Day trips to NYC

This year, we/I ended up with 6 day trips to NYC. While that doesn't sound like a lot, it's not always easy to have a full day of time to travel there and make the most of it.

May: Last fall, before Chase’s Van Gogh obsession, his art teacher showed him a book apparently called “The Big M” (can’t seem to find it by that name though) about the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This book prominently featured this blue hippo so Chase has been talking about seeing it for a while. Thankfully, with my mom and Chase, we had chance for a day trip to the Met, not only to see the hippo but also to see his favorites (Van Gogh and Monet). 

August: On another open day, my mom, Chase, and I decided to go the MoMa and the Top of the Rock afterwards. Our library has a cool program where you can check out tickets to NYC museums and enter for free. We took advantage of that this time, even though we had been to the MoMa last fall. The Top of the Rock was pretty cool -- I had never been!

September: Marina visited with Bee and we did a day trip together -- just the 3 of us. We went to the Met, walked around central Park to Seneca village and visited the upper west side (to see the area Taza lived). 

November: Thanksgiving weekend, my mom, Chase, and I had another free day so we decided to go the Hudson Yards area of NYC. We went up to The Edge (such nice views around sunset!), walked the High Line to Little Island and finally checked that out. This area of NYC was built up and opened around 2019 so not a place we've spent much time yet. The weather was perfect! 

The Edge's gimmick is that there is a see-through area going straight down -- but it's quite small and there were a lot of people taking pictures. 

Little Island was so cute! Not much to it but it was fun to check out. 

December: Nate and I traveled to NYC twice in December. Once to go to a reception for our college (HMC), and once to go to a show and eat good food. We saw Book of Mormon (finally!) and enjoyed that, had some yummy dim sum and some cocktails, and walked around the city on a nice night. 

Making ornaments with Chase

Chase was very excited this year to make some ornaments for the tree. Because of my parents' move, I had received some of the old ornaments I made (years and years before I started this blog) so he wanted to make similar ones. Also because of that move, I now have all my old ornament crafting stuff with more than enough materials to make some nice ornaments. We went to Michael's to grab the ornaments themselves -- which are now plastic unlike the glass ones I was using 20 years ago -- and stumbled upon these larger ornaments that looked like snow globes. Chase was super excited to decorate one of them and made a whole wintry scene for a tiny kitty, complete with presents (a yarn ball) and snow balls. He liked making the snow globe so much that we actually went back to get a second one so he could decorate a wintry scene with some trees for two tiny lizard figurines he had. It was so fun to make ornaments together and definitely put us in the holiday mood!

Siphonophore Halloween costume

Even last year, Chase talked about being a siphonophore for Halloween. I didn’t really have the time last year but decided that this year, we could make the costume together. It took about two weeks of evenings, but by working together, we assembled a pretty cool siphonophore costume (with lights!). Chase threaded each needle for the strings (about 270 threaded needles for 540ish strings) that hang off each pompom and made the large pompom on his hat. I sewed on the pompom ribbon and sewed in the lights. It was very fun to make this costume together!

Due to Halloween falling on a Monday, he had three straight days of Halloween and wearing his costume. He was very happy about his costume and wore it on Friday for a trunk or treat, Saturday for another trunk or treat, Monday for a Halloween parade and for trick or treating. The costume held up super well even after hours of after-dark playground playing. It was also very helpful to have him lit up so we never lost sight of him! Chase has loved siphonophores ever since seeing an episode about them on Octonauts. He had to tell almost everyone what a siphonophore was (not an easy task for a super shy kid), but he had a super fun time showing off the costume!

Fall in New England

[Last year's Fall activities; And those from 10 years ago]

Fall in New England is still by far the best! With Olga, we finally beat the corn maze at Treat Farm that bested us last year (only the 11th group to do that this season at that point!) and got some Beardsley's Cider Mill cider donuts to celebrate! 

Our path broken up in two parts (when we found the exit prematurely) -- we definitely used the right hand rule this year to systematically find all 6 hidden clues and get out. So glad we finally conquered it but it still took us a solid 2 hours!

At the beginning of fall, while the weather was still predictably warm, the three of us with my mom went to Quassy Amusement Park. It was a bit of a drive, but very few people were there, so we were able to go on all the rides as many time as we wanted. It was super fun. Closer to the middle of fall, Chase's old school was holding their annual carnival. Chase went with one of his friends (Nina) and had a great time!

This fall, Nate and Chase even got to take in a Dolphins/Jets game in New Jersey. Chase has been rooting for both the Jets and Dolphins all year (for reasons we don't quite understand). When Nate saw that they were playing each other, he decided to take Chase. It was a very traffic-heavy trip, but the two of them had a lot of fun. 

