Best of 2021

Family Adventures (from Mommy Poppin's 100 Things to do in NYC with Kids Before They Grow Up List):

January - 239 Play and Juice Bar on City Island & Skyline Drive-In Toy Story 4 Movie
February - Staten Island Greenbelt Hike

March - New York Chinese Scholar's Garden in Snug Harbor Cultural Center

April - Pier 2 Roller Rink in Brooklyn Bridge Park

May - Totally Kid Carousel at Riverbank State Park

June - Central Park Lake Rowboat & Brooklyn Cyclones Baseball Game

July - Rockaway Beach, NYC Ferry & The Beast Speedboat

August - Washington Square Park Fountain, Little Island, & The Wizard of Oz outdoor movie in Fort Tryon Park

September - Giant Piano in FAO Schwartz in Rockefeller Center

October - Blessing of the Animals (Cookie & Cocoa!) at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine

November - Horse Riding at Bronx Equestrian Center

December - Skyscraper Museum

 

Sharon's Best Novels (Sharon only read female writers this year)

(1) Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks

(2) Separation Anxiety by Laura Zigman

(3) A Piece of the World by Christina Baker Kline

(4) Parable of the Sower and Parable of the Talents by Octavia E. Butler

(5) Becoming Jane Eyre by Sheila Kohler

(6) Severance by Ling Ma

(7) Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

Sharon's Best Nonfiction

Just Liet Me Lie Down: Necessary Terms for the Half-Insane Working Mom by Kristin van Ogtrop

David's Book - Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir

Books Read Aloud by Our Entire Family - Half Magic by Edward Eager, The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster and Harry Potter and The Cursed Child by Jack Thorne

Book Read Aloud by David to Mateo - The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien

Books & Stories Read Aloud by Sharon with Mateo - A Warrior's Daughter by Zitkala-Sa

Best Family Art Exhibits & Public Art

Sharon shared her love of art with Alexi and Mateo by taking them to see different art exhibits and/or public art every month:

January - Luminocity on Randall's Island

February - Celestial by ARTECHOUSE @ Chelsea Market

March - Talking Heads by Viktor Vicsek, C/C by Angela Chong (both in the Financial District) & El Dorado - The New Forty Niners by Cecile Chong @ Snug Harbor

April - King Nyani Love the Last Project by Gillie and Marc Schattner in Bella Abzug Park in Hudson Yards

May - Doors for Doris by Sam Moyer @ Public Art Fund in Central Park

June - Ghost Forest by Maya Lin @ Madison Square Park

July - Trumpeter Swans Mosaic by Juan Carlos Pinto and John Sear, sponsored by the Audobon Mural Project, @ 163rd and Broadway

August - Church and The May Room by Shantell Martin on Governor's Island and Upstream/Downstream Augmented Reality in Re-Growth in Riverside Park

September - Kusama: Cosmic Nature at the New York Botanical Gardens

October - As Long As The Sun Lasts by Alex Da Corte @ Met Museum Rooftop Garden & Metropolitan Museum of Art Highlights Tour

November - A Fountain for Survivors by Pamela Council in Times Square & Tomb Effigy of Margaret Corbin by Zaq Landsberg in Fort Tryon Park

December - The Fifth Season Holiday Sculpture Trail along Fifth Avenue

Best Public Art Seen by Sharon - Re:Growth, A Celebration of Art, Riverside Park, and the New York Spirit in Riverside Park

Our Favorite At Home Grown-Up Movies

(1) Another Round
(2) Better Days

(3) Collective

(4) Phantom Thread

(5) Here Alone

(6) In the Name of My Daughter

(7) Nomadland
(8) Sarajevo

(9) Tenet

(10) The Piano Teacher

(11) Last Christmas

(12) The 12th Man

(13) Despite the Falling Snow

(14) Promising Young Woman

(15) Vivre Sa Vie

(16) Judas and the Black Messiah

Our Favorite At Home Family Movies

(1) Harry Potter (Mateo read all the books so we re-watched ALL the movies)

(2) Vivo

(3) Monsters Inc. and Monsters University

(4) Bend It Like Beckham

(5) Oliver!

