NYC!

Be forewarned there are entirely too many photos in this post.
 
Eiley won first place in a national science competition in which she had to design a space themed Rube Goldberg contraption.  Here's a link to an overview of the design.  The prize was an all expense paid trip for three to NYC with two nights in Le Parker Meridian, driver service, and tickets to the premier of the movie Gravity with a chance to meet the stars, Sandra Bullock and George Clooney. 

 



 

Eiley and her best friend, Morgan, after unpacking in our hotel room.  We were on the 21st floor.  We thought about going to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, a Broadway play or the Central Park Zoo but we ended up just exploring the hotel and walking through Central Park on the way to meet Caroline for dinner at Sarabeth's.  The food was truly incredible and it was so much fun to see Caroline.  Caroline and I had steak and the girls ordered 'adult' grilled cheese on a pretzel roll and tomato soup.  Caroline and I shared some wine (recommended by Morgan as her mother's favorite) and we all shared a blueberry crisp with ice cream for dessert.   

at Sarabeth's

Part of our prize was $150 per night for incidental at the hotel.  The first night the girls ordered milkshakes through room service, just for the extravagance of it.  The next morning we had a huge breakfast. 

 

 
 
On the top floor of our hotel was the indoor pool, and a cat walk to view the city. 
 

 

Morgan was scared of the heights...

 

but overcame the fear to pose for a moment with Eiley.

In the hotel was a salon called The DryBar where they wash and style your hair.  They said walk-ins were welcome but when we went to make an appointment for the late afternoon they said they were filled for the whole day.  Who would have thought that service would be so popular?  They referred us to Salon Ziba down the street, and after spending half an hour to find it, we made an appointment for the girls to get their hair styled at 4:00.  We had smoothies for lunch, then returned to the hotel to get a little break from the noise, chaos and smells of the city.
 

from this...

to this.

And from this...

to this.

We were all delighted with the experience but when they were done we had only 20 minutes to find our way back to the hotel and get dressed before our ride arrived to take us to the premier. 
 

in the SUV on the way to the premier

looking like a movie star!

Caroline, it is a good thing you didn't come to take photos of us on the red carpet.  We didn't actually walk on it.  When I called our contact from Warner Bros to say we had arrived, she was inside and directed us how to get in via a side door.  I didn't realize until too late that it meant we weren't getting a chance to go in walking the red carpet.  The biggest disappointment for Eiley, the only disappointment really, was that we did not get to meet Sandra Bullock.  Kevin, the representative from Iridescent (the parent company of Curiosity Machine who hosted the contest) was continuing throughout the movie to try to get us the opportunity to meet SB but it didn't happen.  We did see her in the audience, sitting about eight rows behind us.  There were other famous folks there also - George Clooney, Jon Stewart, Katie Holmes, Emma Stone and probably a lot of others - but we didn't recognize any of them; Eiley had eyes only for Sandra.  Sigh.

inside the AMC Lincoln Square Theater

Eiley with her on-line mentor for the project, Bonnie Lei - wearing their 3D glasses

Eiley and Morgan after the movie, since we didn't have time beforehand



at our 9:45pm dinner reservation at Max Brenner following the premier...
we had a delicious crispy pizza and chocolate fondue

 

Eiley woke the next morning and finished up her homework then we had another delicious, decadent breakfast in our room.  Eiley had cheesecake and a plate of fruit and Devonshire cream, Morgan had 'grown up' grilled cheese and fries.  I had a Belgium waffle!  The girls had milk, I got a fruit smoothie and we shared a basket of Norma's sweet breads.  The cost was $140.

 



 

 

 

Now for a look around the hotel room...

 

 

a tv that swivels from the living room to the bedroom

 

 

I loved the walk in shower which was ~8 feet long with no doors, only a plate of glass

 

 

The price list for the above wet bar.  Yikes! 
I had several of the $6 waters, and Eiley had two of the $5 Cokes.

