We're Back Online!!!

Woot!  The power came back on at around 11 this morning.   In the meantime, I was out at Mamaroneck Avenue planning our Autumn.   Really, I was at NYSC trying to get a break on a trial membership.  I recall well just how badly their babysitting services were.  Then I went to the library to look up classes for Alex.

See, yesterday, while Orquidea and I took Alex to the West Basin playground, Alex told me that he was lonely.  "I wish I had other kids to play with. Maybe if I went to school?"   I know he's not all that on being separated from me.  He thinks it's all about the classes he's known - all Mommy & Me.  Soooo, I figured out a compromise. 

I've stalled at my weight loss. I need a long term solution.  Alex needs to be with other kids AND away from me.  I signed myself up for NYSC for the month of September. I researched classes for Alex at the library. Then, with the power now on, I went over those classes with Alex.   He'll be taking music class and sports skills class without Mommy around, nature class with Mommy around and coming to my gym two mornings a week. 

I had considered introducing "Mommy Time" to him.  Maybe September is as good a month to start it as any.

But first, some more fun to be had.  Grandma Orquidea leaves on Saturday and Daddy starts his new job on Tuesday.   We have a holiday weekend to get through!!

Makin' a Splash at the Brownout

Twilight Swim was more fun than we expected. Alex LOVED the sprinklers. He LOVED swimming in the pool with Daddy. He most definitely loved the playground outside.

The first place he headed was the sprinkler area.

He wouldn't go down the slide, which was kept wet with a steady cascade of water.
No way was he pushing through that waterfall.



Some of the waterfalls had valves to adjust the flow.



Then Grandma advised him to close his eyes and push through. He got through other waterfalls - just not the one at the top of the slide. Before that advice, he would just put his butt into a waterfall.

Then he joined Daddy in the water. He had a wonderful time, leading Daddy to the deep end and "swimming" through it all.

He didn't love the cool evening air while he was wet. In fact, he stood in the sprinkler shivering - wanting so badly to go back in, but terribly afraid to do so. "Let's leave this place." he said to me. "I want to go out there." "Out there" was his favorite playground. He even made a friend who wound up there because his family was stopped from getting to Playland. (They were from Valley Stream.)

Alex wasn't too happy to see Diego, but he was all too happy to get to Stop and Shop (where Diego took us after dropping Daddy off at his doctor's appointment) and really happy to get to the playground on the other side of the West Basin.

We even saw a wildlife friend there - a bunny who stayed out longer than Mommy expected him to.

Dinner was at McDonald's at Alex's insistence. "They have toys there." he informed us. And so they did - Ben 10 aliens and everything.  That was when Alex took the opportunity to tell Grandma just how much he loved her. 

Still no power back at home, but lots of fun is still being had!

Still no power

But at least we're getting the hang of it. After having called all over Westchester to locate a lantern, we wound up borrowing a flashlight from Rene. And after having Alex freak out over going to sleep without a light on, we got the idea to take him out until past his bedtime.

Today, we're again at the Harrison library, checking in. Lunch will be at Rue des Crepes and Twilight Swim will be at Saxon Woods Pool. Dinner? Not sure.

Maybe some of the carrots we harvested this morning.

Supply and Demand Blues

We travelled to the Harrison Public Library today. I looked up everything I could. This is what I discovered.

- Con Ed estimates that we will be without power until Thursday.
- Metro North has suspended service.
- Amtrak has suspended service.
- NJ transit has suspended service.
- Much of the CT coastline is without power.
- Bee Line bus is operating on a regular schedule.

Sigh. I guess we'll call around to see if we can find a lantern or flashlight.

Goodnight Irene

Alex was afraid to go to bed in the dark. He usually has a light on. So, he slept with Daddy in the living room by candlelight.

Sunday, August 28

Blackout Walk

I was bored and restless with no power at home. I suggested that Alex and I take a walk to town. Some Alexisms heard along the way:

- I can't walk as fast as you! I walk slow. I have little legs.
- We need to find electricity soon, Mom. Maybe we can find it at Dunkin' Donuts.
- Yay! Applebee's has power! We can get ice cream!

We had some dinner at the Mamaroneck diner. Alex was none too pleased. "I don't want real food." he griped.

Come On, Irene

After hearing me explain to Dan that I wanted to go to Food City to get stuff to prepare for Irene, Alex just knew he had to come too.  He had to get his "Clone Trooper" gear on - since it is a disaster and all. When I saw him, I couldn't help but laugh. 

He said, "Wait! I'll be right back!" and he came out with this.  He even asked me to button it up for him. That Clone Troopers usually wear pants didn't really phase him.

Yup, he was prepared all right.

Blast from the Past

I just overheard Dan singing "Little Bunny Foo Foo" to Alex.  It still cracks Alex up. That makes me smile.

