My sweet boy....maybe he will come home after training and not eat my coffee table. 🙄

Greg and I both worked today from home. We had not done anything in advance to prep for the trip. It was definitely a race to try to pack for the trip to ensure we had warm clothes but also things appropriate for Easter Mass, Hamilton and of course be extremely portable.

We left the house with hardly any time to spare.....we thought. Greg and I both got a notification to our phones at the same time and upon glancing down we both said “Sh!t” simultaneously. Jinx!!! Logan exclaimed from the back. Yep, flight delayed. Seems maybe we hadn’t needed to rush quite so much.

Brooks saw an opportunity and wasn’t going to let it pass. “Can we head to the airport viewing area at CVG?” Uh, sure.

Brooks started researching why we were delayed. I heard discussion about the “Misery Map” and the fact that all incoming flights to Newark had been grounded due to low visibility. He then went on to clearly describe the cloud cover and X feet and clearing something something something and if the pilots are comfortable blah blah blah. I don’t even know what he said but I continue to be both amazed at the things he knows and comforted that he’s with me.

Who knew there was such a thing? Oh yeah, Brooks.

We cut that close. Arrival at 4:48pm! Twelve minutes of good viewing. Only there isn’t much air traffic.

We got out and took a quick glance.

Terminal

Those are the exciting planes from what I gather.

I’ve seen enough, mainly because it’s cold. Brooks of course has not.

Happy in the warm car.

Could stay all day.....

Around this time we dawns on basically everyone in the car that they have forgotten their coats. I grabbed a vest on my way out the door (which was intentional over a coat.) No one else remembered theirs.

Greg asked if there was any place we could go buy a coat. Friends, Kentucky friends I welcome you back to the 1990’s.

Oh the times I dug and dig through mislabeled sizes, rips, and stains to find all the best deals. As soon as we stepped inside I was immediately envious that I couldn’t shop here for hours gathering all kinds of deals. Coats however are not in season. $0.99 bathing suits are.

We did score a coat for Maddie for $4.99. She’s not happy about it but for that price I can leave it behind in NYC.

Pretty sure she’s gonna thank me later....I’m waiting for it.

Rental car has been returned. We enjoyed an uneventful shuttle ride to the airport. Thankfully we are all TSA precheck so we should fly through security.....except we have Polar Bear and he always causes us issues.

No issues!! They took and extra look but no additional screening required! Logan was so excited he wanted to run up this escalator.

He can just wait for me at the top.....

And now this....

Clearing my blog is getting the blame even though I didn’t start until well after the delays started occurring.

Logan mocked Greg by expressing his disappointment that we were in coach. Hard life. I hope Greg somehow makes it through this flight without free drinks.....

Logan and I should be set.

We stocked up on $23 worth of candy just before boarding. :)

We enjoyed a mostly \240nice flight....

Our flight was uneventful with the exception of the plane having no gin and the irritating older couple who sat across the aisle from us. I’m guessing they had never been on a flight before?? They had the volume so loud on their phone with no headphones whatsoever. I would love to know who their carrier is because they had crazy reception even someone in the sky. (Maybe they paid for WiFi but I’m just not sure they were that savvy.) They FaceTimed the entire take off on full volume with someone that had a kid yelling in the background. (You know, during that time when you are supposed to have your phone in airplane mode.) 🙄

Despite lots of noise the views from the air were pretty. We saw a beautiful sunset and a pretty moon. None of which could be easier captured through the plane window.

Here’s what we got.

Sunset

Beautiful lights of New Jersey!

Now it’s off to Embassy Suites near the airport for the night before we head into the city. Is it bad I’m already looking forward to free breakfast??

Too bad we can’t stay here all day.

Maddie standing next to the sign on the stairs that says don’t block the stairs. 🙄

I had serious flashbacks of being on the London Underground at rush hour....almost.

Once we arrived at Penn Station it was a cluster trying to squeeze off and make it up the escalator that was way too narrow. I was so happy to be off that train.

We have officially arrived. Making the short walk to our hotel.

Speaking of the hotel. They called while we were en route. Apparently the people who stayed in the suite we were supposed to have tonight completely trashed it and there’s no way they can have it put back together by tonight. So.....it looks like we are going to be short a bed (potential) but they have us a discount on tonight’s rate. Guess that just paid for our lunch at Shake Shack! (Hopefully a few lunches.)

Delicious!!

This is only part of all the stuff we had taking up space in their tiny lobby.

Oh yeah, I am faced with this lovely headline while waiting for the elevator.