At the game; Chase at a local lake taking some fall peeping pics with my parents. 

Trip to Nebraska

At the end of September, we spent a very full few days in Nebraska. We traveled there to celebrate the wedding of Mike and Brittany. But since we were already there, Melissa and family met us and Chase met his newest cousin. Having all the family together allowed us to finally make it to Vala’s pumpkin patch (a big seasonal amusement park right in Nate’s hometown). The timing also gave us the chance to celebrate Nate’s grandmother’s 91st birthday! Oh, and Chase and grandpa had fun matching their clothes (as always). 

Chase with his cousin and on a tractor at Mike's family's farm. 

Nate's grandmother with 2 of her 6 great grandchildren on her 91st birthday. 

Vala's was so much fun! I had been hearing about it for years so it was nice to finally be able to go, especially with Chase!

Matching, matching!

We also hung out with Nate’s childhood friends both at the wedding and in a later get-together. Our kids all played so nicely together. Joe, Angelica, and Cirilla had visited us in June, so it was nice to see them at their place so soon after. Chase and Cirilla really enjoyed playing together again. 

Summer trips to Massachusetts

Over the summer, we went to Massachusetts twice. We celebrated July 4th with a week on Cape Cod. We spent Independence Day in the town of Sandwich, seeing the glass museum and the perfect fireworks over the lake. We went on a touristy train with Lunch from Hyannis and visited the JFK museum there. We traveled to Chatham to check out the Marconi Museum and got to see the fish being brought from fishing boats and readied for sale. We also went to the beach many times, swam in the pool, and ate lots of seafood. The only downside is we (almost all) caught Covid at the end, but thankfully it was mild for us all. 

Then, at the end of August, the current tenants were moving out of our Cambridge apartment that we have been renting for the last 8 years. Therefore, the management company asked us if we could come and get rid of our furniture before the new tenants moved in on September 1st. With the help of my mom and her connections, we were able to give away almost all the furniture (except 1 couch). During our time there, we showed Chase both MIT and Harvard, including walking around the river and Harvard square, went to the Science Museum and the Tea Party Museum, and saw some old friends. I was able to attend Stephanie's baby shower, see Giorgia not long after her move to Boston, and catch up with Nathaniel and family. We also ate yummy food, saw how things had changed and what Covid closed permanently, and enjoyed walking outside.

Chase was wholly unimpressed with both MIT and Harvard but still posed for pictures.

Picture of Stephanie was actually when we met up in Mystic (I somehow didn't have any pictures from the baby shower); picture with Giorgia at Boston Common.

Gardening Outside

Since last year we only grew plants inside, we were super excited to grow lots of stuff outside this year. We even had a garden already in our yard. We planted some raspberries, strawberries, peppers, and some flowers. We waited eagerly for those to grow. 

One cool thing was our deer visitors. We have a mama deer and two babies who hop our fence (or get through a section that's a bit broken) and hang out in our yard. They were especially into these berries that get dropped on our bocce ball court in late spring. We especially get excited to see them on our ring camera at our front door and race around to see them jumping into our back yard. 

The rest of our yard had some plants from the previous owners: plenty of orange day lillies, lots of hydrangeas, and even some fox glove (which we found out is actually quite poisonous to humans!). 

In the end, our strawberries, raspberries, and peppers totally didn't grow, and only some of our sunflowers grew. However, what we did get is tons and tons of tomatoes! In good CT style, even though we didn't plant them, they must have been there before and really took off! It was very fun to have lots of fresh tomatoes through the mid to late summer. We now better know what to expect and will hopefully have better luck next summer! 

Sewing an Octopus with Chase

This summer, Chase showed interest in sewing a stuffed animal. Since he's into all things ocean, he scoured the internet on cool things to make and settled on making an octopus. He picked the colors: navy on top and light blue on bottom. Looking online, we sketched out a pattern that had a square head with an 8-legged body. To weight down the bottom, we included a small circle patch with poly pellets that Chase sewed himself on the sewing machine. Chase decide on a face with two large eyes and 4 light blue patches to the left of the eyes. He wanted a tiny mouth that we did twice since the first time wasn't quite right to him. 

Since I received a bunch of sewing things from my mom when they moved, I had many of these iridescent buttons. Chase decided he wanted them on each leg as suckers and he wanted 8 because Octopuses have 8 legs. We sewed on each of these buttons before stuffing the Octopus and sewing the head onto the body. 

