Today we went to the New York Botanical Garden to see their holiday train display. It was colder today, in the upper 30's, so it was a perfect day to spend in the greenhouse. We have been very lucky with the weather this trip, especially for this time of year. I made a wrong turn on the way there so it took us a little longer to get there but James and I make a good team and we were able to find it without too much trouble.
The train display was beautiful and the boys were all so good! All of them were fascinated by the trains although they did have a hard time not touching the different buildings, which looked as if they were made with various plant materials. The boys did take turns using the camera to take pictures of their favorite trains. We even found Percy! Chesney was a little disappointed though that he couldn't find the Polar Express.
The greenhouse was very warm and after about an hour we were ready to get out into the fresh air. I may have dressed everyone too warmly... On the way out we saw a conductor on stilts who captivated Jon. He was very nice and let the kids ring his conductor's bell.
Once outside we sat down for a small snack and a discussion about what to do with the rest of our day. There was Christmas music playing and while the adults were talking, all five boys started dancing. It was so cute!! I have a great video that unfortunately I am unable to show you because Charlie is in it.
Since we had time, we all decided to head down to the Natural History Museum in Central Park. Will has been looking forward to that more than anything else and he was particularly excited about the dinosaurs. Unfortunately once we got down there we were unable to find a single parking space and the line to get into the building went around the block. Will was devastated that we couldn't go in.
We had hoped to eat lunch at the museum but by the time we realized we wouldn't be able to get in, it was almost two and everyone was hungry. We considered going down to Battery Park and finding something to eat in the financial district but hunger was making us all grumpy and we didn't think we could wait that long. As added pressure, one of the kids had to use the bathroom and was starting to get a bit desperate.
While it is true that the city has a ton of restaurants, finding one with reasonably priced good food near cheap (ish) parking wasn't easy for us especially since we couldn't look anything up. Eventually though we found a place to park and decided to try our luck. We ate at a small sandwich and wrap place that had decent food. It wasn't anything special but we all felt more charitable after we ate. Still, after all the frustration we had with the museum and finding a place to eat, we decided to head home before rush hour hit and we were trapped.
Once back in our town Grandma took us all out for Ice Cream at Carvel and that was a huge hit. It was so good! I've not been a fan of the Carvel flavors we have at home but the this ice cream was excellent, truly delicious.
Because of our late lunch and ice cream treat we postponed supper and headed to the pool instead. On our previous visits the pool was pretty quiet (at least until we arrived) but today it was packed with at least 20 kids here on a school or church tour. It was so loud! We tried to stay at the opposite end of the pool so it would be easier for us to keep track of our five but the wrestling, screaming pack of children was everywhere. But no one drowned and eventually all the kids left leaving us with an almost empty pool.
Now we were able to spread out a bit more (although the kids did their best to make up for the lack of noise) and have some more fun. We took them all out to the deep end where they took turns again jumping off the side into the water. It was great! Colin was much more confident today and no one really needed help at all.
Charlie was having a lot of fun too but he wanted to go under water too like the big boys. He had a tube which kept him up and he would hold it with one hand and hold his nose with the other. But then he'd let go of his nose right before he splashed into the water. So I took him out of the tube and taught him how to hold his breath and go under water. He loved it! Every time he came up he give a huge grin and yell "Again! I wanna go again!" He is a little fish!
After the pool we had a rather late dinner and then went off to bed. I have to go too now to finish all the packing! We did not get to do as much as we wanted in the city and I think that all of the adults are leaving with some regrets. But the kids had a really great time and I am so glad we came.
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