point. They told me the group was meeting "in the back". I looked around and around and couldn't find any group meeting or other strollers. Once Dug got there, we asked a guard and he said that we'd just missed them going up the ramp and sent us after them. We went up and up (the ramp goes up and around the whole museum) and could not find them anywhere. We kept looking out at the other levels, thinking we'd spot a bunch of strollers, but never even saw one. We asked guards who hadn't seen them and didn't know where they'd be. We pretty much went on a wild goose chase through the museum, nearly all the way to the top. Finally, I spotted two strollers next to each other a level or two down. We went to check it out and, sure enough, that was them. There was also someone with a baby in a carrier. We joined in and Izzy got to play with a toy (relevant to the art).

At another display, we got to make texture boards for the kids. You can see that and Izzy's toy in these:





Although we missed probably half of it, the stroller tour was pretty neat. Gave us a chance to see the museum and have someone explain things, but also amuse the kids. Plus, it turned out to be a heck of a deal. Normally, it's $20/family, which is still a deal, since it includes admission. However, we hadn't been asked to pay at any point, so I asked the guide at the end. She basically said, "Hey, it's free for you." since no one had taken any payment from us. Uh, okay? Not sure if it was because we were late or what. At any rate, we wandered the museum a bit more after the tour, checking out what we'd missed.

Izzy hit her awake-ness limit as we left:





Dug's family (parents, DS/DBIL, and DB/DSIL (newlyweds)) were meeting for dinner at John's Pizzeria in Times Square (suggested by me, from April's suggestion here). However, they were meeting for an early dinner because the parents/sis/BIL had tickets to a show afterwards. We really tried to make it there, but we didn't have a lot of time.

We got on the subway. It was pretty full, so I stood with Izzy in her stroller and Dug sat down a few spots away. The lady next to me heard Dug tell me which stop we wanted and informed me (kindly) that we were going the wrong direction. Of course, since we were already running late.

This lady was very nice, though, and advised which stop was best to switch trains at (so we didn't have to go out and back in - and so we'd get an express train to make up time). I chatted with her during our ride. She was originally from Brooklyn, moved to Maine for a while, then moved back to NYC. She was fun to talk to and very helpful also.

We got off at the stop she advised and she was right about it being a fairly easy change. We got on the express train and made it Grand Central, where we'd get on a shuttle train to Times Square. In theory.

We got on the train and it was packed and standing room only (not even next to each other). I had the stroller folded and propped it against a wall and held Izzy. It would be a quick ride, I could handle this (a subway doesn't lurch around as much as a Disney bus, after all). I prepared to hold her for a few minute ride. Except that we just sat there with the doors open. Time ticked and ticked away. My arms were getting tired and we hadn't even gone anywhere yet. Eventually, they announced a delay. It wasn't clear how long it would be, though. A lady that decided to leave offered me her seat, which was nice. I took it, holding Izzy on my lap. Where we sat and sat and waited some more. I guess a train was stalled on the track and we eventually decided to get off and walk. It had been way too long.

Naturally, his family had eaten dinner without us, as we were about an hour late at that point. Understandable. We were disappointed to miss out, but what can you do?

Since we were at Grand Central, Dug wanted to head up to the Apple Store there because a cable he had just bought to charge his phone was not working already. I asked him to take Izzy with him and just give me a few minutes to get something to drink and take a break. So, he went off with the stroller and I headed to the convenience store where I saw bottles of pop. I got us each a Diet Dr. Pepper, I believe. Then I just sat on a bench in the middle of Grand Central and enjoyed drinking some of mine, while looking around, checking my phone, and not having to worry about anything for a few minutes. It was awesome.

When I felt sufficiently recharged, I went up and found them and gave Dug his pop. They replaced his cord and we were on our way.

