new york city

Day 1:

I love New York City. I love that my best friend lives there so I get to go visit whenever I want. This time I took Addison with me. I figured she was old enough to make the trip without a stroller. I was nervous about how we would both handle it, but we had the best time. Addison has flown before, but she was little and doesn't remember it. She did really well on the plane. We had a small incident on the decent when her ears were bothering her, but I just let her have her moment and it was over in a few minutes. It was late when we got to Shannon's house and she was whipped. Out like a light.

We took the train from Shannon's house in Queens to our FAO Schwartz. It's a dream for little (and big) kids. There's something about the door holder that gets me every time. I must have a picture with him.

Upstairs you can find the piano from the movie Big. At one point all of the kids playing on it left and Addison had it all to herself. She loved running up and down this thing. And of course we hit up the sweets. I had candy in my purse for the whole trip.

When Shannon and I do NY we do a LOT of walking. I knew Addison could handle some walking, but I expected we would have to take a lot of breaks. To my surprise she did a lot better than I ever could have imagined. She didn't like the rain though. We snuck into Starbucks for a quick refueling break and to get out of the rain. Addison pretty much ate like crap the entire weekend. I just let it continue with a cake pop.

A quick picture in Times Square before heading to Toys R Us.

The giant ferris wheel in Toys R Us was a highlight. Addison was so excited and had to have the Barbie car. Understandably they don't let you pick or wait for certain cars, but as luck would have it we got the Barbie car. Girl heaven.

We went to dinner at Ellen's Stardust Diner and again escaped a nasty rain storm. This place was total fun. We all sang along and danced in the seats. You can see them dancing and singing behind Addison.

Then we headed home. We were all exhausted, but Addison still had the energy to swing around on the subway.

happy 4th

We spent the week with family in Tennessee. Life should be slower for awhile so I'll have time to catch up on some blogging.

First up, New York pictures.

the haircut

Addison is a freak about her hair. She barely lets me brush it. No clips or ponytails allowed. Every once in awhile I can style it, but she pulls it out 5 minutes later. It's summer, it's hot and she's always sweating. Since she won't let me put it up and get it off her neck I took matters into my own hands.

I had it all chopped off.

She was a little upset with me when she realized it was actually gone, but she's getting used to it. It's stacked in the back and angled in the front. I absolutely love it and think it looks adorable.

This was all done right before Addison took our New York trip. I have a million pictures showing off her new do and all the sights we saw. I can't wait to share.

jamaica - the end

A couple of random pictures to end these posts.

There were peacocks that roamed freely on the property. They're so beautiful and loud. They sound like a monkey in heat. You could easily walk up to one to get a picture and at times it felt like they were purposely showing off their feathers.

This carved wooden bird sat on a post. It was actually all one piece. We passed him every time we walked to and from the restaurants. For some reason I liked him. We were best buds by the end of the trip.

Just some shots of Michael and I. I'm really putting this out here to show you the difference between someone who uses sunscreen the correct way and someone who doesn't. Also as a reminder to not fall asleep in a hammock. Hint: I did it right.

This is Prince. He was part of the entertainment staff at the resort, but did many other jobs as well. We saw him everywhere. All of the staff is so friendly, always stopping to say hi and see how you are. Prince was super nice to us and stopped for pictures several times. He even cut a rug with me on the dance floor.

The morning we went on a boat ride we were sitting next to this couple. I even made a comment to Michael about how the girl looked like someone I knew. Fast forward a couple of hours to when we were hanging out by the pool, after I recovered from the sea sickness. That same couple from the boat comes up to the swim up bar and we all start talking. Emily and Bart are also from Jacksonville and Bart work right across the street from Michael. They were there celebrating a late honeymoon. We were friends instantly. We spent an hour or so talking and made plans to meet up the next two nights. We all laughed so hard and had a really great time. I hope we can get together with them soon.

The drive to and from the airport is horrible. You think taxi drivers in NY are bad. These drivers are nuts! It's one lane roads on the side of a mountain and they are all over the place. Michael and I sat in the single seats because I needed space to breath. I took this of him behind me. And there's me at the airport. I actually really like this picture.

