The Great Jack O'Lantern Blaze

I've been hearing about the consistently SOLD OUT Great Jack O'Lantern Blaze for years now so as soon as tickets became available this year, I quickly booked to see what all the fuss was about.  If you haven't heard about it, it's an elaborate walk-through experience in Sleepy Hollow Country that has 7,000 individually hand-carved, illuminated jack o'lanterns.  First let me start off by saying that it's roughly a 90 minute drive (from downtown Brooklyn) for a 30-45 minute experience, so I strongly recommend to plan a day out of it --maybe hiking or some other outdoorsy activity?  Unfortunately, we had other plans that afternoon so we got to Sleepy Hollow just in time for the event (6pm).  We were done in less than an hour and with the help of our dear friend Yelp, found a nearby sushi spot. The girls LOVED the sushi in Hudson Valley and insisted that we have to come back there again and that it's much better than any sushi place in Brooklyn.  This just goes to show you that kids have no clue what they are talking about. I did order Ramen, for which I always have very low expectations, possibly due to my love of Cup O'Noodles soup.  The Ramen didn't disappoint. In any case, it was cool to see bridges and houses and dinosaurs made from pumpkins and while I wouldn't do it again, I am glad I got to see what all the fuss was about.  My suggestion?  Skip the Pumpkin Blaze and enjoy some Cup O'noodles on the couch.

Mom and Dad get to have fun too!

Gene got the gift of Beer on his Birthday this year.  To be more exact, our friends booked us a NYC brewery tour.  What a great excuse to get to drunk in the middle of the day!

 Beer and Snacks

Visibly Drunk

Prima Ballerina

Violet is no longer interested in ballet but Ivy is still a big fan. A professional photographer comes once per year (up until the kids are 5 years old) and takes beautiful pictures of the ballet group.

Bahston....A Wicked Good Trip Eating Chowdah and Lobstah

Violet and Ivy finally reached an age where we can take impromptu trips with minimal planning. It was late Thursday night when we decided to go up to Boston for the weekend so we can check out Boston University with my brother.  I can't believe my baby brother is going to college! Where did the time go?  While he didn't love the school, we still had a nice time exploring the Boston Public Garden, Museum of Science and taking a Duck Tour around Boston. The girls even found time to do a little shopping while the boys went on the school tour.  It was nice to get away. 

Spoooookyyyyy

The ever changing room...

 From babies, to toddlers, to big girls.