Liam has been asking to go to New York for a few months now. It was the next state he wanted to see in his goal of visiting all 50 states. Nick and I decided to take Liam for his (and Nick's) birthday weekend to NYC and CT. He was so excited the morning we left even though we had to get up at 4:30am! (Sidenote: I was so upset to learn that even though I had packed my nice camera, I forgot the battery :( All pics are cell phone pics so forgive the poor quality!)
He spent the flight studying the map and planning out the countries he will visit after seeing all the states. Because he wants to be an explorer when he grows up (specifically studying rain forests he says), he wants to go to Brazil first then the Republic of the Congo ;)
We also played Go Fish for at least an hour...
We landed in NJ and took the train into the city...
Subway from Penn Station to our NYC apartment (compliments of Jessica who was out of the country and generously let us stay!)
We dropped our bags and headed out for a late lunch...pizza of course!
Afterwards we went to do the Empire State Building which was #1 on Liam's list of things to see. By this time he was super tired from waking up so early, and took a short nap on Nick's shoulder while we waited in line.
He quickly rebounded before getting on the elevators and was so excited to see the views from the top right at sunset!
Next we rushed over to Citi Field to meet my cousin, JT, for the Mets game! It was a great game and Liam was happy to cheer them on to a win against the Cubs. By the time we got home that night it was midnight, and Liam loved to find out that this city never sleeps as there were still so many people out :)
Sunday morning my birthday boys woke up wanting waffles for their birthday breakfast. I found a Belgian restaurants a few blocks away with delicious waffles, and Liam loved sitting up at the counter!
Next we took a cab ride to Grand Central...
We bought our tickets and caught our train to spend the day in CT with Suz and her family...
Liam loved that in 24 hours he had been on a plane, train, subway, taxi, and now another train!
Liam was excited to see Sophie again who came to visit us last year...
and to meet baby Alice!
Nick spent the afternoon napping (you deserve it birthday boy :)
While Suz and I took the kids to their local nature reserve to do a little hike and see the animals...
They got Liam an awesome birthday present where he builds circuits and learns about electricity...
Later that evening we went swimming at the local pool which was located right on the Atlantic...
And then we headed down to the beach...
We played in the sand and water...
And then had dinner and birthday cake right on the beach! Suz was so sweet to get the boys their favorite, a coconut cake...
Sophie and Liam shared a room that night (her first sleepover) and he read her books in bed. His little sisters are so lucky to have him!
We had so much fun in CT, but were excited to get back to New York the next morning. Liam passed the time on the train by working on the NYC journal from Grandma/Grandpa, NYC guidebook from Tippy/Alex, and a new work book from the Smiths...
Liam was fascinated with being underground at Grand Central...
Back in the city we had a quick lunch at Republic, and Liam loved the noodle dishes. Part of being an explorer, we explained, was trying all new foods and he took that to heart!
Next we went to the boys' birthday surprise...Escape the Room! It's an interactive game where we tried to figure out a series of clues to escape our room in less than an hour.
We all got really into the game and figured out so many of the clues with our 7 other team members. Liam loved all the puzzles, codes, and locks!
Although we got so close the end, we didn't get out in time (but to be fair only 15% do!). They made us take pictures with the "losing" signs but Liam protested by dropping it right as the clue master snapped the pic :)
After this we headed to Brooklyn and walked over the Brooklyn Bridge. Such a great experience, the pictures say it all!
Liam needed a little snack after walking the bridge...luckily we found more waffles :)
I decided it would be fun to take the Staten Island ferry to see the Statue of Liberty so we headed that way...yes, Liam is really getting the hang of public transportation and continued to be thrilled that it did not involve car seats :)
The ferry was great and offered us some amazing views of the city skyline and landmarks...
However, some of us were way over tired and not too interested by that point...
Oh well, at least he was willing to take our photo...
We met my cousins, Sarah and JT, for a sushi dinner in Chelsea later that night. It was a great meal, and Liam ate sashimi tuna, a california and shrimp tempura roll, edamame, miso soup, and potstickers. He enjoyed most of it and loved the chopsticks which he's getting pretty good at!
After dinner we headed to Times Square so Liam could see it at night. He still tells people this was one of his favorite attractions!
He picked out a toy from the huge Disney store in Times Square and even got to use his "credit card" from Pops and Nana to buy it for himself...
Since he got a second wind that night, we let him stay up a little to watch American Ninja Warrior, his favorite TV show...
On our last day we spent most of the morning playing in Central Park...
We had one more stop before heading home...FAO Schwarz! Liam loved the piano and picked out a Power Rangers sword as his treat...
It was hard to leave such a fun trip. I think Nick and I both enjoyed getting to focus all our attention on Liam and introduce him to a city that we love. Big thanks to Mallie and Grandma who kept the girls entertained on their "staycation" :) I love Liam's enthusiasm for traveling and learning about new places and cultures. I'll probably regret it in about 12 years when he leaves home to explore the world. If he ends up in NYC or a similar place I won't be surprised...after 3 days he was a natural :)
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