And So Goes November!

And just like that...November has passed. This is truly my favorite time of year and although I LOoooove the holidays autumn is truly my favorite! The fact that Noah and I are fall babies makes the season so much beautiful. Luckily I captured fall this year in various places and I still have more content I'd like to share so you'll still be seeing fall posts in the month of December. After all, winter doesn't officially begin until the 21st so I think I will still post fall-ish things! 

These were taken in Central Park before going to the Guggenheim to see the Kandinsky exhibit which I'll post later. Walks in Central park are my favorite and if I lived here I would be here every. single. morning! It seems like fall is still hanging in there and I'm grateful that it at least lasted until Thanksgiving. We are starting to get into the feels of the holiday season and will probably get a tree sometime this week! So long November! Now for some photos...

Noah-isms // Pandemic Fall Edition.

At 12 years old Noah's vocabulary has become way too extensive for me which means I don't feel the need to continue to document it. He''s pretty much speaking like a tiny adult and still says things that are "off the wall" (I blame that on watching too many you tubers who play video games.) Not that Noah plays a lot but he does have a Roblox account and being the cool mom that I am do allow him a good enough time to be on it. (Try 1-3 hours) but at least he doesn't talk back or throw a tantrum when I tell him it's time to wrap it up. He's a good kid and I honestly couldn't ask for a more respected, kind, and funny little boy. Well, he'll always be little in my eyes but he's growing up to be the quite young man and so far the age of 12 has been treating him well! Good thing he's only a tween for a year! Let's just hope that the teens won't change him too much! Here are a few Noah-isms that I have remembered him saying as of late....

Falling Leaves - Live From Our Backyard In New Jersey!

Fall is quickly coming to an end. We have been raking the leaves in our backyard and instead of throwing them in a bag for pick up the kids put them in a pile and have leaf fights and jump in it! This moment truly reminded me of their first leaf war years ago when we first moved to Jersey. It's a good thing these are fresh leaves that have fallen off from our tree in our backyard and not from a park. It brings me so much joy to see them get along and have fun with whatever they do as siblings. They are five years apart and these three are literally "three's a crowd." If I could write a sitcom I would call it "three's company-siblings of New Jersey." Sure Noah can be a pest sometimes to these girls when they want "girl time" but for the most part they will include him in any outing whether it's going to the library, bookstore, skating, going for a walk, or to the movies. These kids are always together 95 percent of the time (except when Lexie is in college) and that makes my mama heart so happy seeing that they all get along no matter the age difference. I captured a few photos (mostly blurry) of them tossing leaves up in the air and it probably took five takes for me to get the perfect shot of them throwing the leaves up in the air, but alas I got it! When photos don't look clear and precise it's ok. It's always the blurry, random ones that are the happiest! You can watch this little reel of them on my instagram and on my TikTok here. 

Macy's 95th Annual Thanksgiving Day Parade!

The Macy's thanksgiving day parade is really fun to experience in person if you are in the city. This was the first time where we actually arrived close to 6am! We live in Jersey so the drive that early in the morning only took us about 45 minutes on the turnpike and it was so nice not having any traffic entering in! I recommend watching it down 6th avenue near radio city. Central Park west is a nice spot but in all honesty being near the park where the sun hits pictures may not look so great. So when you have a tall building like Radio City Music Hall blocking the sun you're photos will most likely won't have any sun spots and what not. But if you're not photographer and just want to sit and watch the parade then by all means you can go to any spot where the balloons will be passing!

Autumn In New Jersey!

Our neighborhood is absolutely stunning in the fall. I never knew how beautiful autumn looked until we moved to this area. There are so many fall photos I want to document and being that it's still November and that fall is still hanging on want to show off how the garden state and Mother Nature get along! 

We live near the Peddie private school and a walking trail which is soooo nice. Temps are pretty cold right now so we haven't been getting our daily walks in our neighborhood but in the beginning of fall we walked along Peddie lake and man oh man just look at all that foliage! New Jersey definitely has her moments and in the fall she is absolutely gorgeous! 

