NYC and Boston

Hey friends,

With Monday off and being sick on Tuesday (oh yeah, I didn’t mention that we all managed to get some level of cold during our travels?), this is becoming quite the short week, which is tough since there is a lot of work to do.  And believe-you-me, there is nothing I like better than to be busy at work!

Sadly it’s already been a week since we touched tough in the Big Apple and our visit was far too brief.  Sigh.  Same for Boston and bestie time.

Here is a quick general recap of what we did:

Thursday (NYC):

• Eataly – Mario Batali’s awesome indoor Italian market.  Loved.
• Empire State Building (but didn’t go to top because of crazy rain/fog)
• Rockefeller Plaza
• Dean & Deluca for a snack
• Times Square (and some shopping for colored jeans since my jeans were soaked)
• Attempt at dinner at Italian place in theater district (cut short by screaming baby)
• Dinner success at chain cheap-o pizzeria (Little Italy) where I had a phenomenal spinach pizza – so greasy, so good
• 10p bedtime for all 3 of us

Friday (NYC):

• Met up with old Stanford friends (that now live in NY) and their two wee ones in Central Park
• Central Park Zoo
• Lunch at a fabulous café (salads made to order, perfection)
• Challenging subway ride down to financial district
• Froyo (subpar IMO)
• Ground Zero / Freedom Tower
• French restaurant for apps and vino (aka the location where I was massively pooped on and had to throw away my sweater)
• Cab ride back up to Midtown
• Random shopping
• Magnolia bakery –> slice of coconut cake the size of my head for dinner, eaten in Rockefeller plaza
• Early night in hotel – by the way, we stayed at Cassa Hotel in Midtown and loved it.  The location was perfect and the staff was incredible! 

Saturday (NYC/Boston):

• Met up with my friend Kurt and his (expecting!!!) wife Jess who were also on vacay from Chicago
• Had a scrumptious breakfast at Le Pain Quotidien with Kurt, Jess, and two of their friends
• Strolled to Penn Station for our 1p train to Boston
• Made stop at DD and scored a free iced latte
• Arrived in Boston at South Station and headed to bestie’s (new) house!
• Met Tate – Andrea and Ilya’s perfect baby boy!!!
• Grilled out and chatted to our heart’s delight

Sunday (Boston):

• Bestie and I hit up Bikram (first time since finding out I was pregnant and felt oh so good)
• Another visit to Dunkin Donuts (don’t judge)
• Chipotle for lunch with the boys and babies
• ….and froyo for a desert at Yeh!  Hey it was right next door!
• Champy purchase pitstop
• Mini-dinner party with two additional friends that live in Boston

Monday (Boston / plane ride back to SFO):

• Pajama photo shoot
• Blueberry pancakes made by the bestie
• Long walk with the boys and babies
• Relaxing and watching SYTYCD (just like old times)
• Airport – a looooong time waiting for our flight…oye

I loved getting to experience my bestie as a mom.  Seeing her with her little tater tot made my heart soar.  I only wish we lived closer so we could have every weekend be like last. 

The trip was far too short, but was such fun and hopefully has prepped us for longer, bigger adventures with bean in the future.

Did you go anywhere for Memorial Day Weekend???  I should make this an annual thing

Traveling with baby – 101

Ha, like this is going to be the guide you think will tell you everything..how about a little bit of how to and how to not

Well we’re back from NYC and Boston ‘burbs and it was a lovely, albeit short, trip.  I definitely want to recap the other parts but figured I’d do the baby stuff first.

Bottom line is Bean survived his first trip – and so did we

Bean and me at Eataly on Thurs

Overall, I think we did great.  Sure there were some stressful points, but for a whirlwind vacay that include d2 cross-country flights and a 4+ hour train ride, I’d say we did pretty damn good. 

