I finally made it to the farmer's market which is a short walk from the house. I was disappointed in the size and selection. There were 6 booths with only 3 having produce. The amount and type was quite limited. They were selling varieties I could buy in the grocery store. It sure made me miss our garden. I did buy some corn which was fine. We haven't eaten the squash yet but if it's not tasty I may not go back. In California, the produce is amazing. In Colorado it was pretty good since the major grocery stores carried local produce when possible. That's not possible here so we have to eat produce that has been shipped across the country.
I don't think I've done a good job of capturing Nyla but that has been difficult for me. I don't want to write something that's not very nice and with Nyla's temperament there is a lot I could write. She was crying like her world ended yesterday when I wouldn't let her put the sharp seam ripper in her mouth. We have those kind of struggles often and the frequency will be increasing as she gets older. There is one great thing that I've never mentioned. Nyla loves taking showers. When she hears the water running she comes racing into the bathroom and pleads to get in. That was difficult when Buddy was gone because I prefer to take a shower without her. It's easier to wash my hair and stuff with 2 hands. The times I do take her in, I can see why Buddy loves taking her in the shower. Nyla is a great hugger and she hugs in the shower. Buddy does a great job of getting her clean but he really does it for the hugs. There have been several instances when she has fallen asleep in the shower. She's awake now so that is all for today.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
She Doesn't Understand
Bohdin does a great job sharing all of his things with Nyla. That's a great thing because Nyla wants everything that Bohdin touches including his Sigg bottle. Nyla started taking some sips of water from Bohdin's bottle so I thought I could give her his old sippy cup. She doesn't want it. She wants Bohdin's bottle. Yesterday in the car Bohdin passed his bottle to Nyla. She took a swig then dropped it between the seats. Bohdin picked it back up again, took a drink and handed it back to Nyla. She dropped it by her feet. Bohdin wanted it back and was pleading with her. "Please. Please. Can you give me cup back?" I tried to explain that she doesn't understand yet what he's saying.
One of Bohdin's favorite games right now is "Who can step on whose shadow?" He wants to play whenever we go outside. Mostly it gives him an excuse to run away. It's a great game to play when we want him to go faster though.
Buddy told me I forgot to include something from our Philly trip report. Bohdin's other favorite things was the revolving doors of the hotel. We're still asked to tell stories about going on the purple bus to get ice cream. Yesterday he played parking garage with his bike, using the dishwasher as a gate. I handed him the ticket. He got off his bike, went to the museum (his play bedroom) and then came back to give me the ticket. We also played subway.
One of Bohdin's favorite games right now is "Who can step on whose shadow?" He wants to play whenever we go outside. Mostly it gives him an excuse to run away. It's a great game to play when we want him to go faster though.
Buddy told me I forgot to include something from our Philly trip report. Bohdin's other favorite things was the revolving doors of the hotel. We're still asked to tell stories about going on the purple bus to get ice cream. Yesterday he played parking garage with his bike, using the dishwasher as a gate. I handed him the ticket. He got off his bike, went to the museum (his play bedroom) and then came back to give me the ticket. We also played subway.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
ABC Order
Paul gave Bohdin some workbooks a while ago. He finished one of them pretty quickly but was stuck on the others for various reasons. Yesterday he pulled out the ABC order workbook and finished half of it. He was ready to try writing the letters himself. I think he did a pretty good job for his first try. Half of the workbook is upper case letters and the second half is lower case letters. He must be exposed to more upper case letters in his daily life because he didn't want to write the small letters. Twenty six at a time is probably enough anyway.
On the way to the pool last night Buddy and Nyla were on one side of the street and Bohdin and I were on the other. We were sort of racing. Bohdin and I were further behind since we had already crossed the street. A car passed us and Bohdin pointed out that the car "zoomed past Daddy and Nyla". He said this in a manner that implied that Daddy was really slow to get passed by a car. It never occurred to him that we were passed by that same zooming car.
