With Daddy’s return and Papa Bob in town for Gigi’s recital, we were so appreciative of the opportunity to party. There was just so much to celebrate! Father’s Day for both Daddy and “PB,” as G calls him, and a birthday each — Dave’s on 6/23 and Dad’s on 6/28. We had a fun (and delicious) dinner in Little Italy and then came home for homemade chocolate cake.
We were so excited for Gigi’s first dance recital since her first recital in 2019 (at the time, she was just two years old). Sadly, like many things, due to Covid, recitals were just not possible in 2020 and 2021. Thankfully, as a result of vaccines and greater knowledge of the virus itself (and how to keep one another safe), we were able to see our girl back on stage in 2022.
The theme was “Magic To Do,” and Gigi’s ballet class danced to “A Million Dreams” from The Greatest Showman soundtrack. Georgia Grace danced beautifully and proudly, smiling the entire time she was on stage.
We were so very lucky to have Gigi’s grandparents, Grandmother and Papa Bob, join us for her performance. Remembering they had attended her first recital, Gigi specifically requested their presence. After the recital, we had lunch at Serafina, G’s favorite “special” restaurant, and then went to Van Leeuwen for ice cream.
We walked home and Gigi got to spend time with her grandparents. Grandmother had brought G two Polly Pocket toys, which they played eighth until Grandmother went home. She is one lucky girl!
The most magical thing to happen on Magic Friday was that Gigi and her Daddy were reunited after having been apart for a whole week! She was so, so happy to have him back in time for her recital as well as his 43rd birthday!
In actuality, Dave’s birthday had been the day before, but celebrating with her daddy on his actual birthday was important to Gigi this year. So, we extended the clock by about 17 hours, and Gigi and I baked a birthday cake and decorated the apartment. We also took the opportunity to celebrate Father’s Day, since Dave wasn’t home on Sunday. (I tried to keep it from her that she and Dave would be apart on Father’s Day, but people at Soho House on Sunday kept asking Gigi where Dave was!!) Gigi was so excited to surprise him with his cards and the decorations when he got home!
Before we knew it, our week of fun was coming to an end. We had one special day left, so we made it count: we took one more trip to Soho House for a morning swim and playtime, and in the afternoon, Gigi took her last swim lesson with Coach Emily.
From there, we rushed home, Gigi took a quick bath, and we were off to rehearsal for G’s dance recital. There wasn’t much time to get from A to B, so Gigi scooted over with wet hair!
On Magic Thursday, we spent a lot of quality time at home. I took my 100th at-home SoulCycle class, while Gigi danced along to the music. Afterwards, Gigi set up the loveliest tea party for just the two of us. After feeling so sick for so long, this was the day I realized I was finally starting to feel like myself again. Thank goodness.
Later in the morning, we got busy! I had several errands to run, so G and I walked all over the city getting things done and enjoying our surroundings. We walked as far south as Trinity Church. I reminded Gigi that Dave and I got married there and that she was also baptized there. For the first time ever, she noticed the graveyard and headstones, and I had the distinct pleasure of explaining to her just what all of that was about.
We stopped to snap a few pics along the way. I love seeing my sweet little girl among the vastness of New York City. We are so lucky to live in such an incredible place!
In the afternoon, we went to swimming, and then Gigi had her very last gymnastics class of the year! From there, we picked up ice cream and went straight to Washington Market Park to see a band perform and dance with our neighbors.
On the walk home, New York City did what it does best: it surprised and delighted us. In the middle of Duane Park was yet another live music performance — this time, a neighbor, his guitar, and an amp — where several neighbors had gathered to listen. The music was great, and Gigi danced nonstop. She could have stayed there forever.
Understandably, we slept in late this morning. When we woke, we had waffles with peanut butter, bananas, and honey, and Gigi did some math practice (subtraction with M&Ms). We spent the rest of the day playing until we went over to swim lessons. After swimming, we took a car out to Coney Island to explore the aquarium. Gigi fell asleep on the rainy ride out there.
Tuesday of magic week was a productive one: Gigi started swim lessons and attended her first Broadway performance! She loved her lessons with Coach Emily and left feeling excited to put her new skills to work at the Soho House pool.
Gigi has always loved theater and is no stranger to live New York City productions, but this was the first Broadway musical performance she had ever attended. We applied for tickets via a lottery (Broadway Direct) and we actually won! The tickets were super cheap, and while we literally had the last seats in the house, as they say, there is no such thing as a ‘bad seat’ at a Broadway performance. In fact, Gigi was convinced that we had the best seats. She said we could see EVERYTHING, while the poor patrons in the front row had a limited view. Love my optimistic, glass-half-full little girl.
