New York City - Botanical Gardens

I forgot to tell you a Charlie story from yesterday!  We were on the way home last night, talking about the pool, when Charlie, who had not been swimming the previous night said, "Oh no!  You didn't have our bathing suits!"  "Don't worry, Charlie, of course I packed your bathing suit."  "Why?"  "So you could go swimming."  "Awww", he complained, "I wanted to go swimmin' naked."  "Charlie," Grandma interjected, "in Germany people go swimming naked.  It's called skinny dipping."  Charlie's face lit up.  "Yah!!  I wanna' go to Germany!"

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. 

New York City - Statue of Liberty

Today we saw the Statue of Liberty!  Our day started well, the boys all slept in until 8am!  I think they might have slept longer if it wasn't for our alarm.  And once again they were all excellent at breakfast.  Really, I could not be happier.  I have noticed though that the more children we have with us, the better they have to be.  One or two children can make a certain amount of noise and not be noticed but when five children are all making the same level of noise, even if they are all individually speaking in normal indoor voices, it can get really loud!  

I should say too, that Charlie's behavior has been exceptional.  The last trip we were on was in August and it was so difficult and exhausting that I wasn't able to blog about it at all.  On that trip Charlie was out of control, hitting and biting everyone and completely unable to sit still for even a minute.  But this time he has been wonderful!  We didn't take the stroller today and he stayed with us, held hands, sat quietly, and came when we called.  He was an angel!  It was only on the boat ride home, well after nap time, that he looked at James and said "Oh no!  Where's the stroller?"  Soon after that he was asleep in James' arms.  

But back to the beginning.  We couldn't get the ferry from Battery Park so we had to take it from Liberty Park in New Jersey instead.  We are staying north of the city but it was an easy drive down.  The park itself wasn't great but it had a beautiful view of the New York City Skyline and the boys were able to run for a bit before we boarded the boat.  Actually, I think I prefer the view of the city from Jersey more than the view from the north. 

The boys were all excited to ride the ferry and insisted on riding outside on the top deck.  Thankfully today was really warm and the promised rain never came.  The boat ride was just long enough to be fun without getting boring for the kids.  Charlie, who has been asking for months to go on a whale watch, was certain that there whale nearby.  Even though he was in a closed room and the boat hadn't yet left the dock he was so insistent that James had to take him onto the deck with the rest of us.  "Look!  There's a whale!" he cried before pointing his fingers at the water and making gun noises.  (How do you write that sound??)  He seemed genuinely shocked when I told him that the (imaginary) whales were nice.

Our first stop was Ellis Island.  They had a very nice discovery center/museum there and I think that Will would have been happy to read all the displays.  But it is hard to balance all the interest levels of the kids while still keeping everyone together.  We did search for relatives who came to America on Ellis Island and while we found some similar names, I don't think we found the right people.  Colin was very interested in finding some of his relatives and was able to find his last name on the wall.  

We missed the ferry to Liberty Island because of a small mix up and had to spend an extra forty minutes there.  The boys were getting hungry, and a bit grumpy, but the cafeteria was closed and because of the security measures James had left his backpack, which was full of food, in the car.

I'm not going to say which child(ren) it was but we did have a spot of trouble on Ellis Island, the boat, and Liberty Island.  We had at least three (maybe 4 depending on how you count them) tantrums that were quite impressive.  Twice getting off the boat I had to pull a screaming child through the crowds.  The meltdowns were so loud and public that they caused all the adults quite a bit of stress (although we didn't lose our tempers!).  It made things tricky too because the rest of us ended up sitting around waiting for the time-outs to be finished so that we could continue on together and not lose each other in the crowds.

On Liberty Island, while we were waiting for one of these time-outs to be finished, we were vistted by Bartholdi, who designed the Statue of Liberty.  He sat and spoke with all of us about the design and construction of the statue.  Colin, who is kind hearted, offered to buy him lunch.  He was very interesting and the boys listened well for quite a while.  But eventually they became fixated on his age, they weren't quite sure if he was real and had time-traveled or was just an actor.  And when Jon asked if he could build another statue, this time in the shape of Pikachu, I knew it was time for us to move on.  It was getting late by this time and all the boys were hungry so we got some lunch before heading to the Statue. 