They hooked us up with even more!

Thankfully this tiny room is not the big one.

Our amazing view

One of the windows....unfortunately the glare made it hard to capture.

Inside the store.

Another display

Crest of flowers.

Everyone but Greg is happy.....Gucci and Louis Vutton!

Logan asked for this phone case.....I suggested he look for a fake one as we walk down the street passing all the tables of purses and sunglasses.

#want

A small display of flowers

Woohoo!!

We decided to save some of our calories for later and didn’t order milkshakes. :)

On our way to Mood we passed Moxy hotel. Seems appropriate....maybe we should have stayed here.

Thought this was it....nope that’s just upholstery fabric.

Found it!!! Now if I could just find Tim Gunn.

The amount of fabric here is overwhelming.

Trim section.

Swiss dot

Unfortunately no remnants. But still a fun trip.

View of the public library.

Empire State peeking through.

Tree lined walk

#selfie

Grand Central Station

Next stop was the Whispering Wall where you can stand in opposite corners and hear each other talking. So crazy.

Whispering Wall

Whispering Wall

Beautiful windows and ceiling.

Greg’s camera is better than mine!

Shopping at the Apple Store

Easter 2018

So....much......stuff.....

Brooks can seriously look at a case like this and know what’s different here compared to the hobby shop in Vegas. How is that even possible???

I escalated with as much money as I had when we entered. Can’t believe he didn’t even try to talk me into a plane.

Time to walk the 16 blocks back to the hotel!

Chinese National Bank

Along the way we passed this awesome soccer field that Logan wanted to play on.

View along the High Line

Interesting architecture

Art activity where people were invited to paint on a piece of cardboard.

Parking structure. Don’t see this everywhere.

Empire State Building.

Main Hallway

Another view of the main hallway

We had dinner at Le song which was a French restaurant. Not bad!

Terrible pic of me but oh well!

Inside of Le song. Hard to see but they had doors hanging from the ceiling that was kinda cool.

Candles

I need all these shells on canvas. But not for $37 each.

Pretty store display

Brother sister bonding.

Fruit stand

The floor of the basement has coins embedded in it.

The kids were debating whether these doors were real. Immediately after someone walked out and about took Logan out. They were obviously real but the hardware was painted.

Asian candy....lots more to come later on this topic.

Asian drinks

I almost bought this T shirt. :)

I’m confident I need one of these donut makers at home.

These three went for crepes and macarons instead of donuts.

Maddie with a macaron

Empire State Building lit up

Here’s the collection of things to try.

First up, this soft chewy candy that the kids thought was milk.

Greg not excited and has the trash can close just in case.

Brooks actually liked it. Greg said it tasted like wax even though none of us are sure how he knows what wax tastes like.

Mixed reaction

Maddie picked out strawberry pockey’s. They actually weren’t too bad.

Brooks enjoying the candy.

Green tea nuggets-no one’s fave.

Saved the best/worst for last. Some sort of rice cake that Logan says feels like a stress ball.

Getting ready....

Still mentally prepping

Here we go....

Gross!!!

Logan ran to the bathroom after this pic to spit it out.

Despite all this craziness, the boys are currently trying to finish the candy because Greg said he would buy them more if they did. They have their sites on some sort of chip that is shrimp and lobster flavoring.

Overall, our day has been a success. Tomorrow will come early! Easter clothes are ready to go!! Our plan is to attend Easter Mass at Saint Patrick’s. Let’s see if we make that happen.

Ready to go!

Waiting for Church to begin

Lucky to have gotten a seat since there were lots of people standing for Mass.

Also lucky to get one of the few programs.

Saint Patrick’s is a beautiful Cathedral that relies on donations. They made that clear before Church started. :)

Altar decorated for Easter.

After Mass

They were so excited to take another pic.

Maddie stole my Chucks.....

Hard to see but the amount of people waiting to get into the 10:15 Mass was crazy. They were expecting 3000 people. The line extended around the block.

Japanese themed window

Lady’s dress is made entirely of flowers

Uh yeah, that’s bad but there’s a dragon. :)

This one also not good but it’s one of my favs. There’s a knight on a grass horse.

Everyone desperately needed Starbucks for either the caffeine, or the warmth...or both.

Rockefeller Center

Easter edition of Where’s Waldo. Can you spot the ice skating bunny?

This dude is all ready for Easter.

My babies!

Mass chaos

Sweet Beau

This dog had on a pink fur coat, a tutu and painted nails.

Medusa

Our favorite participant. Beau, the therapy dog.

