Out of the tunnel

A warm day without coats. A long day without naps. A fun day in the city with the boys. Success. Days out are usually more stressful than not – for me. I’m one who gets bogged down in the preparation. Do we have change of clothes? Enough snacks for the day? Diapers? Wipes? Toys should they become bored? Levi’s security blanket, Mimi Blanket? The list goes on from there and to publish it all for you now is to confess just how pathetic my obsession with minutia.

Usually, by the time we actually get the kids in the car, it’s later than we had anticipated, and I’m angry with myself and annoyed with Gabriella for letting us get behind. If we leave early enough in the morning, we can get back for a later nap for Levi. If we leave too late, we’re stuck outside where giant sandworms threaten our existence in another dimension. Well, it feels like a scene out of Beetlejuice when Levi hits overdrive, anyway, but there’s no Handbook for the Recently Stupid for Taking Their 2 Year Old Out Right Before Nap Time. Levi doesn’t sleep in the car and doesn’t sleep in his stroller. Asher never did, either. We’re playing with fire.



The clocks sprung ahead last night. On top of that, we woke up late. Maybe we shouldn’t do this. But it was a warm day, and we had no other plans. Right. No nap for Levi. We’re going to go into the city and have fun, dammit! By the time we hit the road, it was late. Armed with snacks and videos, we were as prepared as we were going to be. Levi was very excited that we were going to be on the highway because we have one of those mini vans whose DVD player only works on the highway for some odd reason. Even more peculiar is the fact that this defect exists in so many of our friends’ mini-vans, as well. How queer.

I’m surprisingly relaxed. Knowing that we’re not fighting the clock, I settle into my leather seat listening only occasionally to Toy Story because it’s actually a really funny movie. The boys are quiet, happy, and I vow to appreciate every peaceful moment because the shoe may drop at any second. I don’t even go ballistic when Gabriella insists on driving around the Upper West Side for literally half an hour looking for parking to avoid the exorbitant price of parking in a lot – a huge challenge when you’re trying to park a mini-van. I tell myself I’ll give her 1 more spin around the block before I insist that we pay for parking. A spot appears-another grateful moment.

We are right outside Central Park. One stroller. A bag of snacks. A lady’s bag I carry with wallet, camera and other essentials that I refuse to dump into the snack bag. We’re off on the first stress-free day in 5 years void of naps, stops or stress. It drizzled a little, but for me the clouds had parted. We hit a milestone today. We are now capable of enjoying ourselves for an entire day out. Not even a little rain will deter us from a day of adventure.

I’ll admit I was just a wee bit micro. Before we left, I insisted we map out certain destinations like the Central Park Zoo and the carousel. Gabriella still believes that we would have had no trouble finding either on our own. I know better.

Here is proof to all parents that infancy does not last forever which for some is a sad realization but for me is the light at the end of the tunnel-the Lincoln Tunnel. And here is a peek into our day in the city because you actually don't need a passport to get to New Jersey.