NYC: Highlights from Day 3

Day 3 was even more ambitious, tourism-wise. We headed out the door before 8am and took the subway all the way down to the lower tip of Manhattan, where we caught a ferry boat to the Statue of Liberty and another one to Ellis Island. The security lines to get on the boat were long, so we missed the 9am ferry and ended up on the 9:25. We endured a little "carry me" drama from A, but eventually both girls rallied around the immense, iconic statue. Somewhat against my better judgment I bought each of the girls a little souvenir Statue of Liberty.

More cash was spent at Ellis Island, where we had a pretty good lunch after visiting the museum, which 3 out of 4 of us really enjoyed (A preferred riding the escalator to seeing what conditions were like in steerage at the turn of last century).

It was around 1pm when we got back to Manhattan. We walked north about 8 blocks to the Imagination Playground at the South Street Seaport. The enclosed space offered a giant sandbox, enormous building materials and large scarves that had been fashioned into swings. It also had a uniformed "play coordinator" and clean bathrooms. The girls loved it.
From there we hopped back on the subway and headed to Soho for a mandatory retail break at Uniqlo, an affordable Japanese clothier who only have one US location. I dropped over $300 on sweaters, shirts, coats, socks, leggings and a pair of skinny cords for myself and Josh (details to come on Friday, but don't worry--no skinny jeans for Josh). Best of all, while Z and I shopped, Josh took A for a stroller nap and saw Bruce Springsteen walking around! We also tried the teeny weeny (yet expensive) cupcakes from the teeny weeny storefront Baked by Melissa.

We made it back to the Upper East Side in time for our old, beloved babysitter Julia (now a college senior) to come over and watch the girls while Josh and I went out to dinner. All family vacations should include a few hours away for mom and dad. Even though our meal wasn't that special, spending a little time together without a stroller, a box of animal crackers and a bag full of Disney Princess figurines was well worth it.