We considered eating in Grand Central, but didn't do so. Can't remember why. We decided to go back to the hotel and just eat there, since we knew they had food service 24/7 and we didn't want to go back out in the rain again. And it was raining pretty hard by then. For the walk back, I put Izzy in the Ergo and carried an umbrella over us. Glad I did, because her stroller was soaked, even with the canopy covering it. We were glad to get back to our room.

We got comfortable (I changed my wet jeans out for a dry pair) and called to order some food, like the instructions said. The person on the phone told us we had to come downstairs to order. Okay, then. We packed up Izzy's dinner gear and headed down (side note - Hyatt Place has 25 or so floors and 2 elevators and they are almost always busy and take forever - we were on floor 10 and I once just walked down to save time). We took a seat down in the breakfast area and ordered some food. Dug got a bacon cheeseburger special thing and I got tomato basil soup. Both took forever. I figured they'd have a pot of soup on and it would be quick. Nope. By the time I got the soup and ate it, I had more of an appetite, so ended up having them warm up a sandwich for me from their display in front. We also had a piece of cheesecake. Izzy offering me her pouch:



She probably wanted me to squeeze up more food, actually.

After dinner, we headed up to the room. Put Izzy to bed, then got in bed and made my notes on the day. (Dug went down to the lobby to get some work done on his computer, but ended up meeting his family for after-show drinks instead). My notes say that Izzy was still lively at 9:30pm, but I know she eventually stopped babbling to her animals and fell asleep for the night.

So, it was a rough day in some ways, but we really enjoyed the things we did and had a lot of fun. It was just exhausting, but turned out okay.

Up next: our last day and going home!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

First, just wanted to say you are doing a great job with the NYC portion of your TR. Not that the rest isn't good, but just all the planning and craziness the City can be, not to mention chasing after a toddler, just think you are keeping really good track of everything!

**************

yup, that picture covered in yogurt looks about right

nice view of the bridge from your room!

The Brooklyn Bridge is pretty photogenic! The whole history of the bridge just adds to it's legacy and iconic stature in this country

Looks like a fund playground - definitely a lesser known plus to the city is all the smallish playgrounds they have around for kids to burn off steam

Sounds like you did great driving in the city - definitely can be intimidating if you have never done it, but once you do it really isn't that bad. Things like the helix for the Lincoln tunnel and some of the weird little streets downtown are some of the hardest parts.

Calling it "pop" is a sure fire way to let people know you are from out of town

Glad the wedding weekend worked out as a whole and you had time to spend with relatives. Also super glad the Peapod worked out!

Izzy made a lovely flower girl!

I guess you get used to the $13 tolls, but I guess that can seem like a lot to people. My mother lives on Long Island and the bridge there is $7.50 each way, so I am in for $15 just in tolls any time I want to see her

Kind of a bummer that everyone wanted to do their own thing that first day, but I guess it worked out ok

Love the Highline and good job walking the whole length as it goes for a fair bit. Just a very nice recluse in the city

Awesome that Izzy loved the trains ... but then, what's not to love!

Yeah, the Empire State Building is good to do once, but just too much effort, and as you saw, not cheap. I much preferred to go to the top of the WTC when that was an option or even Top of the Rock (though that isn't cheap either)

Shake Shack is definitely good - though generally not worth the wait (we usually just get it when we go to Met games as they have one there). And I am convinced that ketchup is its own food group for the under 5 set

uh, Tavern on the Green is super fancy and definitely not some place I would go for a soda to go. There is the Boat House which has a fancy and more casual area that would be more of an option though.

Sounds like fun at the Museum - love the pictures of her waving at the exhibits

wow, Izzy's first date ... you are very conservative to have to chaperone it though

Sounds like a fun dinner (even with the wait but the kids held up really well!0 Also sounds like a fund stop at the Disney store - always great with the workers "play" with the kids (assuming they aren't really destroying things) rather than yelling at them

FAO Schwarz is definitely a cool store. We hit is up each year when we go in during the holiday season.

