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What is slightly overpriced...completely exhausting...and makes Caden's eyes light up more than anything else??? You guessed it - a trip to New York City.

Now, everyone has that slight urge to want to visit New York City - but for Caden, for the past 2 years, it was all he could talk about. He wanted to go see the city, and a game at Yankees Stadium, and Chris and I promised him that we would make his dream come true.
So on July 22nd - we loaded up the truck and headed up to the Big Apple. :)

We had reservations at the Salisbury Hotel, which I highly recommend. We were only a couple blocks away from Central Park, 5th Ave, etc. And the employees there were exceptional. Not only did they upgrade us into a huge room (I think the train of children helped) but they were always willing to help with questions, suggestions, advice, etc. It was great.

After getting settled into our hotel, we had our first experience with the NYC Subway on our way to find Yankees Stadium. Ha! What a trip.
1st of all...no one seems to know where they are going. And if they do, they don’t stop long enough to answer any questions. So it was definitely an adventure. After distinguishing what is considered uptown and downtown, and seeing a map of the different areas - we were on our way! Chris bought tickets for he and I - and we casually shuttled the kids under the turnstiles. Trust me, we were TOLD to do this. But of course, traveling with a stroller makes things complicated and I couldn’t go through the turnstile. Before I could question what to do, someone came barreling through the "emergency exit" setting off sirens and alarms. I took this as my cue to just walk through the emergency exit and get on the train. Since the REALLY LOUD sirens weren’t causing anyone to blink an eye (this must be a common thing) I took this as my new 'ticket to ride'. From that point on, Chris had a ticket and the rest of us 'snuck' in. Gotta love it!

Yankees stadium was amazing. Just being there and seeing the glow in Caden's eyes made the entire trip worthwhile. And David Robertson gave us all Yankees hats to wear. We walked around the stadium a bit, and then settled into our seats and enjoyed an awesome game! It was a great experience, and one the boys will probably always remember. (Of course, a trip to the local Yankees shops outfitted Caden for school too! Jersey, lunchpail, bookbag,...)

In front of the Yankee Store Such a small little boy...with a HUGE passion for baseball and everything Yankees They let him drive the car! Jacie too of course! After a long wait...time to go into the stadium Yankee hats! Let's go find our seats! Two very happy boys! I'll be on that team someday!! The subway ride back to the hotel...still grinning from ear to ear!
Friday morning was our first real day as tourists in the city. We definitely fit the part well. We stood in the crowd for the Early Show, spent hours in FAO Schwartz, bought dolls and accessories in American Girl Place, and cruised up and down 5th avenue for a while. Then headed down to Times Square for - you got it - more shopping! The kids were having a blast. (And Chris and I too) There was just so much to see.
After a day of shopping, we met up with some friends in Columbus Circle for a little while - and then headed back to Times Square for a late night dinner at Bubba Gump's Shrimp Factory! NYC is definitely the city that never sleeps...there was a 45min wait for a table at 930 at night! :)

With the inventor of the Myachi! Dress up time! Jacie & her American Girl doll LibertyA ferris wheel INSIDE the toy store!! At Columbus Circleback to the hotel... Times Square!!
Saturday was another day of sightseeing. We started out with a morning ride over to Staten Island. The kids loved being on the ferry. And the sights of the Statue of Liberty were incredible. Jacie referred to her as the Green Girl - and the boys were busy pointing out the other details...the crown, torch, the tablet...etc.
On the Staten Island Ferry The incredible view Waiting to catch the ferry back!
The next stop was to the 9/11 Memorial & Tribute Center. Of all of the things and places we saw during our trip - this was our favorite. It is too hard to put into words - but if you make it to NYC, you should definitely make a visit to this site. It was an incredible memorial experience for Chris and I, and an amazing learning experience for the boys.

And of course, no trip to the World Trade Center location would be complete without a visit with a member of FDNY.

Another train ride later, and we were standing on 34th street. The Macy's was HUGE! :) But instead of more shopping, we walked over to the Empire State Building. We rode the SkyRide simulator experience, and took the elevator trip all the way to the top. Once we were at the top, we were able to point out all of the sights we had visited on our trip. Although Yankee Stadium seems quite small from the top of the 86th floor!

Most of our traveling was on foot or via subway, but from the moment we exited the Lincoln Tunnel into the city, the boys were counting Taxis - just begging to take a ride. So on Saturday night we took a taxi to Grays Papaya for some amazing NYC hotdogs. The kids were begging for more.

Then it was back to Times Square for Ice Cream, and just enjoying the nightlife. Cavin was intensely watching all of the people, Caden had his eyes locked on the NYPD, and Jacie was just loving the lights.

And for the final trip back to the hotel - the train seemed a past adventure, and the taxi excitement had worn off...so what better way to travel than by PediCab
For three days, these guys had been on the corner begging us to take a trip. And for three days, we had slightly scoffed at the idea of loading all 5 of us into their little bench seat. Let alone actually ride anywhere. But for the last night, we figured we would give it a shot. And sure enough...some kind man bicycled all 5 of us about 12 NYC blocks back to our hotel. It was one of the best parts of the whole trip. On the last night of vacation, nothing beats having the whole family laughing and enjoying the city - surrounded by honking taxi cabs of course.