Oct 7: The Big City

We started the day in New York with fresh bagels from a Jewish deli a few blocks away that I'd actually read about in the in-flight magazine. The boys love bagels, just like the rest of us, so it was a big treat.


The boys had so many playmates, there was no need to go anywhere for a while.




We can hear the horns and sirens of the city, but muffled by 37 stories of vertical distance, they become a soothing background noise in this apartment oasis.


Baby Pete had lots of playmates too, and he made lots of cute faces and sweet little noises, and he never cried, except when someone had to suction his nose.








Finally, we ventured out, but just a few blocks east to Central Park - except Greg, who had to go to work, and Adam, whose cold had gotten much worse and left him sick in bed.


The park has awesome playgrounds and climbing rocks, plus so much space to run, but it takes constant vigilance to make sure you don't lose sight of your kids in a crowd of people.


My mom was not about to lose sight of Isaac. When he took off climbing up this huge rock, she was right behind him in her slippery shoes. I had no idea my mom could climb up a rock so fast.
You can see her in red in this photo, and you can see how far away the rest of us were.


We finally caught up, but Isaac was in good hands. Look at those shoes!


One of the best parts of this playground was a set of monkey bars low enough for preschoolers.


Even Jonah could reach some of the bars! Which he loved.


Isaac was soon worn out after all that playing. So we stopped for hummus pitas and ate them on the way home.


This is the view I dream about after we leave New York. The cityscape is beautiful by day, but it's absolutely spectacular from sunset on.
As we go to sleep each night, we lay in bed and watch the lights twinkling and the changing colors on top of the Chrysler building, like a visual lullaby.

Oct 6: Morning in NJ, Afternoon in New York!

On our second day in New Jersey, Grandma had to teach in the morning, but she came home to eat some yummy local pizza with us for lunch. In the meantime, the boys had fun acting like brothers:



and playing with their grandparents' adorable new dog.






After lunch, we took some cute pictures of the boys with Grandma.











We said goodbye after lunch and drove into the city. Actually, I drove us into the city so Adam could get some more work done - and it was fun! New York is only about 45 minutes away, but it's a different world. I love watching the housing get denser, the traffic get thicker and faster, and the buildings get taller as we approach the GW bridge.

We were soon at Jane and Greg's apartment, where we found a sweetly cooing baby Pete, beautiful mama Jane, and no Greg yet, as he was on his way home from California. The boys were enthralled with their new cousin, and he gave them lots of eye contact too!
Jonah soon started asking for him; he walked into our room when Pete had disappeared to nurse and demanded: "I want know where Baby Pete is!"

As dinnertime approached, Jane and the boys and I walked north to an Italian restaurant for dinner; Adam stayed home to work but was going to meet us a bit later. It looked a little fancy for two lively boys - white tablecloths, candles, and an atmosphere that made me want to settle in with a glass of wine - but they are usually well-behaved in restaurants, and they're certainly used to them...Maybe it was a bad sign when Jonah was unusually cranky and noisy while waiting for his food. We appeased him with the warm bread and a few toys, but then Isaac got cranky too. It was work, but still worth it - great wine, amazing food, sitting at the table with Jane and little Pete. Adam finally arrived as we were finishing our dinner, and he ordered a glass of wine and ate what was left of the food. Isaac had loved his gnocci but was still cranky and thrashing around a little on the bench beside me.

With Adam there, I was just starting to really relax, and I imagine he was too, when Isaac pulled his knees up to his chest and then kicked his legs out, directly into the edge of the table. His side went up in the air like a sinking ship, and an absolutely spectacular geyser of food and red wine shot up in the air and landed all over us. The ravioli bowl now held wine soup, Jonah and Pete on the other side of the table were partly colored in pink polka dots of wine, and Adam...poor Adam had been sitting directly across from Isaac, and the wine, food and even the burning candle had all just landed directly in his lap.

Luckily, the waiters had a sense of humor, as did the couple at the table just next to us. I can only hope they weren't cleaning spots of wine off their clothes too that night.

It was a fine line between letting Isaac know the gravity of what he'd done and not leaving him too sad. In the end, the excitement of the subway ride home made him forget everything else. But even after some cleaning, Adam's pants did not forget:




Sweet Pete, on his first subway ride, was perfectly happy:


Here's the first picture of the three cousins together:


Jonah was so happy to run around and play before bed.