The boys were all excited to see Lady Liberty but unfortunately we got there too late to go into the pedestal.  I was so disappointed.  It had just closed twenty minutes before and none of us had realized the time constraints.  We will have to come again though, my dream is to one day go up in the crown.  But enough about this!  I am making myself sad all over again just by writing it down.

Before we got back on the boat the boys had a chance to run a little bit.  On the Ferry back I took three boys to the very top and we watched the lights of New York City grow brighter as the sun went down.  It really is a very beautiful city.  

By the time we got back to the car it was too late to do anything else and no one wanted to go into the city for dinner.  So we headed home and grabbed some food to go from Chili's.  I really love our hotel, the location is great and there are a bunch of restaurants right down the street!

James and I seriously discussed skipping the pool tonight but in the end we all headed down there after supper.  Camille stayed in though, I think she needed a little peace and quiet!  On the way down the boys and I showed James our elevator game (we pretend to be statues to surprise people but so far no one has seen us) and made him laugh with our silly walks.  

The pool was great again.  The boys played wonderfully in the shallow end and once again did their dives in the deep end.  Jon is doing great with his swimming!  Colin was brave enough to try jumping in and was able to swim back to the edge himself!  Charlie was the only one with a tube and he also had fun jumping into the pool.  He is getting much better at remembering to close his mouth. 

While there we met a very nice man from D.C. who showed the boys what a real cannonball looked like and helped Colin work on his swimming strokes.  Then the boys found some water rings (the kind that sink) and played a fun game of keep-away.  It was a great night at the pool and I hope we can go once more before we leave.  

Once again the boys all went to sleep beautifully.  (I wonder if I'll ever get tired of writing that... )  Tomorrow we are off to see the trains at the botanical gardens.  

Today was rather stressful for the adults and I was worried about how it was effecting the kids.  But Chesney said that it was his "best night ever", and Colin told us that he wanted to spend more time with us which was very sweet and true for us too!  Will also said "I love New York City.  It's a very peaceful place".  So I think that the kids are having fun and I hope they come home with good memories.  

New York City - Ice skating and 5th Avenue

What a day.  It started out well enough, the boys woke cheerfully and the earliest risers took a bath in our giant bathtub so that they would avoid waking the late sleepers.  As each boy woke he joined the others in the tub which was full of plastic dinosaurs.  Even the kids who couldn't fit knelt on the floor to join the dinosaur play while they waited for their turn.  It was a very relaxing start to the day.  

Breakfast with the kids

Charlie had fallen asleep alone in our bed last night but once he was asleep we moved him over to Will and Jon's bed.  So when he woke up the first thing he said was "What?  Why are there three boys here?"  It was pretty cute.

Christmas displays in the city

Getting into the city wasn't too bad although it took a little longer because we had to make a couple of stops.  We had stopped for gas and a bathroom break for all the boys but just as we entered the city little Charlie began wailing that he had to go potty.  It is easy to stop somewhere when we are in towns or one the road, there is always a McDonald's, gas station, or Starbucks around.  But finding a bathroom, especially a clean bathroom without a twenty minute line, has always been a challenge for us in New York city.  

All the boys were captivated by this street painter and wanted to watch him work.

Chesney asked him to make something from Minecraft

The finished product

Charlie was desperate but we were still far from our destination and we couldn't find any parking places.  So James pulled to the side, Charlie and I jumped out, and James left to circle the block.  I found myself on the streets of New York with a coat-less little boy (it was in the trunk and impossible to grab) surrounded by closed restaurants and very seedy looking shops.  I went into a local pharmacy and asked to use their bathroom while Charlie clutched his pants in a very convincing show.  The kind woman let us use the employee only bathroom and just in time too. 

Wrapped in my coat, a calmer Charlie and I gazed up at the skyscrapers as we waited for the car to come around the block.  We played a super hero game and Charlie gasped, "Look out!  There is a bad guy up there!  Run!"  "We don't need to run" I told him, "a super hero will save us.  Who do you think it will be, Spiderman? Captain America?  Iron Man?"  "No!" he said emphatically, "Mommy!"

