Swimming Lessons

Ahhhh......that is the sound of getting back to normal.  Don't get me wrong our busy schedule has been loaded with fun filled events and blessings.  However, we could use some down time to catch our breath so we can get back at it again!  And by down time I mean laundry, vacuuming, home cooked meals, and "fallorating" our pad.  Cinnamon brooms, pumpkin spice candles, rust colored leaves, acorns, Indian corn, and gourds.  Oh and we must not forget the heavenly Brach's Autumn Mix that pushes Mama to run that extra mile each day. 

Squeezed in between busy and normal Miah Jane started swim lessons on Saturday mornings last month.  Collier County Parks and Recreation offer eight, one day a  week classes at different age and skill levels throughout the year.  I wanted to get her started before the chilly mornings began even though we would be missing a couple classes with all the traveling we've been doing.  Which brings me to the surprising point of this post.  She HATES it!!  In all honesty I don't think MJ is all that broken up about missing a couple classes or the rest of the session for that matter!  Not a fan.  We've tried a couple times now switching between Mama and the always fun Uncle Jordie participating in the class.  No dice.  Now there may be a couple factors involved in her distaste for what I thought would be a great experience.  For one, the only time available on Saturday's for the "Minnow" level is 9:30am which is MJ's prime morning power nap time.  Two, despite heading off the cooler fall mornings the pool temperature was unusually chilly at the Sun-N-Fun park.  Three, Miah has had a runny nose due to catching a couple colds and in conjunction with teething.  Needless to say we gave it a go and we will try again down the road, but for now I'm not going to make her do anything she's not going to enjoy.  I want Miah to have a limitless amount of experiences that I and life can offer her, but it will never be at the expense of not having fun while doing it as long as I can help it.

We didn't think brushing our hair before we left the house was necessary.

It's all fun and games at first.......

Nooooooo!

Start out nice and easy.

Aaaaand hates it.

There might be a glimmer of hope here.

Interesting that the board stops her from crying.....hmmmmm.

Aaaaaand hates it again.

Please don't make me go back in Mama!



WOO HOO class dismissed!

NYC......check!

We were all packed and amped to Jetblue it on up to the Big Apple, but the weather had other plans for us last Thursday evening.  Our girl's weekend was cut short by a day due to our cancelled flight, but that sure didn't stop us from having a fabulous time the three days we shared with our Trisha!  My best friend Trish and her husband Erin are expecting a baby girl this November.  The baby shower was this past Sunday and we wouldn't miss it for anything.  Not even a tropical storm. 

I'm ready to show this city what I'm made of Mama!

Got my boarding pass!

Lets do this!

Where's the plane already!

Miah Jane did so well on the plane once again.  I highly recommend a portable DVD player.....oh and an Auntie Tanya that carries all the bags.  As I mentioned our trip was cut short by a day, so we were on a mission to have fun from the get go.  Trish picked us up at JFK and we headed back to her and Erin's apartment in Forest Hills, Queens to freshen up and then off to the upper westside of Manhattan for a play date with our new friend lovely lady Liliah.

Liliah's parents, Rachael and Allen, have a view of Central Park out their living/dining room window.  As my little girl plays with her new friend I occasionally glance out the window and pinch myself during one of my many surreal moments in my new life.  I love New York.  I crave it a couple times a year.  Not only because my best girl lives there, but because there's no place like it that I've been.  I couldn't wait to bring Miah Jane here and I can't wait to continue to.

I love watching Miah Jane make friends one by one.  So far she's done well.  She has a gentle way about her that is very familar.  I've noticed several times now that her objective when she meets a new little person is to play.  Not to take.  Maybe I'm just an ignorant and biased new Mom and that stage is yet to come, but can't help but hope good nature has been bred in her.  It's just so precious to watch as it unfolds one little motion at a time.  I wish it could be bottled up and kept forever.

Check out these beauties huh!  One of my favorite things about New York is, yes the food, but actually the fact that you can walk down the street, get your hair blown out straight, buy your daughter a pair of tights to go with her party dress, and grab six scrumptous cupcakes all in one shot!  No driving all across town...just walking a couple blocks out your front door.  Love it!  Oh this bakery does not mess around either.......Martha's Country Bakery.......harps start playing in my head when I walk in this place.  I make it a point to stop in every time I visit.  Now I can share it with my Baby Girl.

I think she can hear the harps now too.  Sooo yummy!

Saturday afternoon we drove to Long Island where Trish's mom threw her a baby shower at the splendid Westbury Manor.  The venue was perfect, as was every detail.  We had such a great time with such great people.  The weather was unbelievably, beautiful that day too.

Outside the manor there was a gorgeous garden that Miah Jane was just dying to check out.  Needless to say the tights I bought her earlier that day didn't hold up very well during her exploration.  We can't fret about things like that too much.  So we don't.

I had to sneak a picture of Auntie Tanya in here somewhere.  She was behind the camera snapping away most of the weekend.  Thank you so much for being my right and left hand during this trip my special little sister!

This picture was taken during a delightful brunch at Kitchenettes in Tribeca. 
Their grilled cornbread is delish!

Since Miah Jane has started to walk she's rarely restrained back home, but New Work is a whole new deal.  You can't exactly let your one year old slowly meander down a sidewalk or in a store.  Well maybe some of you can, but I can't.  MJ was confined to a stroller, highchair, or carseat quite often during this trip.  She was pretty frustrated about it at times, so I felt we needed to let her get it all out at Union Square Park.  I think she heard harps when she saw this playground!

It was a unique afternoon watching Miah Jane chase pigeons, stop to blink at traffic, dazzle passerbys with her charm, and make her first mark in this concrete jungle.

Auntie Trisha we miss our daily dose of you in person. Thank you and Erin for an unforgettable three days. We can't wait for what more is in store for all of us when Baby Girl Molyneux arrives.  We heart you deeply.