L.A. Kids Hit New York City

CC gets a taste of FAO Schwartz

Although it was only a few weeks ago, our trip to New York feels more like a distant memory.

What with all the soccer sign-ups, haircut appointments and just life in general, we're definitely back in full L.A. mode. But I did want to share some photos from our trip -- and remind myself of just how much fun we really had.

Rocking the subway

Our first full day was jam-packed with trips to Grand Central Station, the Central Park Zoo (and children's zoo!) and FAO Schwartz.

Hangin' with a sheep at the children's zoo in Central Park.

The kids went crazy for the zoo, where we ended up spending most of the day. The weather was amazing -- we somehow arrived during a mild pocket, in between one polar vortex and another -- and the kiddos loved checking out sea lions, ducks, snow leopard cubs, sheep, cows and pot-bellied pigs.

What I loved was all the walking we did -- from Grand Central to the park, a few stops in Midtown, then to FAO Schwartz, where CC didn't know what to buy first. (She ended up buying a stuffed orange version of a candy Nerd.)

On our next full day, we hit the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where we saw the unimaginable armor that men used to wear centuries ago. Also, the Egypt wing, where the kiddos got to see the Temple of Dendur.

Will in front of The Temple of Dendur.

It was great looking at a snowy but relatively warm Central Park through the museum windows.

Central Park

Our next attraction was the Museum of Natural History, where we saw the huge blue whale, the dinosaurs and the many dioramas of animal life. Will loved just running around, going up and down stairs.

The best part, however, was connecting with friends and family. We stayed with two sets of friends while we were in town, and spent time with Ian's brother and his wife.

It reminded me of just how important it is to stay connected to friends. Even though they're so many miles away -- and it's been way too long since I've seen them -- it's so important to make new memories with them (ones with our growing children), so that we don't lose or outgrow the people who mean so much to us.