Weekending it

It was a perfect sunny weekend.  I secretly love heat waves.  Yes, of course it's miserable heat and uncomfortable but I'd take a heat wave over an arctic blast any day.  These are the days I dream about in the dead of winter.

On Saturday we headed to the beach!

Dan and I discovered South Beach in Staten Island last summer.  It is the perfect beach for us.  Quick and easy to get to (just a short bus ride), it's clean, not overly crowded, and even has a little snack shack. 

We love Coney Island for it's atmosphere and Nathan's Hot Dogs but when we want to actually find a spacious area on the beach and enjoy the sand and water without worrying about stepping on broken glass and garbage - South Beach is the better option.

We bought a little pop-up beach tent thing at IKEA back in April and used it for the first time.  It was great!  It provided shade, a place to hide our belongings, and it didn't fly away like the beach umbrellas around us.  I forgot to snap a picture of it assembled but you can see it packs down into the thing under Dan's arm. I think we paid like $11 for it or something cheap like that.

The sand was blistering hot but the water was cold! We sat by the water and then eventually got shoulder deep in the water, Dan gave me a piggyback in the water (nothing better than feeling weightless in water), made sand creations, hunted for sea glass, and all around had a happy time.

We played Chinese Poker, got hot dogs and chips at the snack shack, soaked-in some burning sunnies and left after about three hours.  A perfect length of time.

Oh how I wish summer was as long as winter...

Peeks from the Week

Sorry I know I teased you on Monday saying there might be a room reveal this week.  I planned on it but the photos I took looked blurry to me and I can't take new photos until the weekend when the lighting in the room is good in the morning.  I'll try again for next week.  For now, here is a close-up of the adorably perfect window valance that Terri Mom and I sewed together back in Kansas.  This is one on the smaller window in our bedroom. It makes me happy.

This week Facebook reminded me that exactly eight years ago I was here in New York City as a little undergrad exploring the world open to me while participating in a History Scholars program with Gilder Lehrman. I made so many important decisions that summer, the primary one being to apply for a graduate program at NYU with the hopes of moving to NYC after I graduated from Cornell College. And I did, because I kicked-butt at life back then.

That exact same summer, Dan moved from Kansas to Brooklyn to start as an intern at Crossroads. We were so close (geographically) and yet so far apart.

Neither of us could have possibly envisioned what was ahead. Just dreams that had nothing to do with each other that eventually collided. What will we think of today in eight years??

It's a swirly world in my brain this week. 2016 just hasn't been my best year and through a combination of a lot of things, I've become a much more guarded person in nearly all aspects of my life. It's an increasingly suffocating place to be and, while very uncomfortable, I've convinced myself that it's what I deserve and what is best. That somehow, I can't be me because that's not what other people want. The tiny part of me that rages against this new place is all together too tired to do anything about it. I recognize it's entirely contrary to my so-called mantra to "Be Your Own Rainbow" and that makes me feel very sad.

But anyways, it's sunny and it's Friday! So grab your got-it-together mask and head to the beach! That's our plan for tomorrow and it very well could be the only chance we get this summer, so we better make use of this 97 degree weather.

Weekending-it

It was a full and fun weekend which makes for a pretty exhausted Monday but that's what summers were made for...and Mondays too.

We devoted all-day Saturday to working on the apartment and trying our best to get the place settled.  We are getting close! Honestly, I was beginning to think we would never make progress because it felt like all I was doing was moving piles around. But after Saturday, our bedroom is done, the kitchen is done, the bathroom is 90% done (I need to caulk the tub one more time), and the entryway is done.  All we have left is the living/dining room and the spare room.

We ordered a couch last Monday and were told it would be delivered that Thursday but, conveniently, the salesman called after we left and told us it wouldn't come until after the 24th. [Insert annoyed face].  Had we known this at the time that we paid, I would have argued for free delivery. But, sigh, he was a skilled salesman. Once we get the couch in and hang the rest of the wall decor that room will be done too! So room reveals are coming-up, maybe one this week even!

On Sunday we spent the afternoon in the city with two cuties and their mom from our church family.  We had been talking about this adventure day for a long time and finally got around to scheduling it. 

We took them on the Staten Island Ferry (free entertainment and city views)...

And then introduced them to the wonders of Dairy Queen in the terminal on Staten Island (the only accessible DQ in the city - for those without cars)...

And it so-happened to be National Ice Cream day! We rode the ferry back to the city on the side with the views of the Statue of Liberty.

After the ferry ride, we rode the Seaglass Carousel in Battery Park.  It was magical...

After that, the kids still had loads of energy so we tired them out for a couple hours at a fun park in Battery Park City.

Here, not all park playgrounds are created equal. Unfortunately. The nicest and most thrilling play sets are in the nicest and most wealthy neighborhoods. It's the sad truth but at least they are open to everyone.

We got back around 8:00 pm and evidently the kids fell asleep immediately, which was our goal for the day. Dan and I had a blast getting to hang out with these kids and shower them with extra attention while also giving their mom some extra hands. When waiting for our own kids, it's a treat to get to be with others.

Bucket List Fail

Remember waaay back in April I shared our Spring Bucket list and then I never said a peep about it since?

Well, that's because we totally bombed.  I blame our lack of bucket list adventures on the rather cool-weathered spring we had and all that craziness in June. But, it wasn't a complete fail.  We did accomplish a few highlight moments.

1) Bike rides. Big fat nope.

2) Bake homemade bread. Ha! What was I thinking?