(6) Jumanji, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle and Jumanji: The Next Level

Best New Year Activity - LuminoCity on Randall's Island

Best Baking 

Sharon, Alexi & Mateo baked a different type of cookie every month from recipes in the Cookies for Santa cookbook:

January - Peanut Butter Chews

February - Chocolate Peppermint Pinwheels

March - Goodnight Danish Drops

April - Oatmeal Cookies

May - Choco-Chip Bars

June - Peppermint Pinwheels

July - Iced Chocolate Cookies

August - Chocolate Butterscotch Pinwheels

September - 7 Up Cookies

October - Dream Bars

November - Applesauce Cookies

December - Santa Claus Cutouts

Best NYC Film Festival - NYC International Children's Film Festival (virtual edition watched at home this year)

Favorite People/Places/Publications to follow on Twitter

1. MORE-UFT - @MOREcaucusUFT

2. DOE - @DOECorruption

3. PRESS NYC - @safeschoolsny

Best Birthday Party - Mini Golf @ Pier 25 in March (outdoor birthday party in the winter due to COVID-19) 

Best Museum for Families - Skyscraper Museum

Best Family Event - Blessing of the Animals at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine (outdoor edition)

Best Yoga  - Hatha Yoga and Soundbath with Anthony (RIP Bread and Yoga)

Best Family Cycling  - I Pedal NYC (first family bike buy Glen ride!)

Best NYC Park - Fort Tryon Park

Best Concert/Live Musical Events - Handel's Messiah at Riverside Church

Best Family Member Performance -  Mateo performing Bach & Beethoven (masked) on the piano in Merkin Hall

Best TV Series - Versailles

Best Travel Destinations 

* Surry, Maine

* Somersworth, New Hampshire

* Raleigh, North Carolina

* Richmond, Virginia

* The Hamptons, Long Island

Best Camping - beachfront cottage for fall foliage camping in Heckscher State Park

Best Halloween Event - Trick or Treating in Dumont

Best Vegetarian Restaurant - Bodai Vegetarian Restaurant in Brooklyn

Best Restaurant - White Barn Inn in Kennebunkport, Maine

Best Pick-Your-Own Fruit - The Orchards of Conklin (apples)

Best Holiday Event - Manhattan Christmas Shopping and seeing the Rockefeller Tree (finally back) 

Best Christmas Surprise - All of us being home together for the week of Christmas due to both Alexi and Mateo's classrooms being closed due to COVID-19

Best View of NYC - Uptown Manhattan on our monthly family bikerides

Top 5 Reasons to Love New York City at the End of 2021

(1) POLITICS - We are getting a new mayor

(2) PUBLIC HEALTH - It is easy to get a PCR or Rapid COVID-19 Test in any neighborhood in the 5 boroughs

(3) SOCIAL LIFE -  SantaCon brought Omicron

(4) CYCLING - Plethora of Citibikes downtown mean you are SOL to get a Citibike uptown

(5) EDUCATION - In person schools have now returned to virtual Zoom classes due to rising COVID-19 positivity rates

Long Island Fall Foliage Camping

This beachfront cabin is absolutely our most phenomenal lodgings EVER for our annual fall foliage camping trip.  We stayed in Heckscher State Park in Long Island in this stunning cabin, feet away from the Atlantic Ocean.	What is so awesome about this beachfront cabin besides its modernist design and barefoot beckoning sand is that it looks different at various times during the day, as the sunlight changes.  Monet would love it here.
This was the view of the beach, Atlantic Ocean and setting sun from our cottage deck that initially greeted us.	Water is life.  It refreshes the soul, cleanses the spirit and constantly renews as it baptizes us anew.
We were in Long Island for Mateo's Manhattan Soccer Club Travel Team Northport Tournament.	Mateo displays so much joy when he plays soccer, and it is totally contagious.
This beautiful illuminated beachfront cabin awaited us that evening when we returned from Mateo's soccer tournament games.  The front of the cabin is a multitude of windows letting sunlight in during the day and electric lights stream out at night.	The back of our cabin consists of a few simple windows, with wood walls dominating since it opens up to parking spots.  The true beauty awaits around the corner when you catch sight of the sea and hear the roaring waves of the Atlantic.
It is really difficult to start a campfire on a windy beach.  Our neighbors taught us the secret to a huge campfire: douse your wood with Purell hand sanitizer (key household item to clean your hands during a global pandemic AND have a campfire for s'mores!).	We were skeptical that Purell would work, though the proof is in our roaring campfire.  The spark caught immediately on the Purell doused wood, and was no match for the Long Island wind.  When we go camping from now on, we will bring the Purell!
S'more prep from the kid who coined the phrase "smells like s'mores!".	Mateo and Alexi roast marshmallows over burning embers to make perfect s'mores.
With Halloween just around the corner, Mateo shows off his mummy, frankenstein and bat donut PJs....	...as well as the jack-o-lantern boxers he put on.
Mateo and Sharon are HUGE fans of early morning walks along the beach.	It was a very chilly October morning, though that did not stop this little beach trekker.
Mateo shows off his champion celebratory pose...	...as does Sharon.
This crazy kid is about to venture into the chilly Atlantic...	....as is his equally crazy mom in a bikini in October!
It was so difficult to leave this stunning beachfront cottage on the final day of Indigenous Peoples/Italian Heritage long weekend.	The blow of leaving was softened by plans to reserve this same cabin for our fall foliage camping trip in 2022(!)                 PS - Mateo, play soccer in Long Island again
On our last day on Long Island we ventured to the Hamptons, since it is featured in the 1,000 Places To See Before You Die book (Sharon's bible).  The book recommended Candy Kitchen in Bridgehampton, so of course we had to stop by.	Campers cannot survive on camp food alone....it was time for a hearty brunch, eaten in an actual restaurant, despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.  David made this his non-vegan day to have an omelet with toast and hash browns.
Mateo shows off his SMS hoodie while drinking a vanilla egg cream....	...while Alexi shows off his "I.C.E. bear with the sunglasses" while enjoying a chocolate egg cream.
The best part of the meal was dessert!	Ice cream sundaes are always a huge hit with this fam.
Next we headed to East Hampton for the best attraction for athletic boys: batting cages.  Mateo is up to bat first...	...and then it was Alexi's turn for a bunch of swings.  Our kids last played on a baseball team pre-pandemic.
Our family could not resist a round of Hamptons Mini-Golf on this absolutely lovely course.	Alexi pretty quickly got a hole in one (the only family member to do so).
Sharon adores mini-golf courses that reflect the history of the communities they are in.  Here Sharon lines up her ball by a replica of the Montauk lighthouse (which she ascended to the top of ages ago before children after biking the Montauk Century!)	And David takes his swing at a replica of the Old Hook Mill, one of the best preserved windmills in the Hamptons.  Normally it is open for tours, though it is closed (like so many other things) during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
As Manhattanites, we spend our days on our own little island, surrounded by both the Hudson and East Rivers.  On this fall foliage camping trip we got to venture to another island, Long Island, to get back to nature and witness lovely sunsets like this one.	We were surprised and thrilled to stumble upon Old Hook Mill while driving from Bridgehampton to East Hampton.  Sharon has had a thing for windmills every since biking in both the Montauk and North Fork Centuries (100 miles each!).  We most definitely will be back out on Long Island next autumn.