Interesting crystal display inside Rockefeller.

You don’t see this everyday.

Happy Fourth of July Easter! Can’t beat a milkshake like this!

Happy Easter!!

We had so much fun!!

Unfortunately the Zamboni interrupted our fun. Which I guess was good since there was standing water on the rink from the ice melting. We didn’t want to wait the 30 mins until the break was over....onto the next spot.

This bunny topiary was maybe the cutest thing all day!

Here’s my pic of some of the flowers.

And here’s Logan’s using his artistic eye.

Family shot!

One on the left just behind that tree and the other is just behind the yellow sign. And somehow each one is as busy as the next.

I channeled my inner Logan for this one.

He looks so lonely!

Giving Brooks a “kiss”

Logan’s turn. Maddie hightailed it out of there.

Captured on video :)

Quick subway ride to rest our feet. That was a good plan.

After chilling for a little while, Greg and I decide that we will walk to One World Observatory to exchange our vouchers for timed tickets tomorrow morning. That worked so well we thought we would be smart and avoid the line tomorrow in the snow.

We also thought we were smarter than google maps and that the almost 3 mile walk wouldn’t take us an hour one way because we are much faster walkers than the average person. Ha!

Along the way we made a very slight detour back to Chelsea Market. We needed to take care of a few things. First I needed a sweatshirt I wanted last night but they closed before I could get it. Second, I got a cheap charm bracelet last night in a rush and during Church Logan asked why I didn’t have a charm that respresented him. Uh.....I’m not actually that bad of a mother but since I’m here I might as well ensure there is one that is clearly his. Check.

Also, we needed some more Japanese candy, because well, that was fun. And Greg wanted some random beer he had yday. Check and check.

Time to continue our walk to One World Observatory. We walk, and walk, and we can see the building but I swear it’s not getting any closer. I was scared to look at my map because i wasn’t sure I could handle the truth. Finally, I gave in. 0.9 miles left!?!?! Greg didn’t believe my map was right....unfortunately it was. OMG. I had flashbacks of our trip to NY when we got engaged when we had zero money and had to walk everywhere in the 90 degree heat. The only difference is it’s not hot. Greg was still bombing down the sidewalk at record speed until I said....I’m having flashbacks of our walk to battery park. Apparently he knew exactly what that meant because he slowed to a stroll. :)

Finally!

We made it!!!

Greg asks the guard where we go if we have a voucher. He shows us to a line with only one other person in line. We are seriously feeling SO smart.

It’s our turn with the cashier and we tell her we want to exchange our vouchers for tickets tomorrow morning. “We can’t do that.” Excuse me!?!?! “Same day tickets only.”

OMG.

Defeated we head back outside. We had already decided on our hour plus walk that we would not walk back home. It was either bike or Uber. I had to make a pit stop back at Chelsea Market to pick up my bracelet that now represented all three kids without question.

Bike it is!

Let’s do this!

There was a dedicated bike lane the entire way to Chelsea Market that was along the water. Very pretty.

Something was going on at Chelsea Market. Not sure what but there were seriously police everywhere. We weren’t sticking around to find out. We carefully walked our bikes down the sidewalk until we could ride off into the sunset. :)

Terrible quality but this....this could turn my entire night around. HiC orange!!! Are you kidding me!?!? Yes!! I’m so excited I can hardly stand it.

We get our food and drinks and get back to the hotel. I can hardly wait to get my straw in my large cup. I glance at Brooks’ cup and it has a Fanta Orange logo on it. I chuckle in my head at the fact that are misadvertising since they have HiC rather than Fanta. Until I take a big drink.

Freaking Fanta. This can’t be happening. Or it can. I forgot, not only is it Easter but also April Fool’s and the world has been pranking me for the last two hours basically.

We finish our night off with some more taste tests. I did t get as many pics....just one this time.

Lobster chips. Brooks said they tasted like nothing. Logan disagreed and thought they were terrible. Other candies included a coffe one and a lemon one that seemed to be a hit.

As we were getting ready for bed I showed Logan my new charm....the smile on his face made things almost better. Until he suggested I should have gotten a trampoline instead of a soccer ball. 🙄

Tomorrow’s forecast: snow. While biking we saw a sign about a winter weather advisory and a recommendation to not travel. #SB2018

Who needs a tan when you can get a nice wind burn.

Until tomorrow! Top of the Rock, One World Observatory and Trinity Church are definites on the agenda.

Beautiful view of the snow!

Logan celebrating the beautiful day.