Comparison Pic: 2008 vs. 2011

Yesterday at Greenwich Point, I took this pic of Dan and Alex walking into the water from the beach.

It reminded me of the photo I took in Florida during one of Alex's earlier visits there. I had used it on a gift mug I made for Dan that Xmas.

He's Not Tired! He's Not! Really....zzzzzzz

After a long day at Greenwich Point, Orquidea and I were both too tired to cook.  Hurricane Irene was on her way, ruling out going out tomorrow.  We planned on going to Powell's.  (Where Mommy had a delish low calorie - Really! - lobster dinner.)

Alex was so tired, he was acting goofy.  He swore he wasn't tired, though.

Yeahhhh. Dan said he was out before he finished the first bedtime story.

Greenwich Point

Today, Mommy decided to get out while the gettin' was good. Hurricane Irene is on her way and they say she'll be as bad as Gloria in 1985. (Which, I recall, not being all that bad for higher elevation areas, like the Bronx where I lived at the time.)

Alex SWORE he didn't want to go to the beach. "No beach!" he insisted. Apparently, he doesn't care for the sand when it gets in his mouth. I suggested that there are ways of stopping that. He wasn't interested in hearing them. I suggested Island Beach for us all. I even enticed Alex into the ferry ride with his new captain's hat.

Greenwich, however, had other ideas. We got on an 11:15 train and arrived in Greenwich some ten minutes later. I hightailed it to Town Hall to get Orquidea a day pass while Dan, Alex and Orquidea waited in a nearby luncheonette. When I arrived at Town Hall, I spotted the sign that announced that all ferries had been cancelled for the day. (Would have been nice of them to announce such on their P&R webpage, but I digress.) I grabbed a Day Pass anyway. When I got back to the deli, I ordered lunch and asked the staff there about alternatives. It was suggested that I go to Greenwich Point because Byram Beach and Pool gets too crowded.

Now Greenwich is starting to tick me off. Greenwich Point is closest to Old Greenwich stop - some 3 train stops away. Then there was the issue of calling a cab company, the only one of which that will operate in Old Greenwich is Greenwich Taxi - available at the train station at Greenwich. 2.5 hours after we left the house, we arrived at Greenwich Point Park.

It all turned around after that.

The beach was just like a REAL beach. The Sound there even had little waves. The high tide line was really close in and made for little tidal pools left all over the beach.  

 

But the water stayed at a lower level for very far out. It allowed for some great wading and swimming.






Alex dove right into a tidal pool with his boats and toys.

Then I suggested exploring, but he said he wanted to show ME how to explore the things he loves about the beach. He showed me some sand snails he found in the tidal pool.

He pointed out some fish - which he called "tadpoles" - in the pools.  After some argument as to what it was, he concluded that the fish must be "dancing or something".

He showed me the long trail of tidal pool water stemming all the way down the beach. He showed me the wet sand and the rocks collected in the pools.

I talked him into a walk for some ice cream. We took the long road down the tidal pool trail.  He was all excited to make big splashes along the way.

Alex ordered a sandwich and I had a King Cone. We finished it by the time we got back. Then we had a big excitement back at the blanket space. We saw a real live sand crab!!! It was just a juvenile, so its evading skills weren't so hot. It allowed us some great shots.

Then, after Mommy took an exploring walk by herself, Alex made some new friends - or so he thought anyway.

Then came the REAL fun - time in the water with Daddy. Alex was a fish!!! He wouldn't come out at all!!  He even "swam" for us - as Superman, apparently.

Inevitably, he cried when I said we had to leave, but he eventually took it like a trooper. He especially loved getting out of his wet and sandy clothing.   We even spotted a butterfly on the way out!

My dirty little secret was that we didn't turn in our Day Passes at the gate when the cabbie dropped us off. I was so pissed off at Greenwich and Greenwich Taxi's apparent cartel, I decided that we would get our day on Island Beach after all.


But I'll gladly pay the next time - provided I rent a car to get there.

Cause to Celebrate

Today, Mommy had a doctor's appointment. This was the point at which we review the CT scan to see if the hydrocephalus has gone and if any remnant of the cyst could be seen. Yes and no. It was a home run. Dr. deLotbiniere told Mommy she could go off the Keppra as of next week after cutting her dose down to one pill per week.

This could mean only one thing - Dunkin Donuts and ice cream!!! We were right outside of White Plains, so we went there for the Dunkin Donuts (Mommy and Grandma didn't indulge). We stopped at the City Center Barnes and Noble for a while - a while that Alex didn't want to end. Then, it was off to Saxon Woods Pool for the ice cream!! (Free with a round of mini golf).

Well, he wasn't too into the mini golf, so we paid for the ice cream. He had a giant sandwich and I had a toasted almond bar. Then it was an hour or more of play at the playground.

