little black journal

Friday dawned bright, sunny, and full of promise – the city was our oyster and we had places to go and sights to see.

First, though, fuel in the form of green smoothies and bagels.

We spent awhile at the 9/11 Memorial, moved by the power of the very real void left where the twin towers once stood.

And from there, we strolled to City Hall Park, where we found a sunny bench on which to share a Coke and watch the fountain’s shadows move across the pavement.

And then, the mandatory trek across the Brooklyn Bridge, for city views.

And close-up views of the bridge itself.  What a beauty (the bridge, but also, this kid!).

We made it to Brooklyn just as our feet started to ache, so we called an Uber to pop us over to Williamsburg for shopping and lunch.  I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect of Williamsburg, but…charming coffee shops?  Check.

Boutiques packed with beautiful handmade wares?  Got it.

And the prettiest little sweet shop, stocked with every variety of Swedish gummies?  Score.

I mean…

Unfortunately, the pizza place that I had picked for lunch had a line around the block, so we decided to hop on the subway, hightail it to the Financial District, and pick up some goodies at the market for a picnic lunch on the Ellis Island ferry.  That’s the beauty of New York – you’re never more than a few Subway stops away from a stellar backup plan.

We cruised first to the Statue of Liberty and then to Ellis Island, but with all the miles we’d already walked that day, we decided to stay on the boat rather than disembark with most of the other passengers.  The views from our boat deck bench seat did juuuuuust fine.

Back on land, we hoofed it back to our hotel, stopping here and there to check out a cool building or choose our favorite outfit from a fancy window display.

When our energy waned, we popped in our earbuds and let HAIM carry us the rest of the way back.

I took my cherished afternoon siesta and then rallied in the evening for dinner at Boucherie in West Village.  My Aperol Spritz and goat cheese salad hit the spot.

We wandered back to our hotel, full and happy, stopping to peek at Washington Park, which was bumpin’ at 9pm, but then a rat scampered across the lawn just in front of us and Juliette promptly decided it was time to go.  We picked up a nutella crepe from a small stand on MacDougal and ate while we walked the rest of the way back; any rodent drama was quickly forgotten.

We tucked ourselves in by 10pm and then fired up You’ve Got Mail so we could get an extra dose of NYC from the comfort of our bed.  Falling alseep next to Juliette with a rom-com running in the background is one of my favorite things.

Saturday dawned grayer and rainier than Friday, so we lingered extra-long over our hot chocolate and latte from Fellini.  I loved this coffee shop’s classy, classic vibes.

We took the Subway to the Upper West Side with plans to walk Central Park but found it was even wetter in that neck of the woods, so we ducked into Frame for another round of hot beverages.  This is why we carried our books where ever we went.

An hour later, it was still pretty drizzly, so we traded Central Park for the MOMA.  Again, not too shabby a backup.  I had forgotten just how many master works of art live in this museum.  In the space of a couple of hours, we saw Van Gogh and Picasso and Rothko and Pollock and Giacometti, OH MY.

Plus, Yves Klein, whose signature shade of cobalt blue became my favorite color when I lived in Paris and visited the Pompidou on the regular.

Post-museum, we guzzled cold Cokes and tucked into a very good pepperoni pizza.

By the time we’d eaten lunch and rested a bit back at the room, the rain had died down and we decided to give our Central Park visit one last go.  We took the scenic route from the Subway stop to the park, dilly-dallying on the gorgeous streets of the Upper West Side.

And the park!  It would take several full days to explore this place in its entirety, but we settled for a stroll to the lake.

As we were standing on the Bow Bridge, wondering what exactly made the lake water so green, a man just a few feet away from us got down on one knee and proposed to his girlfriend.  She said yes and then they were immediately swarmed by a cast of 30 friends and family members that had been hiding nearby.  There was laughter and crying and kissing and Juliette ate it up.  She’s a sucker for romance, this girl.

We exited the park on the east side and set out in search of dinner.  I was meant to be looking for the seafood restaurant I’d pinned, but we stumbled upon a Lauderee and decided macarons would make a good appetizer.

Eventually, though, we landed at Seamore for cocktails/mocktails and fish and chips.

And then…showtime!  We’d found a deal on last-minute tickets for &Juliet and had heard wonderful things about the show from a friend.  To Broadway!

My goodness, what a dose of pop-infused joy that musical is.  We laughed and sang and I found myself whooping like a schoolgirl when Romeo came down from the rafters on a star-studded platform, belting out a Bon Jovi song.  And long live Backstreet Boys!  It was a ridiculaously fun night.