Here are an assortment of tips that I’ve come up with:

• Find out if your airline still has early-boarding for families with small children – United does not.  I suppose that’s not a tip, but if you’re expecting it and don’t get it, it throws ya for a loop.
• Invest in a cover for the car seat (beyond a plastic bag).   We gate-checked our snap-n-go stroller and car seat and were grateful for a protective bag since both were exposed to the elements.
• Plan your bottles (or your breast) for taking off and landing.  Unfortunately our flights were delayed both ways and the airline was remiss in keeping us informed of the correct times meaning we gave Bean the bottle too soon and his ears ended up popping on one of the trips.  Poor guy.  This is the only time he cried on the plane rides (averaging 5-6.5 hours )
• Arm & Hammer pacifier wipes were a life saver for when Sawyer decided to fling his binky down the airplane corridor and we didn’t have the ability to get to a sink right away.  We also used them to clean our bottles in the hotel bathroom.
• Formula to-go packets are amazing. Similac and Enfamil carry them and we’ve used both.  They are like the Crystal Light packets only for formula.  Genius. 
• Buy bottled water once you get through security – don’t rely on the water on the plane.
• We packed about 15 diapers between our two carry-on bags, just in case.  We had already planned on purchasing both formula and diapers once we got to NYC.  Always pack more diapers (and wipes) than you think you’ll need!
• Carry plastic bags with you for disposing of the dirty diaper.  You never know when and where you’ll need to do a (disgusting/nasty/mother-of-all-blow-outs) diaper change, so it’s handy to have something to put them in until you can get to a place where you can throw it away.
• Bring hand sanitizer and Wet Ones.  Both are invaluable for obvious reasons.
• If you can avoid it, do not leave on an evening (or later) flight when going East-to-West.  We were on a 530p flight out of Boston and since it was 3+ hours late, we didn’t arrive to our home until 2a (5a EST). ICK!
• Don’t forget to pack extra clothes for baby, and perhaps mommy too.  I alluded to that blow-out above? Yeah, well Bean managed to do an epic blow-out poop on me while were were in Tribeca (I think?) in a (nicer) French restaurant drinking vino.  It was so bad I had to throw away my outer sweater as well as Bean’s onesie in the restaurant bathroom.  He ended up sporting a diaper and a big for the rest of the day
• To get from NYC to Boston, we traveled via Amtrak from Penn Station to South Station.  My advice: ask Amtrak staff for early / additional assistance.  They approached us and asked us where we were going and found out the track before it was listed and brought our suitcase and stroller to the platform.  So so so nice!  We managed to avoid the chaos.
• If it’s financially feasible, go business class on the train.  There is quite a bit more room.  We were able to put the car seat at our feet instead of holding Bean the entire time.  He had a lovely nap and we had space.
• Oh and of course, bring toys, but also be creative in what you have around you.  You never know what can be fun for a baby

Any tips for traveling with a baby?

A whole lot of random

Hey there strangers

Where oh where have I been?  Hiding I suppose.  There is too much to recap on some I’m going to give you a lot of random:

• Stopping breastfeeding is no joke.  It’s difficult physically and emotionally.  I made it through immediate postpartum without getting depressed, but this surely got me there
• I’ve been in a funk as a result
• Having a less-than-special Mother’s Day didn’t help matters
• Things are looking up however
• We leave for NYC/Boston in a couple days –> meaning I see my bestie and her little tater tot in less than week
• Zone Perfect sent me their Perfectly Simple  bars to try.  Pretty nice of them, I’d say.  I tried the Peanut Crunch and it reminds me a lot of the YouBar I created.  Very tasty and something I would definitely buy again (I’m pretty sure I’ve seen them at Target).
• My hair is falling out in the fistfuls.  This depresses me too.  I’ve always had serious hair envy so now I’m even greener with jealousy for those that have luscious locks.
• I bought a pair of colored jeans – pale yellow.  I’m still on the hunt for mint ones, but everywhere I’ve looked is sold out of my size. 
• My personal training is going well.  It’s amazing how much more she pushes me than I would do on my own.  I’m grateful for that.
• I made a really tasty cranberry banana bread last week. I should have taken pics.  It’s pretty damn blog worthy.
• My dad now owns 3 buffalo.  Tell me that isn’t a random piece of info
• Today I attended a lovely baby shower and wore a new hi-lo dress.  Perhaps I’ll show you tomorrow?
• Our new furniture arrived.  Cons: pretty sure I need to buy a new area rug to match now; the cats have already scratched it leaping off with their back paws (grr).  Pros: looks great in the living room, good size, super firm, and Bean looks adorable in the chair

And there you have it. 

Oh and I’ve missed you blog friends.

Tell me something random that I’ve missed about you.

Any (foodie) place I need to stop by near midtown NYC?

Tips for traveling with a 4.5 month old?