I found these pictures that I took some time ago in Hawaii and I just had to share them with you. All this green makes my heart sing. I wouldn't mind spending the rest of my life in that place :)
I hope that you're having a really nice Summer!
All my best!
Elsita :)
Beautiful houses in Martha's Vineyard
Our last adventure during this trip was a visit to Martha's Vineyard. One of our favorite summer places in this country. We went there to celebrate my father in law's coming birthday, he's turning 80 very soon. My sister in law Marguerite and her husband Shelby were also there, what a treat!. It was so much fun! The kids didn't want to leave. We rented a room in a modest and cozy house away from the busy part of the island with the most amazing view. Everything in it was decorated vintage style with tons of little flea market treasures everywhere. From our window we could see horses, a big pond, trees, a beautiful field covered with the greenest grass ever, flowers... we could even see the house where the Obama family stayed at when they came to the island recently. (What a property!)
We're back in NYC right now. Everybody is tired. My father in law, Bill and the kids are watching tennis while I'm doing some laundry and getting ready for tomorrow. We're flying back to Los Angeles early in the morning. I feel so happy about this whole experience. I also feel excited about going back home. What I miss the most about LA is my little plants and the fish! I hope that they're all OK. My neighbor Sally, who's an angel, is taking care of everything over there.
Talk to you at my return!
Elsita :)
I'm back reporting that life after Irene is pretty much the same as life before Irene. This overpopulated city is back to normal. Everybody is so busy!
All we experienced during the hurricane was the rain, the wind and a car accident that we saw from our window. On an totally empty street 2 cars collapsed, really strange, nobody got hurt. Drivers are not used to driving on empty streets over here so these two cars didn't know how to behave, they were traumatized by the street emptiness.
We have been out and about after Irene. One of our visits was to Central Park (photo above). So green and beautiful. We have also been to Purl Soho a couple of times but it was hard with the kids, they whether wanted to go or buy everything in there, no middle ground.
But I did get to purchase some treasures at M&J Trimming. From the last time I visited that place many years ago to now I see that it has grown to become a paradise for crafters. I wish that I could put the whole store in my suitcase and take it back to LA :) Over there I got the tiniest seed beads that I have ever seen in my life. (They're not listed on their web-site).
But the main thing that we have done is walk, walk, walk and look, look, look to see what surprises we find on the streets. There is a lot to enjoy over here; the store window designs, the fashionable people, the graffitis... Our eyes are having a party in this city but our feet are screaming :o Fortunately, we brought very comfortable walking shoes so they will be OK in the end :)
See you soon!
Elsita :)
(To Parisa: I haven't been able to find you here in Soho. Have you been working in these days?)
Dear family and friends,
Today we will be getting ready to spend the weekend hidden at home because Irene will be visiting. I'm soon going to the supermarket to buy enough food and enything we need. Our area is not the most dangerous one (zone 3) but everybody is getting ready because nature is a little umpredictable sometimes, you never know. It will be impossible to go out anyway because of the wind and the rain. But we will be fine.
I don't know if we will have Internet or phone connection this weekend. I will do my best to communicate again after the hurricane has passed.
See you!
Elsita and the rest of the team :)
Yesterday we had a beautiful time at Natalie's friend's house in Montclaire, New Jersey. It was a discovery for us because we had never been to this beautiful place before. Natalie's friend from pre-school lives over there. She moved with her parents to Montclaire a couple of years ago. When we knew that we were coming to NYC one of the first plans was to visit Natalie's friend. Her Dad was sooooo nice, he came to pick us up in his car and then drove us back home at night. What a treat! You're the best Mike!
One of the main attractions was a huge trampolin that I would love to have in my house in LA. If I had something like this in my backyard I would be a trampolin champion. Jumping is one of the most fun physical activities ever. We do have a smaller trampolin for Diego at home but if I attemp to use it I would open a hole on it for sure :o
I hope that you're having a great week! Mine is going really fast :)
During the earthquake yesterday we were in our apartment, resting, when suddenly the building started brake dancing :0 Everything shaked. I couldn't believe it! I didn't know that earthquakes could happen in New York. We come from LA where they are pretty common, but over here it was a big surprise. The epicenter was in Virginia and the magnitude was 5.8. I'm so glad that we were not in the metro! I read that it was pretty scary for those who were underground. But evertything is OK, nobody got hurt.
As I told you yesterday: This city is full of surprises! :o
Sweater bicycle, dancing buildings...what will the next surprise be? :)
Yesterday the kids and I went for a long walk in the neighborhood. We saw a lot of cool things, but the highlight of the walk was the "sweater bicycle"! As Diego called it. Diego's brain was really puzzled with this unusual object. He wanted to know if he could whether ride it or wear it. Then he wanted to know if the bicycle was cold because it had a sweater on. For a minute or two his mind was spinning: bicycle, sweater, winter, riding, street...I could almost see his thoughts fly around in circles like little bees Zzzzzz Zzzzz Zzzz.
We did a little Google search at night and found out that this is the work of Olek, a Polish-American artist based in NYC. She covers about everything with yarn. Isn't that great?! This is what I love about this city, it is so full of surprises!
Have a wonderful day!
Elsita :)
Hello, we're in the Big Apple already! Yay!!!! This morning we went food shopping with the kids. There is this wonderful market called Gourmet Garage, within a walking distance from where we're located. They have everything you need to have a party in your tummy. So we got our feeding needs covered for a week, at least. I will be cooking for friends that will be visiting during the week.
We're staying at a beautiful apartment right in the heart of Soho, steps away from all my favorite places. But most importantly, we're very, very, very close to Purl Soho!!! My number one store on the list. They open at 12:00 on the weekends. Today Bill won't be working in the movie that he's producing so he will spend the whole day with us. We're still deciding where to go. How about the Zoo?!
Now I have to go back to the fun!
See you soon!
Elsita :)
Soon I will be flying to New York City with Natalie and Diego. It's going to be a challenge with Diego. Traveling with an Autistic child is not a simple thing, specially if he has to spend several hours on an airplane. But I'm getting ready, there are lots of little things that I can do to make it work. But even when I'm taking care of every detail he could have a melt down in the most incovinient moment.
If you have an Autistic child and have gone with him/her on a long trip, is there any advice that you would like to share with me? Diego is 6 right now and very "stubborn" in the autistic sense of the word. I will try to keep everything as predictable as possible, that helps him a lot. But the main thing is to keep him entertained. I will bring a portable DVD player, paper and pens...but maybe you have a great idea that I haven't thought about :)
Bill is producing a movie in the Big Apple so we will be joining him for a couple of weeks. I'm trying to see what I can do with the children over there. We're going to be close to Soho. Do you have any suggestions? I already found out that The Children's Museum of the Arts is close to us. Great!
Natalie will be seeing an old friend from pre-school so she has something fun to look forward to. My only tiny little wish is to find some space to visit this place. I'm planning to see a couple of old friends and I'm also open to meeting new friends. (Margie! come to see us! Let's go to Purl Soho together!)
I know that this trip is going to be a big adventure :)
If you prefer to get in touch with me privately please write me an e-mail: [email protected]
ALSO, do you know any super duper reliable babysitter that you would absolutely recommend? Just in case I need help at some point... I know someone but she's not available at this time ;)
Thanks a lot!
Elsita :)