New York Day #6

We made it on TV today! It was about 4 seconds, but we were on. Gavin wasn't made for TV, he was not really enjoying it (our third attempt).

During break Natalie Morales came over to us (we had an Elmo toy to donate to the Today Show Toy Drive); she thought Gavin was so cute even though he was fussy. I asked her if I could take a picture and she said sure, then she actually picked him up and put him in her arms (I just thought she would stand next to him). Oh man he was angry - as the photo shows. She has 2 boys of her own and the crabby baby didn't even phase her, she was so sweet and kind and said she loved 'big babies' (I'm guessing her boys were big too). She completely understood his age and that he wanted mommy. By the way she is stunningly beautiful in person!!

Rockefeller Plaza. The Ice Skating Rink, where Cousin Ryan proposed to Mandi just a few days earlier.

A great Christmas decoration on the downtown street. Notice the temperature...we were COLD!

These random bird looking things were walking the streets and juggling. They were promoting Cirque du Soleil in New York. Funny little buggers.

Just before we left Gavin & I had time to squeeze in lunch. Yes The Original Soupman is the restaurant that was the Seinfeld Soup Nazi episode was based on. There soup was really, really good.

New York Day #5

We thought Day #4 was jam packed. This was our last full day in NYC so we had to make the most of it. Unfortunately for us Jason had to leave today. The good news is it was because he was hand selected to be part of a Leadership Development program at work, the recognition dinner was that night in Kansas.

As a family we started our day out at the Today Show. Gavin had no interest in the cameras and just wanted to walk around the roped off area. We kissed Daddy goodbye and started our day.

After a breakfast and a morning nap we bundled up and headed to the laundromat to drop off diapers. This time rather than sitting in the laundromat for 2 hours, we paid $10 to have them wash them for us. Best money we spent on the entire trip!

Gavin and Barb walked back on a street called Restaurant Row (or 46th Street); tons and tons of restaurants - wish we would have known about all of these earlier in our trip. A cute young woman was standing outside trying to generate business. She was very nice, the menu was Italian, and it was lunchtime so we stopped. It was a fantastic lunch and we had the restaurant all to ourselves. The hostess & waiter were so nice, they didn't have high chairs so we got to try out our Tie Chair (another great inventions for moms that I should have thought of) for the first time. It was awesome. The name of the restaurant is Don't Tell Mama and we had a great lunch; Gavin was on his best behavior. We even got to meet and chat with the chef.

We made it! SANTA! The real deal. Miracle on 34th Street. And we couldn't have timed it any better. A store where the Santa line is usually 100 people long, we got there at a moment that NO ONE, I repeat...no one was in line. Gavin walked right up to Santa like he'd known him for years. Once he got on his lap he wanted Mommy, but we did get a cute picture.

After the visit to the North Pole & Santa's lap, we headed to a puppet show. Ms. Claus was telling all the children the rules for the puppet show and as soon as the words 'please stay seated' came out of her mouth...guess who stood up. Just a little embarrassing. Puppets weren't Gavin's thing so we left about 2 minutes into the show.

Leaving the puppet show early was worth it, because our next stop was the Empire State Building.

It is one of the more expensive tourist attractions in NY, but we figured we had to do it. Gavin was free so at least that helped, and having the stroller got us to the front of the line...thank you Gavin. We went all the way to the very, very top. One of the workers was very kind and offered to take a picture with both of us in it. The view was spectacular, very cold up there though.

It's okay he's sitting in front of glass, I didn't just put him on the ledge for a great photo :-)

Afternoon nap included a little Elmo DVD and cuddle time on the big bed.

Whew, what a day. Night, Night came early - we were pooped.

New York Day #4

Today was tourist day. We signed up for an all-day bus tour. Not sure how that was going to work with a toddler, but we figured what the heck. As usual, Gavin was a champ! We won't share the full nightmare of a story about the original tour bus breaking down, them canceling the tour and rescheduling for the day we were leaving. Obviously it all worked out.

Central Park - such a wonderful place. Huge & Beautiful. Strawberry Fields was dedicated to the memory of John Lennon. While we were visiting NY Jason had a 20 mile training run to try to fit in. He utilized the park and although it was cold said it was a great place to run.

Amazing, beautiful, speechless. Seeing her was a moment I (Barb) will never forget. The first time I saw the Grand Canyon I stood in awe; I had the same reaction when I saw her. So much history and meaning for one statue. A must see for every American!!