Thankful for Pumpkin Patches!

Fall continues to fly by and I'm so grateful that we were able to start the season early by going to various pumpkin patches when October hit. Now that we are nearing the end of November it's truly bittersweet to look back at the some of the photos that didn't make it to the blog until now. As the kids get older they are more independent on choosing their own pumpkins as opposed to asking me, "mom, does this one look good?" Even my adult daughter will ask me that but this time none of them asked-even Noah. He will pick one without a stem and just grab one as long as it's orange! We had such a fun time at Trauger's in Bucks county. This is the second time we've come here and their little general store is filled with goodies such as apple slushes, donuts, banana bread and all kinds of sweets! Super delicious and the pumpkin season just went by too fast! Always grateful to capture my kiddos in action as they wander around the patch just having a blast!

Autumn In Woodstock, Vermont!

Woodstock is always a must when we go to Vermont and it is still the charming quaint town that I love! I love that Noah's birthday falls around the time we come and so far we have taken a picture on these steps! I look back at this post and I can't believe how fast he's growing! 

Everything in this town is so festive and there were so many porches decked out with gourds and pumpkins! It is so beautiful here and Jon even said he'd like to retire here. It is such an aesthetic place to escape to get away from the grind of Jersey. Who knows where we will end up once retirement hits! We are still young and will continue to road trip to Vermont every fall as long as our bodies allow the 5.5 hour drive! Now for some colorful photos!

Autumn in Vermont- Part One!

Our trip to Vermont this year was so fun and the fact that we only brought Noah with us made it special being that it is still his birthday season! Brace yourselves because when one goes to Vermont-especially in the fall you just don't take a few photos. You take a gazillion photos so I may have to split this into a couple of posts. 

There are so many quaint towns within a 70 mile radius and we hit all the ones we wanted to go to. We got ice cream at our favorite place in Ludlow and went home with a couple bottles of vermont maple syrup. Jon absolutely loves it here and we hit some random spots while driving all over creation just to capture the beauty of mother nature. 

November Rain In Central Park...

Autumn in New York is like a Nora Eprhon movie. Especially in the early morning hours after it rains. Going to Central Park early in the morning on a weekday was a dream. A dream because there was hardly anyone in sight. I saw a couple of photographers with their tripods doing their thing, a couple of joggers, some dog walkers but other than that I felt like I was all by myself. Capturing every single color and falling leaf that defines this season. And as much as I love the energy and action of the city, it's nice to have some silence. And just like my place in Jersey- it's nice to have a somewhere to go to where one can sit and walk around for hours to take in the beauty of mother nature all while appreciating the places we venture out to and live. And for me...that's Central Park in the fall. I also made a little reel for viewing pleasure and you can view it here on my Instagram or here on my tiktok. And now for some photos...

Autumn in Central Park NYC!

Last week on Veterans Day we went to the city to check out the fall foliage in Central Park and one thing for sure when we got there is that New York city is not DEAD!! There were so many people out riding the carriages, artists painting pictures of the bow bridge and San Remo apartments, and I saw about five brides having their picture taken. It was great. The city felt great. The energy was amazing and it felt so good to see everyone out and about having so much fun doing their own thing. It felt like summer in the fall when everyone goes out and ventures to central park to get away and go for long walks. Central Park is the perfect place for it too! Lexie and I had so much fun getting our cardio fix and seeing various parts of central park. Oh how I love this city and all the action that takes place with it. 

Stranger Things Pop-Up Store In Times Square!

For Noah's 12th birthday we had a little celebration in Times Square where a slice of chocolate fudge  from Juniors was his "birthday cake" and then we explored the Stranger Things pop-up store. It was the coolest installation and all the merchandise they sold took me back to the 80's where I wish my kids would experience that era. They had an arcade where Noah played old school video games that reminded me of my childhood and after leaving the store and re-watching the series stranger things for the third time I feel that the kids are hooked on the 80's. The Upside Down was pretty cool too! You can watch a little video I made on Tiktok here. It was the best and cheapest gift for Noah and he had such a fun time. We also had dinner at Hard Cafe per Noah's request and it was tasty. We hadn't been since Noah was a baby so it was nice going back to a nostalgic, familiar, touristy place from when we first moved here. Such a fun evening and I wish it didn't end. 

