Falmingos in New Jersey and Martians in New York

We made a trip to see Jacob and Emily one last time before they moved away from the Big Apple to that place where everything that happens there stays there. Driving to Staten Island, we pass through New Jersey, and as we were crossing a narrow-to-me bridge, the girls shouted out, "Look there are flamingos down there!" I couldn't take my eyes off the road and I am sure that flamingos don't live this far north, so I just assumed they were some other kind of water fowl. We do see gray heron every once in a while. When I was in elementary school, we learned that both grey and gray were acceptable spellings but now little miss Spellchecker, tells me that I can't spell it grey. Why?????
Anyway, it was really great (as usual) to see Emily and Jacob, but what was even better this time was that Jacob was laid back, because he wasn't preoccupied with school.


We ate at a place called Mars 2112. I knew that we would have to eat somewhere, so I wanted to take the kids to a place they would enjoy. You go on a flight in their space craft that takes you to the planet Mars and then you eat typical American food with Martian names. And there are a few Martians walking around to pose for pictures. The kids had fun.


After that we went to a playground with some water squirting things in Central Park and then they escorted us back to the ferry station. It was a really fun day and I am so sad that they don't live as close anymore.

On another note, we have been digging out a plot of our yard to make a vegetable garden. There are tons of worms and Dallin kept saying "Worm mommy, worm!" And when Ariel spotted one she instructed everyone else to "chop them in half." I started explaining that worms are our friends ion the garden and enumerating all the useful tasks they perform for us when she said, "I know, and when you chop them in half it makes more worms, so it is even better for the garden." My fear is that they might not survive too many choppings.