New York Weekend

Off we flew at 6:40 PM to Salt Lake City en route to JFK on July 3rd for a long weekend before we leave for Israel. We arrived in New York at 6:01 AM on July 4th after a relatively easy red-eye with a tired toddler. She actually fell asleep in Utah and then we carried her onto the plane asleep. We were lucky enough to have an empty seat between us for her to sleep in! Which she did while we sat on the ground and through take-off. THEN she got miserable. She cried and fell asleep, asked for "nigh-nigh" and pointed out of the plane for her crib, then fell asleep. It was a cyclical thing for about 1 1/2 hours and then OUT for the last 2 hours to NY. She actually slept through getting off the plane, getting our bags, getting onto a shuttle and then all the way into the city until the shuttle stopped at the first drop off!

Our first stop was at Cate and Ivan's. They live on E43rd between 10th and 11th and are letting us stay in their apartment for the weekend while they are in North Hamptons at their house. It was so awesome of them to let us stay here and has made the difference for a stay in the city with a toddler. She napped on NY time and went to bed a little late on NY time. We all got a delicious 2 hour nap in during the middle of the day and slept until 9:30 AM on Saturday!

We spent the afternoon with Cousins Art and Sheila from Albany and Allison from Mobile, Alabama. It was terrific to see them! Art asked Hadarya if she wanted to go outside and she said yes, took his hand and off they went! It was sooo adorable. They walked quite a ways down the street and then we found the most delicious pie place! They made mini pies served warm a la mode. MMMMMM..

July 4th evening we spent having dinner at a kosher deli (Ben's) with our conductor friend Jeff. It turns out we are staying a block away from him! Quite fun actually. Hadarya slept through the whole dinner for second nap, so we got her pasta and meatballs to go. She woke up in the cab ride to B'nai Jeshurun for services. Yiftach had been before and it was supposed to be the happening place. It was nice...combined young hip services with the regular service for the summer. They are very strict on things like no strollers and being on time so everyone has a seat. Tons of people, lots of singing, ruach, and dancing. Short and to the point sermons from the Rabbi and the Cantor. We ended up back at the apartment instead of on the roof top for fireworks because it was raining and Hadarya was ready for bed. It was a great evening and we all slept sooo well!

Shabbat morning July 5th, we had bagels from H & H by the water and enjoyed Jeff's company again. We left as it began to rain and then a complete downpour occurred for the next several hours, drenching us, making us laugh, and Hadarya figured out how to hold a garbage over her legs and the "shade" covering her to stay out of the rain! We were quite a sight to see walking the streets with the others in the rain. After two blocks, we were lucky enough to get a cab so we didn't have to deal with the subway to the Children's Museum 45 blocks away.

The Children's Museum of Manhattan was magnet for visitors today and those looking to get out of the rain. We were amongst the many many many people exploring the four floors of the museum. She loved the stuffed animals and especially the monkey we wrapped around her body. She left that exhibit with the monkey and took it on a tour of other places in the museum! She especially loved the science areas of the building blocks, screws, and air pressure. The sandbox was also a huge hit! We left the museum for a food break and ended up eating at Cafe Lalo's --- the You've Got Mail place! It was great food and a good chance to rest. Hadarya wanted to go back for more and we played for another hour +. When we left she was fast asleep before her head hit the end of the stroller!

We ventured on the subway, in which Hadarya missed her first subway ride by sleeping through 4 passing trains and the entire ride down. Times Square was a hustle and bustle and we decided to go to the Toys R Us to see what it was like... A MADHOUSE I tell you. Oh my gosh. I'd been to FAO Schwartz the last time I was in New York but this tops it all. There is a line to get in and pushing and shoving too. You walk in the door and there are people there to take your picture... in a toy store people. Like at Disneyland and the Zoo. But it's a TOY STORE. We walked in about 20 feet (we did not get our photo taken) and stopped at the railing to get a better view. It took a few minutes but there in front of us, was a regular size ferris wheel in the middle of the toy store...filled with people and a line a mile long! That was the attraction to have swarms of people coming into a toy store. A unique ride. We did not walk around . We did not see the life size Barbie doll house that Jeff told us they have. We turned and practically ran our thank goodness sleeping child out the door before we gave in to the consumerism! But we can say we've been there and done that. The end.

Our last day in New York was spent with Aran and Dalia. Yiftach’s cousin from Israel and his fiancé who took a 4 hour bus ride from Boston to see us, meet me and Hadarya, and just spend time together. We had a blast doing a whole lot of everything and nothing! We walked around 1 teeny tiny slice of Central Park…so I could say I’d been there, done that too and took Hadarya on the carousel ride. She hated it! She loves it at home, but something about the enclosed area, the tiredness of her body, or whatnot, she did not like it so much! She fell sound asleep within minutes of the ride and we walked by the ball fields, the playgrounds, and tons of greenery within the city. We ate a scrumptious lunch at a kosher deli and then took the subway back to pack our bags and get ourselves on a plane to Israel. We can’t wait to see them again and spend more time together.

PHOTOS will be coming soon!