NYC day 3

Day 3 ferry ride and subway into the city, this time with Ruth!

It was the coldest day yet...we went and stood in line with our tickets to see the Ground Zero monument.  I had taken some time beforehand to explain 9/11 to the kids, and we read about it and looked at some pics and videos online.  What an overwhelmingly powerful statement!

It's a massive opening in the ground with water cascading down all four sides which pools and then drops down even lower into a square opening that appears to have no end...

Around the edges of the square monument are the names of all the people who lost their lives.

We were all shivering so we went to get hot chocolate andwe took a breather before going to look for a place in Little Italy to eat lunch.  It was a hoot as we walked down the street with all the restaurants because of course there were Italian men outside every door trying to coax us in.  "Low prices! Best food you'll find!  Great atmosphere!  "And my favorite and the one that helped us make up our minds, "free drinks for the kids!" (which never ended up happening)   The kids have never been so entertained and they talked about all the crazy, loud guys for a while.  I'm not sure if we lucked out and picked the right place, or if we were just really hungry and in the mood for pasta and cheese, but everything was scrumptious!

Avery and her speghetti...

Caleb and Presley chose lasagna - cheezy and delish!

 We had a great time and definitely left with our tummies full!

We decided to go check out the American Museum of Natural History next.  We did it the free way because it was going to be a pretty hefty museum fee (see below!)  so our ticket didn't include all the exhibits but we saw some dinosaurs and walked around and then sat around while Dad and Caleb went on a hunt for things shown in the movie Night at the Museum.  They definitely found quite a few...

Here's a favorite - 

We sent Ruth back with the kids that night and Aaron and I went to see Les Miserables, which was kind of the reason to do the whole New York City trip in the first place.  Aaron's good friend from high school played the vital part of Jan val Jean and it was amazing to hear how well he did!  We loved it!

We went around the theater afterward and went into his dressing room to say hi.  I told Aaron on our way home late that night when we were both exhausted that we better take a picture of us and our night...so this is what we got.

NYC day 2

The next morning after a good sleeping in, we found the world's largest escalator (in the subway!) on our way to Grand Central Station.  We explored the station and had some lunch in that busy place.

Next we headed to the NYC public library.  There was a display downstairs about children's books where we definitely recognized the monster silhouette!  We took a break and sat down in the children's section of the library for a few minutes before heading to Central Park.

We lucked out that afternoon with some beautiful, warm spring weather and the kids had fun climbing on the rocks and playing on the playground at the park.

On our way out of the park and walking to FAO Schwartz, we stopped to watch some street performers.  The kids were enthralled for a few minutes watching how they interacted with the audience and how they literally did running flips over people - not without collecting dollar bills first, of course!

The kids had a lot of fun in the toy store!  They stood in line to have a try on the floor piano and posed by just about every large lego creation...

Next it was a walk through crowded time square to meet Ruth - she had just made her way from the airport.  We were so excited to have her with us for the rest of the trip.  It seemed like we all were reenergized and in better moods as soon as she joined us!

We explored the M&M store and then went to Toy's R US too - the kids rode the indoor Ferris Wheel with Ruth while mom and dad rested our legs!

Back outside the night life and lights had taken over...we stopped and had mexican food before heading back to our place on Staten Island via subway and ferry.

Spring break '14! NYC day 1

Spring break this year started out pretty normal - lovely weather for a scooter ride at the park!

However, it soon became a little out of the ordinary when we loaded the car and started driving north:  final destination, NYC!  On the way we stopped about halfway in VA and had some Cafe Rio that we were craving.  Their burritos are the best!

We stayed in a vacation home on Staten Island.  It was an older place but quaint and great for our needs - lots of rooms and beds everywhere.  After checking it out when we got there we headed to the ferry station to catch the free ferry to the city.  It was getting dark by then - this is a view from the one we were on and looking at the other that was heading back.  We also got a first view of the Statue of Liberty on our left which we got to see every day on our way to and from the city.  Pictures to come!

We hopped on the subway, but not before meeting Marsha, who told us all about how we should navigate the subway with kids from that point on.  She gave us some pretty good advice that saved us quite a bit of subway fare:  have a kid or two go under the metal bar before or with a paying adult.  Aaron and I were a little nervous to try it, but we did it, and it soon proved to be very doable for the rest of the trip.  She got on the train with us and talked to us the whole time as we figured out the best route to the Rockefeller Center stop.  She was a little gruff and dirty, but very friendly and definitely a New Yorker! The kids weren't sure at first, and even asked whether she was a boy or a girl after we got off at our stop :)

Before buying tickets and going to the top for a view of the city, we stopped in at a small NY pizza place and had a huge, thin slice!


The top of the Empire State building was blue that night in honor of Autism awareness, so that was fun - the color and the connection to Tyler!  It was a fantastic night view of the enormous city, all lit up and sparkling!  It was too cold and windy to get a picture of us outside, so here we are next to one of the windows...

Another entertaining, blue detail were the lights in the room at the top of the Rockefeller Center.  It was soooo late when we headed home and we were exhausted, but so glad we made the effort to go because it we did have a great time!