Guilt, Denial, Reckoning . . .

Blog, you are like friends I get WAY too out of touch with, and then just don’t know where to pick back up.  I’m going to assume you are like the best of old friends. It will be effortless, right?  And fast? Yes.

Superstars Hank & Willie here for a fabulous weekend while their dad laid the kitchen floor.  We had a BIG time.  Big whales, big dinosaurs, big city, and BALTO, the hit of the weekend, and all the while Anna & Melissa snapping gorgeous photos.  Sadly, there are none from inside the car in which we all fit for this journey.

Followed by another Mystic migration, and further celebration of adorable little boys.

And then came the cousins, discovery of splashparks & sillybands, and smiles.

True love of NetNet was in the air.

Year 2 of M&L at Hard2Guard a great success, they needed bodyguards.

A twin boy Hootenanny with the Derisi boys was a great success – post-lunch skinnydipping shots unavailable here.

An exquisite fresh air dinner with our beloved Grandma, Grandpa, and Netnet was a treat.

Tempted to plan a visit? You should!  You will be greeted by this, be covered in hi-fives and kisses, and lovingly shown TRUCKS, our latest fascination.  Next entry will focus on only one event, visit to Ontario-on-the-Lake, where summer started with a flurry of hose fights, popsicles, and family fun!

Embracing Bedrest

I hesitate to write about bedrest and risk boring the world with how limited/boring my world has become.

Perhaps I can turn this into a challenge to stay current, read the paper regularly, share good books/movies/tv (as so many have generously suggested) and to entertain with stories of what looks/feels like sea monsters roiling in my belly.  (Seriously, I half-expect a scary alien head to pop out at any moment and yell at me, that’s how volatile things are getting).

So, here is what I have read so far: Lots and lots of magazines, and “Catcher in the Rye.”

I had never read it. It was fun, I had one of my sister-in-law’s high school copy, complete with doodles.   I’m not sure I liked the story itslef that much.  Even when not on bedrest I can can read about a book a week, and this little book took me 2 weeks.  What I did like was visiting lots of Manhattan spots I have been missing.

I have also been listening to a few books:

Everything Is Illuminated – Foer. Had to quit this one, hated.

Run – Patchett – Good story, liked it.

The Reserve – Banks – This I loved because it was set in the ADK mountains and had me dreaming of dark lakes and guideboats.  The story’s genre is a little hard for me to put my finger on, it’s kind of a thriller and kind of just a story of some screwed up folks up north.  It had a lot of loose ends for me and ultimately wasn’t that satisfying, but I just loved dreaming of all those trees.

Onward:

Next in line: A gift from great mommies.  This is turning out to be one of the best sources for practical information to date.  Thanks S&S!

WBWB – Wolff/Behringer Wedded Bliss

I’m recovered enough from this past weekend, but I hope I never really recover completely. The pictures will say it all, a gorgeous affair celebrating two people so in love. The groom spent the whole weekend doting on the bride, who spent the whole weekend taking care of everyone but herself. And she still looked fabulous.

Look, see?

St. Patrick’s Cathedral is both intimate and grand!

The toast of the town – really – all of Fifth Avenue got in on the action!

Hard to imagine, but this cake’s taste was equal to it’s beauty!

Aren’t they adorable? Kinda looks like they could be winning the “dance off” in Grease!

This was a family wedding for me, but also a college reunion.

I’d do it all over again with this crowd, they are as lovely as they look!

And consider this my 24 week picture, since the rest of the time I am in oversized

sweats and in no condition to be photographed.

This is one of my favorite pictures from the weekend. It was taken at the rehearsal luncheon. The word luncheon doesn’t really do justice to this decadent affair at Blue Hill in Greenwich Village. (Their website is perpetually down, but you can read a nice review here.) The restaurant embraces the local food movement and has a farm by the same name in the Hudson Valley (where you can also go and eat – and I will!). I can’t even begin to describe the food, I won’t do it justice. But man, it had TASTE! And you know I’m a sucker for a cheese course, and all NY cheeses to boot. All pasteurized, music to a pregnant lady’s ears.

It was an amazing weekend. Thanks to Lynn and Gabriel. Gabe put it the best – our weddings will be tied together forever, and we couldn’t be luckier or happier for them

Viva Bermuda!

Go See the Waterfalls, She Said

. . . so go see the waterfalls we did.

Fabulous! It was a super-hot day, and it’s no “Maid of the Mist” soaking, but our trip was really great. You can see the falls from the end of Pier 17 at South Street Seaport very well. We took the circle line tour from Pier 16. They have a special 30 min. waterfall tour, but we took the hour tour of lower Manhattan. DO THIS. Amazing views of lower Manhattan, Ellis Island, and this pretty lady:

She will bring tears to your eyes every time.

There is a great recorded introduction by the artist Olafur Eliasson. He talked about it as a shared experience, as it most certainly was on our crowded tour boat. Was passingly jealous of the small boaters on their private tours, but turns out our experience was just right. Knowledgeable tour guide talked the whole time, but was interesting enough. Spent a lot of time talking about Ellis Island.

She said most families in the US can trace their ancestry through this place. I wonder how the African-American family standing next to me felt about that one!?

Trip almost over, heading for home, but the view downriver is majestic.

Dontcha just love the cranes of Sealand in the background mirroring lady liberty?

