Mini-vacation in Tampa

In this busy season of PCSing and working up 'til the last minute and tons and tons of moving parts and goodbyes to friends and trying to squeeze in farewells to all of our favorite New York things... I have gotten woefully behind on sharing our adventures.

We've been back from Tampa for two weeks, for instance, and I am just now posting this unbelievably adorable photo of Finley in her first turn as flower girl, at Ashton & Leah's absolutely stunning wedding.

Finley's excitement at the prospect was contagious (rehearsal dinner shenanigans on the left), and (hilarious photo on the right notwithstanding), Ford decided he loved Jewish weddings.

We all did.

We were beyond lucky to have Jayne join us to help wrangle kids (and celebrate her retirement!) in at the stunning- if owned by a crazy person- waterfront airbnb we stayed at for the long weekend

where the kids grew gills in the pool

and discovered water guns,

we threw this unbelievable pool party with all of our Tampa friends,

and I even got in a morning paddle or two.

Our mini-vacation (the last bit of real relaxing we would get in before the move) really hit the spot. And reminded me how grateful I am to have kids who are terrific travelers. I flew with them alone, since Seth was still in a wheelchair and opted to drive both ways (in the most heroic act of friendship ever.)

This is what they look like in the airport. It's my favorite thing about parenting to date.

Except maybe for this (Finley exploring downtown Tampa with her "nap," looking like the ultimate tourist.)

And these last few photos of the week, of Ford doing what he loves on vacation. Boating with Uncle Mike, and ingesting large quantities of carbs.

Memorial Day Weekend, and Five Years

This is how Ford kicked off the long weekend. In a towel, in Mom and Dad's bed, eating waffles with Nutella. In my next life, I'm definitely coming back as one of my kids.

I hate hate hate missing out on a big trip for one of my favorite holiday weekends, especially since we originally started a tradition of going back to Maine, where we got married, since the 28th is also our anniversary.


Unfortunately, USMA graduation kills Memorial Day weekend, and we didn't even go since it was about 105 degrees. I did get to participate in the commissioning of this kid with some spectacular Army girlfriends, which was awesome, and Seth did a commissioning for one of his mentees.

Still, the traffic was crazy and there were porto-lets everywhere, and on Sunday we fled for incredible Stepping Stones Children's Museum in Connecticut. Which was obviously awesome.

Even if all Ford wanted to do was drive this bus. (And check out Finley the astronaut!)

After which we had rainy day clam chowder on the Norwalk waterfront at this incredible Irish bar that had bar table-height high chairs. Our kind of place!

We spent the rest of the weekend, despite the crummy weather, as it was meant to be spent. Riding bikes outside,

remembering the fallen (here, adding rocks to the cairn on top of Popolopen Torne),

and being conned by the people we love into doing things we absolutely despise. And by "we," there, I mean "me." And by "things we absolutely despise" I mean "Dave and Buster's. With toddlers."

This is how we spent our anniversary. Plus the Disney store, which was too frenetic to get pictures but resulted in presents for both of the spoiled beasts. And Seth and the kids had so much fun, I couldn't do anything but crack up (and worry about sensory overload, and wonder what they had on draught.)

Five years (!!) in, life on Team Nieman continues to be a crazy, unpredictable, sometimes tough but always full of laughter, ride. It would be silly to say we wouldn't change a thing- we'd love for everybody to be up on two feet, for e- but we never stop feeling grateful.

Especially for these little crazies. This might be my favorite of the week. Finley the Star, singing Taylor Swift in a fisherman's hat and loving the "microphone" at the Children's Museum. 

Mother's Day at Mohonk.

I had been daydreaming about Mohonk ever since a gorgeous trail run up to Skytop when I was in school last year. I was working my way through a hand-me-down "Best Hikes in the Hudson Valley" book from Mom, and the trail description hadn't prepared me for rounding a corner and seeing this stunning castle carved out of rock on the shores of an emerald green lake studded with, no kidding, gondolas. It had looked like paradise.

It was also notoriously expensive, exclusive, and hard to get a reservation.

For my birthday/ Mother's Day, we finally got to go. It was a major bucketlist dream come true for me, and an absolute nightmare for Seth. One of the old throwback mountain lodges people like me really do daydream about, it also had no TVs and abysmal ADA access. I know he's tired of everything being hard and terrible in a wheelchair. Seth's acquiescence to a Mohonk trip anyway was the nicest Mother's Day present, even if he at one point told me his favorite part was the room service and a movie on his phone.

Plus he can't not have enjoyed the food, which was farm-to-table fabulous, complete with chefs who let three year olds come up with their own orders. 

While Ford and I went nuts for risotto and potatoes and croissants that melted in your mouth (oh my!) (carbs!) (I also loved the salad), the daughter after Seth's own heart gnawed on rare wagyu beef in her finest Grandma-gifted occasion dress

and everyone was taken in by the design-your-own cupcake bar.

 The kids went nuts for the stunning and largely empty pool,

and the rest of the golf and hiking and horseback riding and just take-your-breath-away family fun, despite crummy weather, are pictured here.

