Spring Fling

The weeks before Spring Break have floated by in a bit of a blur. The warmer temps have mostly stayed with a few exceptions. The dance costumes for both girls arrived to much excitement. It feels like summer is finally just around the corner. Could it be true? I suppose that's the point of having Spring Break at all. Just when you feel like things are so dull and dreary and the school year will go on forever, you get a glimpse of life after it's all over. So we're ready for that change. But seeing signs of spring and it's impending warm up have been a blessing. I made it out in the city with Katie one morning and we finally hit Underwest Donuts at the car wash on the west side. Perfectly timed with her need to get Euros out in K-Town at some sketchy exchange place, so we even gobbled some dumplings before rushing back home. I got my hair done and managed to keep the kids running around at the park in all the abundant sunshine. Not a bad month so far...

Finally made it to Elmhurst's Vietnamese/Korean mashup Joju and boy, was it worth the wait!

The daytime dates also continued this month with Nacho taking me on the East River Ferry to get lunch in DUMBO. I picked Shake Shack so we could sample the newish Chick'n'Shack which was every bit as good as I'd hoped. I even liked the pickle!  It was a nice day to reconnect since it felt like he was working overtime with the lead up to his week off for Spring Break. He's had lots of international (mostly UK) trips lately and I think he's really feeling his groove. Amazing to think that this was all just a dream a year ago. Now he's looking forward to a May full of awesome overnights (Paris, Milan and Amsterdam) and I'm doing my best to be excited and not too jealous. I know how much he deserves this. And he's never been to some of those cities! Crazy that I already have. Time for the European to catch up. ;)  And speaking of travel and all things international, Elisa has her last Spanish class before break and they must have discussed the Dia del Libro which was the following Saturday. Her teacher had on his full Spanish costume a la Cervantes and I couldn't resist snapping a quick photo. I also made it a fun pre-break weekend for myself joining the ladies for BINGO night at St. Sebastian's. Kerry got us a table and we quickly filled it up with all our playgroup madness. Wine and dinner included for $25 and I put another good sum into the raffles and 50/50. Definitely a great evening fundraising and helping support our community. I only wish I had skipped those extra pints at Donovan's afterwards in return for more sleep before my communion shoot and packing. But all in all, it was a great lead up to our Spring Break and I was definitely ready to get away. 

March moves on

March is a funny month for a lot of reasons. It feels like we're out of winter, but in fact the weather doesn't always cooperate. We've spent more time outside after school with the days getting longer and somewhat warmer. But just like that, it turns cool again and we're back inside. Nacho has flown to CA and Hawaii a few more times and brought the girls back a little surprise from his most recent trip. Elisa was so sure it was a snow globe, but no. A beautiful flower hair clip instead and what a perfect way to usher in spring...

The St. Pat's for All Parade snuck up on us again like it does every year. Somehow the first Sunday in March doesn't exactly make sense to me, but it's such a good time I forgive them. The whole neighborhood came out despite the chilly start to the day and I rounded up the family to march with the Bernie Sanders supporters. We heard lots of whoops and claps along the parade route as we marched passed. Elisa told me she never wanted it to end....haha. Oh that child. She had to have a meltdown before we left the house, but later, she couldn't have been in a better mood. I popped by Dawn and Jamie's post-parade party long enough to enjoy some colcannon and brownie trifle (a winning combo if I do say so myself). I couldn't stay long since we were double booked and I'd already sent Nacho packing with the girls to Jose and Irene's.  Celebrating Valentina's belated birthday with friends and family at home was the perfect end to a busy Sunday. 

On Monday, I pulled a power play and recruited Nacho for a trip to IKEA. It was a real get in-get out kind of trip, and I wanted his help wrangling Elisa's desk and Carolina's new mattress. Both items we needed to buy and I'm glad we took the time to get this off my to-do list. Hitting Hope & Anchor afterwards for lunch was just a little perk and thank you to my husband who would rather be anywhere but IKEA. The weather started to warm up nicely later in the week, which translated to a frozen margarita lunch at Cemitas El Tigre with Katie and more fun (and ice cream!) in the park with the girls. The only bummer was that Elisa's meltdowns continued to multiple. Maybe March was going to be more volatile in emotions than changes in the weather. Whatever it was in the air, it was a loooooong week and I was ready to see it end. Carolina and friends had their post-ballet treats, and Elisa went off to Spanish without a hitch. On Saturday, we split up for me to work while the girls went to see "Zootopia" with Nacho. Meeting up at SGP afterwards was the perfect way to release some energy. We had a picnic lunch and the girls ran their hearts out before heading to Carmen's for an early evening playdate. 

