Family time

I was worried that extended family events wouldn't be a part of our New York experience, since, although Jermaine has a lot of family here, I don't really know many of them.  So I was thrilled to be invited to a birthday party for the son of Jermaine's niece, Dinah.  When Jermaine and I went to Belize in 2006, we stayed with Dinah's mother, Isolene, who was married to Jermaine's brother, Dean.  Dinah and her brother, Dion, took us around town.  We haven't seen them since, though we did hear that she had a baby. 



Shay with the birthday boy, Jason

The party was at Morningside Park in Harlem.  The weather was really nice and the park was definitely the place to be.  To me, the vibe felt like Kenneth Hahn park in LA.  Everyone was BBQ'ing, kids were running everywhere, and the music was bumping.  There was a pond (man-made, I think) with ducks and turtles. The kids had a super fun time, and it was so great to see Dinah and meet more of the family.





Finally old enough to participate in some party games





Rain, rain, go away!

We got hit with major thunder and lightening this week. Even I was kind of scared! I brought Shay's boots and two umbrellas (one for him and one for me) to pick him up from daycare, and he was super-excited.

To save money, Shay is going to daycare four days per week, and I have a babysitter who lives in our building caring for Mila for a few hours a day.  This arrangement allows me get some job hunting done, and will eventually let me go on interviews (hopefully!).  Of course, the one day that I have both kids (Fridays), it rained, though not as hard as it had the day before.  After having them "help" me with the laundry and visiting the community room in the morning, we had to get outside for a little fresh air after nap.  We walked around the plaza, and I took a million pictures of Mila in the green quilted vest from my grandma because I thought she was so cute in it!  She is so interested in everything and loved exploring the puddles.  She inspected them closely and even tried drinking out of them.  The walk came to an end when she actually sat down in a puddle.  Luckily I brought a towel, so I wrapped her up and carried her inside.

As we headed back into the apartment, the doorman had deliveries for us!  A great package arrived from my Aunt Joanne and Uncle Dimitrie for the kids. Books and a cool wooden fruit set from their Amazon wish lists - perfect!  

The rain really showed me how tough it was going to be to have the kids at a school outside of our neighborhood.  The daycare that we chose is a bus ride and a few blocks walking away, but the bus picks up right in front of our apartment.  I thought it would be convenient, but a crowded bus ride with two little kids at morning and afternoon rush hours are not as easy as I envisioned.  Not to mention trying to walk through the busiest part of the city without losing the kids.  

I was so excited to get the call from a great daycare a few blocks away from our apartment.  I thought that they wouldn't have any space for Mila.  Turns out they have a space for her in September and for Shay in August.  Awesome news.  The only problem is that it's expensive (like everything else in New York - I know I sound like a broken record on this topic!), so I still scheduled a visit at a(nother) nearby in-home daycare that I found online.  Although I still don't have a job, I feel like things are starting to get sorted out.

Happy birthday Mila!

The past year has been a whirlwind for us. For her part, Mila has developed into a cuddly and mischievous little toddler. She definitely attracts people to her wherever she goes; one lady said that Mila would be the "mayor of the bus" before the trip was over, and she was right! Even Shay can't resist her (most of the time).

She had a nice little family celebration to commemorate her first year of life. We love you, little mama!

Nice weekend

The best thing about New York so far has been having Jermaine home on the weekends.

On Saturday, we had lunch outside on the plaza. Shay has been seeing Spiderman 3 posters all over the city, and has been practicing his Spiderman hands. He has been becoming more adventurous and social as he gets more comfortable here.

We also made it to capoeira for the first time.  The space was actually very close to Shay's daycare, so Jermaine got to see how tough it is to handle the kids on the bus. Shay hung out with the instructor's daughter and showed off his capoeira moves.  Hopefully, this was the first of many more capoeira classes! 







I wanted to take the kids to a carousel that's on the other side of the East River for Mila's birthday on Tuesday, but found out that it's closed on that day. So we went on Sunday, which had to be one of the hottest days here so far.  There was no breeze, even right next to the river. We took the ferry to Brooklyn Bridge Park, which is right under the bridge itself.  When the ride actually started going, Shay got a little freaked out; he said the music was too loud.  He's been on carousels before; he still surprises me sometimes with things that scare him.  I have to remind myself that he's only three. 



All in all, it was a fun day.  Especially the ice cream before we headed back on the ferry!

On the ferry home.  It was so hot!

Mila: master of the Asian squat

She just does it spontaneously all over Manhattan....



7th Ave



On the plaza

At the sprinkler park

At another sprinkler park (she didn't make that puddle - she was just playing in it!)

At yet another sprinkler park



Daycare developments

After an extensive search of the available options, Shay started at a new school/daycare this week.  Options were fairly limited, as I wanted somewhere that would accept both kids and didn't require us to pay more than we could potentially earn together.  The preschool scene is pretty crazy here, with tuitions exceeding $2000/month - per kid!  And you have to apply the preceding year to have any hope of getting into a "top tier" preschool that places kids at prestigious grade schools later.  I may be exaggerating, but all of the information that I have been gathering is pretty overwhelming. 

Since I don't have the daycare situation worked out and I haven't yet begun to job-hunt (couldn't take them on interviews!), I can be flexible about taking Shay and picking him up.  We hang out at home for awhile in the morning, then catch the crosstown bus.  "Crosstown" means going from east to west, or vice versa, and we are as east as you can get without swimming in the East River.  The bus typically gets pretty packed and the kids get antsy, so it's not the most fun ride.  New Yorkers have been really nice to the kids, though; everyone wants to talk to them and no one (except me) tells them to be quiet when they start complaining (loudly!).   Then we have to fight through a sea of people to get a few blocks from the bus drop off to the daycare.  I have walked them all the way to the school (in the stroller), but takes about 30 minutes and the weather may prevent this option in the winter.  They are on a waiting list for a closer school, but I'm not holding my breath. 

Shay seems excited to go to school, and they go to Madison Square Park (mentioned/pictured in previous post) to take advantage of the sprinklers.  Ever since he started, though, he has been having a hard time going to sleep at night.  I think it's taking longer for him to wind down.  I think Mila misses him during the day, too; she is all over him when he gets home.  I think it's so cute, but he starts feeling a little bombarded by her intense energy.

The daycare does not take kids until they are 15 months old, so I am still trying to keep Mila busy at home.  We visit the playroom downstairs and the local playgrounds, and she "helps" me run errands and do laundry. Though she is progressing so much, I still think of her as a baby and maybe spoil her too much.  I know that I expect less of her than I did of Shay at that age.  At this point, I am not sure if I will stay home with her until 15 months or find temporary care.  If I stay home with her, I am feeling like I will have to step up my game and draw on my preschool teacher days.



Previous pic that shows the playroom. There's an outside area too, but we haven't ventured there yet.



Mila in the playroom today.  She hung out with some older girls and their nannies.



Learning to use a fork.  She is very persistant and stubborn, wanting to do it herself.

One thing that I have learned is how adaptable my kids are.  Everyone says that kids are adaptable, but I didn't believe it about my kids until I saw it.  They still do have a hard time if they don't eat or sleep well, but I can tweak things and help them to bounce back.  Good to note that I am learning a few things along the way...


The bus that goes directly to our apartment was super-full today and we couldn't get on.  We caught a different bus and walked several blocks along the river.  Shay "won the race" home and Mila was a distant second.