Ground Zero being rebuilt. A lot we could say about this, but really it was just amazing to see the 100's of workers on site to get this project done. The memorial is going to be very special.

My husband at the New York Stock Exchange (dork!)

The famous Charging Bull on Wall Street. The bull sculpture was installed in 1987 following the stock market crash as a symbol of the strength and power of American people.

Our evening was complete with dinner at Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill. The food was so good, unfortunately Gavin had his first official restaurant meltdown. We tried everything; instead we boxed up our dinner and headed back to the hotel. Once we got him to bed he was fine. It was a long day with a lot of 'doing' and not much napping. We finished our night with a peaceful sleeping baby and a delicious piece of cheesecake from Juniors; they claim it is the most fabulous and we would have to agree.

New York Day #3

Day #3 was pretty uneventful. Gavin wasn't really crabby, but wasn't really himself cheerful self either. We walked around and checked out the sites some more. We attempted to go to the Today Show taping (outside in the Plaza) but Gavin wanted nothing to do with it. He was crying and crying, I think the cold weather, coat, and gloves were getting to him.

It was Sunday, which means football! Homemade Seahawk pants from Grandma Beth. They are fleece so perfect for walking around a blistery NYC.

Ever seen Home Alone 2: Lost in New York? Great movie. We had to stop by The Plaza Hotel. It was so beautiful inside, although they had much of it roped off for guests only. We still got to go in and admire the lovely lobby.

Radio City Music Hall, home of the famous Rockettes. We didn't go this year, but we will when Gavin is a little bit older.

Time Square. Can you see the ball WAY at the very tippy top of that tall skinny building? Straight up from Jason's head. It was pretty cool to be there and see it. Not so sure how fun it would be on New Year's Eve, definitely not fun with a baby :-)

Days #4, #5, and #6 to follow soon.

New York Day #2

With all of our luggage packed neatly away in our hotel room we were finally able to hit the streets and see some of the city.

Obstacle #1, convincing Gavin that a coat, gloves and hat were necessary in 24 degree weather. This AZ baby did not want to wear any of them. A few times we let him go without the gloves, when his hands turned purple we made him put them on again.

Look familiar? We thought it was just cook street art, but it was originally designed as a Christmas Card for the Museum of Modern Art in 1964. We've seen it on TV and movies so we had to take our picture with the LOVE sculpture.

*{APPLE}*

Our home away from home. We are Apple lovers through and through. Visiting the very cool Apple Store on 5th Ave. was awesome. As you can see from the first picture the store is actually underground, it's just a glass structure above ground. It was JAM packed, the stroller was a very bad idea, but we made it work.

We spent the afternoon wandering around looking at famous NY buildings, and landmarks. In the afternoon we actually met up with family. No, we don't have any that live in NYC, but ironically we happened to have some visiting at the same time. Congratulations to Ryan & Mandi who got engaged Friday night. We were so happy we were able to be there to celebrate your wonderful news. They are getting married next summer in Paris.

Gavin loves hotel beds - what a nut. He rolled around each day enjoying the blankets and pillows. He had his own portable crib that he slept in each night (well most nights, he snuck in with us a night or two), but he loved playing on this bed.

New York Day #1

Our New York Trip was wonderful. We have lots of pictures to share so we'll split them up into different posts.

The first day wasn't exactly spectacular. The plane ride was pretty good, Gavin took a short nap between flights (of course he wouldn't sleep on the plane) and kept most everyone on the plane entertained.

Once we arrived at Laguardia, that's when the real trouble started. Our driver was no where to be found, which ended up being fine because we couldn't find one of our bags...specifically Gavin's bag with diapers, blankets, stuffed animals, food - all the essentials of course. Once we finally found our driver we were headed to Marriott Marquis in Time Square. Right in the middle of the action - awesome.

Gavin's favorite - Elmo on the streets of NYC.

We got settled and headed on foot to Rockefeller Center in hopes to run into some family. Jason's cousin also happened to be there with his family; he was proposing to his girlfriend (she said yes!). It was so romantic and beautiful...well from what we heard. It was so, so, so crowded we never could find them. We were able to meet up with them the next day and hear all about it.

Stranded at the airport waiting for luggage...that never came. It was delivered to our hotel around 3 or 4 am the next day.