December 11, 2007 - New York, NY

From Philadelphia, we headed north to New York City, to stay with our friends, Chris and Katie and their kids Alex (4.5yo) and Abigail (2.5yo), who relocated from Boston just around the time we left on our trip. We were awestruck by the view of Central Park and the east side of the city from their apartment located on Central Park West.
That night we went out to dinner with Chris and Katie at Buddakan, a restaurant in the Meat Packing District. The space was so dramatic. The only other place in the world I could imagine finding a restaurant like it is Las Vegas.

The next day, while Chris was off earning an honest living, Katie, Alex and Abigail played tour guide for us slackers. Meet our tourguides:

We visited the Central Park Zoo, the Museum of Natural History, and the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center. It was really fun to see the city through the eyes of a child, especially with it (the city, not the child) all dolled up for the holidays.

My favorite stop was Bergdorf's. While we gazed at their legendary holiday windows, I leaned down to whisper to Abigail, as she sat in her stroller munching a pretzel, that Bergdorf's was a magical place, where you could buy handbags that make you feel beautiful and shoes that make you feel skinny.

A sailor's valentine - a Bergdorf window, completely encrusted in seashells (see the link above for a short movie about Bergdorf's 2007 holiday windows)

As we wandered around, Alex asked endless questions. Each answer led to another question. As we walked past a menorah, he asked "Do you celebrate Christmas?"
I responded, "Yes, I'm Catholic."
"Does Sten?"
"Yes."
"Is he cat-lick?"
"No, he's Episcopalian."
"What's 'pis-ca-palian?"
"It's like Catholic, only without the guilt."
"What's guilt?" That one was a bit more difficult to explain. Later on Katie caught me telling Alex not to lie unless he thought he could get away with it - clearly I've got a way to go before I qualify for my parenting license. Sten was a total natural. Within minutes of our arrival, he was getting tackled by both kids as they played touch football in the entrance hall of the apartment.

Before we picked up 95 North to Rhode Island, we swung out to Long Island to visit our friends Patti and Jeremy and their 1 year old, Gavin. All smiles and giggles, Gavin got his first bite of brisket as Jeremy dished up a terrific Tennessee BBQ feast, complete with sweet tea.