Spring on the Sidewalk

What is better for lunch? Yes, dinner is nice in a secluded garden, and breakfast . . . nobody really eats that meal. But Lunch, long and luxurious, needs a good corner. For people watching of course. And I think I even started to convince my sister that NY is as good as Paris. Right?

Gorgeous company.

We ate at Buzina Pop – a Brazilian/French (!!??) restauraunt in the east 70’s. Very mixed reviews for dinner, but brunch/lunch we loved!!! And you have to get this: a Le Creuset pot filled with black beans, poached eggs, melted cheese, and topped with baguette toast. Come ON! Wish I had taken a picture, but was SO hungry and ate every last bite.

Ikea @ Moma

The Rochie girls took a trip to MOMA recently.  The “Design and the Elastic Mind” exhibit got Kristine thinking of Ikea, so the Ikea exhibit it remains in my memory.  The coolest part was a camera that films you and projects you onto a screen where your shadow is ever-changing with nuances of scales, snakes coming out of your body, tweeting sounds, and tails.

This time I fell in love with the big colorful Rothko canvasses – great for sitting under while relaxing and gossiping and generally catching up.

Aren’t these gals lovely?

They’re not really touching the art!

Dinner later at Resto – mussels from Brussels.  All gorgeous and delicious (though not really as appropriate as I had hoped for our resident vegetarian), and Rachel says the waffles were authentic.  My favorite, the chocolate plate – chili-infused dark chocolate will surely lure me back someday soon.

What haven’t we done?

A great Sailors season made hordes of people libound.

And here is what we did, besides watch basketball games:

• Dinner – Grillfire – 2X – at least!
• Dinner “Churascaria” – West Village – meat bonanza
• Show “Spring Awakening” – Amazing, but not as fun as the name makes it sound
• Dinner “Porterhouse” – Decadence of company and eats, wow
• Lots and lots of trips to show off the beach (even in the cold) so people will return summertime (and we just bought a cool beach tent!)
• LI Children’s Museum – 3X!!! It’s a great spot on a cold morning for any age!
• Top of the Rock, FAO Schwartz, and the Pig n’ Whistle – the most kid-friendly spot in midtown! Eat our shorts Mars 2112!
• Did you hear, the Giants won the superbowl?!
• Show “Is He Dead” – a raucous great time, Mark Twain style.
• Dinner – Perry Street – decadence, again, and to follow . . .
• An engagement announcement
• Dinner – Southern Hospitality – JT’s sexyback ribs are worth a taste
• And lots of chili, spaghetti, and COZY dinners in our tiny apartment
• And another new niece, just yesterday
• Met – permanent collection through a fifth grader’s eyes, and an amazing small world story (see previous entry)

I know, I was told not to brag, but how nice is life? Come and visit.

Met Meet

Dear Family met at the Met Museum, perchance, on Saturday afternoon, them coming, us going.  By the coatroom, so not so artistic a shot, but full and happy hearts were worn by all – such a fun surprise to see Lizzie & Antoine appear out of nowhere from Montreal!

What a world . . .

Happy Holidays from the Nonblog

I know. I almost went to black. Posting 1x a month does not a blogger make. Check out the blogroll for some folks with real chops. But Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, Happy NewYear. And it was a great one, and I just couldn’t blog. For the same reason I forget to take pictures.

But here is one I did manage to take on my cell phone. It’s an important part of family history. 5 cousins, one aunt, and all significant others had an amazing time in NYC. If you have to relocate from home, do it near NYC, since EVERYONE comes here a lot! Site: Churrascaria. Afterparty : Bubble Lounge

We have 2 amazing months of visitors ahead, starting tomorrow, and it will just feel like the holidays never end, hooray! I love it, even though I know folks are coming mostly to see the Sailors play. Record? 4-3! And climbing, starting again tomorrow night.

TGIRaining

Thank god it’s raining. And I can’t go to the beach, the city, for a run, etc. I remember this from my days in Colorado. Amy & I used to have to close the orange and brown curtains on our hovel one-bedroom condo in Keystone in order to watch a movie, guilt-free. I have no focus, except a few great pictures to share from a weekend with my lovely friends from my Rochester. They are amazingly fun women, and they were troopers on air mattresses, couches, and in our tiny kitchen. I hope it was worth it for trips to Tiffany’s (shameless namedropping of a place I can never shop) and Canal Street (a place I can afford, but all the stuff you buy falls apart in a week). Here we are resting by the future world-series trophe we had no idea we were leaning on. Handsome men kept stopping to gawk, and we felt quite gorgeous . . . until they asked us to MOVE!

This is my dad’s favorite spot. I always take a picture by the lions when I can. Dan & I have one from our first date (wish I could find it). And then there is CO, my bud. Who I am sure will get a call from Tiffany’s since this picture is absolutely perfect for them. So enjoy, and for the rest of you, look, you should plan a visit! Come on now! Next visitors will include kid-friendly sites!

Other names to drop:

The Bubble Lounge for champagne cocktails (ohh, perhaps 1 too many), and Dylan Prime for eats, universally loved by a table of 6 chick-carnivores. Interior was so-so, but everything else, especially the lamb, was AMAZING. And a final stop, that was totally over-the-top at the hideaway at the Campbell Apartment in Grand Central Terminal. You’d never know it was there, but it’s worth a trip.

OK, I have provided enough free advertising for NY hotspots for one post, but remember, friends, when you visit, we will tailor your trip for YOU! We just can’t give you your own bedroom and shower.