On the way to the pool last night Buddy and Nyla were on one side of the street and Bohdin and I were on the other. We were sort of racing. Bohdin and I were further behind since we had already crossed the street. A car passed us and Bohdin pointed out that the car "zoomed past Daddy and Nyla". He said this in a manner that implied that Daddy was really slow to get passed by a car. It never occurred to him that we were passed by that same zooming car.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Summer of Traffic
We had a late start to the day. After checking out we had breakfast and headed to the Constitution Center which is near Independence Hall. Buddy got in free since he is a defender of the Constitution. Apparently I am not and had to pay full admission. They do a performance type thing in the beginning which was interesting. I spent a lot of energy keeping Nyla from being too noisy so I couldn't give it my full attention. Nevertheless, I thought it was good. After the performance, we were herded into the upstairs museum portion. The museum was set up in a circle with a linear progression over time about how the constititution has been challenged and ammended. There were many interactive displays. The earlier topics covered the debate over the constitution itself (the split into the House and Senate was passed by 1 vote with nobody happy with it) to a federal bank and slavery. Towards the present the topics were mostly Supreme Court rulings. I thought it was a fascinating museum and wish I could have had more Bohdin free time to explore it.
I forgot to mention that part of our breakfast was more gelato. Today we had 2 cups with 3 flavors each. Buddy had the chocolate hazelnut, cinnamon, and lime with lime being his favorite. I had the cinnamon, blueberry, and peach. I didn't like the peach as much so Bohdin ate most of that. He wanted the orange flavor but we have some orange gelato in our freezer at home so I wanted something different.
For lunch we had a Philly speciality which is the pulled pork sandwich with sharp provolone and greens. The greens are broccoli rabe. We also had a chicken cutlet sandwich. In all we tried many of best of the city's offerings. We didn't try a cheesesteak because the best in the city as closed on the weekend. That sandich has over 1000 calories so I don't want to waste that many calories on crap. We need to save something for our next visit anyway. I need to drive back and get more of that gelato. Just FYI, Iron Chef Morimoto has a restaurant in Philly. Since we're not raw fish lovers I don't think we'll ever make it there but it does show that Philly is a good food city.
We tried to avoid two of the toll booths on the way back by taking a longcut. It was successful but perhaps a bit slower. We'll never know for sure. We saw huge backups northbound on the interstate going through the toll booths. We had heavy traffic but it didn't slow us down too much. What should have been a 2 hour trip took over 3 hours due to multiple child stops and traffic. Our summer of fun plan may need to be reworkded since the millions of people who live around here take weekend trips.
On the drive up to Philly Bohdin decided to play store and sell ice cream. I purposely chose to drive so the playing duties would fall to Buddy. On the trip down Buddy and I alternated telling him stories. He was relentless in his asking. Nothing would distract him from asking for another story. In the hotel he liked to play bus and office. We had 2 phones and Bohdin would "call" different things on the other line. Buddy spent a lot of time playing with him this weekend.
On the way back down we discussed our favorite parts. Buddy liked looking at the buildings. There was a lot of neat architecture in the area including many murals painted on the sides. I liked the Constitution Center. We all loved the gelato. Bohdin said his favorite part was the museum but I'm positive it was not. Anytime we went near one he said he didn't want to go in. When we were inside he asked if it was time to go. I think his favorite part was riding the purple bus. He wanted to go on the subway but it wasn't really going where we were.
It was a good trip but a little tiring. There was a lot of walking and even more cajoling. I think we need to do something even more laid back next trip. Perhaps camping.
Eating a pork sandwich in Reading Terminal
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Scooping up the gelato from his shirt
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Playing store in the car
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Playing bus in the hotel room
I forgot to mention that part of our breakfast was more gelato. Today we had 2 cups with 3 flavors each. Buddy had the chocolate hazelnut, cinnamon, and lime with lime being his favorite. I had the cinnamon, blueberry, and peach. I didn't like the peach as much so Bohdin ate most of that. He wanted the orange flavor but we have some orange gelato in our freezer at home so I wanted something different.