Chase really loves the finished Octopus, which he named Coba like in the Octonauts. Coba sleeps in Chase's bed and he really likes the suckers made out of cute buttons. 

Anniversary trip to Bermuda

For our ten year wedding anniversary, we left Chase with my parents and sailed away on a cruise ship to Bermuda. We had such a fun time! In Bermuda, we went to the National Museum, toured the island by boat, got to see a shipwreck and snorkeled in the blue, coral-filled waters. On the boat, I think we literally did all the amenities that were offered (trivia, comedy, shows, art, gym, pools, mini golf, etc, etc.). Ten years ago, the day after we got married, we toasted to our one day of marriage “may there be 1 more.” Now, we toast to ten years, may there be 10 more… :)

Chase at 8 years

[Previous Chase updates: 7 years, 6 years, 2nd year of school, 5 years, starting school, 4 years, 3 years, 25-32 months, 2 years, 15-20 months, 1+ year, first four months in Cambridge, data analysis from first 2 months, first few months]

Chase turned 8 years old this spring. On his actual birthday, we played an escape game together. For his birthday party, we had planned an outdoor lawn game party with crafts. He was very excited but unfortunately, it ended up raining all day so we had to move the party to an indoor play place. Chase still had a lot of fun with his friends and we ended up playing the lawn games and doing the crafts over the summer during various play dates. Chase requested a van Gogh cake that Nate had made at the local Stop & Shop. It turned out great! 

Baltimore and DC trip

For Easter weekend, we visited Tahir, Anaan, and Azhari in Baltimore and day-tripped to DC! It was Nate and Chase’s first time in the Capitol! In Baltimore, we visited the harbor, the National Aquarium, and a baseball game (Chase’s first one, and on Jackie Robinson day: Orioles vs. Yankees). In DC, we walked a lot around the mall, went to the National Gallery (where Chase traded his normal Van Gogh love for Monet), the National Archives to see the original Declaration of Independence (super faded!) and the Constitution, and the Smithsonian Natural History Museum. We also ate lots of Baltimorian foods (crab cakes, pit sandwiches, and a famous brunch place) thanks to our nice hosts! We lucked out with some beautiful weather and a very chill trip due to taking the Amtrak there and back. 

Baltimore harbor and baseball game. 

Walking around the Mall.

Some posing in DC. 

Us near the Washington Monument and Chase near some Monet. 

Some sun in Charleston

At the end of March, I went to the South for the first time. I joined some Articles Club ladies and we ventured to Charleston, SC. We stayed at a beach house on the Isle of Palm, where I was able to go running on the beach in the mornings and relax outside, soaking up the sun. We also ventured into Charleston, visiting the McLeod Plantation (super interesting tour from the perspective of the slaves), the Angel Oak, touring a historic house in the city, and checking out the many waterfront sites. We had a great time catching up after not seeing each other for many years and I really enjoyed my first time in the warm (both weather and people-wise) South!

Strawberry picking!

Charleston downtown and the beach. 

Angel oak and walking around downtown. Not pictured are the multi-colored houses all over downtown. 

Embroidery Month

Thanks to a local craft shop (BonnahCo; IG: @bonnahcofiberarts), I participated in a February (embroidery month… who knew?) bingo project. They made different 5x5 boards for all participants, drew a different stitch every day, and demo-ed it in a daily Instagram live. I had so much fun learning new stitches and it was the perfect amount of time and energy commitment (most stitches were 15-30 minutes a day except for satin and turkey work which took wayyy longer) to feel like I was being creative but not overwhelmed. Love the look of the final project. 

The finished product: front and back. 

Close ups of some stitches.

Update: In the month of December, BonnahCo did an ornament class which consisted of two consecutive Thursday nights for 1.5 hours each. We made this cute ornament using fun stitches, two buttons for the birds, and some fun sparkly beads. So fun! Since February, I have also been working on another of their kits called Bloom and Bee. 

Weekend trip to Philadelphia

For president's day, we took a full family trip to Philadelphia. We had an intense 3 days: (1) Franklin Institute (and Planetarium) and Barnes Foundation, (2) Philly Museum of Art and Independence Hall and Liberty Bell, and (3) Lunch at the 4 seasons on top of the Comcast Building and Immersive Van Gogh exhibit. Chase had a great time with all the science and art, especially everything Van Gogh (he’s still obsessed -- as mentioned a few months ago) and all the armory at the Museum of Art (oh and the flags on the street leading up the Museum of Art since he’s super into flags these days). We also walked a lot, had some nice coffees, and ate quite a bit! A fun and full weekend for all.