The view from the street

Though disaster had been averted the bathroom saga was not over.  Once we were in the city other children had to go too and rather than finding one place together we reacted to each emergency which meant that James would take one child off while the rest of us waited and invariably one of the children who was fine a minute ago would be desperate before he got back.  Eventually we ended up at the New York Public Library where we took turns waiting in incredibly long lines.  Fortunately the boys were able to read while we waited and the children's room had Winnie the Pooh!  The boys were not as excited about this as James and I were, they are used to the look of the TV version.  But they did enjoy reading and Will was sad to leave all the books.  

Three boys and a lion

Outside the New York Public Library.

Inside the New York Public Library

Winnie the Pooh!  And Piglet too!

Will asks a librarian for help and gets his own story time

After the library we headed out to grab some food and we found some fancy, expensive and edible food from a street vendor in Bryant Park.  Chesney had asked to go ice skating and James found a free rink in Bryant Park.  The lines were long and Camille wasn't interested in skating to she headed out to Macy's while the rest of us stood in line for rather a long time.  There was a good deal of grumpiness from the children about how long the line was, whether we would go at all, how hungry they were, etc. but eventually we reached the end of the line.  

The winter skyline. 

Now before we went in, I was supposed to call Camille to let her know that we were going to be skating soon if she wanted to head back.  But I failed.  I completely forgot.  While the back of the line seemed to never move, the front went very quickly and soon we were renting skates and struggling to tie them onto five little pairs of feet.

Heading out onto the ice

The rink at Bryant Park

Once we were all ready, we headed out onto the ice.  I don't think that any of the boys had ever been ice skating although Colin picked it up like he had done it a million times.  Chesney was learning fast and Jon was very brave although he did fall a couple of times.  James was wonderful and took good care of all the kids.  I, however, was in horrendous pain.  I think my skates were too small and I didn't realize it until I was out on the ice and it was too late.  I tried to help the kids but it was hard to think of anything other than the vice crushing my feet.  There were so many people out there that it was impossible for the boys to skate while holding on to the side and it is hard to support more than one kid at a time!  Thankfully though there were a ton of very nice people on the ice who would help up our boys whenever one fell down.

Colin on the ice with the Empire State building in the background

Brothers on ice

We didn't stay on the ice too long.  About half an hour after we arrived they called everyone off the ice so they could go over it with a zamboni and we did not have the time or energy to wait it out.  Only after we left did we realize that Camille had been calling us for the past twenty minutes.  I'm not sure why we didn't hear the calls but when we called back we couldn't get through.  We had another fifteen minutes of worry while we tried in vain to reach her.  When we finally did, Camille had been going through the same worries and was rather upset.  I still feel awful for not calling her before getting on the ice and causing her all that stress.  But we were able to all calm down and we started off towards Rockefeller center to see the tree.

The boys form a train to get through the crowds

All around the rink at Bryant Park were little shops that sold beautiful things.

The crowds on 5th avenue were very thick but the boys were all wonderful and stayed close to us.  Charlie woke up from his nap ready to be out of the stroller and he walked for a couple blocks before James put him up on his shoulders.  The lights of New York are beautiful but alas they were hard to see.  When I was pushing the stroller all my energy went to not crashing it into people and when James was pushing it I was focused on counting heads and holding hands.  We did get to see the tree though and it was beautiful.  

Us and some random people in front of the tree at Rockefeller Center.
Did I mention that it was really crowded?  :-)

We also found the Nintendo store which the boys were very happy to explore.  We had given each of the boys a small amount of money to buy something in New York and they were very excited and searched the store eagerly for their bit of treasure.  I think they were all happy with their purchases.  Camille was wonderfully patient in a store that held no interest for her and she was able to make a few friends while she waited.  I am always impressed by her ability to talk to anyone!  

The boys with their loot!

After the store we briefly considered eating in the city but the crowds quickly dissuaded us.  So instead we headed home and grabbed some take out from Five Guys.  It was too late to go swimming but the boys took turns in their own baths and had a little electronic quiet time.  They all fell asleep quickly tonight and it was one of the best hotel bedtimes ever!  I think everyone was exhausted.  

Tomorrow we head to the Statue of Liberty and I am hopeful for a better day.