our quick trip to the city…

exactly fourteen days ago kiana found out her utah dance studio was going to be in nyc that weekend. and the next day she was putting in her verbal request for a spontaneous family road trip, two days later.

after a few details were figured out, we woke up early on july 5th and our second road trip to manhattan was underway. a very happy fourteen year old included.

as soon as we pulled into the city, we stopped by tkts and chose six seats to see war horse. i hadn’t heard anything about the play – i just knew i wanted something that would possibly entertain everyone – not too girly, not too boyish, etc. war horse turned out to be amazing! i found out just before going in that it was two hours and forty minutes long and i instantly feared sela wouldn’t make it. but, no worries – it’s so entertaining & creative that she was glued to the stage the entire time. it was so cool to look down the line of our family of six all sitting in a row and see silent smiles or big captivated eyes on my kiddos as they watched a broadway play.

buddy gives it two thumbs up!

when we came out around 10:45pm, the lincoln center was filled with a warm magical glow. this big lawn goes up and over an all-glass restaurant underneath it. you can spy husband & sela sitting in the middle. i love the lights of a big city at night.  it’s like the magical glow of christmas, every night, all year long.

miss fourteen and i woke up the next morning and went on a run across the city to central park. there is something exhilarating about running in nyc. i love being up with all the other morning runners, you feel more local. you feel a part of a greater good-health team. it was a beautiful way to start the day with my girl.

kiana then met up with her life-long dance besties on 56th, and we were left to play with our younger three kiddos for the day. crazy we have a child who can hang-out in manhattan sans parents. not just that she is old enough to do so, but that she is responsible, and completely comfortable doing so. i love it. i’m guessing this was her favorite day of summer.

the last time we were in nyc, we were taking a horse-drawn carriage ride through central park when kj spotted these huge rocks that kids were climbing on. we weren’t able to stop our carriage ride to let him off and play. he was so bummed. so, this time – we headed straight to the park, found the rocks, and let him climb till his heart was content with all the time in the world! sisters included.

our younger two kids may actually believe we visit new york city, just to visit this landmark toys’r us… it is their heaven on earth. kj and myla picked out two RC trucks, and the next morning they hit the streets of nyc and central park with them. sela not only visited toys’r us, but she found the hello kitty/sanrio store in times square. you should have seen how big her eyes got when it came into view! {i’m not showing her the american girl store in nyc till she’s older!}

and that is something i love about life. the fact that we can spontaneously decide to go on a road trip to new york city. three hours from our front door sits manhatten.

i hope my kiddos grow up with memories of adventure — favorite travel stories and vivid descriptions of road trips and airplanes and funny family moments that they will recall at the Thanksgiving table years from now. But what they’ll remember most is our traditions at home–the substance of all the morning routines, family meals, kitchen dance parties, creative afternoons, playing catch in the yard, bedtime rituals, and lazy sundays that cushion the excitement of outside adventure.

*you can read about our first nyc road trip here and here.

{photos by me.}

Posted in husband, jane, kiana, KJ, myla, new york city, road trip, sela, travels | 1 Comment »

happy friday!

so, another month has gone by in Gretchen’s happiness project. i’m finding myself not able to keep up with the many ideas being presented. back in january and february it was easier to focus on a half-dozen ideas. now i’m lost in a sea of goals! i think i’ve gone to bed at 3am for the past month. {fail}… i have not been serious about play {fail}… i’m picking fights with husband constantly {fail}… obtaining happiness with effort is tough, not to be too hard on myself, i do believe that i’ve been doing some things right. i’ve managed to finish a few big projects this year {yay!}, and i continue to make new friends {yay!}, and i am quite loyal to being jane {woo*hoo!}!!!

for July, the chapter more or less focuses on the connection between money and happiness. without directly touching on it, Gretchen touches on the idea of the fulfillment curve – that everyone has some point that maximizes the enjoyment they get from their spending. spend too much and you’re not happy. spend too little and you’re not happy, either.
how do you find that balance? focus on just buying things you know will bring value into your life, but don’t chide yourself constantly for doing so. look at your true passions and focus on things that complement those passions and don’t spend as much on the rest?