Logan asked if our hotel room windows were tinted. Brooks said why don’t you try waving at that guy to see if he waves back....he did.

Such an amazing view.

This is proof that when you bring four pairs of shoes for a four day trip (really five but she’s not counting the flats) you might just be prepared for anything.

Lovely walking conditions.

He’s so cute!!

This is how I travel in the snow.....

Subway to One World Observatory

Greg got our pic in retaliation.

Oculus balcony

Oculus from the outside with One World Trade Center in the background.

Altar

Each of the columns contains a huge display of flowers.

Organ

Beautiful stained glass windows.

We also did not anticipate this line outside the restaurant.

While we waited Logan and I walked in search of warmth. We found a sweet shop. Check out all these jelly beans.

And Pez dispensers

This was a new gummy I hadn’t seen before.

As was this.

We figured we could only stay in the sweet shop so long without buying so we took shelter in a subway station.

Finally it’s our turn!!!

The bathrooms were a little insane.

The Black Tap is know for their burgers and their shakes. Because I knew the shakes would be crazy big and because I was eating on a budget I went all out with a side salad and water.

Brooks got the Sweet and Salty. It was basically chocolate and peanut butter.

Cotton Candy Shake

Maddie’s got The Cake Shake. It legit had a giant piece of cake on top of the shake.

Statue of Liberty is in between Brooks and Logan.

Ellis Island

Colgate Clock

One of the pools at the 9/11 Memorial.

Oculus from 102 floors up

Empire State

Brooklyn Bridge

Empire State in a random ray of sun. It must have been the only one all day.

Central Park in between the new building and the white one.

2018 Ball lit up

Empire State with One World Trade in the distance.

Greg needs to work on his selfie skills....

Sun starting to set

After checking out the different levels of observations decks it became clear that people were staking out their spots for sunset. We still had approximately an hour before sunset. It was chilly outside and there wasn’t a ton of seating indoors.

Greg wanted to stay to see the view of the Empire State Building lit up. The kids had no desire to stand in the cold and/or wait. We tried to kill some time in the tiniest gift shop ever that was outside of the elements.

We then went downstairs where we were able to find a few random seats after standing around waiting for someone to give some indication that they were leaving so you could jump into their spot. After investing so much time, we weren’t leaving until we saw the lights.

My waiting face.....

After we were finished there was a strong desire to take the subway back to the hotel. Greg suggested rock, paper, scissors. If he won we walked, if Logan ran we would take the subway.

L

Logan lost so we got to walk the very long chilly 20 blocks back....with grumpy kids.

Only 13 people ahead of us and we only have to wait 7 mins until they open. Could be so much worse.

It was hard to decide what to order. Dominique Ansel is also known for their fresh baked Madeleine’s and something called a DKA which is a flaky amazingly wonderful pastry. I kept adding things to the order. Greg about choked at the total price....oh well, you only live once.

Selfie opp while Greg was waiting on the Madeleine’s.

Cronuts and DKA

Half of our Madeleine order

Madeline with her Madeleine’s

Mom.....this lovely box is coming home to you!!!

I didn’t even get any of these macarons! :(

Or any of these lovelies! Well, Madeline did get a chocolate eclair from this case which I assume was delicious.

Now back to the hotel to hang for a little bit. Agenda for the rest of our last day includes a possible trip to the Intrepid and later dinner with Chris and Brian before we go see HAMILTON!!!!

We have arrived

Perfect sweatshirt for Brooks

Sporting our pass for the upcoming Concord tour.

View of the flight deck from below

Tight quarters!

Helicopters too...

Logan declared this plane was ‘rad.’

No comment on this one?? Guess it doesn’t have the rad factor.

Some of these tiles were damaged.

Logan practicing waving in a plane.

I have lots of pics with Brooks on a multitude of planes from many different eras. We can now add Concord to the list.

The Concord has much smaller windows that the average plane.

Flight deck

That dude wouldn’t exit the plane so i could get the perfect pic. Ugh!

Running for shelter

This restaurant better be amazing!

At this point Logan doesn’t care if he gets wet. Good thing!

Good thought, poor execution

Pulled pork

Fried pickles were so good

Our Uber driver on the way home had three maps going which Logan thought was funny. He definitely won’t be getting lost.

Time to shower, pack and get dressed for Hamilton!!!!!

This is your husband’s face when you say you want to Uber the 0.9 miles to dinner in terrible traffic because it’s raining.

Winner winner chicken dinner.

Standing in line to enter.

Brian and Chris