Thanksgiving

There is much to be thankful for...like a beautiful Fall day in Central Park.

Crimson colored leaves that we can only enjoy once a year.

And when those leaves are put in a pile they are great fun!

We're grateful for Grandmum's who boogie down...

...and then make sugar cookies.
We're grateful for G-pop's who give piano lessons...
...and then play duets.
We're grateful for ears to hear music and mouths to sing along.
For noses to smell...
..and warm food on the table.

We're grateful for Great Granny Mae for her exemplary character and warm spirit.

We're thankful for family near and far. We miss all the Potter relatives and will see you soon!

Happy Birthday!!

Madeline had a great birthday last month that included a visit from the Grandmoores and Uncle Michael.

There were lots of presents, dancing, and playing with toys.

The bubble gun was among her favorite!

Then we headed to a playground in Central Park for a joint party with her pal, Isaac, and some of their friends.

Everyone had a fun afternoon and enjoyed some delicious birthday cake.There was even a special birthday kiss from Issac. What a lucky girl!
She's two years old now and growing up too quickly. But, luckily she still likes to cuddle.

Family Resemblance

Isn't the gene pool a curious thing? I always wonder what the science is behind how children get certain traits and resemblances of people in their family line.
For example, this is Madeline's great-grandparents on Charles's mother's side. We see a lot of resemblance between Madeline and great-grandma Helen.
However, Madi also inherited my grandmother's widows peak. We think she's the only grandchild on my side that has it. Why did it take two generations to show up?
But Madi has always looked most like her daddy.... (Charles is four years old here. I love this photo.)
...and she has his city savvy, too. (She's been hailing cabs since she was 10 months old.)

But, any way you slice the gene pool...she is scrumptious!

Black Cat

What do you do when a black cat crosses your path?

Pick her up and kiss her, of course. She is "puuurrrrrfect". And I always thought I was more of a dog person.
She spent some time hangin' in the crib with Curious George. She sometimes would take off her kitty ears headband and wear it as a belt.

Then this pretty kitty found her way to the church and had a little party with lots of friends and treats. She loved trick or treating and especially loved the notion of lollipops.

Who doesn't love to snuggle up to a cute leprechaun?
And guess who tried to get in my cab at the Lincoln Center on the way home from the party.....INCONCEIVABLE!!

And lest we lose sight of our budding artist...here is a couple of smiley faces combined with some faux nail polish.

Old Friends and Street Fairs

I haven't seen my friend (or Russian sister) Katya in maybe 4 years. But, we always pick up where we left off. She and Madeline....
...quickly bonded over sketches of puppies. We had dinner at Mama Mexico and were serenaded by a mariachi band. Madeline kept saying "too loud" and was very happy when they finished "La Cucaracha" and moved to another table. We love you, Katya! Come see us again!

Last weekend we had a classic NYC street fair in our neighborhood. Plenty of fresh cooked food, local artists on display and fun for the kids.

Should we be worried that Madeline loves shopping? She couldn't resist trying out the African drums which were just her size. The street fair....

...was a world of splendor to her. So many little things to look at.

So much jewelry to try on.

Luckily, she knows the best things in life are free. Like a waltz around the living room on daddy's feet.

Pre-School, Finger Paints, and Coney Island

Finger painting is Madeline's number one hobby. But it is always such a mess.

So, I decided just to put her in the tub and let her knock herself out. Still a mess. But a quick clean up.

Madeline started her "Book Buddies" preschool this week. It's once a week for two hours. She loves it. She is always asking to go to "class".

No wonder she wants to go...there is a trampoline there!
Friday we got up early and went for a day at the beach. We went to Long Island in the morning and then to Coney Island for lunch. We had our first Nathan's famous hot dog (although Madi and I preferred the french fries and ketchup).
Madi really loved wearing her tutu bathing suit and playing in the sand. She built some sand castles (but had more fun knocking them down) and even ran up and down the beach playing soccer with daddy.
But her favorite thing to do was to sit and stand in the surf and let the waves splash over her. She sure didn't want to leave and would've had her dinner served at water's edge if possible. But the sun was getting low and we had to get back home..
Bye-bye Summer, we'll miss you!

The US Open

On the first night of the US Open, Charles and I took the 7 train from Manhattan...

...out to Flushing Meadows, Queens to see the opening night ceremony. Here we are at Arthur Ashe Stadium.

The ceremony was really fun. The Navy here is holding the flags of all the countries that are being represented.Then the NYPD carried the flag while a cute little 12 year old boy from Harlem sang the national anthem.

We saw one of my favorite players, James Blake, being honored for being inspirational along with Martina Navratilova and others.

After some stunning fireworks...
...we had the pleasure of seeing Venus Williams play. We were amazed that the stadium full of more than 20,000 people could get so quiet during play.

But the highlight of the night was watching Roger Federer play. Seeing him live shows even more how talented he is. There are a lot of great tennis players but Federer makes the sport look effortless and graceful. No wonder he has the most Grand Slams of all time.

And look who was waiting to serenade us after the match....that's right...Spider Man. It was the same guy who was playing after the Yankee's won the world series. He really is everywhere!!

Because no blogging is complete without a photo of Madeline, here she is with her new favorite toy...a Costco box she calls a car.

But, baby Big Bird still gets some love.