if money is the root of all evil, why is it that we covet it {or what it can do for us} so much? we’d all like to believe, like Gretchen, that happiness can be void of money. this doesn’t always seem to be the case…sadly. however, nothing is impossible. As Gretchen suggested–you just need to figure out what type of person you are: your values, what you spend your money on, and if you care how much money you have in comparison to others.

i’ve chosen to take the: i would like to be financially stable {for opportunities, experiences, good {preventative} health care, etc} but i do not want to be defined by the amount of money i have. i do believe that material things provide a fair amount of joy {or contentment} in our lives, but as we have seen with the economy and just how life works, money can come and go in a blink of an eye. i’m going to focus on appreciating what i have. and spending less.

so friends, have you read the book? what are your thoughts on July’s topics???

*sela buying a little happiness in times square, nyc. {ha!}

My favorite things in life don’t cost any money. It’s really clear that the most precious resource we all have is time. – Steve Jobs

It’s hard to tell with these Internet startups if they’re really interested in building companies or if they’re just interested in the money. I can tell you, though: If they don’t really want to build a company, they won’t luck into it. That’s because it’s so hard that if you don’t have a passion, you’ll give up. – Steve Jobs

find your passions! spend wisely! and, happy friday! xo.

{photo by me.}

Posted in happy friday, new york city, quotes, sela | 3 Comments »

nye in nyc. part 2

{part 1 here.}

more pictures from our nyc trip.

we spent Dec. 30th – January 1st in nyc. this was our first time to drive there from boston & we are totally hooked. from our front door to our hotel, it was 3 hours. + the most beautiful drive through connecticut. the best part of this trip: it was the first time for kj & sela to see the big apple! so, we did as many of the kid-friendly-must-see sights as possible in three days!

the only downer: husband rear-ended a guy five minutes after we pulled into the city. then, when we parked in little italy to have lunch at one of our favorite pizza stops, we got a parking ticket! less than an hour in the city! {fingers crossed our city driving improves – we will practice!}

vodka pizza from pomodoro -

the statue of liberty. miss liberty is currently not open to the public, she is under light construction/cleaning, so we stayed on the boat & didn’t get off at either stop. {this is a great way to do it, especially if you’ve already been there!}

kj & sela were in heaven on the ferry, they proudly wore their statue of liberty crowns!

this is a fine example of what i love about the city —
{battery park.}

kj and sela battery park chimes

{we had dinner here. a must if you are in nyc.}

we have been telling kj & sela about the ferris wheel inside the times square toys’r us forrrr-ever!

they were dying to go! and they were not disappointed.

day 2.

after sleeping-in, we started the day with crepes at one of our favorite little cafe’s.

then we walked down to central park for a horse drawn carriage ride through the park. we took lots of pictures of this, but i can’t seem to find them.

next, we took pedicabs {our kiddos LOVE these!} to the empire state building —
i highly recommend pre-paid express passes for this!

{new years eve festivities followed this.}

day 3.

our hotel was not far from the hershey’s & m&m stores.
the kids had a blast in both of these shops.

{i spy freshlypicked in nyc!}

kj was fascinated with this street artist {actually, we all were}, we watched him start – finish on three paintings. each painting took less than a few minutes. kj purchased one – he came home & hung this up in his room immediately. ♥

all four of my kiddos preparing for the drive home. love my boy surrounded by his sisters —

on our way home, we stopped 30 minutes outside of the city in Greenwich, Connecticut for dinner. the most charming place. we found a super cute restaurant & read on wikipedia all about this adorable town.

dudes. {and little dudes.} – we can’t wait to go back! to new york city & connecticut.

{all photos by me.}

Posted in husband, jane, kiana, KJ, myla, new york city, sela, travels | 3 Comments »