Spring Break in NYC

 

On the First Monday of Spring Break, we went for ADVENTURE.
Caught the 7:40 bus, traveled into the city with plans to hit a bunch of playgrounds in Central Park!
Above, we got to spend a lot of time at the Ancient Playground (Upper East Side) with Barron and Benjamin. Oliver loved the fact that there was sand within this area... and Trenton had a vibrant game of tag & hide and seek with his newly-made friends.

  

 

The boys had so much fun playing back at Jen's place, that they didn't want to leave!

Instead of hitting more playgrounds, though, Jen had the great idea to check out the boats in Central Park. You rent the remotes, but the wind does all the work. The boys moved the rudder and adjusted the sail, and watched, entranced, as the boats glided over the water before them. Both were giddy to learn that E. B. White received his inspiration for Stuart Little's boat race scene from this very pond.

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And here is a first! We brought the single stroller AND Trenton's Razor scooter with us to the city this time. Trenton did a fabulous job of scooting all over the park! 

 

 

We ended the day by meeting up with our friend Wyatt and his mom, Jen. The boys wanted to climb EVERY ROCK in and around Heckschler Playground. We tried. And they did not slip or fall once. Pretty darn good!

 

Oliver, the Mini Manager

There he is! Mr. Famous! And how did he get to be so famous, you ask?

Well.

THREE seasons ago, someone from the Blueclaws snapped his picture. He was in a Mets outfit with a Kids Club Blueclaws hat, but had his glove positioned over the wording on his shirt and the most adorable smile and wave going on with his hand. 

So they decided to use it as part of their brochure last year!

We were so proud! Got a dozen copies for the fam! All that!

And then guess what? This year? He's in it AGAIN!

So, Momma sent the front office an email... acknowledging that the kid is a big Blueclaws fan, and curious as to what they might be able to do for him!

Shall we say MINI-MANAGER FOR THE DAY!?

Ollie got to hang out with the players in the dugout before the game.

And walk out to the mound with the manager to exchange the lineup for the game.

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"And now, for the two most famous words in baseball:...."

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Opening Day, 2014

This year, we have one Pee Wee player for the Brewers, and one tee-ball kid who's on the Orioles. 

I think it is super-adorable that each team gets to walk into the big stadium, grab the microphone and announce their names, and then join in for some National Anthem singing, raffle ticket drawing, and well-wishes for a great season.

20140412 090903[1] from Sheryl K. on Vimeo.

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Getting Ready for Easter

Oliver's school had a really nice Easter celebration performance. Each class created a poster to commemorate a different point in Jesus's life, thereby showing the kids the timeline from baby to adult. Above, Oliver holds his class's poster of the Crucifixion. 

(Check out this .gif  Some song with sign language)

 

 

Same church, different day. Here we have the boys singing and shaking eggs for the Palm Sunday performance. All the kids come in waving palms at the beginning of the service. It is really cute and happy.

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And then we made it to the Point Pleasant Egg Hunt this year!

It was a sunny day, so of course EVERYONE ELSE decided to go, as well. The crowd you see above was about 100 kids...who were only 7&8 years old! 

Prizes included free treats on the boardwalk, tickets to the arcades, and passes for rides. 

 Trenton generously used his 8,000 ticket prize to buy four of these dart blowers... one for his brother, and two for friends of ours who came with us. Below, Trenton shows Nicholas how it's done.

LOOK! FLOWERS!

I love Easter in April, and will document the flowers to prove it ;)

 

Someone had better get those kids a haircut... They be gettin' long bangs, now...
We hosted our friends for a little Easter egg dying event. And it was relatively not-messy!

 

 
Always have to have a bit of Wii ...

Flashback to Last Summer...

This was found, on my phone... Apparently, Oliver had taken over the video function!

Ollie Takes Over the Camera from Sheryl K. on Vimeo.

PaRtAyS!!!

 

Averie is One!!! This adorable cutie pie celebrated in style, with daddy Jonathan and momma Alex. It was a cute spring-themed day with lots of smiles. She's a great little girl.

 

And we hosted poker night! Because now we are involved in a poker club! Ha! On the top left there is Tom, cleaning up big-time. And on the right we have Nicole, Rodney, and Jim... having a blast. We discovered that pretzel rods, cashews, and red wine are a fantastic combination.

 

And here are some pictures from my late-nights... Above, Kathryn & Laura & the rest of the moms at T's school had a great time at the annual gift auction (even though we didn't win a thing)... Below, I'm celebrating Kim & Maria's BD at Rella's in Brielle, and on the right, we're signing a song that I had written for Stefanie for her birthday at Porta Pizza.  Good friends, good fun, and good reason to dress up and go out!

 

Eatin' the Asian Food

From a night where both Jim and I decided that we weren't cooking, and went out instead: 

And then, at Wegmans, I found a "Make Your Own Sushi" kit! Too cool! So we made shrimp and carrot sushi with sticky rice. They ate it ALL. It was incredible.