When we got to the theater and started our way up the first escalator (of three), Gigi smiled and whispered to me, “Mama, this is MAGICAL.” She has so much excitement and so many blessings and gifts in her life… I’m very proud to know she has gratitude for these things.
The show was incredible and Gigi sat on the edge of her seat the entire time. She clapped during the parts she loved, and buried her eyes in my chest when she felt a bit scared. During intermission, she absolutely refused to leave her seat in fear of someone taking her seat. Instead, we stayed put, and Gigi enjoyed her Twizzlers, which we grabbed on the way in. By the end, Georgia Grace was so happy she literally skipped out of the theater. And although it was 10 at night, she asked if we could go out to dinner (for the record, I told her ‘no’).
We got up bright and early on Monday and went straight to the pool. Gigi had so much fun on the bus ride the day before, that we took the bus again that morning. We FaceTimed Daddy from the bus, and he was already out and about, too!
After the pool, we went to Barnes and Noble to buy the next book in Gigi’s first big girl chapter series, Mermaid in Black. We then came home to play and freshen up, and from there headed to Soho. I bought my first maternity dress of my pregnancy (Gigi helped choose), and then we enjoyed a special dinner at Lupa.
After dinner, we had a lovely walk home from Soho. Gigi paused in front of a pretty doorstep for a brief photo shoot, and then we stopped by Laduree (as a mother-daughter pair does when Daddy is away!) to grab some macarons.
When we passed a park, we found a bench and sat down to read G’s new book and enjoy our treats (she had a small chocolate macaron and an enormous pistachio one!).
The week between school and the start of summer camp is probably my favorite of the year. This year, Daddy spent the week in Ohio taking care of Mimi, so Georgia Grace and I devoted the entire week to doing exactly what we wanted. We had big things and small things on our list, but the most important ‘to-do’ was to enjoy quality time together. (Mission accomplished!) Fortunately, by this point, my 24-7 sickness had substantially subsided, and I was able to keep up with my energetic five-year old. I did get tired at night so I let Gigi sleep in our bed all week (which meant her bedtime routine was super simple and we were both able to sleep a good 11-12 hours per night!).
The day Dave left for Ohio, we all started our day together at the pool. After he left for the airport, Gigi and I practiced some math and then continued the fun at an ice cream play date with her friend, Lily. The girls played “store” and sold us all the items in our bags.
Our first full day together was action-packed! We got up early, went to the pool, had some brunch. stayed for arts and crafts, and then topped it off with a screening of Cinderella (the one with Whitney Houston). During arts and crafts, I was able to finish scheduling Gigi’s summer camps, and then I sent calendar invites to both Dave and me (which was cathartic and therapeutic for me after having spent two months being sick and doing nothing, but probably drove Dave bonkers). After the movie, we treated ourselves to a bus ride home. Gigi was THRILLED and loved every nanosecond of it!
Gigi wrapped up her Kindergarten year yesterday and today we kicked off summer the best way we know how… with a family trip to Soho House!
We are so proud of our Gigi! She has completed her first year of elementary school and is on her way to the first grade! She started the day with her affirmations, and then she was off to say goodbye to her teachers and friends.
School only lasted a few hours that day, so Dave and I stopped over at Soho House for breakfast and then made our way back to grab Gigi and head to the school picnic at Pier 25. There was pizza, face painting, water games, and frozen lemonade. It was super hot, though, so we got Gigi’s face painted and headed home.
Pics from our last couple of drop-offs of the year!
She can’t have cantaloupe with whipped cream – the video
After spending a week in San Antonio for work (you know, Texas, where folks are more likely to carry a concealed weapon than they are to wear a mask or get a vaccine), Dave brought home a special souvenir: Covid-19. Given we had just a couple weeks of school left and because I’m pregnant, we took extra precautions and Dave stayed in a hotel in Soho. As a result, Gigi and I got even more one-on-one time together. We kicked off our weekend with a special dinner at Mr. Chow (Gigi’s choice) and then got up early to go to the pool the next morning. Dave, of course, was miserable and sick the entire time, but thankfully, he recovered quickly and without issue. Thank god.
We also went to a birthday party for Matias, but Gigi and her buddy, Amoha, were absolutely inseparable! Gigi literally ran from me when it was time to go (she has never done that!). I was finally starting to feel better after having been sick for so long. This was the first time I was able to spend time with Gigi’s friends’ families since February. It was nice to be among people again 🙂
Gigi Makes Three 