Mercer's heart operating device

When we told Mercer that MeMa was in the hospital because she needed to fix up her heart, he ran straight into the living room and constructed a device to help with the surgery:

It consists of a toy drill bit, plastic swirl pop container, and some sort of small action figure helmet attached to a giant clamp; which, of course, is clamped to the top of the swirl pop container. We're running it through the U.S. Patents Office now and Pop is writing up a quick article for the Journal of the American Medical Association. Fingers crossed.

Feel better, MeMa!

Polo on Governors Island

Governors Island is a fantastic day trip destination located smack in the middle of New York harbor. Only 800 yards from the southern tip of Manhattan, the island served as a military base since 1794. It was also part of the coastal defenses that made England think twice about attacking the city during the War of 1812. It remained an important base until 1966, when it transferred over to the Coast Guard. They left in 1996 and today, it is open for people visit.

It's free to visit the island and there is plenty to explore. The views are amazing; one can take in views of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Staten Island, New Jersey, the Statue of Liberty, and all sorts of bridges and water traffic. Along with food carts and playgrounds, there are arts, crafts, bike rentals, museum exhibits, and plenty of historical buildings to tour, including Fort Jay, which dates back to 1794. It's somewhat eerie to be surrounded by scores of vacated buildings while pushing your kid back and forth on a swingset, but it's all part of the experience. Big plans are in store for the island, though, and it won't look the way it does now for long.

Mom and Pop have been wanting to visit for awhile, but what drew us this weekend was the chance to see some free polo, because how often does that happen? Plus, Prince Harry was there. No brainer! Turns out the island hosts tons of great events throughout the summer.

Too cool for school. On the way to the island.

Soisson's Landing.

Old barracks.

Mercer gets a dirty water dog.

Old living quarters reminded Pop of college.

Some vacant buildings are used for artists' studios and installations. Mercer helped this piece become worth looking at.

Fort Jay.

Polo time.

But first, some more great views. Here is the southern tip of Manhattan.

The Statue of Liberty and the Staten Island Ferry.

The Polo proved to be pretty boring, but I think the 93 degree heat had something to do with that.

A visit to Fort Tryon Park

Fort Tryon Park is a gorgeous park located on the northern end of Manhattan. Mom and Pop had been there once before years ago to eat at the delicious New Leaf Cafe, but it was evening then, and there wasn't much time to stroll the grounds.

Pop wanted to go for the views of the George Washington Bridge, but Mercer found plenty more to do as well. He found honey bees, butterflies, all kinds of flower species, a plethora of steps, underpasses, Russian grandmothers, benches, rolling fields, and cute dogs. It was a boiling hot day but the towering trees provided ample shade for cooling off. We'll definitely be back.

Spider at the park on Father's Day

Mercer makes an eight-legged friend.

Mercer retrieves a soccer ball, first person style.

Snacking at the park

Summer is here.

Father's Day 2010

Nothing special for Father's Day, but that's what made it great. We went and had some donuts at Mr. Donut in Pleasantville (Mercer had one with orange sprinkles) for breakfast. Then, we went to a playground and then to the park to play soccer. It was hot (91 degrees) so we mostly stayed in the shade. We made friends with an orange spider. Then Mom came with some picnic snacks. We had water, grape juice, Triscuits, frozen grapes, and dried fruit. Then it was home for a nap; well for Mom and Mercer, anyway. Pop stayed up to watch soccer.

Then everyone woke up to a flash thunderstorm, but it was soon over. We zipped over to the shopping center in White Plains to do some chores and then it was off to dinner at Ruth's Chris Steak House. Mom and Pop had fillets of beef with mushrooms and potatoes. Mercer basically had a whole loaf of bread with butter. He also had some chicken and french fries. Oh, and Pop finished his meal with a Chivas scotch. Yum.

On the way home, we stopped again to play some soccer. Mercer is getting pretty good at dribbling, though he needs to learn to use his feet when trying to change direction and not his hands. Now it's time for a bath and some relaxation for Mom and Pop. And more soccer on TV.

A visit from Grandpa

Grandpa came up to visit last weekend. There wasn't much chance to take pictures, but we did a lot. We went to a shaving store, a local downtown farmer's market, the Ossining Street Fair (where we toured an old aqueduct), and then we watched the United States play England on TV.

Emma's birthday party

A few weekends back, Mercer went to Emma's birthday party. Emma is a friend from school; she and Mercer have been in class together since the very beginning. The party was in a play center and there was plenty of energy expended.

On the climbing wall.

A blurry birthday girl.


One of Mercer's friends from school.

Emma
A barrel of monkeys: Mercer, Shaina, and Emma.

Playing a treasure hunt game.

Pizza time. Mercer was lucky enough to sit next to the birthday girl.


Toot.

R.I.P. Sharpie

Mercer's pet fish, Sharpie, died this past week. He was a Beta fish and he got it for his birthday, so he lasted about two months. That's about one and a half months longer than we thought he would last.

Anyway, Mercer and Mom had a flushing ceremony on Tuesday, but our toilet didn't quite cooperate the first time. Stay tuned for Sharpie 2.0. This time, he's red!

Sing Sing Prison

Pop found this great photograph of Sing Sing Prison from the vantage point of just across the Hudson River, looking east. We've been in Ossining for awhile now and Sing Sing Prison is just something the locals live with. Pop and Mercer go running and bike-riding along the prison walls a few times each week. We see the guards changing shifts in the evening and hear the chatter from inside the walls. Click on the photo for some more detail.

Cleaning out the iPhone

In this episode we hang out in bed, visit a Duck Race in Mount Kisco, backpack to the store, try out the scooter, play in the park, use our new Transformers soccer ball, eat dino nuggets, play pretend in Pottery Barn, and show off our new Batjet/Batcar.