Photos from August '06 - Our trip to New Jersey and New York
From August 3 to 14, the four of us went to New Jersey and New York to visit Geoff's family and our friends. It felt a little crazy to do this so soon after Toby joined our family, but we'd already bought the tickets before we knew he'd be joining us! It worked out well, but it was tiring - especially the last weekend in the City! But let's start at the beginning of the trip. We flew into JFK, arriving about 8pm, and Geoff's brother Max picked us up and took us to his apartment in Brooklyn, where we stayed that night. The next morning he drove us to Newark Airport on his way to work in Jersey City, so we could rent a car. Then we drove to Geoff's dad and step-mom Roy and Pat's place in Spring Lake Heights, on the Jersey Shore. There we enjoyed the baby pool on the back deck - Toby LOVED climbing in and and out of it, and did it again and again and again:
We had a relaxing weekend there, including a trip to the boardwalk in Point Pleasant, where Serafina loved the rides. She and I even went on a roller coaster, which was surprisingly fast (and she held her hands up in the air!)
On Monday the 7th we drove up to Roy and Pat's place in West Orange, where we relaxed and explored some more, including a trip to Central Park to meet up with Max, Valarie, Nadia, and Sabine. The kids were a handful but fun. We started at the zoo, then heard some musicians on the way to a picnic in Sheep Meadow:
On Thursday the 10th, Roy and Pat hosted a party for the whole family: Pat's daughter Alexis and her daughters Annie and Grace, Max, Valarie, Nadia, and Sabine, and us 4. Geoff and Max's brother Josh couldn't make it because he was with Dianne at the hosptial, where she was in labor with their first child (also a girl! - this makes Toby the only boy out of 7 cousins).
On Friday the 11th. We dropped our luggage at our friend Benson's apartment in the Lower East Side / Chinatown, dropped our rental car in the village, and showed Serafina and Toby our old neighborhood - we had a picnic in Washington Square Park. Then after ice cream at our favorite, "Cones", we took the subway to Columbus Circle and walked to the hospital where Josh and Dianne were with their new daughter (born just after midnight that day!)
We went back to Benson's place for a nap (Toby and Geoff napped at least) and ate at a yummy Malaysian restaurant near Benson's place (he was out of town for the weekend). The next morning we walked along the waterfront to the South Street Seaport for breakfast. Here are Geoff and our kids with the Manhattan Bridge, Brooklyn Bridge, and downtown skyline behind them:
It was a fun and exhausting weekend in the city, largely on our own, seeing some sites, taking the subway around town, etc. We had a picnic in Sheep Meadow again Saturday with lots of friends from NY, and Max, Val, Nadia, and Sabine. On Sunday we met them at a playground in Brooklyn's Prospect Park, which had fun water spraying to play in.
On Monday the 14th we took a taxi to JFK for a flight home, which went very smoothly despite the recent alleged terror plot and tighter restrictions on liquid carry-ons. Then on Tuesday the 15th it was back to work and school for Geoff, me, and Serafina!