On Sunday, the clocks moved forward to give us even more daylight. And with the lazy start, I was feeling like a change of pace so we took off to the city for a walk through Battery Park City. As we left the subway, we hit Century 21 for new sneakers for both girls (another to-do list item checked!!) and then strolled towards the Winter Garden where we needed to make a pitstop. We repeated lunch at Hudson Eats in Brookfield Place which didn't seem as good as the day we went for Nacho's birthday. But it was a good refueling spot nonetheless. The girls played in the park along the waterfront for a while afterwards and we made a quick dash to Teardrop Park before heading back home around 6:30 p.m. Yes, it's been a busy month so far and with the Easter Egg Hunt, a weekend in NC and Jordan and Dad's birthdays, I think we've got a jam packed end to usher it out. 

Jam Packed

For much of the winter our social lives take a hit, or at least the spontaneous meet ups aren't as plentiful.  So it's nice that spring has finally arrived and with it some fun invitations to get out and enjoy our friends as the weather warms up.  While I wouldn't normally call a school fundraiser a social event, it does happen to include a few of our local playgroup families.  So Chuck E Cheese on a Thursday night for pizza and games wasn't too crazy. I mostly sat back and enjoyed the chaos from the safety of our booth.  The girls ran ragged and by bedtime (Nacho was working overnight in Buffalo), I was feeling pretty wiped out myself. It didn't help that Elisa woke up a few hours later puking all over her bed. Pizza plus red Jello before bedtime didn't make for easy clean up, but I digress....it was a long night and Friday meant a day off of school to recuperate. She felt good enough to accompany us to Carolina's classroom potluck at AMB that evening. Another night, another school event. See what I mean? Things are starting to pick up.

Saturday was another chance to hang out with some preschool families at a birthday party for one of Carolina's "best friends." I put that in quotes because every other day, the best friend has changed and Carolina is telling me that so-and-so is her new best friend. It's amazing to see how these early friendships are forming and how a kid as outgoing and happy as Carolina can navigate it all so clearly. She definitely knows who she likes, and that's just about everybody! So it was her BFF Alegria's fourth birthday that afternoon and the kids enjoyed running around the park as much as singing and eating cake. It's pretty simple at that age. The face painting was also a hit, with most opting for a kitty cat theme. Seeing them act it out with their crazy clawing later was pretty entertaining. Oh, to be that age again. 

By Saturday night, however, Elisa was back to feeling not so good. She hasn't run a high fever with any of this so it's been kind of hard to gauge what exactly we're dealing with. Sore throat and two episodes of puking.  Otherwise, just very tired and probably her allergies flaring up as well.  So we're taking it day by day and hoping that a Sunday full of rest will push her back to the brink of wellness. They both enjoyed a leisurely morning of bacon and disco ball dancing. Then Nacho and I headed over to Anable Basin Sailing, a cool place in LIC, for an adult-only birthday party that Tania threw together at the last minute for her husband Chris. The day was sunny and breezy and the grilled lunch offerings with cold beer really hit the spot. This was shaping up to be the perfect end to a busy weekend of hanging out. 

I definitely see us going back there in the summertime with kids in tow. It's not probably as easy to snag a table, but with great views of the city skyline and East River, I'd say it's worth the effort. Plus, you're just a stone's throw from Gantry and the fields at Hunters Point South. Nacho and I both ordered the cevapi and it was pretty tasty, I have to admit. I've been craving that dish for some reason lately and have been bugging my friend Marija about where to go to get some good Balkan food. So this hit the spot. Spending time relaxing with friends talking and not having kids interrupt us every five seconds was even better. Hope we'll be doing this kind of thing again soon. Summer is almost here...and our social lives are ready to bloom too.