 

It was a wonderful three days full of excitement, new experiences and a lot of extravagance.  Iridescent did a wonderful job taking care of us.  We felt so pampered and cared for.  I didn't realize how much I would appreciate having a driver (who also drove George Clooney earlier that day) was waiting for us all evening to take us where we wanted to go.  We felt really safe even though we were in a big city none of us were familiar with.  And Eiley and Morgan were so much fun to be around.  This is going to be a hard vacation to top!

Precious Life



to Chilli~

 

Remember when you were here are you found the baby squirrel that had fallen out of its nest onto our porch?  This is what happened today...

 

Eiley, Armand, Elio and I were doing stretches on the floor.  I was sore because I've started doing Crossfit and Armand was sore because he has started running for exercise.  As we were stretching we heard an unusual noise outside and noticed a strange acting squirrel.  Soon we discovered a baby was laying on the porch again, exactly where it was last time.  We had a heavy rain storm last night and I guess the nest wasn't up for it.  I picked it up and was wondering what to do when Eiley came outside to bring Olive in.  She squealed and ran back in because she almost stepped on a second baby I hadn't noticed.  Both were uninjured.

 

 

The mama was definitely interested in having her babies back but we wanted to get them in a safe place away from our cats and Arria.  The babies were so precious to hold and cuddle, so fragile and sweet.  They were cool to the touch so we tried to warm them by holding our hands over them, then put them in a basket with a warmed bean bag and a towel.   In the picture above, the brother is on top and the sister below. 

 

We decided to hang the basket in a tree hoping the mama would retrieve them and take them back home.  We watched for a while but the mama stayed high in the tree making unhappy squirrel noises.  I put a little food for her on the ground and a bit in the basket thinking she didn't know where they were but maybe the smell of food would get her attention.  About an hour later I called a local wildlife organization to make sure I was doing all I could to get her to take the babies back.  We really didn't want to give them to a rehabilitator like we did last time.  I was told we were doing everything right and to call back if they were still there in three hours.  When I was on the phone I noticed the mama was coming a little further down the tree towards the basket.

About an hour later Eiley went outside to see how they were doing and came in excitedly saying 'They are gone!'  The mama had gotten her babies!  It was a great relief and we all felt successful in reuniting the family.  And we all wished we could hold the babies again!  Oh they were precious!



Eiley removing the basket from the tree once it was empty.

 

Florida

For the past several summers, Noah has gone to spend a week with my mom during the summer.  He enjoys visiting with her, working on a project or two with Poppa, hanging out with his friend Jesse and generally being away from his immediate family, I think.

This year Eiley, Armand, Elio and I tagged along.  We planned to spend a few days all together, then Armand, Elio and I would scoot over to the other coast to meet up with Amelia, Elio's Guatemalan cousin, whom we've only met once before when the kids were 3 years old.

We went to the Ponce de Leon Springs where we had all-you-can eat, make-at-the-table pancakes in a very hot and crowded restaurant.  This is a tradition for Noah's summer visit, always bringing Jesse with him, but this year I decided I think I'd prefer to save the $80 that breakfast costs for 7 people, make all-you-can eat pancakes at home and go to a less crowded, more spring-y spring next time.  Mom said you can't break with tradition, and maybe she's right, but I think I'll try to start a new one the next time we visit.

We went to Sandestin Resort in Destin, FL to meet Amelia's family who was coming from Louisiana. It was a perfect location that Amelia's mom suggested.  They have luxurious apartments, activities to entertain the whole family, great restaurants that were surprisingly reasonably priced, beautiful pools, and paths to walk or bike along.

Elio, as soon as he saw Amelia, because incredibly shy and ran into the bushes.  He had not mentioned feeling shy at all so his behavior came as a surprise to me.  He took a long time to come out of the bushes and when he did, he was aloof and wild acting.  Dear Amelia clearly wanted to talk with him but all he could do was run and hope she'd chase him.  (Luckily she did.)  He seemed like he truly didn't know what to do with himself and all his emotions.



