Happy 5th Birthday, Addison!

Addison Jane Ritter is five years old! 

Grammy flew in to surprise her! It was awesome to see her excitement. Thank you, Grammy, for the unforgettable moment!

We started Addison's day off with a Peter Pan's Donut!

Then we burnt off some of our donut at the American Playground.

We took the East River Ferry down to the Brooklyn Bridge Park.

The girls thought it would be awesome to freeze our butts off and go to the top deck. 

They were right, it was awesome.

Two Janes on Jane's Carousel!

We also checked out the education center and the ship playground!

The next day we took it easy and went to the library and played in the SNOW!

Watch out, Addi!

Smallest snow ball ever.

On Saturday, we had Addison's official birthday! SCOTTY SURPRISED US!

Addison requested a T-Rex Fossil party....so we thought it would be a perfect day to visit the dinosaur floor of the American Museum of Natural History.

Addison felt so special. She was in heaven between the dino bones and her family. She held her Uncle Scotty's hand the whole day.

Thank you, Rob, for taking pictures and capturing these smiles!

We ate some yummy tacos and walked in Central Park for a bit.

This is the guy who had a broken leg last year.

I am brought to tears when I see this picture. I have the best family.

Taking over the subway.

We came home and celebrated with dinner, dino bones cake, and presents. HUGE thank you to all our family for the thoughtful gifts!

Annual Birthday Questionnaire:

How old are you? Five.

What presents did you get for your birthday? superhero and mermaid costume

What makes you happy? my birthday

What makes you sad? when Audrey takes something from me.

What is your favorite animal? T-Rex

What do you like to eat? Peanut butter

What are you really good at? Playing dinosaurs and eating

What is your favorite TV show or movie? Paw Patrols

What is your favorite song? Paw Patrols song

Who is your best friend? the friend I made at the park, Elijah.

What do you like to do with your Mom? Play with Apa and mombalila

What do you like to do with your Dad? Play guys.

What do you like to do with your sister? Playing guys.

Where is your favorite place to go? The playground.

What is your favorite book to read? All of them.

What do you want to do when you grow up? Be a mommy and be a vet.

What is your favorite color? Green because it is the color of a T-Rex.

What is your favorite toy to play with? Apa, moving leg Barbie, and the dinosaurs

What do you like to do outside? Play in the snow and make footprints.

What is your favorite treat? Almond Joy

A day of firsts for the girls and lessons for the parents!

Andrew and I took our first trip with the girls into Manhattan. Andrew and I had to visit the DMV to get a NY license, then we went to the Children's Museum of Manhattan, and we did a few errands for Daddy.

We learned a lesson: don't take the stroller on the subway unless you HAVE to. Lugging the stroller, even our super light umbrella stroller, makes the process very tiring! The girls loved their first NYC train ride!

The museum was fun! Audrey LOVED it. Thank you Grandma and Grandpa Barber for the membership!

 While Andrew tried on dress shirts, the girls played with this huge stuffed animal sheep...

On the way home the L train was down, so we decided it would just be easier to Uber home. We learned another lesson: make sure your phone is fully charged before navigating the city. Right before both our phones died (my phone turns off when it gets too cold), another couple across the street took our Uber! So since the L train was still down, we hailed a cab, well several, and BAM the girls had their first NYC cab ride! haha, its easy to laugh about now.

The Move

Our move up to Brooklyn was emotional, exciting, and beyond tiring.

We loaded the van the night before, slept about 4 hours, and then loaded up the van with dogs and kids in the morning. Addison and I cried all the way down Lake Drive. It hit me that we were not going to be a trip across Alligator Alley anymore. It hit me that we would be starting over, again.

Andrew did most of the driving while listening to an audio book. The girls watched movies, read books, and played really well. They slept through most of the night too. Lou Lou hung out in the crate and Stella at my feet or on my lap. Andrew and I spent a lot time discussing the logistics of the next few weeks, as he would return to Miami to finish work (without a home to sleep in), study for the Bar (cramming what should have been months of prep into a week) and we would stay to try to get unpacked.

Andrew and I consumed so much coffee through the night!

At dawn, we stopped about an hour out to sleep. There was snow on the ground at the rest stop which made the girls super excited!

The hour into the city was exciting, the girls were up and there was a lot to see. We had to be at our apartment building by 8am to get the key and then the moving truck showed op at 9am.

This is when Tiffany and Rob stepped in to save the day, the never ending day. They were up and ready with breakfast, something we desperately needed! Then as soon as the movers brought stuff in, they began unpacking. Once the movers were done, we said good bye to Andrew.

Tiffany took off Monday and Tuesday and unpacked the entire house! We purged about six more huge boxes and found a "home" and "zone" for everything! There is no way this transition would have been possible without their help.

I am writing this months after the fact, however I still get really emotional about the intensity of it all. 

A good bye sunset

Watching the sunset on our last day in Florida just seemed to fit. Enjoying its beauty with Grammy made it even better. 

Lego Land

My girls love Legos. Our Lego bin is overflowing and the Legos are played with every day. So when Dad and Kim invited us to spend the day with them at Legoland, we were so pumped! Knowing that this trip would be one of our last big memories with them before our move made it even better.

We drove up the day before and stayed at the Legoland Resort! When we first arrived, there was a scavenger hunt to find the code to treasure. Once we found it out, there were Lego kits inside! They were the small ones and we had a little competition to see who could build them. Let's just say that small Lego kits are a lot harder than Duplos and we ended up with Legos all over the floor ;) The resort was amazing...truly made for kids. The girls slept in a bunk bed for the first time! 

All the Lego characters were so nice to the girls!

In true Grandma and Grandpa style, the girls were spoiled at all times! I am writing this blog post almost 5 months later and it is awesome to see how the souvenirs and memories made are still special for the girls today. The purple dragon is now named "Dragony" and it is one of Addison's top 5 favorites (along with foxy, zebraly, monkey, and doggy...what's with the "y"s?!) and it sleeps in her bed each night.

The girls wear these sunglasses every day.

Dad, Kim, and I loved the mini lego scapes of the major cities and local Florida places too. This is Andrew's office building in Miami:

NY

And of course, Star Wars!

Audrey was a little too little to do most of the rides, so I was very thankful that Dad and Kim could love on her while Addison and I could ride.

 Addison and I rode a few roller coasters and she screamed the whole time and I laughed the whole time. I have never heard her scream quite that loud before!

After lunch, the girls got to build!

 Walking through the Duplo themed part of the park was so fun! All our beloved Duplo sets enlarged and made out of Legos!

Grandpa let Addison drive the boat! 

Of course, we had to pick out some more sets!

Thank you Dad and Kim for giving us this amazing trip. We loved having the time with you both...you gave us such a special memory and a much needed break from moving-mode. We love you!