I laughed out loud for a solid minute. He was surprised and asked why. I explained that he had told a joke. We laughed together.
This afternoon we went to a baseball themed birthday at a park in Claremont. Garrett played very well, including standing in line to bat three times. The only problem was that the birthday boy's dad wanted to make the bases easier to run, but Garrett insisted on running all the way to the regular bases. The group posed for a "team picture"
Friday we had breakfast with Danielle and Justin, then headed to the Honolulu Zoo. As we entered, we saw Flamingos, which Garrett picked as his favorite of the zoo. We also saw monkeys, lizards, alligators, hippopotomus, antellope, zebras, giraffes, rhinosorus, cheetas (who walked right past the glass as we were watching), sleeping lions, black rhinosorus (another favorite), chimpanzees (who threw things and ran @ the glass), sleeping tiger, climbed to the center of a Koi pond, miniture horse, and a Komodo Dragon.
Garrett was getting tired, so we took a rest as Mormor and Papa walked to the zoo, then we all continued on to the Aquarium. The Aquarium is not especially large, but it had some beautiful coral, some interesting jellyfish, and Sea Dragons which are so unusual looking. Garrett saw some sea urchins up close, but did not want t touch them. Then we headed back for Pizza lunch and naptime. After nap we went to Nobu for sushi dinner with Danielle and Justin. I really enjoyed their sashimi tacos and rock shrimp tempura, although the sushi and rolls were rather traditional (code for boring). Still, a good time had by all.
On our walk back from dinner, Justin asked if i'd like to go surfing Sat morning with him. I had never tried it and Andrea had suggested earlier Friday that I might enjoy trying it on the trip, so I took him up on his offer. I had a really hard time trying to "catch" the waves, but had fun trying. Justin knows how to surf and caught a few long rides. I stood up a few times, but with the wave passing me by it did not last for long.
Meanwhile, Garrett and Andrea went to play with Mormor and Papa. Mormor took Garrett to the park, while Andrea and I had breakfast of Acai frozen puree with granola and bananas, with a latte. Then we bought a few gifts to take home (no peeking). Finally, we packed the car to head to the North Shore, which gave me an opportunity to summarize for posting! We've just arrived at Turtle Bay after some roadside Chicken and pineapple!
Aloha
Post-brunch we finished packing up and headed to La Guardia Airport. Garrett got a real kick out of the bridges in the daylight. Despite being tired, Garrett was very chipper at the airport and on the flight to Atlanta. The one hour layover was not long enough to resolve the Torts book debacle, but I have my fingers crossed for a swift return. We ate and exercised and ran onboard for the flight to California.
Because of headwinds, this cross-country flight to Ontario was the longest of the trip, but within 5 minutes of take-off Garrett had fallen asleep with his head on Andrea's lap. He slept for just over three hours while we watched the inflight movie and enjoyed his sleeping expressions. When he woke up, he was in excellent spirits and had a snack before the plane landed in Ontario.
Garrett is so excited to be home and see all of his toys. He has insisted on taking out all of his Little People, but who can blame him after being reduced to a few toys all week. Andrea and I are tired because we are adjusted (her fully, me partially) to New York time, and Garrett was the only one wise enough to sleep on the plane.
Overall it was a very fun trip, and a great reward for a semester of law school and a Spring Dance Concert completed. Tomorrow I figure out how to do my reading without a Torts book and Andrea gets back into teaching.
This morning we had our first meal at AQ Cafe, the casual dinning of Aquavite (a five-star Swedish restaurant). Lox and herring, plus swedish meatballs and potatoes. Then we spent some time in the Heimbold Damily Children's Center at the Scandinavia House. Garrett enjoyed the icelandic themed playroom, the Lego Blocks, and especially the Brio trains.
Next we proceeded to Radio City Music Hall. The theater is impressive with gigantic hydrolics for the stage elevators. However, the tour drags on a bit as though they felt the need to extend it to an hour in order to charge for it.
After the tour Andrea and Garrett headed uptown to the American Museum of Natural History, while I headed to get discount theater tickets (tried before RCMH, but had to come back). Got half price tickets to see Mary Poppins @ 8.
Andrea and Garrett arrived at the museum just before they started letting people in for free. I would have gladly paid for the experience, but Andrea made it up to them by buying Garrett a horse from the gift shop. I might post separately on how amazing the museum was, but suffice it to say it completely exceeded my expectations.
After the museum we headed back downtown to meet Crystal for dinner. Unfortunately her recommended spot was totally overbooked, with an hour and a half wait, but it worked out because we stumbled upon a fun restaurant, called Havana, that sat us immediately and we all enjoyed. Garrett slept through dinner, which has become his standard nap in New York!
After some delicious Cuban food, we said goodbye to Crystal at our theater and went inside for Mary Poppins. The musical must take a lot from the book as it is very different from the movie version, but that makes the experience fresh for fans of the movie. Andrea and I both agree that the first half ran a bit long and dragged a bit with plot setup, but the second half was very strong. The actor playing Burt is fantastic, acting and dancing really well and singing perfectly for the part. Without running it, he does an amazing manuever during "Steppin' Time" that had our jaws on the floor. Garrett was so good and only got antsy near the very end.
As a reward for sitting through a 2 1/2 hour show, we stopped at Toys R Us (in Time's Square) on the walk home and picked up a new car.
Tomorrow is our last day, but it has been an incredible trip. We are looking forward to a fun morning and hopefully an easy flight home.
Our next adventure was finding the carousel. Google failed me by taking us clear to the other side of Central Park (supposedly about a half mile) only to come back half way to the middle. But it was worth the walk as Garrett loved it! After a little refreshment, we found the horse carriage rides and rode through the park.
On the taxi ride to dinner, Garrett fell asleep on his Momma's arm. We had a delicious dinner at Turkuaz (Turkish food). Garrett woke up in time to have some, but he decided he preferred eggs and sausage back at the hotel. We rode the subway with Jen to the nearest stop and said Goodnight, then walked a few blocks to the hotel. Garrett is finally having his dinner while we plan tomorrow's adventure. We have too many things we want to do for only one more full day here!
Afterwards we took Garrett to the M&M store and he bought a bag of all blue M&Ms! Then we walked to Rockafellor Center and took the trip to the top. The view is really amazing up there and Garrett enjoyed the lightroom too (impossible to explain, pictures and video should follow when we return home).
Central Park tomorrow!
Had a delicious lunch and walked up to 5th Avenue. Garrett had a blast in Disney Store and didn't want to ever leave FAO Schwartz, although Andrea and I were expecting a bit more. Andrea found a nice sweater to keep her warm. It's a little chilly but not cold.
Dinner tonight at Ruby Foos, our favorite place when Andrea and I came five years ago (no pressure).
Garrett played tag and jumping at the airport to get out some energy. Then we got back on the same plane for the second leg of the trip. For some reason this time, we were not allowed to sit in front of the exit row with a car seat, so we had to move back. It's just funny because we had just flown across the country in that row.
Landed in NYC anf took a taxi to the hotel. So much traffic for 10:30pm. Garrett fell asleep on the ride. I was mesmorized by the mapquest display in the back of the cab. Andrea tried not to get sick from the way cabs drive in New York.
The hotel gave away our King bed, but promised one tomorrow. I transferred Garrett into the bed (he gets his own with two doubles), but he woke up and wanted to eat with us. Had a pastrami sandwich and matza ball soup from Carnegie Deli, super delicious. Garrett had some yummy mac and cheese from another deli very close. Then off to bed.
Tomorrow morning we'll explore the city.
