Brooklyn continued

I'm having so much fun with Mia and Claudine that I could just pop. Let's see...I've left out a few days so need to catch up. Most of the time Mark is buried in baking, but we know that already because that's why I'm here: he's got a ton of weddings to make favors for and 2 big food events coming up Saturday and Sunday.

Sunday Jenna's mom, Holly, came to Brooklyn and took us all out to dinner at a.o.c. bistro. That was a super nice treat and I'm attaching a picture of my Salade Nicoise for your viewing pleasure. She is a kind and gracious person who I feel honored to know.

Monday was a holiday here so Mark was unable to bake at his usual place which was closed. Instead, he went to Costco first thing, came home and did Whimsy and Spice things, then at 11:30 we all piled into the subway and headed towards Manhattan to deliver brownies and biscotti and also to show me Highline City Park. (The couple in one of these pictures are 2 people at the Highline "row of deck chairs" who just looked so relaxed I had to take their picture. I didn't know them at all but they let me snap this shot; he then insisted he needed to take a picture of me on his iPhone. I love those quick little moments of connection...they bring the memory of the place to life.) It's an amazing use of otherwise decaying urban structures. It used to be a thoroughfare for commercial trucks but was abandoned years ago. Thanks to a dedicated group of people who envisioned a unique city park, Highline finally became reality this year, with expansion plans for the future. We came home tired but happy and ordered a bunch of Chinese delivery for dinner.

Today I had the highlight of my trip: walking Mia to school! What a treat to see how her world is expanding. She had to correct my navigation, too, as I headed off in the wrong direction. Mark and Jenna say I should always listen to Mia because she usually knows what she's talking about. (I did try to ignore her warnings for a block or so, but she was quite insistent and sounded so confident that I couldn't ignore her. Sheesh.)

Since Mia was in school and Claudine was with Mala (nanny), Jenna and I went out to lunch at Miracle Grill. I was pleasantly surprised with a chicken and tortilla pie. Then I went shopping: gifts and groceries. My gifts criteria (if not biscotti, cookies, and brownies for the waiting hordes of all my new best friends who think I'm bringing them treats) is mainly that they have to be flat and light-weight. I'm not bulking up my suitcase for anyone!

Got home...had the place to myself for an hour so started in on dinner and making a pot of applesauce. All in all, I felt quite domestic today.

I haven't talked much about the girls, but will attach pictures. They are beautiful, funny, and smart. What more could I ask for?

See additional pictures in post below this one.