motherhood // Navy at 11 months + NEW YORK

Our little lady turned 11 months the very same day we flew to New York last month. What a treat it was to reflect on nearly 1 year with her sweet soul in our lives while exploring New York.

New York this time around was lovely and different than our previous visits.  Having Navy along for the trip was just the best. Toting her around between boroughs, we would routinely ask one another if this was real life and if we actually have a mini of ourselves who's now joining in on all our adventures (?!?). Amazing.

This time in New York we spent a lot more time out walking, exploring neighbourhoods and the parks... Central Park especially. Though it was a little cooler than we were expecting based on the forecasts, it was still sooo much warmer than our last visit in November (that coastal air gets this landlocked lady every time! Can never trust a coastal forecast based on the dry air I'm so used to). All I can say is thank goodness for layers, blanket scarves and vests haha. And on that note, the family that vests together, stays together. That's our motto anyway ;)

Beautiful Battery Park ↑  Lady Liberty ↓

That rosy cheeked face!! ⇡ I die ♡

⇡ Juuuuuust about nap time :) ⇡

Upper West Side exploring.

Beautiful Central Park with my favourite people.

Eataly!!

⇡ Farmer's Market in the Flat Iron District ⇡

View from our hotel ♡

The Plaza hotel at Christmas...just perfect.

Love this man ♡

NAVY AT 11 MONTHS

Navy, as usual, you are a light that shines so bright. On our flights to and from New York, you amazed us at how composed you were for nearly five hours in the air each way. At home, you don't sit still for more than a couple seconds. So how you managed those flights, and all the time in the stroller or in the carrier while we travelled is beyond us. We worked like crazy to keep you entertained on the flights and you rewarded our efforts with being your sweet, easy going self (we genuinely surprised ourselves with how many games we created to keep you entertained using just a couple food wrappers, the seat pockets of the seats in front of us and all our electronic cables haha). New York was your 11th and 12th flight and like all the ones before, you were such a happy little girl throughout. We can't tell you how grateful we are for your easy going disposition. 

Before we left for New York, you learned how to turn around before going down stairs. I was amazed the first time you did it! Couldn't believe all the times I'd manually turned you around before had actually stuck. Then, when we were in New York, you decided to turn around to get off the bed in the hotel room! Neither of us had taught that to you. I guess you just figured that if it works for getting down stairs, it must work for getting off any other raised surface you might find yourself on :) We were so surprised and proud of you. 

You crawl so fast these days and walk around the living room using anything you can as a support. You want to move so fast and go so far. You are truly the little energizer bunny we always thought you would be (based on your constant acrobatics in utero :) You say 'mama' and 'dada' and are so verbal. Talking in phrases and questions and statements with such impressive intonation. Even though your sentences aren't made up of words yet, it's obvious you are communicating...and passionately at that. Oh how we love it. 

You're a social little butterfly who interacts with everyone we encounter. You take a little time to warm up to strangers or people we don't see as frequently and you cling to my hip as you do. Eventually you warm to most people and by the time we leave the interaction, it's clear you've captured their heart. You're a bright light, that is for sure. 

You have the healthiest little appetite and are eating so much these days while continuing to nurse. We're so grateful for your easy going and hearty constitution. You're a robust little girl who loves her mama, dada and Lincoln so much. You love life and take to adventure like a little pro. We love you with everything that's in us, sweet girl ♡

New York in the Summertime - Part 3

We flew out of New York on Thursday in the early evening, which meant we had the better part of one last day in the city. We took things slower that rainy day, starting with another brunch date at Good Enough to Eat. Because any scrumptious restaurant boasting Vermont Cheddar/Granny Smith Apple omelettes AND bacon waffles is going to see this happy face more than once in a three day period. And thats just the truth of it, folks. 

From brunch we meandered our way through the upper west side into Central Park and got lost on purpose. Because if there's anywhere you want to get lost on purpose, I gotta think its Central Park ♡

And after a thorough hike, a serendipitous and beyond inspired performance by the most angelic park performers and a couple conversations on the precise location of true north (mostly because we were really lost....Central Park is rather large we found out), we happened upon the mall. That canopied walkway in and out of Central Park you always see in the movies. Like how rewarding is that? Get lost on purpose and find your way out rather un-purposefully through the most famous of famous park pathways. The pathway I really wanted to see. That same pathway which happened to spit us out of the park and onto The Plaza Hotel on 5th ave. How fortuitous! Because a friend had recommended Lady M's crepe cake in the lower level of The Plaza hotel, and we had been meaning to try it. And so our Central Park adventure came to a close with a crepe cake in the hotel that has forever held rank in my mind as classicaly iconic and utterly New York. 

A long time ago, I remember watching an interview by Sarah Jessica Parker discussing the end of Sex and the City. She said something along the lines of there being 5 characters in the show not 4, like so many people had presumed. New York, the city, was a character herself. Thats what New York feels like to me. Like New York itself, is actively participating and contributing to your experience there. Its just so special And it speaks to the very depths of this girl's travel-loving soul. 

New York in the Summertime - Part 2

How New York is this swampy pic of an overheating me just grinning away through 1000% humidity 5 stories below street level?  SO New York, right? Thought I'd include that beauty to assure you we weren't vacationing anywhere else but the big, hot-and-sweaty apple. 

Days three and four were a whirlwind, much like our first two days in the city. Day three, in particular, was warm like no other. Honestly the humidity combined with that heat? Yeeesh. That said, I feel we acclimatized fairly well, and adventured fearlessly regardless. Humidity be damned, we had places to see and besides for holstering my increasingly out of control mane into a topknot more times than I care to admit, the heat barely made an impact ;)

Over the course of our third and fourth days in New York we attended a Yankees vs. Blue Jays game, shopped on 5th Ave, got late night frozen custard concretes at Shake Shack in Times Square, had breakfast at Chelsea Market, walked the Highline, caught a farmer's market in the Flat Iron district, had an Eataly supplied picnic in Madison Square Park, stumbled upon the Chrysler Building after exiting Grand Central and got lost in Central Park. At the end of each day, our feet were record-setting sore. Which means you know they were really, really good days.