For lunch we had a Philly speciality which is the pulled pork sandwich with sharp provolone and greens. The greens are broccoli rabe. We also had a chicken cutlet sandwich. In all we tried many of best of the city's offerings. We didn't try a cheesesteak because the best in the city as closed on the weekend. That sandich has over 1000 calories so I don't want to waste that many calories on crap. We need to save something for our next visit anyway. I need to drive back and get more of that gelato. Just FYI, Iron Chef Morimoto has a restaurant in Philly. Since we're not raw fish lovers I don't think we'll ever make it there but it does show that Philly is a good food city.
We tried to avoid two of the toll booths on the way back by taking a longcut. It was successful but perhaps a bit slower. We'll never know for sure. We saw huge backups northbound on the interstate going through the toll booths. We had heavy traffic but it didn't slow us down too much. What should have been a 2 hour trip took over 3 hours due to multiple child stops and traffic. Our summer of fun plan may need to be reworkded since the millions of people who live around here take weekend trips.
On the drive up to Philly Bohdin decided to play store and sell ice cream. I purposely chose to drive so the playing duties would fall to Buddy. On the trip down Buddy and I alternated telling him stories. He was relentless in his asking. Nothing would distract him from asking for another story. In the hotel he liked to play bus and office. We had 2 phones and Bohdin would "call" different things on the other line. Buddy spent a lot of time playing with him this weekend.
On the way back down we discussed our favorite parts. Buddy liked looking at the buildings. There was a lot of neat architecture in the area including many murals painted on the sides. I liked the Constitution Center. We all loved the gelato. Bohdin said his favorite part was the museum but I'm positive it was not. Anytime we went near one he said he didn't want to go in. When we were inside he asked if it was time to go. I think his favorite part was riding the purple bus. He wanted to go on the subway but it wasn't really going where we were.
It was a good trip but a little tiring. There was a lot of walking and even more cajoling. I think we need to do something even more laid back next trip. Perhaps camping.
Eating a pork sandwich in Reading Terminal
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Scooping up the gelato from his shirt
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Playing store in the car
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Playing bus in the hotel room
Try #2
I wrote a post this morning but it didn't make it so here is try #2. Since Paul asked for hotel details I will give them. When I was researching hotels the 4 star rates were pretty similar to the 3 star rates so I decided to try for a 4star on Priceline. When my $85 bid was rejected I decided to just go with a 3 star. We ended up with the Marriot at $70. It's possible I could have gotten it for slightly less but my bidding strategy wasn't very good. The hotel was near Reading Terminal and City Hall. We were less than a mile from Independence Hall.
On Saturday morning we went to Reading Terminal for breakfast. Reading Terminal is a collection of food places and markets under one roof. It's sort of a food court combined with a farmer's market. The Pennsylvania Dutch have a large area there selling things from baked goods to pickles. We had blueberry pancakes from what is supposed to be the best in the city. I'm not a restaurant breakfast fan and I thought these were fine. We also split a cinnamon roll which was tasty and interesting and picked up some fruit. We spent so much time wandering around it was time for Nyla's nap.
After Nyla's nap we caught the bus to the Rodin museum. A bronze replica of the Thinker and Gates of Hell were outside. We decided against going inside because Bohdin wasn't being very cooperative. Instead we caught the bus and headed to the Art Museum. This is the location where Rocky ran up the steps. The museum is located on a hill above a park that flanks a river. It's a pretty area and we explored a little. We were hoping to rent a bike and trailer from the shops near there but they didn't have trailers. We found a playground and ate a hoagie and a pretzel we picked up from the Reading Terminal.
Buddy and I were getting hot and tired so we made the trek back up to the bus stop at the Art Museum. We had to wait forever for the bus along with a million other people. The bus was extremely cramped and hot. Nyla was tired. It was a very long trip back to the hotel and we ended up getting off at an ealier stop and walking because we couldn't take it anymore.