New Hampshire

We stayed at the Hilltop Equestrian Center to break up the drive back to NYC from Maine.  It was Alexi and Mateo's first time in New Hampshire, and Sharon and David's first time there since 2006.	Sharon found the Hilltop Equestrian Center on Air B&B (currently for sale if you are interested-the whole farm!), and a horse farm is absolutely the coolest air b&b we have ever visited.
Mateo and Alexi pose in front of one of the horses.	Many of the horses at this family farm had their faces covered to protect them from flies in the summertime.
Mateo is a big time animal lover (like Sharon).	Here, Mateo pets one of the friendly horses.
We hiked around the equestrian course.	Alexi is a big fan of walking sticks while hiking.
Sweet Chipper is the offspring of a championship trotter.	Alexi got to take the first ride on Chipper.
Mateo got the second ride on Chipper.  It was soooo cool and our first time riding a horse bareback.	This was also Sharon's first time riding bareback, and it was really fabulous to have a co-owner Jim as her guide and his loyal dog following Chipper and trotting around the track.
Award-winning horses abound at the Hilltop Equestrian Center.	The best part of air b&bs is they have kitchens where you can cook.
After a day of traveling and horseback riding, we happily collapsed into our beds.	We had to go to bed early, because a great activity awaited us early the next day...
Alexi and Mateo dressed warmly in their matching Acadia shirts and are all smiles in anticipation of....	...our whale watching adventure!  We had planned to go whale watching in Bar Harbor, Maine, though the tour was sold out.  David found this awesome Granite State Whale Watching Tour in New Hampshire online, and though the day was stormy, the whale watching was a go.
We dressed in our raincoats due to early morning showers...	...though by the time we boarded, the rain had mostly subsided and the only water we felt was the spray from our boat.
When you sight your first whale, you feel such a rush of awe and happiness.  All the whales we saw were humpback whales.	Usually only part of a whale's body is seen above water, so when you see the whole body emerge it is really breathtaking.
The marine biologist who served as our tour guide introduced us to Satula, who is spotted often at Jeffrey's Ledge since it is a feeding ground.	This is Owl.  Whales are purposefully not given human names, since it is usually difficult to tell the gender of the whale.  Marine biologists saw this whale pregnant, so they know this is a female whale.
You bond with your fellow boatmates while on a whale watching tour, and alert others when you spot a whale.  It is quite amazing to see the tail of the whale (the largest of all!) above the water while the rest of its body is submerged.	The tale of the whale is the last part of the whale's body you see before the whale dives below the surface of the water to feed.  There were "oohs" and "ahhhs" on our boat when we saw Satula's tail in a perfect arc above the water.
It was a super wet and windy day, and we are so happy that our whale watching tour did not get canceled.	Whale watching and bareback horseback riding are experiences we will always remember and treasure when we reminisce about New Hampshire.