Summer Farewell

I know there are technically still a few weeks of summer remaining, but for us, like most, the season is pretty much ends with the start of school. With this chapter closing, I’ve culled through all of our summer photos, and pulled those that captured those moments which were most special, and memories that I know we will cherish forever.

What better photo to start with than one from the first day of summer vacation in Central Park. The girls and I took a trip uptown that day, for an appointment with a plastic surgeon to remove Gemma’s stitches. While uptown, we had to stop at the Park.

For the first two weeks of July, we rented a house in the Hamptons. I really enjoyed sharing our photos and fun times from the trip. That place is truly happy place for all of us.

While out East, we looked at houses to buy. We fell in love with one amazing house, with the perfect yard and pool, but too bad it was off the main highway. We put in three offers, and we actually made it as far as an inspection on one, but we ended up passing, due to a couple of problems. More listings are popping up now that the season is out, so I am hoping to find the perfect house soon.

Siella spent a week in dance camp. I thought that she couldn’t love dance any more than she already did, but dancing everyday for hours on end only intensified her passion. She totally aced her mini recitals that she performed at the end of the week.

The week following dance camp, Ryder and Siella started three weeks of camp at Camp Leman. They really enjoyed the two weeks spent there last year, and begged to go back for more. They had an absolute blast, swimming daily, and going on field trips, including weekly visits from a petting zoo. Gemmie was too young for the camp attended by the bigs, so she enrolled in a 3’s program at her school. It was the first time she was out of the house for five consecutive days straight (regular school was only 3 days per week), and she did great. They had lots of arts and crafts, played outside and swam in the kiddie pool.

Jason and I managed to squeak in a couple of date nights throughout the summer. One of our laid back meals was sweet backyard at Pearl’s Caribbean in Williamsburg.

Ryder and I took our first mommy son trip to north Michigan, which I wrote about a few weeks ago.

We enjoyed lots of picnics in the backyard with our neighbors. These were the nights we looked the most forward to while we were in the city. The kids played until the sun went down, while the mamas enjoyed beautiful sunsets (and maybe a glass of vino!) overlooking the Hudson. I hope we can get a few more of these dinners and sunsets in, before the weather turns.

Here’s one. And if you’re interested, my sunsets even have their own hashtag on Instagram. #SITCSunset

Every year, we have photos taken by a professional photographer. This year, it was Amanda Goodrich in Washington Square Park. For the first time, the kids splashed around in the fountain. I wrote more about it here.

Stroller In The City homepage got a new photo header.

Ryder turned eight years old, and we turned his birthday weekend into a staycation at the Surrey Hotel.

We spent a ton of days at the beach. These pics are from Atlantic Beach. Our favorite time of day was right after the life guards went home, and these three little rascals would climb to the top.

The kids ate way too much shellfish this summer. They seriously couldn’t get enough of it.

One of my highlights of the summer was escaping to Montauk on a Seaplane. I mean it was beyond anything I’d ever experienced. More about that here.

I decided one last hoorah was in order before summer ended, so we rented another house in the Hamptons for the week and a half leading up to Labor Day. Turns out, Jason had to be away for the 6 days of the house, so it was just me and the kids. I didn’t realize how much work it would be packing for all of us on my own, but I managed to do it. I saw plenty of pictures of the house before renting, and it looked great, BUT, don’t always judge a book by its cover! There were so many things wrong with this house, that I think it aged me ten years. I’m talking toilets not working, no BBQ tools, and crickets! Marquis Rentals was the worst! With Jason away, I would have lost my mind there alone, but fortunately some friends came out a join us. We laughed about it, and did our best to enjoy the weather and the beach. The kids were not affected by all the house woes, so I did my best to keep a game face, so they could have fun.

The kids caught a ton of puffer fish, which was the cutest thing ever. I so wanted to take these cool little creatures home, but don’t worry we put them all back in the water right after a quick photo op.

One perk of having a house situated on the bay were the sunsets, which were beyond stunning every night. We made sure to run back to the house each night, to sit outside to watch the sun go down.

Here’s another show stopper.

When comparing pictures to the last day of school in June, to the first day of school last week, its clear how they have grown and flourished over the summer.

Ryder has worked really hard, all summer long, with a tutor for reading three times a week, which is part of the reason why we didn’t travel much. That said, I think it paid off.

Siella is so mature. I cannot believe she is going into kindergarten, because with some of the things that come out of her mouth, it seems it like she should be starting 2nd grade.

Gemma is no longer a baby. Her silly antics leave us in stitches, each and everyday.

This was a visit to the beach, the day before a hurricane was meant to arrive. The waves were high, and you can see the rip current was strong. Initially, it was a bit scary, and I thought we were going to have to leave early, but thank goodness, the brunt of Hurricane Hermine didn’t make its way to New York.

Its happens occasionally, a photo of the 5 of us, with everyone looking at the camera. I managed to snag two all summer.

Looking back at the summer, we didn’t spend as much time traveling as years past. We stayed close to home, house hunting and making sure our little boy learns to his full potential. So, farewell summer 2016. You came and went quicker than we liked, but you were good to us. We are already back to our schedules, looking forward to fall activities, and before we know it, the holiday will be upon us.