no sleep till...brooklyn

Last weekend we wandered south to Brooklyn, New York with a pit stop in Flushing on the way in and out.

My mom wanted to treat Kelly to a birthday dinner at a Korean restuarant called Kum Gang San since January, so we we finally got around to going. It was a fun meal!

We decided to make a weekend trip of it since we have been wanting to take the pups to the Brooklyn Children Museum for a while.

SP 1.0 had a great time, it's fun for kids of all ages; but, they really do a good job of catering to the sense of wonder and fun that the wee ones have.

Even SP 2.0 got in on the fun.

Before we took off for our trip, I did some research on family-friendly restuarants that could be classified as "fine dining" because, quite frankly, you don't go to New York and eat at McDonald's. I was able to find a great Meditteranean French Bistro called Pit Stop (it had an auto racing theme) for lunch that served THE BEST hamburgers; and SP 1.o was impressed with the kids' chicken fingers too (so were we).

It was a great "pit stop".

After lunch we headed to a fiber shop called Brooklyn General, because, you know, I am into that sort of thing--even if the boys are not.

Then we hit Prospect Park. We did a lot of walking. And there was swinging.

Lots of swinging. SP 2.0 has recently graduated to swinging in the cradle swings on the playground, it's a big deal!

And then for dinner, we went to Applewood.

Where we, quite possibly, had one of the best meals of our lives. SP 2.0 enjoyed the culinary experience vicariously!

The chef(s) was very accomodating to my non-dairy lifestyle; and, they made SP 1.0 something that wasn't even on the menu (and gave him extra bread). Papa discovered that he liked pate and I learned that I love apertifs that involve blackberries and gin.

Before leaving Brooklyn, we walked the path to the Brooklyn Bridge and walked a quarter of the bridge.

We stopped in Flushing on the way out of town to eat at Kum Gang San again for lunch; and, we also stopped at Han Ah Reum for some groceries.

It was a great trip! There are tons of pictures in flickr of all our Brooklyn fun.

annapolis & philly, woot!

Some of you are probably wondering where the California pictures (and post are), they are coming. Honestly. But one (you) should find it humurous that my idea of a flurry has become akin to the speed of a trickle. In any case, since I seem to be a month behind on my posts, let's talk June. At the beginning of June (yes, that's last month for those keeping score) Papa Seal had a seminar to attend on a very scintillating topic concerning something related to some form of engineering--or possibly navigation in Annapolis, MD. The Pup and I let him go it alone for the first part of the week as we had things to do (um work and school). On the last day of his seminar, the Pup and I took the train down to Baltimore to meet up with the fatherly unit. It was the pups first train trip and he had a great time. All I am going to say is, six hours on a train with a 2 year old is a very long time (my lack of pictures is evidence of the fun he had, sigh).

Papa met us in Baltimore and we headed back to Annapolis, we ate dinner and then went to sleep to recharge for a flurry (a real one, this time) of activity the next day which involved the following:

a trip to the United States Naval Academy (um, go goats!?)

where Papa thought it would be fun to visit a "secured area" so the Pup could be entertained (those are my boys, risk takers);

and then we hopped in the car and drove to Philadelphia, home of liberty. Before doing anything historically related, I (obviously) had to get my fiber fix in. We went to the trendy and boutique-y yarn shop, loop;

and then found our way to Rosie's Yarn Cellar where the Seal Pup (aka Little Sir" was spotted by store staff. I consider it an honor that they let him play with the Koigu mill ends, which involved making a snake of Koigu (that would be luxury merino, people) on the floor.
Of course there was also a trip to the new Philly fabric store, Spool (a very sweet shop, I bought stuff);
And then there was dinner. We went to a place called the Melting Pot. It's a fondue place, apparently it's a romantic place...when you don't take a 2 year old (just saying). I think it's also just an unusual place to take kids, but our philosophy is, if you don't plan to serve kids, don't offer the option of high chair seating (not that we use it anymore, but there you are).
After a good night's sleep (and sleeping in)We found our way to the Liberty Bell at the Independence National Historic Park (this would be the real reason we ventured to Philly in the first place). Where we realized that the Pup's excitement about historica landmarks will only last so long when we saw the rows of bored teenage boys waiting for the rest of their families to view history. Oh, well.
More picture from the trip in flickr, as per our usual way of doing things. California pictures coming soon. Really.

uniforms, gun talk, sheep and bubbles; or, ketchup

At first, I thought Papa Seal was going to takeover this blog entirely; but, no, he has home renovations and a dissertation to do (and since I am not, nor do I plan to be, directly involved in any of that business)...so I'm back! Since we are well into June. I thought it relevant to share how we finished out the month of May (this is more for Papa Seal's benefit than anything else, this blog is how he remembers things, so you know, I am just making memories possible). So yes, this is a catch up, or as I like to say, ketchup post.

First there was the grand event called Coast Guard graduation. I like graduations because it means I get to see Papa don his wedding duds again (the people in the military, they call them officer whites, whatevs).