I had my big Canon camera on the plane with me and took some pictures, but Michael snagged this one with his phone. I know, no phones during the flight. We're such rule breakers.

Good bye Jamaica. Until next time.

jamaica part IV

Our last full day there we went to YS Falls. It take about 45 minutes to get there and the bus ride is a lot smoother and scenic than the ride from the airport. It was also informative. The tour guide had the bus pull over so she could grab the fruit that produces the cashew and the all spice leaf. She had us putting that thing on our tongue to feel the tingle. Did you know they use the leaf to make Novocaine? Interesting. Once at the property you have to take a tractor ride to the actual falls. The farmland was so pretty.

No fooling around now. It was time to go zip lining. I was equal parts scared and excited.

We got all geared up and it was time for our quick lesson on taking off, turning, and breaking. After that they assume you are a pro and off you go.

Somehow we managed to be at the front of the line. That was not happening. I insisted that the couple behind us, who had been zip lining before, go ahead of us. That way I could watch and see how it was done.

With the first line done I was able to relax a little. We really had a great time zipping through the falls.

One of the reasons I was able to enjoy it more was because of our fantastic guides. They were both so funny and knew how to make us all have a good time. Like the time the one told the girl to go and Mario was saying, "No. Not yet. Go back!". Funny stuff. Here's me with Mario.

After the zip lining we were able to walk around in the falls, jump from the rope swing and explore the property. I really had no desire to get in the cold water, but they made me. They have some local who walk you around in the water, show you exactly where to step and take pictures with your camera the entire time. They earned their tip.

At first we were not going to do anything off the resort, but I'm so glad Michael talked me in to doing this excursion. We called that morning to see if we could get on the tour and lucky for us there were still some spots. It was so much fun. And now that I'm a pro I can't wait to go zip lining again.

jamaica part III

I've come to the conclusion that me and excursion boats don't get alone. I always end up being sick.

The morning we choose to go on the glass bottom boat ride to the reef happen to be the only morning that the weather was crappy. It was overcast and the water was choppy. The current was so bad that they couldn't even get us very close to the reef. While Michael looked at the fun coral and the starfish I was focused on something stationary on the horizon. It took a lot of mind over matter for me to keep my breakfast.

Because of the weather there really wasn't much happening under the glass. So the boat driver sent his first mate into the water to find some fun stuff. Like a live starfish.

And a live sea urchin. This thing was moving around in my hand. It only freaks you out a little.

Once we got inside the reef, closer to the shore, the current wasn't as bad and the waves not as choppy. It made the ride back to the dock a little easier. Nonetheless, I was still ready to get off that boat.

Once we got back to land all I wanted to do was lay down. We went to the main pool on the property...

...and I found this spot. I didn't move for 30 minutes.

I'm really going to think about this small boat excursion thing from now on.

jamaica part II

The beach, the sand, the unlimited access to chairs, the girl delivering fruity drinks. It was all pretty wonderful and gorgeous.

The resort sits on about 2 miles of beach. Twice I went running in the morning to get used to running in the sand for the 5k. Low tide gave me about 2 feet to work with.

These trees were everywhere. The kids would have had a blast climbing them.

I'm happy to say that I was very diligent with the sunscreen and only got burnt in one little spot the whole week. That was the spot I missed with the sunscreen. It also helped to be sitting under a tiki hut.

The resort is in Whitehouse, Jamaica. Behind us is the actual city of Whitehouse. The sky is black, but it looked like that every afternoon. It would usually ran, but not for long. It was a good time for a nap or the spa.

 I begged Michael not to wear that shirt for pictures. He wouldn't listen.

This is the resort from the glass bottom boat ride that we took (next post). The tiki hut right in the middle was our spot.

Sunset on the beach. This was taken right after we face timed with the girls and got details of the tropical storm that was heading straight for our house. No hurricane where we were.

If the beach here in Jacksonville was anything like this, I would go more often.