Yeah that you got to Max Brenner! We love that place and love taking the kids there. We had gotten one of those Chocolate Syringes to put in Olivia's stocking this past Christmas

ok, I am picturing some of the music like from the chase scene in old Scooby Doo cartoons playing as you are rushing around the Guggenheim looking for a huge group of strollers

Wow, free in NYC is a pretty darn good deal! Though, like you said, $20/family isn't bad at all!

Very nice of Izzy to offer you her pouch Bummer about the food delays at the hotel though. In hind sight probably would have been better/quicker to just grab something at or near Grand Central, but what can you do.

Rain definitely puts a damper on things (pun partially intended) but sounds like you got to a lot of things still so that is great!

 

[Dugette]

We had breakfast as just the three of us this morning. Dug's family was doing the Statue of Liberty this day, which we'd already done, so they had to head out early to make their boat. We had a nice breakfast and Izzy enjoyed the muffin she swiped from my plate:





After breakfast, we headed back up to the room to pack our stuff. Again, we'd be out and about during the noon check-out, so we had to store our luggage. While we packed, Izzy found interesting ways to amuse herself. She grabbed her diaper changing kit and actually figured out how to set it up. And then used it as a bed:



Silly girl!

Packing is always a task when an airport is involved that day. It took us a bit, but we got it done and fit everything in our luggage (even puppy bunny, Izzy's flower girl gift we acquired). Because we'd be out all day, there were some things I wanted access to later, but wouldn't need on the plane. I had packed an empty tote bag and used that for those items, then put that in the gate check bag along with the car seat. I was very proud of myself for figuring that one out! It actually worked out well.

We got our luggage stored and headed out into the 30-something-degree morning:



We walked over to Bryant Park, which was really nice:





There were a lot of little sandwich stands in the area. The grilled cheese and tomato soup booth would have been great if it was closer to lunch time. Perfect combo on a chilly day. We filed the idea away, but didn't end up back there. Towards the end of our loop through the park, we came across a little carousel. Izzy watched with interest:





Spoiler alert, but we never made it onto the carousel on our WDW trip with Izzy. And I wanted to get her on one at some point. I'd known there was one in Brooklyn, but we didn't end up doing that. So, I didn't think we'd get on one this trip. Until I saw this one. It was perfect. It was small and cute. It seemed age-appropriate (lots of toddlers riding). It was only $3 and I could stand next to her for free. And it was playing French music (Dug's parents are retired French teachers). After watching it going around a couple times, we decided to let Izzy ride. Actually, I asked her if she wanted to and she said, "Yeah." So, we did. This was the only shot I could grab just before we started moving:



She seemed to enjoy herself. Glad we had a chance to do that. I'm sure Dug has more pictures, so I'll try to do some posts with his photos.

After that, we headed next door to the New York Public Library. We started off in the Kids' Room for a bit. Izzy ran around on the mat and played with some board books. I let her burn off a little steam there before moving on.

We checked out the famous Reading Room and various other things. Pretty cool building.

There was a super sweet librarian with a totally awesome "librarian hairdo" (I really wanted to take her picture, but resisted). She saw Izzy running around and was telling me how I should take her to the first floor because it's pretty empty and there are no stairs to fall down and she would love it, etc. And she was so sweet with Izzy - she obviously loved the little ones. Nice lady.

We finished our visit by checking out the special exhibit on kids' books. It was a really cool exhibit. Here's a few pictures of Izzy enjoying it:







One of the highlights for us was that they had the original stuffed animals that Winnie the Pooh and his friends were based on. That was pretty cool. Izzy got a kick out of them too. Gotta love a teddy bear!

The most fun part was that Izzy made a friend. A little girl named Nina who had just turned 2. It's awesome how easy it is to make friends at their age. It's like, "Hey, we both like to sit on this same surface? Best friends forever! I love you!"

I snapped a few pictures of their whirlwind friendship. First encounter:



Playing together:





Too sweet! We tried to move on and say goodbye, but Izzy ran back into the exhibit, about halfway through it, until she found Nina again. I let them play a bit longer, then we said goodbye and actually made our way out.

