Smooth day

Prior to leaving yesterday I wrote an itinerary with detailed directions. With small kids it is easier to not wander aimlessly or appear unsure. Everything went pretty smoothly. We never even had to wait too long for trains. Our first stop was the legendary Doughnut Plant. It was a smaller building than I expected with a smaller selection also. Since this was the first and probably last time we'll have those doughnuts I bought a hazelnut, lemon, and coconut with coconut cream. The lemon and hazelnut were okay but not worth the high price tag. The coconut cream was really good.

 

Our next stop was supposed to be Shake Shack for hamburgers and some play time at the playground. I thought I knew the park Shake Shack was in but apparently I didn't. We were at the wrong park. The playground at this one was much better and the kids had fun playing. It was lunchtime and I thought we would walk towards Pommes Frites instead of the chocolate store I had on the list but Bohdin wanted to see the chocolate. Luckily on the way to the chocolate store we passed a halal cart that had won a vendy award. We got the lamb and chicken combo plate. Bohdin now says he LOVES lamb. It was the tastier meat on the plate. We also stopped and bought some chocolate bread for Buddy. Bohdin had some the previous day and we thought we would get some for Buddy.
 

Our next stop was Jacques Torres Chocolate Haven. They have large windows where you can watch chocolate being made. It wasn't as cool as I though it would be. Mostly we saw a lot of chocolate going into very elaborate molds. They were producing Easter stuff so they had lambs, chickens, eggs, and rabbits. Inside the store they also had tvs set up that did show how chocolate is made. As we watched it Jacques Torres came over and gave Bohdin and Nyla a chocolate egg. The chocolate was quite good. Definitly a top notch chocolate. There is a kid area with a small table and crayons. I put Bohdin and Nyla over there while I paid for a chocolate bar. Nyla had wanted to color earlier. After I paid Bohdin comes up with a half eaten chocolate egg in his hand. The kids had finished the free egg quite some time ago. While I had been paying Nyla grabbed another egg and opened it. Bohdin probably took it from her and ate it. The lady who had been at the counter earlier had gone to the back of the store. I looked around and waited to be helped. I found a tray of sample brownies that were incredible. While I was waiting, Nyla grabbed another chocolate egg and unwrapped it. That was it. I picked her up took her over to the counter and paid for the chocolate. Nyla was walking toward the subway station and dropped a piece of her egg on the sidewalk. She picked it up and continued to eat it. Some people saw and gave some weird looks. I don't blame them. NYC sidewalks are gritty. I paid one dollar for a small chocolate egg. She was going to enjoy that egg even if it had some questionable dirt on it now.

Bohdin found some discarded subway tickets and gave two to Nyla and kept one for himself. Nyla was playing with her card and putting it in her mouth. This was even worse than the chocolate that had fallen on the sidewalk. She didn't listen to me when I told her to stop. When we boarded the train several men saw her putting the ticket in her mouth and told her not to. One shook his head when she did it. She stopped and hasn't put it in her mouth again.

Bohdin and Nyla both love the pigeons of NYC. We spent a while watching these pigeons eat some scrap of food.
 

 

Nyla insists on having her own seat on a subway or bus. At one point we were on a subway. Two seats were available so I stood while the kids sat. Nyla scooted close to Bohdin to creat a space and then patted the space. It was such a sweet gesture. I told her thank you but I would just stand.