This past weekend, we enjoyed a summer rarity…..a wedding-free weekend. Can I get a, “Whooo hooo?!!” Don’t get me wrong, we have great jobs and feel really fortunate to not only get to do what we love, but to get to do it together. Still, come August, we’re feeling pretty burned out after working 7 days a week, often with 12+ hour days. The summer months go by in a frenzied pace and being able to have a weekend off to stop and just breath feels AMAZING!

We couldn’t have asked for a better way to spend our 2 days off than hanging out in New York City with my sister, Deb, and her wonderful hubby, Ritchie, and super DEEEE-LICIOUS son, Michael.

Michael’s story began in the early morning hours of June 2, 2008. Unfortunately, I haven’t spent much time with Michael over the past year. Deb & Ritchie live in Los Angeles and we only see each other a couple of times a year. But, this summer, Deb’s work took her to NYC for a couple of months.

Andy & I got up early on Saturday morning and drove to the big city. We hadn’t seen Michael since Christmas and couldn’t wait to get reacquainted. Deb had warned us that Michael was a little clingy and might not warm up to us right away. Slightly worried, though not deterred, we planned to make our presence known and shower our nephew with oodles of love.

As soon as we saw each other, Michael greeted us with a big, and now toothy, smile! A lot had changed in the months since our last visit. Our monkey face went from being just a wee baby to a little man with a big personality. Happily, he didn’t seem the least bit shy or intimidated by our unfamiliar faces. I like to think that somewhere in our genetic makeup we recognize our peeps.

After dropping off our bags, we headed out for a trip to one of Mikey’s favorite city water parks. Visiting NYC in the throws of a heat wave really made us appreciate why so many New Yorkers make the 4-hour trip every weekend to our sandy Cape shores. When it’s hot in the city, there’s nothing to do but stay inside where there’s AC or plant your butt under one of the many fountain parks that dot the city and provide a cool respite from the sweltering heat.

The joy on Michael’s face as he played in the fountains filled our hearts with such love and happiness. It was too hard to just pick a few to share, so here’s a little slideshow we put together highlighting our time together. Meet Mikey and all his sweet yumminess!

Thanks Deb & Ritchie for letting us crash at your place and invade your space for the weekend. Thanks too for letting us hijack Mikey while we were there. It was sooooo good to spend that time with all of you! We love you guys more than words could ever say and can’t wait to see you all again! Big love, C&A xoxoxo