I heart NY
My oldest son and I had an appointment in Manahattan this morning, so it was wake early and move quickly. The turnpike was a mess because of an accident, but we finally made it through the Lincoln tunnel to our destination.
I LOVE Manhattan. I would welcome spending a year or so just living in the city with my crew. What an energy that city has about it. So many great things to see and do. I could be a taxi driver flooring it through the crowded streets while honking the horn.
Anyway, after our appt was over, we grabbed a sandwich at one of the deli vendors around the corner on Fifth Avenue. The Moroccan gentleman asked my son if he was from Sweden. My son smiled and just shook his head no. I told the man that we were from Jersey. He laughed in surprise and said, “Jersey, really?”. He thought because of my son’s coloring that he was Scandinavian. Following that laugh, I noticed this same man’s sweatshirt said “Phillips Academy, Andover”. Now, being a researcher of elite private schools I immediately recognized his sweatshirt and asked him if he had attended this school. He said “no” and didn’t even know where the school was located or know of its history. He didn’t even know where the sweatshirt came from. I almost offered to buy the sweatshirt off of his back because I loved the look of it, but I thought that may have been crossing the lines a bit.
We ended our NY morning at a coffee house on Fifth Avenue. I believe the name was Toby’s, lovely cafe decorated in all white with yummy cappuccinos. However, the nice Brazilian lady standing in line behind us touched by son’s hair a couple of times while we were waiting for our drinks. She just smiled at me and said he had such pretty hair. My son looked at me as if to ask was this okay. I assured him that it was after I chatted with her about the price of jeans in Brazil versus NY.
We returned home for the afternoon for activities, and I picked up burgers from our local sports bar for dinner so I could avoid cooking.
I may take a break from writing for a few days to regroup with the family.
Until then…
The treasure tub
My kids love to receive rewards. I assume most people do.
I seem to be making this one a tradition, especially for the younger ages. I go to the local dollar store and buy lots of toy-type items, stickers, candy, novelty items, etc. I fill my beverage tub with the gifts and present it to the kids at the beginning of our school year. After they have worked hard on their studies for a certain amount of time, they are permitted to pick out one item from the treasure tub as part of their reward.
Is that bribery? I would argue not. I would say it’s just an added bonus for doing well in their studies. But, really I don’t know:)
Heading to the Met
Up very late finally getting a coat of paint on my nails. They were black from dirt after working in the flower beds-lovely. We are taking the kids into the city soon. Our first stop hopes to be at the Met to see some beautiful artwork. We are reading “From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler,” a classic where the kids spend the night in the museum. Trying to prep them a bit before we get there. They just want to go to Central Park!
Ivy League Homeschooling 