New York, New York

We finally made it to Manhattan with the girls. We went in early and met up with Grandma A and Auntie M. First trip was their hotel as they were in town for their annual "Sisters Week" extravaganza -- a week full of shopping, good food, sporting events and relaxing.

One of my little pumpkins is terrified of elevators, so it wasn't such a fun trip up to their room for a diaper change. I wasn't about to walk up five flights of stairs with a 25 lb baby despite how much I want to fit into my jeans. So we gutted it out. Into the hotel room we went and the girls promptly began to destroy everything in their path. They were loving the room.

After a change, we walked over to Build-A-Bear. One of the girls picked a teddy bear, she really has a thing for bears, and the other picked a puppy. One always seems to get a bear and one a puppy, but I can't tell if she even really likes the puppies.

I mean she loves real dogs, but I think she is holding out for American Girl. She will be a dollie girl and the other will hoard stuffed animals in her crib, which she will probably learn to use to spring out of the crib someday. We met up with my friend D and her little J for a 20 minute Build-A-Bear session. Little J got a pink bear and was very happy. Unfortunately she had to go home for nap, but the rest of us walked up to Daddy's office to show off the girls.

We ran around the office and then stole daddy to go for lunch at Landmarc. I completely underestimated how far it was to walk from daddy's office to the Time Warner Center but it was a beautiful day so no complaints. The restaurant is supposedly child-friendly, but we didn't quite get that vibe. Aside from a very kid-friendly menu, I don't think folks were so friendly. But maybe it's more kid-friendly rather than baby-friendly. And, I totally understand.

When we arrived they said we had to wait since we needed two high chairs. I couldn't imagine they only had two on hand for the entire restaurant. Once they freed up we were seated. The girls began to test their opera voices and throw goldfish around. I will say that the food came quickly, it was delicious, we had a wonderful view and they offer a roomy, handicap bathroom with a changing table -- all very clean.

We had to abandon the FAO Swartz adventure planned for post-lunch and instead just headed to the car. The girls were fading and we didn't want to push our luck. Next time. They fell asleep in the car and daddy let us do a Pinkberry drive-by since I hadn't had it in so long. Love that place. It's all about the regular with chocolate chips, mochi balls and mango. Yummy!

We drove down to the FDR Drive to find it was bumper-to-bumper. The girls promptly woke up from their nap and screamed the whole way home in horrible traffic for three hours. So much fun. Moral of the story, don't go into the city on a Friday or on a holiday weekend with children.

Welcome, Baby R

My brother-in-law welcomed his first child this week, Baby R. He was almost twice as big as my girls when they were born, but still seemed so tiny when I met him yesterday. Mom and Dad are doing well and love their little prince. I am really excited for my girls to have a cousin so close in age to grow up with, because basically it will be like another sibling to them.

Preschool - Too Early at Two? Too Late at Three?

The girls just turned one and now I have to start thinking about pre-school. They can't even say mama or use a toilet and I am looking at programs for them. It's overwhelming. Oh, and did I mention? It's really expensive!

We are talking in the thousands of dollars range, depending on how many days. I looked at one tuition for the preschool that was recommended down the street and there is a waiting list already for next year.

I asked around, including polling two preschool teachers on my street, whether it's better to begin preschool at age two or three and the majority said three. Part of the problem is that my girls have a summer birthday so they would be a young two by the start of the school year. Who knows how potty training will go and they are hanging on my legs 24/7 as it is, so how will mommy leave for an hour to gulp down a Starbucks and return for pick-up?

In the meantime, we will continue at Little Gym and the Y for swimming and also look into Stepping Stones and New Canaan Nature Center, as well as more playgroups and activities at local libraries.