Jack says hi

Are there any other parents out there that suddenly aren’t allowed to take photos of their kids?

We watch them grow, we mark the milestones, we make literal marks on a wall as they get taller, and suddenly the “photo album” has a lot of blank pages in it.

Wait, when did my child grow a mustache? Oh it must have been between the ages of 14 and 15 where there is no photographic proof!

Right now I’m sitting on the train with Jack headed to NYC. This is the first time I’ve ridden with him this year. This year! I used to take him every other week. Moca and I would ride happily along and then either turn right around and come home, or take a walk around the city.

This year, however, Jack has insisted on riding the train alone. It saves me 5 hours of travel time for which I’m usually grateful, but I miss the rides with him. I miss taking Moca along and having her get so much attention for being such a good girl.

So, right now, Jack is sitting across from me, passed out asleep, mouth open catching flies, as they say, and boy would I like some photographic proof to show you all.

…

Ugh. I won’t share a photo .

…

But…Boy do I want to.

😆😆😆

me: Jack, here’s a few seats here. Look it has a lot of leg room.

Jack: No, lets go find an open 3-seater.

me: I hate sitting in those. Let’s go in this 6-seater.

Jack: Ugh then we’ll get jammed in when people sit next to us.

me: No one is going to get on after Stamford, we’re fine. Look how much room we have.

A few stops later…

What the Frick

I always try to suggest things for Jack to do when he goes to NYC. I really want him to learn and see and experience all that there is in the city. He prefers to stay in his room playing XBox. 😦

This was a conversation we had a few months ago but I never posted it…

me: What about a show?

Jack: Boring.

me: What about going to Central Park?

Jack: It’s freezing and it’s going to rain.

me: What about finding a street fair?

Jack: No.

me: Hold on I’ll look up some things to do. (I pull out my phone and start scrolling) What about one of the museums? There are lots of shows…

Jack: We always do that. We went to the Whitney and MoMA…

me: Oh hey there’s something at the Frick Museum. Actually it’s called the Frick Collection. Geez I had totally forgotten about the Frick.

Jack: Yeah. So did everybody else.

me: Sigh.

Cloudy with a chance of washing machines…

Jack was at his dad’s last weekend. He missed the major snow squall we had back here in CT. Too soon. TOO SOON!!!!!!

me: Jack did you get any snow in New York in Saturday? We had a snow squall!

Jack: What’s a squall?

me: Like a quick burst of snow flurries, sort of.

Jack: We didn’t have a squall but someone was throwing a washing machine off the roof and Dad had to call the police.

me: Um..,,

The biggest complaint about the Cars 3 Movie!

It ended too soon! 🙂 

Jack and I went to see the movie last night, and we really liked it. It might be in a close tie with the first movie as far as storyline and characters and emotions, etc.  The second movie was OK, but I really liked the first and the third.

I totally didn’t stay until after the credits, so we missed the little Mater movie at the end.

OK, enough about that. 🙂 

Today was the first official day of camp. Jack has been outside all day, and I’m waiting to pick him up. I wonder if he will be sunburned, or covered in mosquito bites, or none of the above. 🙂

Hopefully there is nothing to report from the camp office, as they have had to do in past years ha ha.

Here are the first words out of Jack’s mouth after he got into the car.

(I predict he will have some good news, maybe about zip lining in, or the fact that he does not want to go swimming anymore because the pool is too cold. Let’s see what he says.)

Jack: I’m starving. I need food!

Well was I close? Lol… he must have worked up a good appetite being outside all day!

And in other random news…

Here’s a photo of Moca’s last trip to NYC …we are in Bryant Park…

She loves to ride the train when I take jack to NYC. Everyone loved her! 🙂

Let’s Play College

 Jack has always loved playing college, ever since he was little. He would pretend he was in class or teaching class or eating at the cafeteria (his personal favorite). So I have high hopes that he will actually GO to college. Lord knows we talk about it enough.

Jack has bee so into filming and vlogging and editing lately that we are trying to get him into the NYU film school summer camp. For two weeks. For a million dollars. No, actually just a few thousand. But still! Regular summer camp costs like $250 or something per week. Sigh.

We’re riding on the train right now heading to NYC and Jack just noticed this poster:

  

Jack: Mom, I might want to go to college there.

me: Really? Actual college for filming? 

Jack: Yeah, either there or Brigham Young.

me: ?

The randomness of it all…

  
He’s not very excited about me taking pictures of him while he sings Celebration. 

And in other news…sad news…our beloved kitty Ed has passed away after a very short but aggressive battle with cancer. We will miss him terribly.

RIP Ed 💔

  

Jack: How do you close your face?

Said as he read the sign outside the elevator that would take us to the top of One World Observatory, NY. 

See the photo below. 🙂  bad break….

  
   
    

  

 

In a New York … Coupla Hours

Just some funny sh*t I heard from Jack and his friend during the day today as we wandered around NYC…

“Mom, can we visit LMFAO Shwartz?” (He really didn’t realize his slip up until after haha)

“Look, a park bench. I thought it was just a legend.” (After not sitting for quite awhile and then a long walk in the hot sun.)

“And that’s why my friends never want to do anything because all you do is walk around not going anywhere, like duhhhh!!!” (Said after we tried to get a cab but couldn’t because of the massive holland tunnel traffic jam which of course was MY fault…)

……………………

Jack: Can I get this nerf modulus?!

me: No

Jack: But it’s not even online and it’s only at this store!

me: We just got here, I’m not carrying a giant nerf gun through the city all day.

