We pulled the boys out of bed and tossed them in their carseats and plugged in a movie~I love whoever invented the portable DVD player. Mykah set her alarm for 5:30 since we were leaving at 6, but she was up before it went off, so excited for our day! Thanks to Diane, we knew we wouldn't want the big stroller, so we packed up our 2 umbrella strollers and backpacks and hit the road! Not far after the PA border, Joe realized that HE forgot to pack shoes for Max, so we drove around for a few minutes looking for a store where we could rest for a moment, have snacks and get Max some new shoes! Gotta love Kohls for opening before 8:30am and carrying "Cars" themed shoes for cheap! We got both boys changed out of jammies and hit the road again, still a couple hours from The City.
There are several ways from here to get to NYC, but to maximize our day, we drove to New Jersey for 2 reasons~Mykah has been collecting postcards since our drive across the country 3 years ago. She gets 1 from every state we've been in, so we wanted her to get one from New Jersey. Also, we knew if we went by ferry to the Statue of Liberty, we'd get suckered into the tourist trap and end up buying everyone a foam crown & torch. We wanted to see her, but not let the tourist aspect cheapen what she stands for. By driving to Jersey, we were able to see the Statue of Liberty in all her majesty from our ferry to The City and it was PERFECT!!
The second reason for choosing this way was we knew that at Maxie's age, he wouldn't be impressed with much from our trip. At 3, he'll never remember any of the things that Joe, Mykah and I will remember, but he had so much fun on the ferry!! He was so animated and excited to see the splashing water and was yelling the most adorable, fascinated things!! I genuinely believe that he caused a few of those seasoned city-goers to stop and see what they see every day through a child's eyes. Several people stopped on their way off the ferry to tell us how sweet our family was, specifically Max.
From Battery Park, where we walked after being dropped off, we got hot dogs from a street vendor and then took a cab to Times Square. This is our first look as we stepped out of the cab~ my jaw dropped, and I wished I could turn down the volume ALREADY~ IT WAS SO LOUD!
The first specific thing I wanted to see was the New Year Ball. It was surprising how small it actually is!
Our next destinations were right there in Times Square~ Toys-R-Us and the M & M Store. The Toys-R-Us is so big, it has a ferris wheel inside (another novelty we didn't take part in)!
The M & M Store was also a must, since Maxie is obsessed with the candy. If you follow my blog, you know he doesn't eat them, just sorts them into piles by color over & over again. This son of mine was so flabergasted by the rows & rows of M & Ms (one whole wall was sorted in huge tubes by color), that he was speechless. That is a rarity these days~if he can't think of anything to say, he quotes movies. This boy even talks in his sleep, so it almost brought Joe & I to tears that he had no words for this wonderful place:) The miniture M & Ms have finally helped us complete his potty training, so we actually did break out the debit card for bags of M & Ms, but you should have seen him trying to decide what colors and/or blends he wanted. It was the least we could give for FINALLY having him fully potty-trained, so thank you, mini M & Ms!
Can't you just see the reverence in his eyes as he's gazing at his bag!! By the way, the employees went crazy over the fact that we have M & M kids (Mykah & Max, for you non-regulars), so Mykah was feeling pretty special by the time we left, too.
Aterwards, we hit the pavement and started walking. Mykah really wanted to see where the Today Show is filmed, so we headed toward Rockerfeller Plaza. Joshie Bear is obsessed with his feet these days and won't leave socks on, which is why he's barefoot in this~cute story to follow~and he FINALLY decided to take a nap during this walk. He'd been awake the entire day so far!
OK, here's the reality of NYC. In this first pic, I am standing with my head back looking up as far as I can. That's how freakin' tall these buildings are and I totally didn't care that I was non-verbally screaming "I'm a tourist"! You don't see this stuff in Soda Springs/Pocatello Idaho!
We all enjoyed Rockerfeller Center and all it had to offer. Mykah & Max really liked the iceskating rink, and I have to admit, watching the Today Show this week has been kinda fun! Knowing we were there and being able to picture the entire layout makes you feel sort of special, in a very geeky way! The title of this post already warned you that I'm a hick, so get over it:)
Can't go without seeing Radio City Music Hall, where Josh decided he needed a break from the stroller!
Although we weren't planning to go to Central Park, we were making pretty good time and decided to go~
This little TURD~as previously mentioned, Josh is obsessed with his feet. While walking back to Times Square from Central Park on 6th Avenue, Josh pulled his socks off for the 50th time that day! He dropped one of them and since it was 5:00pm and there were a MILLION people on the street, we left it! By the way, Mom, Josh needs new socks!
Can you see the devil in him? That's from Joe's side of the gene pool;)
The only place we didn't get to go that we really wanted to was the site of the Twin Towers. It's under construction, so you can't get anywhere near it. But we had such a wonderful day and are so blessed to carry these memories with us when we leave. The cab ride back to Pier 11 was perfectly stereotypical of a NY cab ride and, although Mykah was disappointed that we didn't end up in the Cash Cab, she held on for dear life and thanked heaven that neither of her parents drive like that!
This picture reminds me of the last leg of our journey here in New York. I couldn't help but feel like I saw this as a reminder of what is to come for our family. Here we were in a cab in New York, but only 6 weeks from moving to Tiffin, Ohio, where we begin the next chapter in our Borich Family Story. This was the only light that our cab driver actually stopped at and the symbolism didn't escape me.
Since we are still here, though, we aren't ending this chapter yet. Like our day trip to The City, there is still more to see and take in before we leave, so I won't let this be the last picture on this entry.
Just as beautiful on the way out as it was on the way in! What a fantastic day...
Although Joe is already in Tiffin, our official move date is April 23rd. We'll pack up our home when Joe returns after spring ball on the 18th and leave central New York and the life we've made here~for now. We'll be renting a home in Tiffin~we feel so blessed that we were able to sell our home here, but we can't imagine that Tiffin is very hopping as far as real estate goes. Please pray that we'll be able to find a house that will be perfect for our family, including Bodie, and that our transition will be as smooth as possible when the time comes.
Until then, we pray that we will be able to see and make the most out of every single opportunity that comes our way during our time remaining.
2 comments:
Megan - I loved your trip to the big city. My hubby and I made it to NYC a couple of years ago and we loved every minute of it. We too did all the tourist things. We also went to the Today show and were fortunate enough to meet Meredith and Natalie and see Al. We also had to hit FAO Schwartz to see the "Big" piano. It was a lot of fun and one day we want to go back (my hubby is a huge Mets fan). Good Luck in Ohio.
Ooh I want to go back now, so much more to see. :) Love the memories that we can make with our families with the smallest gestures like M&M's and ferry rides.
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