After Bohdin and Nyla's nap we headed out for dinner. We wandered around the Rittenhouse House square area which is the upscale theater and shopping district. We stopped for pizza at what is supposed to be the best pizza in the city. It was okay. We then walked to the best gelato place in the city and it was excellent. It's the best gelato I've had in America. Bohdin picked Kiwi, I picked Chocolate Hazelnut, and Buddy picked Coconut. They were all delicious but mine was the best. Buddy agreed with me but Bohdin did not. We headed back to the hotel before trying to catch the fireworks later. On our way we walked through the city hall building which was more amazing than we would have thought. We had a view of it from our hotel room and didn't really think too much about it. The building has a very large courtyard in the center with views in each cardinal direction. A plaque said it is the largest civic building in the US. It may also be the prettiest.
It was so nice to put up our feel at the hotel. Bohdin still had boundless energy despite walking just as far as we had that day. We were too lazy to walk the mile plus to the waterfront where the fireworks were being held. At 9:15 I went outside with Bohdin to see if we could see them from the street by our hotel. They hadn't started yet. I went back in to ask the concierge about the fireworks and he suggested going to the top of the Loews hotel next door since it is the largest building. I forgot to tell Buddy where Bohdin and I were going so he ended up walking toward the river to try to see the show. In the meantime Bohdin and I were luckily able to sneak into an area that requires a key to watch the fireworks. There were a handful of other families there. While we had a good view the show was a bit of a letdown. Fireworks aren't the same from indoors. It would have been better to see a smaller show with a more accessible and closer view. Live and learn.
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In Fairmount park near the Art Museum
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At the Rodin Museum
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Hot and thirsty waiting for the bus
City Hall in the background
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On Saturday morning we went to Reading Terminal for breakfast. Reading Terminal is a collection of food places and markets under one roof. It's sort of a food court combined with a farmer's market. The Pennsylvania Dutch have a large area there selling things from baked goods to pickles. We had blueberry pancakes from what is supposed to be the best in the city. I'm not a restaurant breakfast fan and I thought these were fine. We also split a cinnamon roll which was tasty and interesting and picked up some fruit. We spent so much time wandering around it was time for Nyla's nap.
After Nyla's nap we caught the bus to the Rodin museum. A bronze replica of the Thinker and Gates of Hell were outside. We decided against going inside because Bohdin wasn't being very cooperative. Instead we caught the bus and headed to the Art Museum. This is the location where Rocky ran up the steps. The museum is located on a hill above a park that flanks a river. It's a pretty area and we explored a little. We were hoping to rent a bike and trailer from the shops near there but they didn't have trailers. We found a playground and ate a hoagie and a pretzel we picked up from the Reading Terminal.
Buddy and I were getting hot and tired so we made the trek back up to the bus stop at the Art Museum. We had to wait forever for the bus along with a million other people. The bus was extremely cramped and hot. Nyla was tired. It was a very long trip back to the hotel and we ended up getting off at an ealier stop and walking because we couldn't take it anymore.
After Bohdin and Nyla's nap we headed out for dinner. We wandered around the Rittenhouse House square area which is the upscale theater and shopping district. We stopped for pizza at what is supposed to be the best pizza in the city. It was okay. We then walked to the best gelato place in the city and it was excellent. It's the best gelato I've had in America. Bohdin picked Kiwi, I picked Chocolate Hazelnut, and Buddy picked Coconut. They were all delicious but mine was the best. Buddy agreed with me but Bohdin did not. We headed back to the hotel before trying to catch the fireworks later. On our way we walked through the city hall building which was more amazing than we would have thought. We had a view of it from our hotel room and didn't really think too much about it. The building has a very large courtyard in the center with views in each cardinal direction. A plaque said it is the largest civic building in the US. It may also be the prettiest.
It was so nice to put up our feel at the hotel. Bohdin still had boundless energy despite walking just as far as we had that day. We were too lazy to walk the mile plus to the waterfront where the fireworks were being held. At 9:15 I went outside with Bohdin to see if we could see them from the street by our hotel. They hadn't started yet. I went back in to ask the concierge about the fireworks and he suggested going to the top of the Loews hotel next door since it is the largest building. I forgot to tell Buddy where Bohdin and I were going so he ended up walking toward the river to try to see the show. In the meantime Bohdin and I were luckily able to sneak into an area that requires a key to watch the fireworks. There were a handful of other families there. While we had a good view the show was a bit of a letdown. Fireworks aren't the same from indoors. It would have been better to see a smaller show with a more accessible and closer view. Live and learn.
