I want to start this post by saying that my sister Tahni planned out the perfect birthday day for me! Perfect! The photo above was Dani’s reaction every time the loud trains came through the subway station. We started out with breakfast in the apartment and then we headed for the Museum of Natural History. I am a big fan of museums and was excited to go there. We knew we couldn’t see it all so we got a map and made our choices. Dani was a little freaked out about the animal exhibits and I think it’s because they were so much closer than the animals at the zoo. But we just reminded her that they weren’t real and showed her that there was glass.
My big, huge, major mistake of the morning was not packing a snack for Dani. She saw another kids goldfish and when I didn’t have any, she started to have a tantrum. It last all through us finding our way downstairs and buying her some pretzels until she finished the first one. Then from all that screaming and thrashing and being short on sleep the night before she passed out. Then Tahni and I enjoyed the rest of our museum time in quiet. HA!
I wished we had time to go and explore the Hayden Planetarium and see a show or two, but this photo will have to do 🙂
After we left the museum we headed towards the Upper West Side to go to Cafe Lalo for a light lunch and dessert!!!!!! It was the cafe featured in another of my favorite movies, “You’ve Got Mail” and I was so excited. I am such a movie nut and so this just made the trip better! The place was so adorable and even the bathroom was cute. I should have taken a photo in there – they had monkeys on the wallpaper. We shared a Tuscan fritttata which was delicious and Amaretto Cheesecake which was amazing. Some of the best cheesecake I have ever tried.
Hello Kitty had to fill in for Taggie on this trip because for the first time in 7 years I forgot her!!
After Cafe Lalo we strolled back to the subway station because it was really late and Dani needed a nap. We wanted her to be ready to go for our tasty birthday dinner later that night.
The restaurant Tahni chose was amazing!! I requested Italian and this place was authentic. Everything made from scratch and oh so wonderful. It had about 12 tables inside and 6 outside and we were happy we made a reservation as we watched them turn down so many walk in tables. We had an appetizer with prosciutto and caramelized onions served like bruschetta. Then Tahni had a squash ravioli I had homemade gnocchi with basil. For a side item we got brussel sprouts that seemed to be soaked in bacon grease. Oh mama! We split a chocolate lava type dessert. Dani loved everything and ate some of everything while looking cute and behaving so sweet in the place filled with adults.
Once home from our fabulous meal I put Dani in her jammies so her and Tahni could have some play time. She was quite obsessed with Tahni’s cat. On one hand she wanted to pet her and play with her and on the other hand she would act scared if the cat didn’t do exactly what she wanted. So, basically she was being a typical toddler. After Dani went to sleep Tahni and I had a cup of tea and enjoyed the rest of the evening. A great birthday!