I think it was in this elevator that we ran into a lady who asked about Izzy, "Is he about 1 year old?" We responded that, "She is about 18 months." She congratulated herself on how good she was getting at guessing kids' ages. Really? So, guessing our 18 month old daughter is a 12 month old boy is pretty close? I guess. The pink jacket must have thrown her off.

We walked from the library to Times Square. I had seen in disneybarbie's TR in NYC that there are fake Disney (and other) characters roaming the area. And we saw them. They do not look right at all. And it didn't help that Minnie took off her head while we were in the area. And then she followed us (very closely) for a bit. Like touching me close. When we finally split off, Izzy caught sight of her and started waving happily. Guess she didn't care about Minnie's legitimacy.

We saw Toys 'R Us and wanted to check it out, but we didn't have time. Instead, we were on our way to John's Pizzeria. We got in fairly quickly. They had a spot to park the stroller (no need to fold). Izzy got started with her meal:



We got some little garlic bite appetizers to munch on. Not bad. We got a Hawaiian Pizza. It was tasty and we just barely managed to polish it off. No help from Izzy. I think she maybe ate one piece of pineapple. Maybe. Kid doesn't like pizza. The restaurant was a restored church and was really neat to look around, by the way.

Izzy passed out in the stroller on the walk back to the hotel:



Up next: Going home.

 

[Dugette]

As we walked back, I snapped a picture of our first night's dinner place:



Random thing: while we were walking, this guy talking loudly on a cell phone kept passing us and then stopping, so we ended up hearing most of his conversation. It was something like this: "Why does your mother say you don't want to talk to me? Why?....All I ask is that you stay in school and do the right thing, okay?...I know. I know your friends' parents are getting them new shoes and clothes and it's not that I don't want to...I do...but I've got to get out of jail first!"

Anyway, Izzy continued to nap in her stroller in the lobby as we used the restroom and retrieved our luggage:



We had called the car service earlier for a towncar at 3:15pm. Our black Camry showed up right on time. Those things have big trunks - the two suitcases and the stroller all fit! I installed Izzy's carseat in the back and was able to use LATCH. On a side note, I still have a giant bruise on my arm from trying to tighten her car seat on this day - be careful of how you leverage your arm! I attempted to keep from waking her, but had doubts about that. And, sure enough, she woke up in the transfer from stroller to car seat.



We set off on our way. We looked around as we drove out of the city, but all started getting pretty sleepy once we were out of downtown. Dug and Izzy both passed out:



I nodded off here and there, knowing that I would probably not get a chance again soon, what with managing Izzy on the plane and through a late night.

The drive took around an hour and we pulled up to see Dug's family at the same drop-off part of the airport. They had just arrived. Dug started to get out of the car and - crash - his iPhone fell out onto the pavement! And the screen broke! He was pretty upset, but we had to carry on (he was able to get it replaced this weekend for $49, I think - yay, Applecare!)

We did the skycap luggage check and headed in. We walked up to the pre-TSA person who was sending people into the actual lines. For some reason, she was baffled by what to do with a family with a toddler. She was saying that she thinks we get the pre-check line, but we don't have pre-check, so . She just seemed highly confused and was looking for someone to help her. We told her that we were in the family line on the way there, if that helped. She still was so confused. There had been no line in this area when we walked up, but now there was a long line behind us. We told her we'd just take any line, since we had already watched Dug's family go by (dad using wheelchair in airport, so they got ushered past us). Other people behind us started asking her if we could get in line. Eventually, the helper she'd been seeking came and led us to a certain line. Nobody told us anything, though. So, I asked the person there who was checking ID/boarding passes, "Is this the family line or a regular one?" She told us it was a regular one, but they were supposed to bring us to the family one. Okay, then. So, we had to take off shoes and all that jazz. It was fine and we were soon through. Lots of security checks on this trip - we were getting to be pros.