It was a Mother's Day/ birthday getaway for the ages. Even if tonight we're under tornado warnings and almost out of chocolate covered strawberries, so it seems we're back to reality.

The stunning memories of this one, though, remain, and I couldn't feel luckier to get to explore incredible places with our kids at this imperfectly perfect age. The extraordinary views, punctuated by peals of laughter and bouts of tears and shrieks of "not NICE, Finley!" but also whispered "I'll help you, Ford" will never be forgotten. Time really does fly, and it was a tremendous reminder that these seconds are endlessly precious.

And a shoutout to my Mom, and Seth's Mom, who both remind us that these are "the best of times." 

I'm repeating that under my breath as I do post-getaway laundry at midnight. Thanks to you both for making me believe it.

And to my incredible sister Sara, who makes it look fun; and my sister-in-law Lisa, who makes it seem effortless. (It is in reality only sometimes the first and almost never the second.) You are both my heroes. Cheers across the miles.

39.

Nine years ago, with a deployment date postponed and no birthday plans, I signed up for a North Face 50 miler at Bear Mountain, grabbed a last-minute ticket from RDU to JFK, and spent my 30th birthday running my first 50. I celebrated after an incredibly long day with a beer in an ice bath before I passed out in the Suffern Marriott around 9pm.

Hard to believe it's been that long, or how much life has changed in less than a decade. I ran a slower, less painful, and way more fun 50 on the same (crazy tough) course Saturday with Tommy Ryan, a 260 pound friend of Seth's whose finish was nothing short of a mind-over-matter miracle. Other than the Hogeye Marathon a few weeks ago, I myself haven't run more than 6 miles in over a year, and I haven't done an ultra in four. It was good to get one under my belt, although the ol' joints are a tad rusty. It was awesome, though, to run across the finish line with kids yelling "Go Mom!" (Or, in the case of Mikayla the jerk, "I can run faster than you!")

I definitely passed out at 9pm after one beer again, though.

Seth was an absolute trooper and brought F+F out to the course twice (this is the Nieman + Ryan kids terrorizing the aid station at mile 41)

and I was so grateful I took them off his hands so he could get papers graded Sunday. Which meant that the post-race pedicure I had promised myself had to be shared. F+F had such a good time I'm probably never going to be able to sneak a solo foot massage again.

We've spent all week celebrating (and I've spent it limping about and feeling those nine years), mostly because Finley loves any occasion for a party.

Seth ordered every dessert imaginable for my birthday/ post-run blowout, and who can blame the kid for enjoying chocolate covered strawberries for breakfast?

We cruised the aisles in style

and hit up Chili's, a family fave for the table games and 2 for 1 wine.

And when the ever-thoughtful Seth planned a date night and hired a babysitter on the big day, I cancelled and we took the kids, their friends, and said babysitter to the Captain's Table (biker bar with a giant sandbox) instead. It was an absolutely perfect celebration of another trip around the sun with the fun, funny, sand-and-chocolate covered people I love.

I wouldn't trade a second of the last nine years; and if being fatter, slower, more sleep-deprived, and way less glamorous is the price one pays for waking up to these little bed-stealing faces... well, cheers.

Turkeys and tennis dresses.

It's been a weird week. Seth got out of the hospital just in time for me to have to leave for a quick 24 hour trip to DC for the Regimental Ball. I couldn't get out of it and was worried sick about leaving him alone with both kids so soon after surgery. I lined up lots of friends to come help, but it seems he sent them all away and did just fine on his own. I am grateful, and impressed. When I got home, Finley was in the yard in her ballet recital dress, covered in chocolate. Both kids were happy as clams and the house was still standing.

I, on the other hand, got all the way to DC and realized I didn't have the (for no good reason detachable) buttons from my mess dress shirt and the military clothing store was already closed. So I went to the freaking ball in a tennis dress. I looked ridiculous and it was about as much fun as those things usually are. For obvious reasons, I did not take pictures.

I came back to still-wintry weather, and dragged the kids to Grasshopper Grove in their snow jackets.

By Tuesday, though, it was 80 degrees and sunny. Finley's back to terrorizing the neighbor kids with the hose, and we're hoping this means the long, gray winter is finally over.

Tuesday was also the opening day of turkey season, and Seth and Finley killed one. I don't even want to know how they got it back to the truck, but we ate it for dinner last night and it was delicious. (Although Seth neglected to take any hunting pictures, so instead I have this absurd one of Finley playing dressup in an atrocious outfit at the Ryans'.)

 Ford got to hang out with his favorite cadets, and practice his football skills with the pros.

I survived the Corbin Conference, an unbelievable- but insanely work-intensive- celebration of women in the military with this awesome crew.

And Finley celebrated her second-to-last ballet class before the big recital by acting terrible with her friends, as per usual. These have to be the photos of the week.

At any rate, we're chugging along, and somewhere in there trying to find a house in North Carolina and schedule movers and prep for graduation week, which is- crazily enough- right around the corner!