It was a long day, but - hey - there was much to celebrate, ya know.

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Meanwhile, Back in Make Believe World

Alex didn't want to go play mini golf today. He was busy playing with his doctor kit.

"Doctors have a lot of work to do. They don't have time to play golf." he told us.

Sunday, August 21

Aye, Aye Cap'n!

This rainy, crummy day was brightened up by sailing. Remote control sailing that is!

With nowhere to go and a Sunday schedule on the buses (read: not at all), Mommy decided to go to Manhattan. With not much argument from either Alex or Grandma Orquidea, we were off in a flash – or two. (We caught a 2:26 train.) After a slow train and an even slower bus from 125th, we were finally at Central Park.

It’s a good thing it was rainy today. It started to rain while we were at the first playground we stopped in. Mommy decided to head the group to shelter in a restaurant. Le Pain Quotidien filled up too quickly. Mommy remembered that the Boathouse was huge and steered the group there. When we got there, we were greeted by striking workers who asked us to boycott the place. They sent us east towards another more labor friendly place.

I’m not sure I found the place, but I did find boats! Lots and lots of remote control boats for rent! At 11/half hour, I was all in. As soon as Alex understood that it was the all-white sailboats or nothin’ (instead of the personal blue battleship he spotted), he was all in too.

Then there was some part of the half hour spent on explaining how the remote control we were given controlled only ONE boat. After he got that down, he was golden.

What a blast he had! “I’m driving this boat!” he exclaimed anytime I tried to help him out of a jam. After a while, I realized that he’d have more fun in jams than out of them. So, I let him just go to town.

 

 

When the half hour was up, Alex wasn’t having any of it. “I’m not ready!” he told the guy who came to get the remote back. “I’m still on the boat!” I told him that there were some goodies I spied back at the rental counter. That’s where I overheard the price of the Captain’s hat – 20 dollars for a boat and a hat. I showed the lady my receipt and she gladly charged me 9 dollars more for the captain’s hat. Alex was thrilled now.

“I’m the Captain and you’re the General”, he told me. “Now, come on! Let’s go!” I wasn’t sure why the Army would be listening to a Naval officer, but he was in a fun little world, so why rock the boat?

Sunday, August 21

Aunt Ellen Comes for...Playland!!!

Aunt Ellen visited for lunch this afternoon - or so she thought.  Little did she know that today would be Alex's day with his godmother at his favoritest place in the whole wide world: Playland!

Lunch was had at Poppy's cafe, where Alex had the chocolate chip pancakes.  Then, a necessary stop at the Country Store was in order.  Then, it was off to Playland!!!  Alex was soooo excited that Aunt Ellen was going to see it and even ride the rides with him.   That was, after we talked him into going on the rides at all.  He really wanted to show Aunt Ellen the arcade and the souvenir stand.

The "Macks", as Alex likes to call the Convoy ride, were first.  Alex and Ellen even got the first car!!

There were some bird nests behind the Convoy ride in the rafters of the train station for the Playland Express.   I tried to get some photos of them.

After the Convoy, it was off to the Antique Cars where Alex did some flirting.

It was so hot, we all decided to head for a cool drink.   Nathan's did the trick with some shaded picnic tables nearby.   Alex was soon chasing seabirds and pigeons, calling out "Come here!  I want to give you a hug!!"  They weren't interested.

We took one last ride on the Carousel, where Alex insisted that Aunt Ellen join us.   She took Alex's favorite seat of last year - the benches.  Alex, for his part, wanted to sit on a horse he hadn't sat on before.   He choose a second row horse.

Aunt Ellen told Mommy that she had to go soon.  After all, she had just planned on lunch!  That wasn't good enough for Alex, though.  He wanted her to see a show, but, sadly, it wasn't until after 6.  Alex settled for a stop at the treat stand instead.   Popcorn - his favorite.

Aunt Ellen dropped us off, hoping to see us two weeks from now.  She said something about a real lunch at the "crepe place".   Alex, for his part, slept really really well that evening.   He doesn't sleep like that when we go to the Rue des Crepes.   Just sayin.'

Can't Touch This

As promised earlier today, I took Alex and Grandma to the Mamaroneck Shares block party on Mamaroneck Avenue.  Grandma asked Alex if he expected to dance there.  He said "No!" quite vehemently adding "I don't like dancing!"

After a dinner at Cafe Mozart and some walking around (and a promise to return to Dunkin' Donuts that evening), we came across a dance party for kids.  That was when Mr. "I Don't Like Dancing" busted some slick moves.

Even breakdancing with chalk (drawing circles) to Taio Cruz and Ludicris.

When the bouncy castle closed because of lightning, I thought it all deserved a trip back to Dunkin' Donuts.