Sunday was depature day, but we had a few hours in the morning to soak up our last bits of city life.  I hadn’t made breakfast plans, but figured we’d settle for a nearby coffee shop.  This is what ‘settling’ looks like in SoHo:

We had decided to check out the immersive Arte Museum, so we walked along the waterfront to the museum’s pier and then made our way through a series of exhibits that put you in the midst of rushing waterfalls and deep, dark oceans and fairy-like butterfly gardens.

It was gray and chilly when we emerged from the museum, so after popping real-quick into Chelsea Market to buy the necklace I’d been thinking about since Thursday, we grabbed a couple of stools at a ramen joint for a piping hot lunch.

And that was it, our final taste of New York City…we hustled out of there to grab our bags and get to JFK.  WHAT A TRIP.  I’m coming up short for words to express just how thankful I am for those few days with Juliette – we’ve got such a good thing going right now.  I texted one of our bench-sitting selfies to a group of friends when they wished me a happy birthday and one of the ladies responded with, “JUST LIKE LORELAI AND RORY” and I’ll wrap with that.

The Mama-Jules October getaway lives on…these few days away, just us two, has become an annual tradition now and we’re keeping a running list of dream destinations.  Top of mind for Juliette these past couple of years has been New York City, chic kid that she is, and her wish was very happily my command.  We said adios to our guys, boarded our plane, sat on said plane for an hour before getting off to board a different plane due to mechanical issues, and finally, lifted off, giddy with excitement.

We landed early evening at Newark Airport in New Jersey and made an adventure out of navigating multiple transit systems to get us to SoHo.  Juliette trusted me, mostly, but closely tracked our stops against the on-train Subway map.

After lots of Google mapping and a little bit of reliance on the kindness of strangers, we landed two block from our hotel.  Life skills.

We dropped our bags in our tiny room and then quickly set out in search of food, eager for something hearty after a day of airplane snacks.  Little Italy was a 15-minute walk away and Juliette was in the mood for pasta, so we headed that direction and snagged a sidewalk table at a cute eatery.  Our pesto gnocchi hit the spot.

When in Little Italy, you grab a canolli for the walk home.

Goodnight, New York…

I promised Juliette a sleep-in on Thursday, but by 9am I was jonesing for a latte and some sightseeing.  Rise and shine, Girly!

We grabbed coffee and croissants at Felix Roasting Co and Juliette read her book in the cafe’s small winter garden while I gawked over the velvet banquettes and the embossed napkins.

From Felix, we wandered through West Village, stopping every couple of minutes to admire a brownstone with a particularly charming stoop.

We stopped a lot.

Eventually, we landed at Little Island, a park in the Hudson River constructed on a series of tulip-shaped pillars.  I had seen the architectural splash this place made on social media when it opened a few years ago and was eager to see it in person.  Would it be as cool as Instagram had led me to believe?

It absolutely was.  Lush and verdant, but with these peek-a-boos that reminded you how utlimately this piece of natural respite in the city was entirely man-made.

Juliette and I rested our feet at the park’s amphitheater and cracked open the couple of fortune cookies that had been part of our welcome package at the hotel.  My fortune opened with, “Have the courage to get a little lost…”  Challenge accepted.

I loved this park so much!  Humans can be so wonderfully ambitious and creative.

From Little Island, we walked over to Chelsea Market to do a little shopping and grab a bite to eat.

Juliette’s been on the hunt for a pair of ear muffs and I tried to talk her into these, but they were a bit bolder than she wanted to go.

As were the leapard Uggs.  So fun to browse, though!

And then…the Highline.  I’ve been wanting to walk the Highline for a decade now and GAH!  What a master class in urban intervention and thoughtful detailing.  So many beautiful moments to sit in the sun or peek at the city.

We ended our stroll at Hudson Yards, briefly checked out the Vessel, and then decided to hightail it back to our room to rest for a bit in preparation for our big evening to-do’s.

City kid.

Refreshed after a power nap (for me) and an episode of Gilmore Girls (for Juliette), we set back out late afternoon to make it to our early dinner reservations at Le Rock.  We had a 7pm show to get to, which meant dining at 5:00.  Just my style.

First, though, a quick pop into FAO Schwartz to pick up a little something for Isaac.  Juliette was smitten with this giant husky, but we settled on a much more packable Hotwheels Batman car instead.

We perched for a minute near the ice rink at Rockefeller Center and talked about our favorite scenes in Serendipity and Elf.

And then a birthday toast to me from my best girl.  44 was off to a smashing start – it had been a very very good day.

To the theater!

But before I get to Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, let’s dwell on how fun it was just to roam these city sidewalks with Juliette, chatting and laughing like a couple of old pals.

AND the play!  This play was number one on Juliette’s list of NYC to-do’s and it was…perfect.  Funny at just the right moments, dark and scary at others.