Jack: I’ll carry it!!!

me: No. Save it for Christmas. 

Jack: You WILL buy me this for Christmas. 

me: Add it to your list. 

Jack:  A list is for things you hope to get not THINGS YOU’RE DEFINITELY GETTING!!!

me: And you think this is definite, huh? 

……………………

“I’m thirsty, hot, starving, tired, and want to go home!”

“Wait, we’re going home??!! I want to STAY!! WE NEVER DO ANYTHING!!”

“Can I sleep over my friend’s house tonight??” (Do you think I even hesitated before answering?!! 

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

 

Too fast for math!

Wow, so this is what it’s like to sit at a computer and type a blog post. I type 99% of my posts on my phone. Stupid gaming thumb pain… Stupid auto correct… Stupid not enough bells and whistles on the WordPress app… Stupid small screen that I have to turn sideways to see (sometimes…when it’s dark out.. ahem). Now I’m sitting luxuriously (see I wouldn’t use a big word like that on the phone. Too many thumb taps…) LUXURIOUSLY at my desk and typing pretty darn fast. Ha, no mistakes either. Or so I think…

My boy is home from NYC. Took the 1:04 train, or whatever, and got there around 2:30. I had a cheeseburger (hot off the grill)    with ketchup, and a hard boiled egg waiting for him. Yep, he inhaled both. I don’t think he gets protein in NYC. Well maybe sometimes, but I knew he’d be starving.

As we drove, I told him about my morning laps around the school track. He grunted as he ate the burger in 3 bites and the egg in 2.

Jack: What?

me: I just finished the story. Really?

Jack: Sorry. I wasn’t listening.

me: I SAID I did laps this morning around the track. It’s 1/4 mile and I did 16…so how many miles is that?

Jack: (blank stare)

me: Huh? (he’s super good at math, so this was like duh, easy)

Jack: 3?

me: Are you even listening to the equation? Each lap, quarter mile. Did 16. A quarter of 16?

Jack: Oh yeah, 4. Anyway I’m just too fast for math. I was already onto something else.

me: If you were too fast, wouldn’t you have at least gotten the right answer?

Jack: I would have to care…

me: Nice.

Jack: By the way, you’re looking extra … MUSHY!

He reaches forward to try and grab under my arm, which I now know simply means he loves me.

I’ll take what I can get.

So how did YOU wake up today?

I’m sorry I’ve been absent. I spent some time in NYC for a work-related tradeshow…had WAY too much fun, and WAY not enough sleep, and … did I forget to blog? You might say that. I’m still sleep deprived and possibly making horrific spelling errors, but please deal with it.

After 3.5 hours of sleep on Sunday night…wait that would be Monday morning… and then only 4 hours of sleep last night, I’m still at a deficit from the first night. Damn.

Jack: Hi-YAH!!!

me: UGH!!

Jack: Wake up! It’s time for your favorite!

me: Hrmpf?

Jack: Tickle Torture!!!!! (he starts going berserk with the tickling)

me: AHHHHH!!! Okay Okay I’m up! Watch the head there. You’re swinging it around.

Jack: Rub my back! ….Oooooo soothing!

me: Thanks. (then I completely attack him with a tickle torture)

Jack: WAHHHHH!!! Stop! Oh I see you’ve learned a lot Ma’am since you’ve been gone!

me: It was only one night, and I didn’t go to tickle class if that’s what you’re wondering. Hey stop biting!

Jack: When all else fails, gnaw on someone.

me: Interesting motto.

Jack: (bite bite bite)

me: Nooo, no biting.

Jack: Get up!

me: I am!

Jack: Up out of bed!

me: You’re sitting on me!

Jack: Oh. Geez well sorrrrryyyy that you can’t lift your own son off you to get out of bed.

me: I should have stayed in the city one more night just so I could sleep.

Jack: Hey I heard that you know.

Jack’s Puzzle for Dad, and a side trip to NYC!

 

Do I need to explain? Can you all see it? Jack loves Star Wars, fyi. And surprisingly the answer is NOT Chewbacca. I can’t imagine what kind of puzzle-making skills Jack would have to come up with to get that for an answer.

Tonight when I put Jack to bed, I left his room and of course was called back after about 10 minutes. I just KNEW a bowl of ice cream and 2 oreos would get his blood pumping before bed. Sigh. But it looked SO good. Anyway, he had a serious topic to discuss.

Jack: Mom, I need new shirts.

me: Now??

Jack: For school. The jokey kind.

me: Like with jokes on it?

Jack: Like one that says It’s not Cheesey being so cool! And it’s cheese. Get it?

me: Oh I got it all right. What about the shirts you have? No good?

Jack: Those are CLASSIC shirts mom. I need JOKE shirts.

me: Who told you those were classic?

Jack: No one has to tell me anything. You didn’t figure that out yet?

me: Goodnight…

 

I mean, what do you say to that? SIGH! And now to change directions complEEtly…This past Thursday I took Jack to see the Rockettes. We had so much fun taking the train into the City and walking up to Radio City Music Hall. Jack told me we just HAD to eat at his favorite restaurant in Grand Central, Two Boots (but it was too busy so we ended up at Junior’s…hello CHEESEcake!). Then later when we were trying to find which train to take home Jack says “Mom it’s track 105, that’s downstairs!” He’s SIX. And doesn’t live in NYC! Geez…

We took a Pedi-cab ride from the show back to Grand Central, and let me tell you, that was totally worth the $20. We almost died like 3 times! It was really a lot of fun and I would recommend it at night, instead of the stinky horses. Here are some pics from that trip.