New York: Day 1

We rolled into New York around 11:00 pm. We thought the kids would be asleep at that point and were planning on going straight to our hotel in Long Island but since they were still awake we decided to take a detour through downtown Manhattan, and as cheezy as it sounds, it was magical.  There was a big fireworks show illuminating the skyline as we pulled in and I loved seeing the kids with their noses pressed against the windows and their wide eyes taking in all the lights and people.  We passed a club with paparazzi and crowds gathered around the exit and Kylie just knew Justin Beiber would waltz out at any moment.  It was the perfect way to kick off our three day New York trip. 

Getting around

We walked....

and walked....

then walked even more...

We warned the kids that there would be lots and lots of walking and we prepared ourselves for lots and lots of whining, but they actually did really well. It helps that there is so much to see on the streets that the kids didn't have time to complain.

The subways are not my favorite because they're so dirty but the kids thought they were great, even though they were disappointed that we didn't see any rats. We kept the hand sanitizer easily accessible at all times and it made me nervous when Jayden wasn't shy about making friends with the crazy strung out lady who talks to herself.  He politely answered all her random questions but when she paused long enough to break out into her own rendition of "Green Acres is the place for me..." he turned to Kylie and informed her that she needed to take a turn talking to her.  They loved when the subway performers would hop on our train (Jason and I weren't quite as excited because it meant we had to open our wallets again. I swear we could have fed a small country with the amount of money we donated, but what a sad life to live), the one man band guy was Kylie's favorite.

With all the amazing things to see and do, I still think Jayden's favorite part was playing the DS every chance he got (along with the lego set we bought him for the plane ride, going to the huge lego store, FAO Schwartz and the ultimate Toys R Us). Next time I think we'll just leave him at home with a new lego set, a McDonald's happy meal and permission to play the DS and wii all day and he would be just as happy.

Every day on our subway ride to and from our hotel we would pass this abandoned warehouse covered in graffiti.  There are some pretty skilled taggers out there, some of the pictures on the other side were really good.  Kylie and I would get excited every time we passed it and pressed our faces against the dirty subway windows trying to memorize all the artwork before the subway would speed past.

Grand Central Station
It was so fun taking the kids to famous spots that they had seen on movies.  Kylie got excited to see the clock at Grand Central station that was stuck on the Giraffe's head in Madagascar.

Rockefellar Center
Of course all they could talk about when we got to the ice rink at Rockefellar was how they were skating on the same ice as "Elf".  Me being in my state of pregnancy and Jason being in his state of "It's too cold", we decided to pass on the skating and instead sent the kids off to fend for themselves.  The first several times around they both clung to the wall for their dear lives and we were waiting for the water works to come every time they fell down.  We made a bet that in 15 minutes tops they would be crying and begging to leave, but we understimated them.  Two and a half hours later they were still going strong and we had to pry them off the ice.  Thankgoodness there were like 5 Starbucks with their steaming hot chocolate within walking distance because it was a cold 2 1/2 hours. They both got a hang of it not too long after they started and even though their knees were covered with nasty bruises, they didn't cry once (except Jayden who cried because he had to wear baby gloves when I accidentally packed Maddox's mittens instead of his gloves).  They both said this was their favorite part of the entire trip and begged to go back every day.

Chinatown

The motherland was callling.  And she was calling loud. Ever since Jason discovered the shaved noodle shop on our trip to NY last year, that's all he can talk about.  It was even featured on the Food Network's "The Best thing I Ever Ate" and Jason saved it on our DVR and made me promise to never delete it. It was only fitting that this was the first meal we would eat in NY (and we made a second trip back the next day).  They are actually REALLY good and the kids even loved them too (well Kylie was a love, Jayden was a like).  I love the look on Jason's face in this picture, he's like a kid on Christmas morning who is about to burst with excitement.  If there was a way to ship that dough to AZ I would do it for every one of Jason's birthdays.

Jayden was wiped out and took a little snoozer right there at the table....

We couldn't go to Chinatown without shopping for cheap crap on Canal street.  Jayden found some Pokemon cards he swore he couldn't live without, and yet they are still sitting in his coat pocket as we speak. We got grossed out by the open fish markets and chickens hanging in every window, devoured the fresh fruit we got from the stands and couldn't stop laughing at the informational "bum massaging" video (you can kind of see it in the background of the second picture).

Times Square
This place never ceases to amaze me. You'll never see that many lights anywhere, the glow can be seen from miles away.  The temperature is about 10 degrees warmer with all the electricity and bustling people. When they say NY is the city that never sleeps I think they're referring to Times Square in particular, no matter what time of day or what kind of weather that place is always shoulder to shoulder packed with people.  The kids were just as amazed, but of course the pictures don't do it justice.

Introducing "New York's finest". You wouldn't want to cross this guy in a dark alley :)

After a long day we just melted into our beds that night and geared up for another exciting day on the streets of the Big Apple.

Monuments, Memorials and more

Arlington Cemetery

It may sound odd, but Arlington Cemetery is one of my favorite places in DC.  This is my third time there and every time I'm overcome by the sense of reverence and respect.  It is such a powerful and peaceful place.  Seeing those white headstones covering the rolling hills for as far as you can see (275,000 graves, 612 acers and growing, thanks google) is such a solemn reminder of all those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our sake.  I'm so glad the kids were able to experience this, it really opened their eyes and I hope they left with a greater sense of appreciation.  It is beautiful (if you can call a cemetery beautiful) the way they have been so precise in the layout, the headstones make a perfectly straight line in every direction. 