Once through, we grabbed seats with Dug's family. We had planned to have dinner in the airport, but weren't really hungry. We were thirsty, though, so I went and got us some pop from a nearby pizza place.

We passed the time, taking turns with Izzy. I walked her up and down the hall several times and so did her Nana. Her Papa played games with her and sang songs. When I was walking with her, I stopped up at the gate and asked about room for her carseat. They said nothing right now, but they'd let me know. That's what I figured, since the flight looked pretty full.

Eventually, I moved Izzy to the Ergo and shifted around her stuff between bags. Put the one that I didn't want to bring on the plane into the stroller gate check bag, once I'd put the stroller in it.

Soon, it was pre-boarding time and we went up. I asked once more to verify that we had to gate-check the carseat and she told us that they DID have room and to bring it on. We'd been moved to the first row behind First Class, the Economy Comfort section. Cool!

We got on and I had to take Izzy out of the Ergo and hand her off to Dug while I installed the carseat. The Economy Comfort is still as narrow and crowded as the regular seats, but there is more legroom. So, there was enough room to put her carseat in rear-facing (like we still do in the car). I tried to install it that way with the seatbelt. However, I could not get it even close to tightly installed. Between the armrests not being move-able in this row and the belt buckle's location vs. the belt path in the seat, it was way too loose. I ended up turning it forward and securing it a bit better that way. Still wasn't as secure as I'd want it in a car, but it was an airplane, after all. Better than having her on my lap, at least. I got her in the seat and got her snacks and comfort items:





Her first perusal of the Sky Mall magazine, which turned out to be one of her favorite things to do in-flight:



She liked flipping through it, pointing out pictures of doggies, and eventually ripping up some pages.

She also enjoyed reviewing her flight safety card:



She liked looking out the window, but we had to close the shade shortly into the flight, due to the bright sun coming in. Oh, and she also enjoyed playing with the window shade and figuring out how to operate it herself.

So, we had hoped that Izzy would fall asleep on this flight, as she was wiped out from the trip and lack of sleep, plus it was her normal bedtime. However, she was too wound up and stayed awake until right before we started our descent. Having her in her own seat saved me from that feeling of trying to wrangle a wild animal, but it was still a ton of work. The flight pretty much consisted of me giving her a toy, her playing with it for under 30 seconds, then her suddenly whacking me in the face with it. So, soft toys would have been wiser. She was occasionally interested in her thermos of milk also. Not really the Cheerios, though. She ate some of the airline cookie I gave her. I did have an "emergency lollipop", but never took it out, since she seemed like she'd just stick it in my hair or something by then.

One of the biggest hits was her little travel (generic Target dollar section) magna-doodle:



But it went something like this:

Izzy screams

I pull out magna-doodle and her face lights up with joy like it's the best thing she's ever seen

She realizes the cord for the stylus is tangled and decides it is actually the worst thing in the world and she needs to scream again

I fix the tangle and it becomes her very favorite possession

Until a minute later when she is done with it and needs to fling it at my face

We cycled through a lot of toys a lot of times on that flight. It was pretty ridiculous trying to keep her interested in anything. Plus, I think she was a bit constipated and uncomfortable by the way she was acting.

The biggest hit of the toy bag ended up being a little froggy finger puppet. We played, "Go, Go, Go!" with him. I'd pop him up from the side of her seat and we'd say "Go. Go. Goooooo!" and he'd run all over her and she'd giggle and giggle. We did that over and over again until she seemed to tire of it. Pretty adorable, though.

It was a lot of work keeping her occupied. And Dug was at least half-asleep in the aisle seat with his headphones in his ears, pretty much oblivious to everything. Oh, well. Eventually, she started getting quiet and calm. She finally accepted the blankie that she'd been rejecting. She spent about 10 minutes like that before finally closing her eyes and nodding off:



Ah, break time, finally! I had hoped to go to the restroom, but we began our descent right then. And I know I could have still gone, but it was getting a bit bumpy and just didn't seem like a wise idea. Plus, I didn't want her to wake up and find me gone and start screaming. So, I stayed and made trip notes in my phone instead. Nice to not have to worry about being smacked in the face.

