The Big Apple in Two Days

 Chris's mom came to spend Thanksgiving with us and she has family in New York. Chris had the wonderful idea to drive her up to the Bronx to stay with her family and while she was there (instead of driving back and forth) we would spend the weekend in New York City. We were in the city for two full days and we packed it in! We were worried it would be cold and the boys would complain about all the walking, but we had gorgeous weather and they did absolutely great! We had such a great trip showing them around The Big Apple.

Our first meal was at the famous New York hot dog stands. Jack opted for a pretzel. They had fun ordering from the street cart. 

In CC we study artist throughout the year. One artist we study is Van Gogh.  Right before we left for our trip we were reading a book about him and Abram asked where his Starry Night painting is.  He said he would like to see it one day. We quickly looked it up and learned it was in New York at the Museum of Modern Art... so of course we added it to our list! His eyes lit up when we saw it in person. 

Jack and Luke's favorite artist right now is Monet. They just stood in front of his panels and took it all in. I loved listening to Jack describe the different parts of his paintings. Luke asked for our phone so he could take a selfie with another Monet they had. I just love their excitement for art. 

My amazing husband was so wanting to take the boys to see a Broadway play, but he knew one of things on my bucket list has been to see the Rockettes perform at Radio City Music Hall at Christmas. He surprised me with tickets for all five us as an early anniversary gift. He's just the best. The show was absolutely spectacular and fun to watch with the boys. They loved every minute of the singing and dancing. Such a great way to welcome the Christmas season. 

 

I couldn't believe I was watching them in person! 

He's just the best to me! 

We had to get a picture with the Christmas tree chandelier .

We had a great time just walking around the city looking at all the sights... Rockefeller Center, Times Square, the Highline and the Brooklyn Bridge. 

Of course after all the walking we had to stop at a NY pizza place and try a slice of pizza. The boys thought this was just the best and this was their favorite meal of the entire weekend. 

Of course their favorite sight of the whole trip was to see the Statue of Liberty. The boys have been wanting to see it since we moved to the East Coast. They were so stunned when they first saw it from the ferry. Their expressions were priceless! 

We even got to climb up the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty. It was pretty cool. This was a first for Chris and me, too, so it was exciting to do it with the boys. 

After spending some time on Liberty Island the ferry took us back to Battery Park where the amazing Sea Glass Carousel was. I had heard about this carousel, but I didn't know it would be this stunning. The lights, music and the way the fish moved around was just a sight to see. 

Of course, the boys were exhausted. On our way back to the subway station we saw Morris Street and also we stopped briefly at the 9-11 Memorial. Seeing the two pools where the towers stood was quite overwhelming. It was night so we didn't take any pictures but this summer we went to the Flight 93 Memorial in Pennsylvania and it was important for the boys to see this memorial. 

 

They are done! Riding back to our hotel after a long day. 

On our last morning in the city we took a quick walk through Central Park.  It was beautiful to see in the fall and Abram loved seeing the bridge from Home Alone. 

I love this picture Chris took of me and the boys! 

Our city boys! 

We had an absolutely amazing time and we can't wait to go back! So much to see and do! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our Fall

 We have had such a wonderful fall... the boys are at such a fun age for exploring and adventuring. It is fun to do new things with them and take them new places. Our fall was full of trips, pumpkins, apples, and fall trees. We have never lived in a place with seasons, so this fall seeing the amazing leaf colors was truly a spectacular sight! 

Our fall started with a trip one evening to the Immersive Experience of Van Gogh. The boys had studied his paintings in CC and they were thrilled to see them in this way. The best part was the room where you sat in the middle and it felt like you were right in his paintings and that they came to life! The boys talked about it for weeks later. 

Another first this month was for Chris... he ran his first half Ironman and crushed it! He completed a 1.2 mile swim in 28 minutes, a 56 mile bike ride in 3 hours and 18 minutes and a 13.1 mile run in 2 hours and 22 minutes. I am so glad I was there to watch him finish it. He did so great! 

The starting line

Finishing the swim

Heading out on his bike

Finisher! 

So proud. 

This year we found a homeschool soccer league in our area. The boys had a blast! They had games and practices every Wednesday afternoon. I loved it because all three boys could play at the same time and it never interfered with our evenings or weekends. Jack and Luke played on the Green Lightning team and Abram played for the Phoenix Dragons. They loved it and did great!

It was extra special because Gram got to come to their games and practices while she was here visiting. 

Also, while our Gram was here we went apple picking at Great Country Farms. The boys picked a ton of apples and it was a beautiful fall day!

Another special adventure we went on this fall was to the Blue Ridge Mountains. We have sweet neighbors who own a home up there and they offered to let our family stay there on a weekend in October. It was amazing! The mountains, the hiking, time spent together. It was all just perfect and we had the best time. 

The house we stayed at all weekend.

My boys figuring out the best route on our hike. 

I just love them... and the view was pretty amazing, too!

Adventures in hiking!

My favorite!

Fall isn't complete without a visit to the local pumpkin patch to pick out our pumpkins and they love carving them with Chris. 

The finished product.

One of the books we read this fall was called, "Mornings with Monet." It was the true story of how Monet painted his pictures. Jack and Luke just adored it. On the day Chris took Abram to Six Flags, I asked Jack and Luke what special thing they wanted to do. They both agreed they wanted to take their paints to the water and paint like Monet. They had the best time and their paintings turned out pretty great! 

We had a really fun Halloween this year, too! Jack and Luke dressed up like pirates and Abram was a skeleton. He was thrilled he got to be something somewhat scary this year. We also had a party with our neighbors before everyone went trick or treating. It was fun to see everyone's costumes. 

Our breakfast treat on Halloween morning

The neighborhood kids

And the neighborhood adults.

These two!

We started a new tradition this year... a thankful tree. We always think about and most the time write down what we are thankful for, but this year we were more intentional. We started on November 1 with 24 leaves. Each day, one of us would write down what we are thankful for this season. We loved watching our tree fill up. 

I am usually not a big fan of fall simply because I know the cold weather is just around the corner. But this year, I think I might be changing my mind. The trees here have just been spectular. The colors are just amazing! We had to get out one afternoon and take some pictures. The Tidal Basin (where the Jefferson Memorial is) was simply stunning. 

We had a special treat this year... Chris' mom came to spend Thanksgiving with us. We had a great time taking her around D.C. and spending the holiday season with her. 

And here's how our tree turned out... I just love it. And after our Thanksgiving meal we took off the leaves and Abram read each one of them. It was a sweet reminder of why we celebrate Thanksgiving and that we truly do have so much to be thankful for.