The girls were up bright and early Sunday morning to play with their American Girl dolls. Me, I was up at 2:30 in the morning... bolted awake from a dead sleep realizing that I'd forgotten to take my medication. Actually, it was the cold medicine that I really wanted the most. I had a wicked cold over the past few days and I finally felt semi-human yesterday, but it's always worse at night. Once that issue was resolved, though, it was all good.
We were ready to go, but we could tell that the weather was probably not going to cooperate with our plans. Tell me... How can it be 72 degrees and sunny one day and 50 & rainy the next? Oh, yeah... This is New York. By the time we all got ready and ate, and made out way to the bus stop (with a bonus ride on the New Jersey Turnpike, no less), we were turned away by at least three full buses before we could embark for the Port Authority. The kids didn't mind, though... They were having a great time playing!
When we finally made it over to the city, the real fun began: navigating our group of eleven through the New York City subway system to Battery Park so we could go see the Statue of Liberty! This was a surprise for the girls as well, and none of us had done it before! I'll say - the kids did great on the trains! When we got back to ground level, we stopped at a stand and got hot dogs to eat - Miss Sassypants refused. I'm not sure whether it was because she was still traumatized by the Polish sausage incident in Washington, DC, or if she thought we were having a "real lunch" later, but no one could talk her into it. Oh, well! Mine was pretty good!
We got our tickets and entered the Security line, which was interesting. Truth be told, I haven't flown since 9/11, but this was airport-style security! Everything went through x-ray machines and we went through metal detectors. Both the lady in front of me *and* my friend Beth had to take their shoes off! At least they got cute little paper slippers to wear! lol
The ferry first took us to Liberty Island, home of the Statue herself. It was awe- inspiring and something everyone should do at least once if they can! Sassy photo-bombed everyone's pictures, and that lightened her mood. That, and the half a bag of Goldfish crackers she ate on the ferry. We made our obligatory gift shop stop and snapped a few photos of the Manhattan skyline before getting back on a ferry for Ellis Island.
The door handles for the gift shop
It's amazing how they've restored much of the main building of the island into what it looked like 100 years ago. It's not hard to imagine what immigrants saw and experienced when they came through the doors and began their lives in America for the first time! It was very moving for me.
From there, we walked the few blocks to the World Trade Center site. Our objective had been to go to the 9/11 Memorial, and although it's free to go, you do need tickets. When we had checked weeks ago, there were no tickets available for this weekend, but we all still felt it was important to pay our respects. I'm so glad we did!
Right down the block, we found a pizza shop to eat dinner, and it was so good!
We hopped back on the subway and rode back into Times Square. We took all of the kids to Toys "R" Us and we rode the Ferris Wheel! Sassy and I ride in the Monopoly gondola with a really fun mother and son whom we didn't know. Afterwards we found the Lego department where you'd have thought Sassy had died and gone to Heaven! They had some pretty boss displays there!!
By this time it was dark and the rain was pretty bad, but we pressed on. We promised the kids ice cream, so we found a Cold Stone Creamery on 42nd Street.
Then two touristy souvenir shops later, we were back at Port Authority buying our bus tickets back to New Jersey. Back in our rooms, we cleaned up, got snacks and did some badass mamma-jamma things like punch out circles from basketball-textured paper for Beth's pre-K class before settling in for bed.
Tomorrow we head back upstate. Back to reality; back to our lives. I really don't think any of our girls will soon forget this weekend, though. I hope they all realize just how incredibly blessed they are to have opportunities like these in their lives! I know I sure do...
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