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In Fairmount park near the Art Museum
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At the Rodin Museum
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Hot and thirsty waiting for the bus
City Hall in the background
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Saturday, July 5, 2008
Fourth of July
We drove up to Philly Thursday evening. Despite leaving just after 8pm we encountered traffic delays. We also encountered children delays which led to 4 brief stops. Bohdin told us he needed to pee while we were in line waiting to pay the toll. There really isn't a much worse time to have to pee since we can't pull over. We debated just taking him out of his seat and having him pee in the potty in the car. Since there were only about 5 cars in front of us we decided to wait until getting through the toll when we could stop the car. Bohdin didn't make it. It was an easy and quick cleanup.
Nyla woke up as soon as I parked the car and had a hard time going back to sleep. Bohdin basically slept through the transfer from car to bed. We tried to get an early start on the day. Independence Hall requires free timed tour tickets every day of the year except July 4th so we wanted to get there early before the rush started. I looked at their online reservation ticket system and they had no tickets available through July of 2009 so either the system is broken or tickets are hard to come by. It was kind of fun to see it on July 4th anyway. The hall is actually the Pennsylvania state house so we've now seen 2 colonial state houses. Buddy said he was distracted and didn't hear much of the tour guide's speech. That's the problem with traveling with 2 small children. It was a short tour and we saw the courtroom side and the room where the delagates argued over the wording of the Declaration of Independence and other things. I thought it was neat to see.
The Liberty Bell is in a building across the street. There are signs outside saying there are no public restrooms in the building so of course Bohdin needed one when we went inside. After the previous night's accident we weren't pushing our luck much and took a quick photo as we rushed out of there and to the bathroom. We made it in time but we ran by the front row of chairs that were set up to listen to the mayor speak. Hopefully we didn't bother anyone too much. In the picture below you can see Independence Hall in the background. We didn't want to wait in line to see the bell again. It's just a poorly made bell anyway.
Later that day we went to the ice cream festival. It was a fundraiser for pediatric leukemia and many local ice cream places were involved. They set out samples of ice cream and the local favorite of water ice. Bohdin stuck to the water ice.
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After nap time we headed out for dinner at a bar. Bars that serve food are common around here. Buddy really enjoyed his beer and meal. I had a burger and really good fries. Buddy was drenched in ice water that Bohdin accidently spilled on him. When we went outside it had started drizzling. The plan was to go to the Philadelhia Art Museum by bus to catch the concert and fireworks show. Buddy wouldn't believe me that the fireworks were going to start late. We missed our original bus stop and assumed we would see another but never did. We decided to just go back to the hotel and regroup. We ended up just staying in. The fireworks didn't start until 10:45 and it drizzled the whole evening. There is another fireworks show tonight. It's earlier and within walking distance so we'll try for that one.
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Nyla woke up as soon as I parked the car and had a hard time going back to sleep. Bohdin basically slept through the transfer from car to bed. We tried to get an early start on the day. Independence Hall requires free timed tour tickets every day of the year except July 4th so we wanted to get there early before the rush started. I looked at their online reservation ticket system and they had no tickets available through July of 2009 so either the system is broken or tickets are hard to come by. It was kind of fun to see it on July 4th anyway. The hall is actually the Pennsylvania state house so we've now seen 2 colonial state houses. Buddy said he was distracted and didn't hear much of the tour guide's speech. That's the problem with traveling with 2 small children. It was a short tour and we saw the courtroom side and the room where the delagates argued over the wording of the Declaration of Independence and other things. I thought it was neat to see.
