The Big Apple Day 3

Another gorgeous day of weather in NYC, this day it was already 90 and humid when we headed out on our walk to Central Park!

Central Park is this lovely amazing tranquil area in the middle of this massive chaotic city! I can see what they preserve it so well!
We thought this was a cool spot to stop and get a picture with those buildings in the background
Getting a carriage ride in Central park is very popular, but we could think of much better things to spend $50 on (for a 20 minute ride)
We left Central park and started walking back down 5th Avenue. We walked all through the Trump buiding, this is the view from the top floor, the back wall is a water feature that was much more amazing in person
Walking through Rockefeller Center (on our way to another stop at the Magnolia Bakery, yummy cupcakes)!

The best thing that night was getting home and wrapping my arms around this precious little girl! She was SOOOOOOO excited to see us at the airport, jumping up and down. I ran down the escalator and scooped her up for a hug!! She was pretty excited to see her surprises! These are her new matching pajamas from American Girl, she just had to try them on immediately!
Cara did fabulous at Grandma and Grandpa Abbott's for the weekend! She talked to us on the phone a couple times a day and was so sweet telling us she missed us but to have fun on our trip. They took her to the zoo, the movies, out to eat and she helped in the building of a new swing set in their backyard. So they kept her too busy to worry about missing us! Thank you Grandma and Grandpa A for keeping her for the weekend and taking such good care of her!

Thank you also to Grandma and Grandpa Fox for picking up Cara for us on Sunday so she would be there when we got off the plane. Thank you also for the transportation to the airport!

New York City day 2

The weather in NYC on Saturday was supposed to be a record breaking 89 degrees and full of sunshine. What a wonderful day to head to the new Yankee Stadium to catch a game!


Right outside the subway stop, the Stadium is in the background
Just walking into the stadium on the level that our seats were on
Zooming in to get a picture of Derek Jeter (I think) up to bat
This was the view from our seats, not bad for $25 each! Great view and in the shade all day!

After the game we headed back to the hotel because we had reservations at Dizzy Gillespie's Club Coca Cola (a jazz club).

The menu

Isn't the view of the city gorgeous!
Sitting at the club waiting for the show to start

The performers this night were a combo of Latin jazz musicians, I don't think I can pronounce, let alone spell any of their names

We went to the early set at the jazz club and were back to our room before 9pm, much too early for New York standards so I suggested we change our clothes and walk the few blocks down to Times Square and maybe stop somewhere for dessert!

So this is what we encountered when we got to Times Square! Our first thought (due to the thousands of people taking pictures through the barricades) was that maybe they were filming a movie, how cool!

Then this very nice police officer informed us about the car bomb and the evacuation! What chaos there was on the side streets since the main thoroughfare was barricaded off. Turns out the evacuation was not cancelled untio 6:30am, almost 11 hours after it began. Who would have thought we would actually be in Times Square during this crazy event!

New York City Day 1

Ever since we were in New York last summer with Scott's band trip we have wanted to go back and do a few things we couldn't take 50 teenagers to go do. So when we got an email about a new Broadway musical opening with discount tickets in the first 2 months, we decided a weekend away was in order.

We have never left Cara since she was born, maybe a night here or there, but only if we were in town and just busy. So we asked Scott's parents if they wanted a weekend sleepover guest since they have been dying for one for about 3 years :) So all week we talked up the anticipation of the big sleepover weekend! The only thing Cara would say about it was "but what if I miss you guys too much?" Aawww, how sweet is that?
Grandma and Grandpa Abbott came down and took Cara to ballet on Thursday and then took her home with them that night! So far so good!

And Scott and I boarded an EARLY flight headed to NYC Friday morning. Here is the view of the city as we were flying into LaGuardia!

We got a car and took it to our hotel in the Times Square area and our room wasn't ready yet so we decided to venture out for a bite to eat. We were only one block away from the hotel when I tripped on crooked cement (I was looking up at the buildings so had no idea it was coming), I twisted my left ankle, scraped skin and bloodied my right knee (through my jeans no less) and had a sore right wrist from unsuccessfully trying to catch my fall. What a way to start our predominantly walking vacation!

I couldn't let my injury ruin our vacation so after getting some food we headed out for some shopping! Number One on my list was to go to the American Girl store to pick up a surprise for Cara.
We actually got her a couple surprises :)

Later that evening we got all dressed up and headed to the Broadway theater for the musical Promises, Promises which is a revival of the musical from the 60's. This one was starring Kristin Chenoweth (of Wicked fame) and Sean Hayes (from Will & Grace).
The theater is in the background!
After the show, what a great date night!

Lafayette Jazz Festival

The Rossville HS Jazz Orchestra was invited to play in the first Lafayette area Jazz Festival. They had several guest clinicians and made the day a wonderful event!

Cara waiting for the music to start
Scott conducting
Scott conducting again
Cara intently watching the performance

Aladdin at Beef and Boards

On Saturday we went to the kids theater at Beef and Boards to enjoy their 2nd to last performance of Aladdin. It was a nice little show. We each got a rice krispy treat and an apple juice to enjoy.

Cara checking out the stage
Cara and Daddy waiting for the show to start

Baby Swing?

Last week I got up from sleeping to find this!

Cara talked Grandpa into hooking up her baby swing on the playset!
She said "but I still fit in it Mommy"! Too funny! She couldn't wait until she was big enough to use the regular swings comfortably and now she wants back in the baby swing?!

Just some picture taking...

Trying to look a bit more organized!

We made a little road trip to IKEA in Cincinnati a couple weeks ago to get some shelving organization units. I was tired of the mass amount of toys all over the family room and wanted something to better keep them organized.

After:

Before:

All these little toys shoved in the corner
Cara enjoyed using the shelving units as a "Barbie house" before they got anchored to the wall!

New Wheels...

I don't know why I would think that the bike she got last year for Easter would still work this year, of course not she is few inches taller now! So last week we made a trip to Toys R Us for a new bike! She is up to a 16 inch bike already (really could have got an 18 inch one but it felt too big for her and she was scared).




She calls her new bike her "Beauty and the Beast" bike because of the rose on it! She also got a new helmet, a Tinkerbell and Fairy one that lights up!

Easter at Grandma and Grandpa's

After church on Easter we all gathered at Grandma and Grandpa Fox's for an easter meal and Easter Egg hunt with the cousins. Michael, Lisa, Dillon and Oscar were celebrating Easter in Florida this year, so that is why they are not in any pictures.

Everyone's Easter Egg baskets! Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!!
Vince, Cara and Charlotte!
Cara got a new bubble blower in her Easter basket

All the kids outside gathered for the egg hunt
And they're off!
They each got to find 20 eggs

After the egg hunt it was time for everyone to try out their new bubbles