NYC 2013

After taking the train from Philadelphia, we walked from the train station to the apartment we had rented in NYC. We used airbnb to find an apartment to rent so that we could have a little more space. We really wanted Wills to be in his own room so that Charles and I wouldn't have to sit in the dark and be quiet after he went to bed. We ended up renting a 1 bedroom apartment in Midtown Manhattan, very close to Central Park. It was significantly less expensive to do this than to get a hotel in the same area. Wills slept in the bedroom and we slept in the living room.

Charles and I have both been to New York multiple times, so we didn't need to hit the tourist spots. Our plan was to go on a tour of friends instead. First up was the Winkler's. Kelli and I became great friends when we lived in the same dorm our freshman year of college. She and Marc live on Long Island. They drove in on Sunday to have dinner with us and hang out with Wills. Sadly I was a terrible photographer and didn't take any pictures with Wills playing with them. Marc was a big hit with Wills too! We went to eat at BXL Belgian Cafe. They had all you can eat mussels and I think Charles and Marc at 10 lbs between the two of them!

Monday morning Charles went to the grocery store and stocked up on bagels and fruit so that we could just have lazy mornings and not eat every meal out. We then headed to the American Museum of Natural History. Wills had a great time there. I think his favorites were the dinosaurs and the ocean life. 

Me and the manatee. My animal soul mate :)

A great thing about the museum is that you can leave and come back the same day. We actually took a break for lunch at the Shake Shack.

That night we went to see Mike, Debbie, and Olivia. The last time we were in New York was actually for Mike and Debbie's wedding. They had Olivia last August and this was our first chance to meet her. 

On Tuesday we headed to the Children's Museum of Manhattan. Wills had an amazing time!

We then went to Hampton Chutney for lunch. It was so good! We then headed back towards Central Park while Wills took a nap in his stroller. We were headed to meet friends at the park and got there a little early, so we stopped at Starbucks to have a snack. Wills made himself comfortable.  

Then it was time to head to the park meet Crystal and Grey. Crystal and her husband Dave were in medical school with Charles. They had Grey just a couple of weeks before we had Wills. 

Wills and Grey got along so well and played so hard that afternoon. We then met up with Dave and all went to dinner at The Redeye Grill. I had the lobster mac n cheese and it was delicious. 

Wednesday morning we got up to head home. We were supposed to be home by 2:30 and ended up not getting home until after midnight. I am so thankful for the playground in the Chicago airport. I don't know how we would have survived the 8 hours in the airport without it!

First and only cab ride to the airport.

Who needs a seat on the plane?

Airport playground

Other than the delays getting home, it was a wonderful trip!

Philadelphia 2013

Charles had a conference in Philadelphia last weekend. One of my best friends from graduate school just happens to live there, so Wills and I decided this would be the perfect opportunity to go visit Aunt Nicholete.  Wills hasn't been on a plane since last July and it was not great. We flew during nap time which was a mistake. He refused to nap on the plane and ended up vomiting all over me. Needless to say, I was a little anxious about this flight. We decided since he won't sleep on a plane, we wouldn't fly during nap time. We got up Friday morning and headed to the airport. We left him in his pj's because our flight was at 7am.

He actually slept on the entire flight to Chicago and played on the iPad on the flight to Philadelphia.

Aunt Nicholete picked up us at the airport and took us to our hotel, the Westin. We all promptly took an afternoon nap.

After our nap, we headed to Rittenhouse Square, one of the four squares of Philadelphia.

We then went and had a yummy dinner at Marathon where Wills decided he needed a cat nap and I decided I needed a milkshake.

On Saturday, Charles headed to learn and Wills and I went to Aunt Nicholete's for breakfast. We then went to see the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall. We also stopped at Franklin Square for Wills to run around on the play ground.

After that, we headed back to the hotel for an afternoon nap and to wait for Charles to get finished with his day of learning. When he was done, we headed back out to see the Magic Garden, which is giant mosaic a guy made after he had a nervous breakdown. Pretty neat to see, but the stairs were a bit of a nightmare for us since that is all Wills wanted to do.

We then went and ate another delicious dinner at Jones restaurant. Wills devoured their glazed carrots. I think it helped that they were cut to look like french fries!

On Sunday, Charles headed back to class to learn and Wills, Nicholete and I headed to the Philadelphia Museum of Art to climb the steps made famous in Rocky.

After hanging with Rocky, it was time to go pack up our stuff, pick up Charles, and head to the Amtrak station where we rode the train to NYC. I don't think Wills could tell we were on a train. He played Mickey Mouse Road Rally and then took a little nap. 

We had a wonderful time in Philadelphia with Aunt Nicholete and can't wait to see her again soon!