3) Mini trip to Washington D.C. Well, okay at least we did that. See the recap here and here.

4) Go on a picnic. I mean, come on, it wouldn't have been that hard but we didn't do it.

5) Try two new restaurants. Of course! We discovered our new favorite affordable Mexican restaurant in the neighborhood and I know we tried something else but I can't remember at the moment.

6) Visit the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens.  Did that back here, although the weather was less than springish that day.

7) Rollerskating. Dang! I still really want to do that but I can't find anywhere close that doesn't require a car.

8) Sign-up for a class.  This is comical. Of course we didn't do that.

I haven't put together a Summer Bucket List yet and I feel like it's too late and I don't want the pressure of checking off adventures when my goal is to just get the apartment in shape. I don't know, maybe we're too old for this kind of thing anyways. Sigh. 

One Great Day

Last Tuesday was our last day of vacation and our last day of Dan's sabbatical. I wanted for us to end it all with a pretty big bang.  The ultimate day-venutre.

Also, Dan is very difficult to shop for and that makes birthday shopping hard. When he was making his birthday list for family I told him I would rather he give me a list of things he wanted to DO as opposed to gifts and he liked that idea. Initially, I was going to pick one thing or maybe two things from his list but then I got a wild hair and decided to do it all and make it a fun choose-your-own-adventure style day!

I kept it all a surprise and gave him some false hints in the days leading up to the 5th so he wouldn't be certain. The one rule I had was that he needed to take a picture at each destination with our goofy inflatable birthday crown.  He was embarrassed but it was for the sake of memories! 

In the morning I got us up early and presented him with his first choice of the day. Bagels or donuts. He picked bagels and we enjoyed our breakfast while on the train into the city.  When we got off in lower Manhattan he knew right away what Destination #1 was going to be...

One World Trade Observation Deck

It was an overcast morning and the lady outside the building told us there was NO visibility and we should exchange our tickets for another time. We decided to risk it since it meant we wouldn't have to wait in line at all and honestly I didn't see how we could reschedule with the rest of the day already coordinated. It ended up being a good risk because we could see a lot! And we were in and out before our actual ticketed time!

The building with the green square top is where I work ^^

That's Empire way up there ^^

The skies cleared briefly while we were up there.

The next choice Dan had to make was whether we walked or rode the train to the next stop.  He picked walk, so we enjoyed a long stroll along the Hudson River.  It was starting to get really hot and taking much longer than I thought so we grabbed a ride for the last little bit to Destination #2...

Intrepid Sea Air and Space Museum

Terri Mom, doesn't that look familiar?? ^^

We wandered around the exhibitions and then waited in line for a long time to walk through the submarine.  I'd been inside before with my parents but Dan hadn't and it was his day, so we waited. He agreed it wasn't worth the wait but we weren't in a rush so no harm done.

After the museum, Destination #3 was either arcade games and lunch at Dave and Buster's in Times Square or lunch and bowling.  He picked...

Frames

I had been here just before we left for vacation with some ladies from church and it was really nice. It was like a night club when I was there before but in the middle of the afternoon on a weekday it was nearly empty. We played three games and had super yummy food and drinks that they let you eat at your lane.

Dan creamed me with a total score of 331 versus 240, but I got a few strikes so I wasn't disappointed.

This part of the day was Dan's birthday gift from my older sister Jessy. It was a perfect way for her to gift him an experience that didn't require planning or coordination from the other side of the country and it helped fill the day with extra treats.  Thanks Sissy!

We ended up having a lot of extra time to kill after bowling and before Destination #4 so we walked around the Times Square area and did some shopping for the one thing on his list that was gifty. We stopped and got Jamba Juice and then relaxed for awhile in Bryant Park. We got Chipotle chips and guacamole for dinner and then I excitedly led the way to the Grand Finale!!

Wicked!

So, he figured this was the last stop since it was the only other thing on his list that we hadn't done yet. His ticket was my sister Mandy's gift to him and holy cow it did NOT disappoint.  It was 1000% amazing. We were sitting in direct center, up high, and could see everything.  Plus the theater was huge so there was plenty of room and very comfortable.

I saw Wicked in Chicago nearly 10 years ago when I was in college but it wasn't a good experience for many reasons. I've always obsessed over the music since Mandy and I memorized all the songs in high school and I always hoped to see the show again some day. Dan always wanted to see the show too so I splurged. It is one of the more expensive shows but once the first song started I knew every single penny for my ticket and Mandy's gift for Dan's ticket was worth it.  It was perfect. I had a smile on my face for the whole show and Dan really enjoyed it too.

The day was long, our feet were tired, we got back late, and had work to return to early the next morning but it was one really great day that we are both really grateful for.  Between the stress of the last month with the chaotic move and the many rough moments we've had in 2016 so far, it did our hearts so good to have this excessively treat-filled day. 

Lately I've been thinking a lot about where we are at in life and how we can make that place a great thing as opposed to a place where I allow myself to get down about what we have and what we don't. We're still young! We've still got a lot of energy! We still love to spend every day, all day together! We haven't been blessed with kids yet and we don't have any pets.  We can GO and DO and float around relatively untied.  We live in an awesome city filled with tons of things to do and who knows how long we'll be here so we should take advantage. I remind myself often that "we can't take anything with us" and that helps me let go of strict rules and have fun. This doesn't excuse irresponsibility with spending but it has given me the freedom to say YES to special things that we might never get the chance to do again.

So, all that to say, I spoiled Dan for his birthday but it was worth it.