The Liberty Bell is in a building across the street. There are signs outside saying there are no public restrooms in the building so of course Bohdin needed one when we went inside. After the previous night's accident we weren't pushing our luck much and took a quick photo as we rushed out of there and to the bathroom. We made it in time but we ran by the front row of chairs that were set up to listen to the mayor speak. Hopefully we didn't bother anyone too much. In the picture below you can see Independence Hall in the background. We didn't want to wait in line to see the bell again. It's just a poorly made bell anyway.
Later that day we went to the ice cream festival. It was a fundraiser for pediatric leukemia and many local ice cream places were involved. They set out samples of ice cream and the local favorite of water ice. Bohdin stuck to the water ice.
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After nap time we headed out for dinner at a bar. Bars that serve food are common around here. Buddy really enjoyed his beer and meal. I had a burger and really good fries. Buddy was drenched in ice water that Bohdin accidently spilled on him. When we went outside it had started drizzling. The plan was to go to the Philadelhia Art Museum by bus to catch the concert and fireworks show. Buddy wouldn't believe me that the fireworks were going to start late. We missed our original bus stop and assumed we would see another but never did. We decided to just go back to the hotel and regroup. We ended up just staying in. The fireworks didn't start until 10:45 and it drizzled the whole evening. There is another fireworks show tonight. It's earlier and within walking distance so we'll try for that one.
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Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Finger Licking Good
I haven't written much recently because with Buddy and his mom here I've spent much less time with the kids. I haven't played with them as much or read hardly any books. Now that Nana is gone it's just the 3 of us again. Buddy works long hours so we don't see him much. We ate dinner last night 2.5 hours before he came home. For dinner we took out a lasagna that Buddy had made a while ago. It was a recipe from America's Test Kitchen and I thought it came out pretty well. Nyla thought it was excellent and couldn't get enough. She even licked her fingers afterwards. That's high praise.
Below is also a picture of Bohdin as a mail carrier. He wanted to play again last night. I think my purse actually looks good on him. I should make myself a new purse and he can keep that one.
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Bohdin is currently in love with a video we ckecked out from the library called "Meet the Shapes". It's a strange video because of the narration. Here is an example: "Circle. Circle. Circle. Circle. Circle. Circle." It goes on and on. It must be crack for the preschool set because he can't get enough. He did recognize that the gazebo was an octogon yesterday though so I suppose it's educational.
Someone put up a poll on a forum I frequent asking what do you consider walking distance. I chose one mile for a one way trip so about two to three miles total would be my personal limit for walking to the grocery store or the playground or whatever. The majority of people chose the same response although 20% chose a further distance. (10% chose .5 mile) Somebody commented that she generally bikes everywhere with her 2 children since pretty much everything they need is in 5 mile radius. We had about the same situation back in Broomfield but here everything is further. We decided against getting a bike trailer because we really can't use it here. The general area is not biking friendly. I can't bike to Target, Walmart or even the grocery store. It's just not set up for that here. We have to drive pretty much everywhere.
Below is also a picture of Bohdin as a mail carrier. He wanted to play again last night. I think my purse actually looks good on him. I should make myself a new purse and he can keep that one.
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Bohdin is currently in love with a video we ckecked out from the library called "Meet the Shapes". It's a strange video because of the narration. Here is an example: "Circle. Circle. Circle. Circle. Circle. Circle." It goes on and on. It must be crack for the preschool set because he can't get enough. He did recognize that the gazebo was an octogon yesterday though so I suppose it's educational.
Someone put up a poll on a forum I frequent asking what do you consider walking distance. I chose one mile for a one way trip so about two to three miles total would be my personal limit for walking to the grocery store or the playground or whatever. The majority of people chose the same response although 20% chose a further distance. (10% chose .5 mile) Somebody commented that she generally bikes everywhere with her 2 children since pretty much everything they need is in 5 mile radius. We had about the same situation back in Broomfield but here everything is further. We decided against getting a bike trailer because we really can't use it here. The general area is not biking friendly. I can't bike to Target, Walmart or even the grocery store. It's just not set up for that here. We have to drive pretty much everywhere.