Blue

Her eyes seem to become more blue by the day.

Broadway on Broadway 2012

Two Sundays ago, Eric and I took Ellie into the city for her first taste of Broadway (aside from the shows she attended in utero, naturally) at this year's Broadway on Broadway concert, which is always held in early September to kick off the new Broadway season. As you may recall, I first went to this concert with my mom and Aunt Debbie in 2009, and it was a blast - all of Times Square was blocked off (so there was plenty of space for all the spectators), so many great shows were featured, and the whole thing ended with a confetti drop that gave us a taste of the New Year's Eve experience. Eric and I went back in 2010 and also had a delightful time, but we missed it last year. This year, we figured it would be a nice, easy-going event to take Ellie to. So, into the city we went.

Unfortunately, this year it was set up very differently compared to the other times we've attended. Instead of blocking off essentially all of Times Square and setting up the stage at the south end (under the ball), they had the stage at the north end, right in front of the red steps, with only that segment of Times Square blocked off for spectators. That meant it was crowded. We couldn't even get into the pen, actually, and even if we had been able to, it wouldn't have been fun - super crowded and right in the sun. Because of the location of the stage, that also meant that if you wanted to stand behind the pens to try to get a view, you were largely out of luck because the red steps blocked the majority of the stage. Very disappointing.

But, it was a beautiful day so we made the most of it. We started by walking through the little row of booths promoting the various shows, then found a shady spot by the Olive Garden behind the red steps. We were late, so didn't catch all the performances, but we saw a few by shows like Chicago, Mamma Mia, and Newsies, plus a medley in celebration of Nederlander's 100th anniversary on Broadway. Kathie Lee Gifford hosted the show.

Times Square

Ellie and I made the front page at the Newsies booth!

Hanging out, enjoying some show tunes

The cast of Chicago on the CNN screen

The cast of Mamma Mia on stage

As in past years, the show ended with a rousing rendition of "New York, New York" - always a crowd-pleaser! However, that brought yet another disappointment with this year's production: no confetti drop. We were really looking forward to it, so that was a bummer. I don't know if they couldn't do it now with the stage in the new location or what, but it was definitely missed.

All the performers on stage for the big finale

Crowds trying to get a good picture of the stage

Despite our few disappointments, we did have a very nice time at the concert, and I think Ellie enjoyed it, too. Once again, she was an angel for the entire outing. I could tell she was getting sleepy on our walk back to the train, but she handled it like a champ.

Nestled in to her mama

Holding on

This picture has nothing to do with Ellie or the concert, but we happened to take it that day and it's pretty! Ha!

It was a great afternoon in the city! And I hope it was a good introduction to Broadway for Ellie - I would love it if she would enjoy the theater as much as we do!

Fashions Night Out 2012

As you may recall, back in 2010 we sort of stumbled upon the fun that is Fashions Night Out, a night in which all the stores on Fifth Avenue, in SoHo, etc. open their doors and basically throw a big party. We ate caviar, we drank champagne, we rubbed elbows with celebrities. It was one of our favorite New York City nights. Last year, my sister was in town for Fashions Night Out, so we once again hit the red carpet in Rockefeller Center and took advantage of the evening (although it was much more crowded than the year before). This year, given that we have a baby and all, we weren't sure it would work out for us. But hey, our baby is awesome, so why not give her a night out like the baby fashionista she is?

We decided we would choose just one or two things to try to do this FNO, as most things didn't get started until 6:00 p.m. or later and we run a pretty regular 8:00 bedtime in this house. When I saw that Darren Criss would be making an appearance at Saks, I knew that was our event. My baby is a documented Darren Criss fan, so she donned one of her more fashionable outfits and we were off to Fifth Avenue.

Ready for a fashionable evening!

Unfortunately, we were too late for Darren - by the time we arrived, they weren't even letting people get in line anymore. I was afraid that might happen, but wasn't willing to sacrifice Ellie's afternoon nap for the sake of lining up. So, what can you do? We'll have to catch Darren next time.

We left Saks and went over to Rockefeller Center to check that out. They had their red carpet set up, with models lined up along the Promenade. They also had photo booths so you could get the full red carpet paparazzi experience.

With Ellie on the red carpet

Ellie and Eric in Rockefeller Center

Models on the Promenade

Posing!

We stopped into Papyrus for some hors d'oeuvres and champagne. At last year's FNO, I was pregnant (although it was not yet public knowledge) so could not partake of all the free booze. This year I made sure to make up for lost time! (Responsibly, of course.)

Looks like I'm not the only one who wants in on the champagne action.

We then went over to Nine West, where Nigel Barker and Chrissy Teigen were scheduled to appear. Nigel was there already but Chrissy Teigen ran late, so we didn't get to see her. But, they gave out cake pops that kept Ellie occupied for some time (through the wrapper - no cake was actually consumed by babies).

Nom.

This was Ellie's first time at Rockefeller Center and Radio City, so we made sure to document the occasion.

She's in awe!

Alongside Radio City Music Hall

Next it was down to Macy's to see what was happening there. They had another red carpet set up in Herald Square, and some music playing outside. We had to stop for photos and a little dance party, naturally.