When we landed, she was still sleeping, so we decided to let her rest and wait until everyone got off the plane before getting her and her seat out. We did and then put her in the Ergo. She woke up, but was pretty groggy and calm. Once we'd gotten our stroller bag, we headed for a restroom. I used it, then got Izzy and changed her diaper on the highest changing table I've ever encountered (seriously, it was at my armpit level!). I'd been thinking she had a dirty diaper due to all her facial expressions and discomfort. However, just a tiny nugget (sorry, TMI! ) Glad I didn't try to change her on the plane (I'd almost done that, but then she fell asleep).

We had an unusual way of getting home. Dug's car had been in the shop before our trip, since he'd slipped on a snowy day and hit a curb. Somehow, a very slow-moving car hitting a curb caused thousands of dollars of damage to his car. And they were STILL working on it. So, he needed to get another rental car until it was done. And he arranged to get it at the airport. So, we went to the rental area and got into a rental car and I installed Izzy's carseat (third install of the day - no wonder I got that bruise). We took that car back to Dug's sister's house and I got into my car. It was raining and cold out, by the way. We were going to grab some food from the Culver's drive-through on the way home, but missed their closing time of 10pm by a few minutes. We drove home (2 cars) instead and I grabbed us some Wendy's on the way. I ate in the car and brought Dug his food and we got Izzy home and to bed ASAP. She seemed happy to be home and went to sleep easily in her crib.

Overall, it was a great trip!

And now back to your regularly scheduled Disney trip report! (actually, I'll respond to comments and post Dug's pictures before that, but then more updates!) Hope you've enjoyed this little diversion.

 

[amazingact21]

Okay, just finished reading through your NYC trip. Let's see if I can remember to comment on everything.


Izzy's dress for the wedding was so pretty!



It's great that you guys had a mix of family/friends to visit and go places with. Sounds like anytime you wanted to go someplace, there was always someone else willing to meet up/tag along.


An hour wait for dinner...whew. At least Izzy had a friend to play with.


What a rude worker at the museum. Some people.




I have to say, reading your report has made me kind of want to put off traveling to any busy places once Landon hits that toddler stage. You had to be exhausted at the end of every day! (But, hooray on Izzy sleeping through the night! I hope she keeps it up. Landon began doing that about 2 weeks ago, it's pretty much the best thing ever.)

I guess, if nothing else, the NYC trip was good practice for your Hawaii trip this fall.

 

[Avojeo]

I have been lurking on your report but I had to post today I have really enjoy your NYC trip report. I cannot believe all the stuff you got done in NYC. I have a DD just a little bit older than Izzy. Shiloh was born in July. I could not imagine what all you did in NYC with her. It has been a great trip report including the Disney!!!

 

[Dugette]

Okay, I worked my way through Dug's 1900+ photos from our trip and pulled out some to post for you. My general rule was, "If this is the sort of picture that one could find on Google Images or something, then no need to post. If this is something unique to our trip or that helps to tell the story, then post." It's still going to take 3 posts and I can't use many smilies or I'll hit the image limit! These may seem a bit random, but I'll keep them in chronological order at least. Here we go!