There’s a scene at the end of the play where grown-up Harry travels back in time to witness Voldemort killing his parents and Juliette and I gripped each other’s hands through the horror of it all, tears streaming down our faces.  The power of good writing and good acting, but also the power of place and the presence of people.  It was a moment.

And with that, the curtain went down on our first full day in the city.  No notes for improvement.

We’re deep into autumn and barrelling toward winter, it seems.  The day after Halloween Isaac asked, “Is it Christmas yet, Mama?”.  The aisles of Target would make us think so!

But I’m hanging onto fall vibes for at least a couple weeks longer, as this past season has been particulalry good and we seem to have found a particular groove.  The kids have settled into their schools with grace and positivity.  Isaac started at a new preschool in September and is digging his big-kid classroom with weekly visits to gym and chapel on the larger church campus.  Plus, a Spiderman water bottle?  Psshhhh…

Juliette is a Middle Schooler and made quick work of learning how to navigate her new world, complete with class changes and locker combos and homework.

Isaac brings home a letter worksheet and some coloring pages a couple of times a week and feels so self-important when he declares that he has to do his homework.  Sister lends a hand when he’s stumped.

He’s got ‘X’ down pat.  And Buddy writes his name now!

Fall is also for soccer and we’ve been watching lots of it.  Juliette plays on both her club team and the school team, so she’s on the field for four practices and two games per week.  She’s a more confident, skilled player with each passing month and I’m her biggest fan.

I mean, we wouldn’t spend a Saturday afternoon sitting in the rain for just anyone…

We’ve also become big fans of the Seattle Reign and took Isaac to his first big-time sporting event last month.  He liked the action on the soccer field, but loved the Red Vines and Sprite.  When at Century Link…

Shane’s and my birthdays come right on the heels of our kids’ and while I celebrated my big day in NYC with my best girl, Shane was happy with a lower-key hurrah.  Drinks and pizza at Mioposto, some wiffle ball at Hiawatha, apple pie at home.  It was just his style.

Isaac has baseball fever and asks every hour on the hour if Shane will throw the ball around with him.  On a sunny fall day, it’s an easy yes.

Time to head home for dessert…

Happy birthday, Shane!  You’re so damn good at loving us.  We love you back.

We’ve play-grounded hard this season.  We spent a Saturday afternoon romping on no less than three separate playgrounds near my mom and dad’s house.

And Isaac and I made the most of the October golden hours by getting outside while Juliette was at piano or soccer.  This stretch of Beacon Avenue near Jefferson Park on sunny fall evening is magic.

And Camp Long with a chai and a vanilla steamer at 4pm on a Friday, when you have the full weekend ahead of you?  SO GOOD.

I love that a game of uber-obvious hide-and-seek still brings him so much joy.

To be able to walk and talk with my boy now!  I mean, it’s a lot of chatter about Paw Patrol and Spiderman, but he’s got stuff to SAY and I’m here for it.

Isaac and I paid a visit to our most favorite tree at Lincoln Park on one of the last pre-time-change evenings.

Buddy loves the zip line these days.  Faster, Mama, FASTER!

And then, of course, there were all things pumpkin.  We spent a sunny afternoon down at Carpinito Farms picking our perfect pumpkins.

I told Isaac he could get whatever pumpkin he wanted, as long as he could carry it to the wheelbarrow himself.  Challenge accepted.

I’m trying to pull out my big camera more often these days, but it gets sideswiped by my budding photographer.

We carved our pumpkins the weekend before Halloween and Isaac got a huge kick out of scooping out the gooey guts.

It’s so satisfying when your spoon comes out of there with a big ol’ heap of mush.

Isaac asked me to carve the face of his favorite Paw Patrol character and I admit, it came out a bit more…abstract…than I anticipated.

Juliette kept it simple and sweet.

Isaac has had his Halloween costume locked down since September (Costco starts stocking them early!) and was thrilled when his classroom Halloween party rolled around.  It was a Wednesday and he and I had a playground date that evening, so he got extra mileage out of his racecar uniform by wearing it to zip through Mount Baker Park.

We hunted for chestnuts and then spent 20 minutes sending said chestnuts down the playground slide, to see whose was faster.  My nut had a flat spot and lost every single time, but Isaac encouraged me to just keep trying.  Mr. Positivity, this kid.

And Juliette Grace!  We bought this dress at a garage sale a couple of years ago on a whim because it was beautiful and only five dollars.  On Halloween we finally made good use of it.

Halloween evening was rainy as all get-out, but we still took the kids around the block for some trick-or-treating.  Isaac was tentative at the first couple of houses, quietly mumbling, “trick or treeeeeeating…” when neighbors opened their doors.