Photo op!

Girls on the red carpet, and Ellie's first dance party!

Inside, we saw Clinton Kelly, drank some vodka, and then saw Bachelorette Emily Maynard and her chosen man, Jef Holm. Ellie's first celebrity sightings!

Left: On the wooden escalators in Macy's

Right: Clinton Kelly

Jef and Emily

It was nearing 8:00 by that point, so we called it a night and made our way home, where our sleepy little fashionista went right to bed. Once again, she was so good the entire time we were out - at worst, she was just hanging out in our arms, and at best she was looking around, smiling and talking. She rocked it!

Another fun NYC night in the books!

Ellie Goes to the Movies

A couple of weeks ago, Ellie had her very first experience at the cinema. She and I went into the city and Eric took a long lunch break to join us at a Bring Your Baby Matinee, sponsored by TheBump.com. This is a way for moms to see movies in a baby-friendly environment, with brighter lights and lower volume. Participating theaters run this program once a month, and this month's movie was The Odd Life of Timothy Green, which we thought looked interesting. So, we were off to the show!

I have to say, Ellie really, really impressed us. She napped until about 11:00 and then she and I got dressed, took the train into 33rd Street (where Eric met us) and made our way to Kips Bay for the movie. Ellie really just hung out the whole time, with hardly a peep out of her. She watched a little bit of the movie, she inspected our drink cup, she played with her toys. Eric and I were actually able to watch the movie, which we found to be quite cute. Sure, it was a little hard to hear at times, as you might expect with lower movie volume and increased baby volume. But it was still really fun.

Ellie at the movies

Watching The Odd Life of Timothy Green

First movie was a success!

From what my parents have told me, Ellie's first trip to the theater went significantly better than mine did. They took me to see E.T. when I was a very little baby, and I cried as soon as the lights went down! See? You need a baby-friendly theater! Interestingly enough, Kips Bay had the E.T. poster in one of their hallways, so we had to pose!

Posing with Ellie after her first movie, next to a poster for my first movie!

There is also a movie theater in Edgewater, NJ that hosts baby-friendly movies every Thursday at noon, and this past Thursday Ellie and I joined friends Jess and Ada to see The Words. Once again, Ellie was a delight! She played for about the first half of the movie, then had a snack and slept through the rest. I could get used to this! Maybe she's a film buff in the making?

A Sunday Afternoon at the Met

As you know, Eric and I have been working hard to chip away at our NYC To-Do List for the past four years. After leaving Washington, D.C. with some regrets about things we had never done, we did not want to fall victim to the same fate in NYC, and we have learned that we are much more likely to actually do things if they are written down (thus, I am a big proponent of the bucket list theory - if you write it down, you may actually do it!). I have to say, we have made excellent progress, and the only things left on our list are museums.

The first weekend of every month, Bank of America runs a "Museums on Us" program, and your BoA card can get you free admission to a number of great museums - including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which was one of the remaining museums on our list. Given that we now have a baby so didn't want to gamble that she would last long enough in a museum to make the regular $25-per-person admission charge worth it, Free Museum Weekend sounded like the way to do things. So, we took advantage this month!

We took the PATH into the city then hopped on the subway up to 81st (Ellie's first subway ride!), and walked east through Central Park (Ellie's first time in Central Park!) over to the museum.

Eric and Ellie in Central Park

The Met

Happy museum-going family

There was no line when we arrived (hooray), and our BoA cards did, in fact, get us in for free (double hooray). We started our visit in the Egyptian wing.

Ellie's first trip to a museum!

Models from the Tomb of Meketre

Admiring the Egyptian exhibits

Fun with statues!

From there it was on to Arms and Armor.

Arms and Armor

I am a bad museum-goer and forgot to make note of who the armor on the left actually belonged to, but I believe it was a French king of some sort. Maybe a Philip? Hard to say. Either way, Ellie and I are enjoying ourselves.

Then, to the American Wing.

George Washington

Eric and Washington Crossing the Delaware

Finally, we sought out the Impressionist exhibit, which is my favorite. I'm a sucker for a nice Monet.

Still happy in the museum!

Left: Monet's Sunflowers

Right: Art museums are so boring.

Van Gogh's Wheat Field

Van Gogh's self portrait, and one of the many Degas paintings I loved so much

With "A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte"

Ellie really did quite well through it all - she started to get a bit fussy before we hit the Monets, but as per usual, Daddy's arms cure all and she fell asleep, which enabled us to spend a little more time perusing the paintings. Thanks, Ellie!

Museums are exhausting.

And when she woke up, she was a happy camper.

There's my happy baby!

Outside the museum with Daddy

We decided not to push our luck, however, and chose to end our museum outing. We headed out and started the journey home. We stopped for a quick "picnic lunch" for Ellie in Central Park, and made a brief detour to take her by the Alice in Wonderland statue.

Eric, Ellie and Alice

Family photo!

Flying baby!

It was really a wonderful afternoon. Ellie really impressed us with her lack of meltdowns, because we were out for quite a while. She's just getting to be such a grown-up! I would say her first museum outing was very successful. What a cultured baby!