An after school play date with Olivia concluded our sunny day. The kids chose the Urban Meadow over the adjacent playground and happily poked around the grass and hibernating flower field, collecting “fluff”, clover leaves, and other little treasures. It got so late that we decided to treat them to dinner at Calexico. The biggest hit were shared bottles of fluorescent Jarritos, which sent the girls into a sugar rush even before they had their first sip.
We had a perfect plan for a perfect Spring day: to take Tobin and Henry on a watertaxi ride from DUMBO across the East River to Pier 17 in downtown Manhattan. The weather forecast: 70°F (20°C) and sunny. The boys were so excited that they sang “Taxi, Taxi!” all the way down to the DUMBO pier, turning heads everywhere. Only problem: the watertaxi doesn’t stop in DUMBO on weekdays (!)
After the initial disappointment wore off, we settled for the many other good things that neighborhood has to offer: general boat watching at Fulton Ferry Landing, street art (look, a taxi!), several construction sites along Brooklyn Bridge Park, and the always popular playground. Not a bad morning after all.
Mika and Mica, friends from school since last year’s summer gardening session, had a long overdue play date. Today was a half day of school and (luckily!) spring weather made a move back into our neighborhood. Jackets and hats were flying off and the kids went nuts at the local playground. We topped it off with a cone at Blue Marble…
Today, on the last, drizzly day of a nasty weather spell, i had to drag Tobin into Manhattan between school pickups. He didn’t mind the long stroller ride, since he was sitting comfortably dry and enjoying various attractions along the way: a “Schnappi” graffiti on a delivery truck at Union Square Farmers Market, a backhoe loader (wheels propped up in the air!) at work on Court Street, 15 yellow school buses (not pictured), and – on the way home with Mika – the playful store kitty on Columbia Street.
Tobin and Henry played with the salad spinner for almost an hour, making sure the greens they served were as clean as can be. As the individual turns got longer and more obsessive, Henry started passing his downtime with a little ‘salad song’…
When Mika went through her “camera phase“, a friend of ours commented that in her house there are laptops of the same kind in circulation. I guess we’ve entered the next phase as well…
Mika and Luna (and Tobin) were in the best of moods after German school this evening. First they stalked the grownups with their own “monster attacks”, then we were assigned the job of “scare monster” so they could hide in the doorways (see above).
Bruno was looking forward to playing with Tobin – and his little green digger (Bagger!) – all morning. And so he did. Good thing there were a tent and plenty of vehicles to go around, so the boys had lots of fun together. Thanks for coming over … and treating us to an extra special lunch!
Tobin got on a roll today, drawing his first ever potato heads. Note the full head of (hovering) hair, along with eyes, squiggle mouth, arms, and legs.
Mika had a great afternoon at Olivia’s house, doing hour long art projects. In the early evening, Tobin joined in on the fun and was allowed to play with the big girls. Little Theo on the other hand, chose to stay close to his mom – except for a snugly cat nap on my shoulder. At dinnertime, aspiring director Olivia showed off a bunch of video clips she had taken with her brand new camera. Instant kiddie magnet…
This afternoon, Mika brought an armful of artwork home from school. I love this one in particular, where the class has been introduced to the concept of “horizon lines” for the first time.
