City Living--Posted by Pam (not Cailin)

No doubt about it, traversing in Brooklyn/New York is a sport: the stroller loaded with Tenney, Ada on the buggyboard, Ezra well-trained to stop on his bike or scooter at every intersection and not cross until the stroller catches up. The first day we followed him to school he had forgotten his bike lock (likely I was supposed to have the house keys which have the duplicate, but no) so I had to carry the bike home and push the stroller with aforementioned kids. Tenney refuses to buckle up and because I don't want to be Miss Nelson and not Elivra Swamp I don't push it. We hit a bump and he does a face plant--scraped chin and lip. (He still refuses.) Or going to Costco in Enoch's car--we shop slow but faster than them since they need to get cell phones activated and the computer is down (etc.) so we're waiting in front where the junk food is. Ada wants a churro and for some reason I think that is some kind of burrito and not a doughnut. Wrong again. She eats one and Tenney the other. He heads straight into a sugar inspired meltdown. Uncharacteristic tantruming. I leave the store so we don't have such a large audience. Israel and Cailin do not appear. (They have the car keys.) I finally go back in leaving my cart in the doorway, carrying a still screaming baby with Ada in tow. We go upstairs on the escalator, do a couple of laps, back down, finally they appear. Now I notice Tenney is only wearing one shoe. We retrace our steps (this is where the endurance comes in). Find it next to the cart. We walk to the prominade to see the new installation art, city waterfalls, unlike Hawaii hikes, uphill both ways. It's almost as worth it as Kahana (okay, maybe not), but feet and legs are pleasantly tight when we return. Yesterday we went on the free Ikea ferry from Brooklyn to Manhattan and then hiked across town and got caught in a wonderful wet rain. Just before we descended into the station there was a natural city waterfall splashing off a building. I said to Anna, Aaron's girlfriend, "This is so fun." "This is not fun," she said. (Of course, she was the one who bought an umbrella and was jogging along beside Tenney and I keeping us somewhat dry.) She got the good sport award, and I had the fun. All in all, it's an adventure being here. Ada was scared as the ferry bounced along over some waves but after said, "I tricked you this time like I've tricked my mom lots of times. I really liked it. When I freak out it means I'm having fun."