The speaker at said grand event was Vice-President Dick Cheney (I recognize the ridiculousness in my linking to this; but, I think the picture is funny. I mean, it's official and everything). Some people referred to him as Howdy Doody, you can understand their confusion given his choice of millinery which many (myself included) deemed inappropriate for this auspicious formal occasion. But hey, given the choice of him shooting people or wearing inappropriate hats, I guess I will take Howdy Doody any day.

And then because I am me and my family supports my weird pursuits in all things fibery, we went to the Massachusetts Sheep and Woolcraft Festival in Cummington, Mass. There was a lot of fiber (and a lot of it came home with me).

I am pretty sure that one day, the Pup is going to realize that we don't go to these festivals for him. Or warehouse yarn shops either (Webs, Northampton. Again. I know. It's like we live there.), he is a smart kid. He's going to catch on pretty soon.

And lastly, there was a birthday party for our friend Ruthanne. She turned 3, which--I am given to understand--is a very big deal. There was a lot of fun for the small fries.

There are tons of pictures to go with this scintillating abridgement of our May activities, you know where they are should you be so inclined. I need to catch this blog up before our trip to southern California at the end of the month. Because that is one California post that I wouldn't mind posting myself. So yes, there is going to be a flurry of posting here (shocking, I know)--you know, in my copious amounts of free time.

we heart nyc; or, no sleep till brooklyn

We are battling the plague and trying to recover for a party on Saturday; but now that my mother has harnessed the power of the internet (Lord, help us all), I now have a constant reminder that I need to "update website more." Yes, ma'am.

Let me tell you where we are going.

We went to New York City and Brooklyn over the past weekend. Papa Seal and I realized that this is a trip we have been planning since we last went to New York more than four years ago (it's not like we live 3 hours away or anything). We made visits to Queens/Flushing when my mom lived there, but Manhattan, that's another story.

One thing that was readily apparent, our priorities are vastly different than they were four or five years ago. It was weird being in NYC and not going to the TKTS booth to score whatever show tickets were scorable that evening (which probably wouldn't have mattered as there was a strike and a lot of shows were canceled).

I wasn't a knitter 4 years ago, so we definitely didn't hunt down yarn shops in the city. How things have changed. (And really, how could I resist the oldest yarn shop in New York?)

Look at all the fun I missed last time! (Brooklyn General Store is my new favorite place on earth.)

Although I was a sewer/quilter 4 years ago, it probably would not have occurred to me to go fabric shop hunting.

Well, maybe it would have. (Purl Patchwork didn't exist back then, so that is my defense, I guess.)

Clearly I am overjoyed to be part of this shopping excursion.

And neither Kelly nor I were that into photography 4 years ago. The times, they have changed.

B&H puts the "super" in Superstore!

Since we were subjecting the Seal Pup to weather that could not, in any way, be described as warm. It seemed fair to make sure he had some fun too (for us this translates into public spaces). He liked looking at the ice skaters in Central Park. The Delacorte Clock (also in Central Park) was really interesting as well.

But clearly, all of the fun was happening in Prospect Park in Brooklyn.

Not only was there a playground. But there were leaves to crunch and kick (though we have tons of those in our backyard, it's different in New York).

We had a great time, we heart New York City and Brooklyn (especially Brooklyn, who knew?!). We would definitely like to make a trip back when it warms up. Also, our trip to the Brooklyn Children's Museum was deterred due to renovatons. So obviously another trip down to New York is in store. Ahem.

We are now going to get back to the business of healing. Anders just shook off his ear infection, I just got antibiotics to treat mine and Kelly's is probably just around the corner. How much do we love day care?!

Want more pictures? You know where to find them.

maine memories

We had some fun times over the weekend. We headed to points north in the great state of Maine, also known as "vacationland." We drove up on Friday night in the wet miserable rain. Saturday was kind of wet and gloomy too. But Sunday was a gorgeous day to be in New England. We made the most of all of our time there (when we were actually awake).

Papa Seal and the pup decided to take advantage of the comfy hotel bed and sleep in. A great way to start the day, apparently. After waking up, it was off to our favorite breakfast resturant.

Bintliff's is the resturant by which we measure all others for breakfast fare. Try not to go on Sundays, it's packed (think sardines).

Our breakfast was extra fun because I got a chance to catch up with a good friend that I met when I worked in Portland. It's always good to talk to the people on the other side of your cubicle, you might like them (and they might even like you)!

After breakfast, we headed up to Freeport to check out L.L. Bean. It's interesting that the place is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. You never know when you might need a flannel shirt, or something.

I am so excited about this coat. Can't you tell?

We needed a good coat for the pup. Winter's coming and he has outgrown his other winter wear.

After Freeport, we headed to Brunswick and Bath to visit a few yarn shops (Purl Diva and Halcyon Yarn), a Wandering Seals Family tradition (at least as far as I am concerned).

Since the forcast was for sun on Sunday, Papa Seal decided to wake up at sunrise to shoot a few shots of Portland Head Light in Cape Elizabeth.

I decided to let me inner photographer sleep that morning. The pup and I went back with Papa Seal later, at a more hospitable time.

It was also fun to drive by our old apartment (which is really nice now, they tenants have garages even!) and by the cute little lighthouse that was near our old place.

Bug light. A cute little lighthouse, no?

More pictures in flickr.