Elio with too much energy for a photo shoot
 

feeding fish
 

Elio and Amelia tried bungee jumping
 

 

 

 

 

I think Armand felt a bit of a third wheel.  While we always call Amelia the 'boys' cousin', it is well known that she is Elio's cousin really.  And Amelia had definite eyes for Elio.  I love the photo series below from our breakfast the morning after meeting. 

 



Elio stealing a look at Amelia

Amelia glancing back at Elio

Elio getting nervous because Amelia is talking to him

'What??' 

Soon after these photos were taken we wanted to give Amelia a little gift and Elio was so nervous he left the table and didn't return until the food was served.

After breakfast we went swimming in the pool. Amelia brought water squirters for the three of them so Elio and Amelia were on one team and Armand the other. After a long time Armand asked if he and Amelia could be on one team against Elio.  Amelia said no.  He asked if he and Elio could be against her and she said no again.  She said 'I won't shoot my cousin' to which Elio replied 'I will!'  So much of their interaction seemed classic boy-girl.  I felt like I was getting some clues about what they'll be like with their first crushes. 

driving boats
 

waiting to bungee jump again
 

Elio finally feeling a little more comfortable
at the end of the second day
 

Amelia and Elio gearing up to ride a zip line

Amelia is very brave.  She had no hesitation about riding a zip line high above the lake.  Elio initially didn't want to do it but Amelia convinced him to try.  They climbed to the top of the launch tower but after Amelia went, Elio decided to come back down instead.  He tried to be brave!

The goodbye was hard for Elio also; he just didn't know how to handle it.  He even left at one point and watched us from the outside through the window.  Amelia wanted to give Elio a goodbye hug but Elio just couldn't do it.  He hugs other friends easily, but he couldn't hug her.  He kept his hands up behind his head and Amelia did the best she could.

Elio, Armand, Amelia and Julia
 

 

 

We have talked about making it a yearly tradition to meet Amelia and her family at Sandestin.  I think it would be great for the children to maintain their relationship and I look forward to bringing the whole family next time.

 

 

The boys and I returned to my mom's house for a few more day where we swam in the pool, played Mexican Train, ate a special dinner to celebrated Eiley's birthday and visited with friends.  And once we got the van jumped and bought a new battery, we were on the road home once again!

Eiley the Great

When Eiley was 3 I thought she was a perfect 3 year old and I could never imagine her being any older. And now that she is 13 I'll say she is a perfect 13 year old also.  Some of those years in the middle I spent not looking forward to her teen years but now that they are here we get along better than ever.  In fact, I love having teenagers.  Love it! 



Eiley at 3, sneaking nibbles of a sugar skull in front of our Day of the Dead ofrenda.
Noah, 6, is offended because Eiley is being irreverent. 
His arms were crossed because he thought that was more respectful of the dead.
 

And 10 years later, still being silly!

This year we went to the mountains of Virginia to celebrate Eiley's birthday.  We rented an historic cabin-turned-bed & breakfast. 

Eiley had asked for the Guess Who? game she remembered liking as a child.  We played a few rounds and Eiley was like 'Isn't this a fun game??' and I was like 'Yeah!!' but about 15 minutes later we were done with the thrill.  'Do you think we should return it to Target?' 'Yeahhh'. 

playing Guess Who?

The next day we went tubing down the Shenandoah River.  We had a great time just drifting along talking about our dreams; Eiley wants to be a movie star and I want to write books.

That night we went to see a local production of The Importance of Being Earnest.  With Eiley's interest in acting she was as excited as I was.  It went very late and we were very tired, but we made it though and it was great.  They even had delicious tiny cucumber sandwiches at the concession stand. 

this is Eiley's new favorite photo

 

Every year we get a picture of us together in front of the sign of the place we stayed.  This year the sign didn't give the name of the cabin, only the address... Jiggady Road.  Made us giggle, that name.