And then the big moment came. Once in Jersey, we'd told the boys that we were next going to New York to see Jane and Greg and meet baby Pete. But we didn't tell them my parents were going to be there.
Their plane was delayed, and we were waiting after dinner for the knock on the door...My mom was updating us on their progress from airport to taxi to hotel to us, and we knew they were close. Then finally, while we were hanging out playing around the sofa, there was a knock. We asked Isaac to go open the door.
When he did, there was my dad standing there. Isaac stopped and stared, my dad stared at him, and then they both started laughing, with Isaac near tears as he jumped into his arms. And Jonah heard the commotion and went running to the door as fast as his legs could carry him. It was the best surprise I've ever seen.

Oct 5: New Jersey

The morning my parents left, we had a surprise for the boys: we were flying to New Jersey the next day to visit Adam's parents. Little did the boys or my dad know but we were actually going to Jersey and then on to New York, where we three sisters, plus kids and husbands and my parents, would all be together in honor of my dad's 60th birthday. It was a grand secret, orchestrated by Jane, that we'd been keeping for quite a while. We had a big dinner planned with babysitters arranged, thanks again to Jane, and we'd somehow gotten through the whole weekend in Colorado without letting it slip.

But first, we had a relaxing, fun visit in Jersey. Here, we're at Jockey Hollow, a historic farm and house in Morristown where George Washington's troops spent a long winter during the Revolutionary War. The woods are gorgeous, and the boys had fun darting around the open spaces, giggling and chasing leaves.



Adam stayed home to work, but Margie and Bob and the boys and I had a fun outing, finishing with lunch in the cute, historic center of Morristown.

Oct 2: Babop's 60th

On our last day at the ranch, we all got one more ride.



While Adam and I were galloping through pine forests and hiking up to a flat rock overlook of the whole valley and snowcapped peaks beyond, the boys got to spend a few last hours playing with my parents.




They climbed rocks and played in the fire pit.



Then we headed out for the fairly short drive home - a drive that took us right past Harvestival, the fall festival at our CSA farm.


It was fun to see where our veggies come from, and we ate lunch and listened to the live music. The boys were still hungry after their hot dogs, and I thought they needed something fresh, so I went searching for more food and came back with an entire farm-grown watermelon. It was $1 per slice or three for the whole thing - easy choice.




While we all enjoyed the watermelon, the music stopped and an absolutely fascinating woman took the stage. The two-day entertainment is a mix of music and lectures, and once she started talking, I didn't miss the music. She is a CSU professor named Temple Grandin, an autistic woman who has an incredible understanding of animal behavior and who was actually on the Time Magazine list of the world's 100 most influential people. She has the kind of presence that makes you stop what you're doing and just listen; she is funny, engaging, very intelligent, and fascinating. I had no idea how well-known she is until I looked her up later. We were lucky to be at Harvestival at just that moment.


Isaac was less interested...and he wanted a second hot dog instead of watermelon. Isaac can put away two hot dogs as fast as most of us eat one. Our little vegetarian, in spite of his distaste for meat dishes, sure loves these three animal-derived products: hot dogs, good salami and of course bacon.


However, the watermelon was pretty yummy - it's usually one of his favorite things - and the six of us managed to finish the whole thing.




Our last stop was the pumpkin patch, which was just a field of pumpkins brought from elsewhere on the farm.


Each boy found a favorite, but we only got one for free with our membership.


So we brought it back in the stroller and headed home.


On the way to the car, we passed the chicken buses. The farm's many, many chickens roost here at night and scratch around for bugs all day. When they've finished fertilizing and de-bugging one field of crops, the farm workers move the buses to the next. If you're familiar with Virginia farmer Joel Salatin - you won't be surprised that he is a hero of our CSA farmers. No pesticides or fertilizer needed.


After a quick rest at home, we all met at a great neighborhood restaurant to celebrate my dad's birthday dinner. He picked Root Down, a veggie-centric place in a trendy, refashioned garage, perched on a hill with wide, beautiful views of the Denver skyline. It was a wonderful dinner with good wine, good food, a perfect evening temperature and a beautiful patio table where we could watch the skyscrapers light up as the light faded. Happy 60th to my amazing dad. And thanks for dinner (: