hitting the city

Every time I drive past or take the train into New York City, I am always amazed by the vast expanse of it all. I always say, "Matt, can you believe we live here?" And we don't even, we live over an hour away, but in order to get off the island we have to go through or around the great mass that is NYC. And every time we get close, I am thankful again that God brought us out to Stony Brook, as Matt was this close to doing his residency in Brooklyn. It would've been so different, and I'm sure we would've been fine, but I am Thankful for our wide open spaces and our life out here!

However, the city is still fun to visit and each trip we get a little more familiar with the routes and a little better at navigating. Truthfully I prefer to lean 100% on Matt's guidance through the subway system, but in a pinch I suppose I could get us home. Thankfully I didn't have to do much this trip. I didn't even take any pictures, as Dexter and Jenna dared to do what I will not - lug a heavy camera around the city all day. So, sit back and enjoy the fruit of others' labor.

The World Trade Center construction site was buzzing.

I hadn't visited the nearby St. Paul's since college and it is a mini-museum now, incorporating newer artifacts from the 9-11 attacks with history. Firemen's jackets next to George Washington's pew.
We stopped at Katz's Deli for lunch, which I'd never been to.
It was . . . an experience. Obviously a favorite with the locals. I might be happier at one of the french cafes down the street, but if you love pastrami on rye, this is your place!
Their camera has a nice wide angle - you try to get Rockefeller in a shot like this!
The old Times Square. Did you know there's a Naked Cowgirl now? Sorry, we don't have any pictures - and trust me, you got the better end of the deal.

Patience. Or is it Fortitude?

I love that the statues outside the New York Public Library are named. I do not love that it was closed when we got there. They host the real Winnie-the-Pooh, after all. Who wouldn't want to visit? Oh, and the handwritten Declaration of Independence. TJ's own penmanship. Again, I'm disappointed. Next time.

So long, Big Apple. We'll catch you - and the Pooh collection - later!

Fun with Mulandis

Jenna and Dexter . . . friends from Kenya.

Dexter is a dentist and Matt worked with him in the clinic in Kijabe.
He asked Matt (who invited me) to Bible Study, which was one of my favorite parts of living in Kenya and where I met many dear friends. Jenna and Dexter just finished a year at Oasis Hospital in Al Ain, U.A.E. (incidentally, the hospital I was born in) and are headed back to Kijabe. But before they settle in there, they had to come to our house.

Since we had fun at Bible study barbecues back in the day, it was only fitting that we grilled out here.

And, since we don't have air conditioning, I voted to move our table outside to enjoy the evening!
It was a feast.
And Moosey wanted in on it.
My other Jenna friend is headed back to California soon so she joined us for dinner and caught her first firefly!
The next day was Saturday, where we packed in as many touristy things as possible. It was so nice that the Mulandis had a camera with them, so it was like having a "second shooter" everywhere we went. I swiped their pictures before I let them drive away.

We started our day at Maureen's Kitchen, a famed breakfast joint in the area. We had to see what the hype was about.

Apparently it was about the food.

We all got a ton of food, but Matt's Oreo Peanut Butter Chip Pancakes deserve special recognition.

Way to go, Matty.

I think we all enjoyed our breakfasts, but we had to laugh, because it was just . . . good breakfast food. Maybe that's a southern thing? Or a midwest thing? Anyway, we were so full we weren't really up for any heavy-duty exercise.

We hit up Stony Brook beach/marina . . .

And the popular Old Field Lighthouse.

And then went home to rest and enjoy some time out of the sun!

When it was safe to venture out again, we had a picnic on the beach.

And then headed to Port Jefferson to watch the sunset at the marina, which is probably my favorite summertime activity. It also means we get ice cream at our favorite ice cream spot, so it's a win-win situation. It is also something we do with every single visitor. Seriously. We might be stuck in a rut, but it's great fun.

Their visit wasn't all about food . . . but it does seem that way. I think now that they're gone we'll just nibble on carrots for the next three days.

peaches come from trees

Long Island activities continued . . . plus Dexter and Jenna visit, Part 1.

This is a peach.

It grows on a tree.

Now, don't you feel better about knowing where your food comes from?

I'm enjoying this "farm to table" scene I've got going on over here, with my CSA box of locally grown organic vegetables delivered every week, handpicked berries, and now, handpicked peaches. This was my attempt to combine boy-entertaining with guest-entertaining, as our friends Jenna and Dexter from Kenya came out to visit us!

(photo by Dextari, Inc.)

That's just a little sneak preview so you know they were there.

So we hiked out to Davis Peach Farm, which had some hilarious and controversial reviews online. To call it a "concentration camp" would definitely be a misnomer. It's a peach farm. That is all.

It was a bit of a sweaty activity, out in the blazing sun. It was also a bit of a squishy activity, since many of the peaches had fallen and ripened on the ground.

But it was also fun. Some of the peaches grew really close to the ground so even the littlest could enjoy picking!

And of course eating.

And peach cobbler or peach raspberry crisp . . . that's fun too!

fishies

What I do with kids on Long Island . . . part 4 . . . The Aquarium! Especially useful on those rainy days.

I've only had two with me this week, which made the trip manageable, as every day care in the county brought their kids the same day as us.

The day started out kind of tired. . .

But it certainly gained momentum as The Littlest woke up. The entire day he switched between only two phrases: "Look, Ga-Ka" (that's Erica for the non-two-year-old speakers out there), and "Ga-Ka, hold me!"

This one is obviously, "Look, Ga-Ka!"

Man, it's hard being little.

I loved the fishy tanks.

This bubbly one provided some entertainment:

"Hold Me!"

At this tank, they found a few Nemos. The adults around us enjoyed The Littlest's foot-stomping dance routine. He really was dancing for joy.

And then . . . the shark tank!

Not only was the shark tank amazing as it was full of SHARKS, it also had a giant sea turtle - so big - probably 4 feet long . . .

But they stuck people in cages and took them down there! With the sharks!
(Jaws theme music, please)
It was like an amusement park ride, only "let's swim with sharks."

I actually dragged the kids back to the shark tank, it was so enthralling. We stood next to a grandma and grandpa who's grandkids were floating in the cage. They piped the divers' conversations and eerie breathing noises into the room so the viewers could hear what was going on. It was creepy and awesome.

So . . . obviously, we all enjoyed the aquarium.

butterflies

When looking for a nature-y escape to take the boys to, I found Sweetbriar Nature Center. It was perfect for us! It is small, 20 minutes away, and run by grandparentish volunteers who welcomed touching and question asking. While not the most glamorous setup, the kids loved watching bees flying to and fro into their hive and we all learned that the queen bee has a white spot on her. They were enthralled by the reptiles and bugs and grossed out by the tarantulas (I may not have been a good example on that point).

My highlight was the butterflies . . .

But one of the boys . . . I shall not name names . . . was afraid of the butterflies so we didn't get to spend too much time in the butterfly house. The park was perfectly spread out, quick walks through the forest to the bunnies and goats and another quick walk to the birds and picnic area. This is where we saw the bald eagle, as well as a falcon and some other massive birds of prey. I just really like this kind of thing . . .

I also like gardens and grape arbors but that happened to coincide with the afternoon meltdown. However, the same child who was afraid of butterflies proclaimed this the "Best Day of My Life," so I think it was a trip worth taking.

no before, just an after

Last Saturday we were driving back from a grown-up "pool party" that the head of Matt's program had hosted so the new residents could meet the old residents. Nice that we fit in the "old residents" category now. Our friends Tim and Lori were driving us home when Matt pointed out a cabinet sitting on the side of the road. Our scavenger eyes are really keen these days. We drove back for it with the truck.

It was a yellowish wood (I have no idea if that would be pine or cherry or whatever), kind of busted up, and the drawer bottom was ripped out. It was also full of many questionable objects, mostly from a garage. We threw all of that out except a bunch of mosquito coils, which we used at our 4th of July party the next day.

Then, I went to the grocery.

When I came home, this was sitting in the kitchen.

Cute, huh? I was so impressed with Matt's "antiquing" and it looked just great with the accessories! Of course extra storage in the kitchen is a major plus, too! I'm so proud, and thankful for Matt! All of this "redoing" is exhausting, but when my energy level starts to dip, he busts out some awesome project. It's a great system.