But Sister showed him the ropes and his confidence grew with each house; at one point he happily helped himself to two full-size candy bars when a kind lady held out a tray full of Snickers bars and M&M’s.  Juliette was mortified.

THIS RAIN.  Time to head home and sort the bounty.

Finally, October was for cozying in.  Yes, we got out a lot, but we also spent a lot of time racing Hotwheels across the coffee table and reading books under a pile of blankets.

Saturday mornings are my favorite time of the week.  Coffee, fire, a day of soccer and and playtime ahead of us.

Isaac and I are always the first ones up and we like our Mama-Buddy time, but it’s a treat when Juliette rolls out of bed.

He is almost legit at Jenga now and needs very few hints on which pieces are non-structural.

Also, when he does knock it over, he laughs rather than cries.  Which means we all win.

Play hard, rest well.  Words to live by.

Halloween pics coming in hot, but first, our final summer snaps.  For posterity.  For the Grandmas!

And speaking of grandmas (and this blog’s most faithful readers), Shane’s mom came to visit in June for Juliette’s fifth grade graduation. For bonus fun, we squeezed in plenty of park visits and a quick trip to Vashon Island.

To the isand!

I love how my kids so eagerly lean into their ferry faves – Juliette bee-lines for the puzzle table and Isaac heads right for the deck.

Vashon was charming as ever.  We discovered a perfectly packed used bookshop connected to the Coffee Roasterie.

And then said hello to the Vashon Troll.  This guy’s name is Oscar the Bird King and he’s lovely.

Isaac spent half an hour in his driftwood fort burying his beloved Sonic action figure and then frantically digging it up.  There was a moment when we thought we’d lost him, but crisis averted.

We capped off our visit at Dragon’s Head Cidery for the requisite picnic lunch, hammocking, and cold beverages.

Fourth of July found us back on the ferry, this time headed toward Marrowstone Island for a holiday with our buddies.

We settled into Jack and La Verne’s place, pulled out the whiffle ball and bat, and let the festivities begin.

A quick romp through the woods / beach…

And then an evening on the lawn at Marrowstone Winery, for food and drink and music and laughs.

Happy Fourth!

These wide-open roads were made for morning scootering…

Juliette has become obsessed with the card game Piles and builds her fan base wherever she goes.

In other random highlights, our family spent a morning at an alpaca farm in Duvall, petting bunnies and feeding (then being chased) by a variety of barnyard animals.

This is her Can We Get A Rabbit? face…

These creatures…  Goofy-looking as all get-out.

But those eyes!  I love them.

Juliette did not love the slobber factor.  Put out a handful of feed and these alpacas get EXCITED.

Thanks to Shane for humoring me.  This trip was not on his summer bucket list, but I had a blast.

Plus, Lake Sammamish was conveniently located on the way home.  Beach day!

With some Rusts, to boot!

Felt so good…

But time to pack it up.

Juliette spent a few nights away from home at summer camp on Vashon Island.  I took her to the drop-off point via the water taxi and the goodbye to Brother and Dad was tough.

I connected her with her buddies and we hugged goodbye and we both cried a lot, but I was excited for her upcoming adventure.

And then Juliette was gone and our house felt not-quite-right without her.  Our reunion on Vashon Island several days later was awfully sweet.

SO SWEET.

Finally, there was plenty of joy found right at home.  The Jarrells came to visit for a weekend and the kids reveled in cousin and grandparent time.

On the weekends we weren’t camping or island-hopping, we were cycling through our West Seattle favorites.  Good Society, Coleman Pool, Alki Beach, rinse and repeat.

(A special shout-out for sunset walks down to the water with my girl – this is when we have our best chats…)

Our summer home base continues to be our backyard, for reading and water balloons and sprinklers.

Shane thinks he looks like Johnny from the Karate Kid.  I think he looks like utter delight.

I was gardening one evening and noticed a rustle in the ground where I’d just pulled out a scraggly rosemary bush.  I gently nudged aside a clump of dried grass and discovered a nest of several baby bunnies!  Juliette got her wish!

Shane set up a bunny cam as I’d seen no sign of mama and feared I’d scared her away with my poking around.  But early the next morning we got a motion notification and there she was!  Giving them breakfast and then tucking them back in.

I got a little obsessed with these dang rabbits, trying to get a peek every few hours but not wanting to scare them away.  I’d lay awake at night worrying about raccoons, googling home-rigged predator protection strategies.  A few days later, as I was showing Nance our sweet little nest, a bunny darted out of the hole and across the street.  He was tired of my meddling, I guess.  An hour later, the other two were gone.  Ah well, it was fun while it lasted!  And to be honest, I needed my life back.

Summer’s final blackberries…

Perfect to the very last drop.