 The changing of the guards at the tomb of the unknown soldiers.  It is amazing how there is always a guard on duty 24/7 rain, snow or heat and they consider it such an honor to do it.

 The gravesite of John F. Kennedy, Jackie O. and their children, with the eternal flame that never stops burning

Lincoln Memorial

In third grade they do an extensive unit on the US symbols and Jayden recently learned about the monuments leading up to President's day, so it was so cool to see them spilling over with excitement to see them up close and in person.  They kept spouting out facts like the symbolism of the way Lincoln is holding his hands (the fist means strength and determination, the open hand means compassion), or the reason why the Washington Monument has two different colors of stones (it sat unfinished for about 30 years due to the war and lack of funds and when they finished it they couldn't find a match) and even that the red room of the white house is haunted by Lincoln's ghost.  Of course I had to act like I knew exactly what they were talking about, even though once again they schooled me.

                      

 leaving her mark yet again...

 messing around while we waited for Jason to park the car

 yeah, we did one of THOSE pictures....we couldn't resist.

Vietnman Memorial

Once again each of those 58,267 names represents the cost of war.  The kids were shocked by the sheer number of names and couldn't believe this was the result of only one war.  Frankly, it's hard for me to believe too.

 This is the World War II memorial and we were cracking up at the sign since the last time we were here I was about to strip down and take a full on swim in the water.  In my defense I was 7 months pregnant and my ankles were swollen from the June heat and humidity and we were crazy enough to walk all the way from Arlington cemetery to the Mall because we thought it really wasn't that far.  So there you go, no disrespect intended.

Washington Monument

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue

The White House was our last stop before we said goodbye to DC and hello to New York and it was the perfect Grand Finale.  It would have been even better if we could have toured it, but see this is the problem:  Jason is always in charge of the travel side of our trips (plane tickets, hotels, rental car, etc.) and I'm in charge of planning the agenda.  Jason always goes above and beyond with his assignment, but for me I prefer to have no agenda, ya know, just go where the wind blows us.  But if I would have bothered to do more research I would have found out that tour tickets need to be reserved atleast 21 days in advance, we also could have toured the US Capitol and Bureau of Engraving and Printing and watched them make the money.  I think next time I'll resign and let Jason do all the planning, he's much better than me :).  We had an awesome time in DC.  Jayden said it best when he decided that he no longer needed to go to school because he learned way more on this trip then he ever did in Kindergarten.  Amen.



The Smithsonians

7 years ago Jason and I went to DC for our 5 year anniversary and I remember wishing that Kylie could be there at the museums because I knew she would love it, so it was so fun to be able to actually take her there (I was pregnant with Jayden at the time).  I love the Smithsonians, and not just because they are free, but because they are filled with so many cool stuff.  We spent two days there and only made it to 3 museums.  The first was the Museum of Natural History (think "Night at the Museum").  The kids were fascinated by the dead animals, but Kylie was a little freaked out by the Evolution display and was convinced she would have nightmares about ape people for the next month. Yeah, how do I explain to the kids that the theory of evolution is a crock when they present it as fact, not a theory, with all this scientific evidence?

 I have high aspirations to be the next Coral Reef crochet artist. 

 The next museum was the Air and Space Museum.  Jayden of course was fascinated by all the airplanes and being able to walk inside a real space shuttle, and for Kylie it was so cool for her to see so many things that they had talked about at school.  I think atleast half of those 268 photos were from Kylie requesting pictures of everything in the museum so she could print them out and take it to her class.  Here is the uniform of Sally Ride, the first woman astronaut that she learned about, but I hesitate to send it to school with her since I'm pretty certain that is the nazi salute she's doing.

here is the actual plane that Amelia Earhardt flew across the Atlantic Ocean, another woman she had just finished learning about.  What an awesome experience to see history come to life.

My aunt Brenda recently moved to DC so it was so fun being able to meet up with her and my cousin.  We couldn't get over the fact that Breanna and Kylie are only a little over year and a half apart in age and 1 grade apart in school.  Poor Kylie, with the 80 lb & 4 ft 9 inch booster seat recommendation, I think she still may be toting that booster seat with her when she starts dating.

   

We were trying to recreate the airplane pregnancy pose from the last trip.....

The last museum that we were able to squeeze in was the Museum of American History which was filled with so many iconic pieces...Micheal Jacksons hat, Apolo Ohno's skates, and Dorothy's ruby red slippers to name a few...

When I was younger I came to DC with my family on vacation and the only thing I remember from the Smithsonians is the collection of First Lady's dresses.  I loved seeing Kylie as fascinated by the display as I was.  Here is Michelle Obama's dress.  I wonder if she was sad to say goodbye to her designer gown and Jimmy Choos.  I bet she wishes she had donated some Payless knock offs instead.

 Another of Kylie's American Heros...Clara Barton and her first ambulance that was used during the war when she started the American Red Cross.  It was kind of emberassing that my 8 year old daughter was the one teaching me, I swear that girl is a sponge and has so many facts packaged in that little brain of hers.

I didn't know that virtually every city has a chinatown, that is until I married a chinaman.  I swear Jason can smell a chinatown a mile away (literally).  So we had the pleasure of dining on delicious hand pulled noodles in our nations capital with my aunt and cousin.  After all that walking we worked up quite an appetite and it was the perfect ending to the day.

First taste of DC

After Mt. Vernon we drove through DC to give the kids a sneak peek.  It was beautiful to see all the monuments and buildings illuminated against the setting sun.  Freezing, but beautiful.