Trip to NYC

...well, it was fabulous. There really is no other way to describe it. I can't wait to go back, and I don't often feel that way after battling crowded airports, cramped planes and the inconvenience of getting around The Big Apple. Some highlights:

--Rachel was very good on the plane going out, even though I was going on two hours of sleep and could barely keep her entertained. Same with the trip back last night -- She actually slept in my lap for 45 minutes, watched a movie for a total of 45 minutes, and kept trying to crawl all over me and cuddle and peer into my face and say, "MOMMY!" the rest of the time. A couple of rough spots on the way home, I told Drew, but nothing I couldn't handle. But I told him I never wanted to make this trip alone with Rachel again (of course, I'd be perfectly willing to do it when she's, oh, 6 or so). One cute thing she did as we were about to land last night: She took her blankie, wrapped it around her head so that it looked like a kerchief, and said, "Look, Mommy! I'm Sunrise Sunset!" And it's true, she was -- she looked like the young girl/wife in "Sunrise Sunset," a book that tells the story of the musical. The girl/wife wears a kerchief the whole time. I was astonished that Rachel had made that connection!

--Tia Daniella put on a wonderful Seder and we were so grateful to have been a part of it. Rachel does EVERYTHING her cousin Valerie does; when Valerie's around, Rachel turns into the follower and Valerie is the leader, even though Valerie is 5 months younger. From the back, they look like sisters. They were both so well-behaved during the ceremonial part of the Seder, and then halfway through the food portion, Rachel and Valerie had a ball playing in Valerie's room. Then it was time to return for more food, and then Rachel (at Drew's urging) came into the dining area and charmed everyone by saying, "Can I play, please?" At one point Dad remarked, "look at Rachel's big eyes, just taking it all in!" It's a shame she won't remember any of this; it will be up for us to remember it for her!

--We also got to visit my childhood friend Pam, her husband Larry and kids Alex (9) and Natalia (7); Drew's cousin Dwyn, her husband Arnie and their three kids Nicholas (13); Sofia (11) and Gabe (8), and see my friend David Jones from college. The whole trip felt like one big shuttle from playdate to playdate. We did a LOT of driving, but that was OK because I got to introduce Rachel to so many folks! "She's really mellowed you out," Dave said, and I guess that's true.

--One of the best parts of the trip was our visit to Mom and Dad's house on Sunday afternoon; Mom made a nice lunch and then we all headed to a park (after the girls spent much of the visit running around the second floor and shrieking with laugher; the two rooms are connected by a bathroom and so the key, as Daniella and I told Dad, was that the kids could race in a circle endlessly). Mom and Dad found a fantastic park in Bedford Hills and I got to talk to Dad for a while when Drew took Rachel down the slides and on the teeter-totter. On the way back, Rachel pointed to Drew and said, "YOU look like a vampire!" Then she pointed to Dad and said, "YOU look like a vampire!" and then to me and said, "YOU look like a vampire!"
"OK, then what do YOU look like, Rachel?" I asked.
"A pig!" she replied.