NOAH IS 12!

TIIIME flies by so fast and this kid is already 12! TWELVE!! For a dozen years I've got to hang out with the funnest, smartest, coolest kid on the planet. There's so much more of him I can describe in which words can't make up for but this is one kid who hardly stresses me out and is the chillest dude I know. So grateful to have him in our lives and how lucky he is to have three older sisters who love on him so much. What a guy! Noah Michael, happy birthday kid. You deserve so much joy in this life because of who you are. Love you so much and always remember this moment and all the little things in between that makes life with you so interesting to live for! 

Autumn In Industry City!

 

These pictures were taken during the "Hallowdays" at Industry city where they go all out in decorating for Halloween and all things fall-ish. I love all their decorations inside and outside this place. Ever since they redid this whole section of industry city years ago it has become one of our favorite go to spots when we want to explore somewhere different other than Manhattan. I personally like venturing out to every spot in the city where my kids can explore a variety of things. This is also the perfect place for a photo op! I captured a few photos of the kids surrounded by pumpkins, haystacks, and gourds. Such a cool spot to sit after an afternoon of shopping and eating. They always have different cool art installations where the little kids (and big) can have fun. Truly a place to come when visiting New York City! Especially during the holiday months! 

Appreciating Autumn In The Garden State.

Lately I have been really appreciating the beauty of Fall in my new hood. I feel that since turning 50 I don't want to take anything for granted. Not my friends. Not my family. Not The Lord. Not my neighbors. Not mother nature. Not the place that I live. We have been so blessed to live where we live and to have the neighbors we have. To have a couple of friends at church we can rely on, and to have a loving God who is there for us to show off his beautiful creations that he has done along with mother nature! And with that Lexie and I have been going on walks in the morning and just the other day picked up Noah after a half day of school to see the carpet of leaves in our town as well as running errands where we stumbled upon a park where the fall foliage was absolutely vibrant! I captured a few photos of my boy, and he is soooooo dang happy to be November baby and that he was born in one of the most colorful months of the year. New Jersey is no New York but in the fall...she's pretty dreamy. Just take a gander.....

Phantom Of The Opera In NYC!

Three days before Halloween Lexie and I went to our first broadway show after 18 months being closed due to the pandemic and it felt sooooooooo good to be inside a live theatre again. Broadway is definitely back and so many shows have opened up and right now is the time to go cause tickets are crazy cheap! We had such a great time and Phantom was amazing! I can watch that show over and over again! I cried like a baby so bring lots and lots of tissues if you are planning to see it! And if you are curious about the requirements to attend a broadway show, you must provide proof of vaccination along with your ID, a negative covid test and yes...you need to wear your mask throughout entire show. I promise going to broadway right now is so worth it!

Dia De Los Muertos At Rockefeller Center.

Last week I stopped by the Rockefeller center where they had a gorgeous display of Syrians celebrating Dia De Los Metros and this Selena display stopped me in my tracks along with many others were Mexico week was being celebrated. What an elegant display of elegantly dressed skeleton sculptures done my Mexican artists by Menchaca studio.

Welcome November.

Halloween may be over but the crisp air, crunchy leaves, displays of pumpkins and mums on quaint porches, and scents of pumpkin spice still linger in the air. I love this time of year and November is one of my favorite months in Autumn. Particularly because it's the month of only son's birthday and I can hardly wait to celebrate him. But for now I will share this lovely display of pumpkins and mums from our trip to Woodstock. What a perfect time year to visit. I'll share more about our trip later but just wanted to welcome November with a thankful heart and hope it'll be a great month for all!