Izzy and the wings she received on the flight there:



After we got off our flight (yes, on the stairway!), while the crew was looking for my Fitbit, I think:



A nice shot of the view from our window at the Best Western Seaport Inn:



Creative family portrait in our hotel room:



Unique ice cream flavors in Chinatown. I got the Mango Papaya Sorbet, which was great:



Dug got something made from a leaf? Can't remember. Izzy tried some of each as we sat in the nearby park:



Enjoying the park in Chinatown (I think she's looking at birds in the first one):





Like the shot of Izzy behind the pizza, I guess Dug took one of me too. This one is at Rubirosa, though. Vodka sauce pizza, yum (and gnocchi underneath it):



Walking along the water, on the way to the Statue of Liberty boat:



The line for the Statue of Liberty boat (notice the statue in the distance). I think we bypassed this one because we already had tickets? Not sure:



Admiring the original torch in the museum area:



Izzy knows the nose:



And loves pointing out ears:



That was the "for touching" statue where she pointed out all the facial features we asked her about.

I would not like to get stepped on by Lady Liberty. This must be what it feels like to be a small dog:



Looking up from the pedestal to the spiral staircase that goes to the crown:



Dug's DS & DBIL did go up there, by the way. Pretty cool, but looked really cramped, based on their pictures. Neat, though.

On the pedestal:



Notice me and Izzy at the bottom of this picture. We totally copied another guy doing this with his kids (taking picture from lower level while others peek down from higher level):



Looks like Dug was having fun taking pictures on the upper deck of the boat where I was dealing with the invisible stroller:



The protest on the steps of City Hall:



Ha, creative panorama on the Brooklyn Bridge. Note the bridge is not actually curved:



I just thought this was a cute pic Dug got of Izzy on the bridge:



And then she fell asleep:



Our Peaches & Cream while waiting for the ferry back from Brooklyn:



View from the dock while waiting:



More pictures in next post!

 

[Dugette]

Izzy really enjoyed the brief ferry ride. You can see a tiny Statue of Liberty in the background too:



Part of our scenic drive up to the B&B for the wedding:



The building on the left is where our room was at the B&B. The building on the right is the barn where the reception was. The building where we had meals was behind us. The wedding was way out behind that across a field and by a stream:



The wedding couple's dogs:



The back one was in the ceremony (ring bearer - really!), but the front one was just in the audience. Until he freaked out during the wedding and they let him stand with his person (the bride). So, he kinda forced his way into the ceremony.

Izzy was SO happy to see the doggies:



So, Dug's photos have a whole bunch of attempts at this point to get a family photo of us before the wedding. They are all ridiculous outtakes of us attempting to get Izzy to cooperate. Well, we soon realized that, if we had the photographer stand in front of the dogs, she would be looking the right direction and smiling. So, DBIL took this one with his camera:



Oh, yeah, that picture we waited around forever for Nana to take of Izzy in front of the pond with frogs before leaving? I don't know how it turned out, but Dug captured how that went:



Notice how coordinated we are in our blue striped shirts!

Nice shot of the Empire State Building and moon from the Highline Park:



In line for the Empire State Building, standing by a model of it:



Nice panorama from the observation deck:



I'm not entirely sure from this picture if Izzy is happy or angry. I'm thinking happy, because I don't remember her being upset while up there. But, she is a toddler, so who knows:



Family photo in Grand Central after lunch there:



Nice carriage shot from Central Park. We never did get to ride in one:



Oh, yeah, how did I forget to mention the skateboarding dog in my report?! We saw that in Central Park:



Izzy pointing out the dinosaur behind us:



Pretending we're at the Polynesian:



Teddy bears:



Waiting in line for Ellen's Stardust Diner with the other family. One of them must have been playing Peek-a-Boo with Izzy:



They took a family photo for us after dinner:



Also, one of the photos I saw while reviewing them reminded me of something: when we parted from this other family with the little boy in Times Square, the kids paci-kissed goodbye (he kissed her pacifier). Too cute!

Gotta love a helpful Disney Cast Member (ha ha, guess I forgot that she apparently drained a whole Minnie shelf after finishing with the Mickey shelf!):



Izzy and her special Minnies:



Giant puppy attack at FAO Schwarz:



These were the giant-sized Peanut Butter Cups I considered buying for my co-workers (yes, two peanut butter cups in there, I could feel them):



More pictures coming right up!