Jeep Safari, Part Two

Here's Ty in front of the lighthouse and at the ruins of the gold refinery. Climbing up inside those ruins was a challenge for him since a few of the steps were half his height, but we made it to the top.

Jeep Safari

Aruba is not a very big island. It is easy to see the whole place in one day and that's what we decided to do. We signed up for a Jeep Safari which sounded like the best way to catch all the highlights. We had an awesome tour guide who just loved Ty and joked with him the whole day.

We saw the California Lighthouse, an old gold refinery and drove along the rocky shores facing the windward side of the island. The jeeps were open and the roads were rough. By the end of the day we were covered in dirt and most of us very wiggly from the rough roads (or lack of roads) we navigated. Here's the first post from that day showing Ty and the jeeps.

For some other more scenic Aruba shots from this day and others, check out my flickr set here.

Jolly Pirates

The resort we stayed at was just down the road from some shopping and restaurants. A few of the evenings we walked along the beach and then cut through by this pirate shop before heading to dinner. Mostly it was advertising a booze cruise on a pirate ship, but to Ty, it was just cool that they had a cannon outside and treasures inside.

Getting our Feet Wet

So many more smiles now that we have our luggage and we can get down to the water. Yes, please be jealous, because it really is that beautiful here.

It did not take long for Ty to get used to the sand and surf having only been in pools before. In fact most days he didn't want to leave the beach for anything.

Getting In the Island Mood

The first day we arrived in Aruba was not as relaxing as we would have liked it to be. We arrived very late in the evening (it was actually the next day by the time we left the airport) and American Airlines had left one of our bags back in Miami. So we decided to check out the property and get ourselves all set up with reservations for a jeep trip and boat adventure.

Along the beach at the hotel was this smoothie bar which we visited almost everyday. Ty's favorite was strawberry banana. He loved just watching them drop the fresh fruit in and making this tasty concoction. So even though we couldn't go swimming the first day, we were still enjoying ourselves.

A Short Musical Interlude

Captured our little performer after dinner tonight singing this cute little ditty he learned at camp.

G-Pop's Golf Academy

Graduating from the miniature golf course to the real putting greens, Ty gets a lesson on how to hold the club from G-Pop.

This is the last post from our CT/NYC trip. So get ready for the next round of posts from our amazing adventure to Aruba!

Fun With Cousin Swann

Ty got to spend more time with Swann when she came up to Westport over the weekend. We went over to the country club to meet up with G-Pop after his round of golf. The kids were so giddy and wired they needed to run around a bit outside before we had lunch.

The second image was not set up, they found this tree and started doing a peekabo with eachother. Just watching them interact was such a joy for all of us.

Compo Beach

A quick visit to the playground at Compo Beach in Westport on the Long Island Sound.

The Amazon Jungles of CT

The sun peeked out long enough to get this nice tranquil shot behind my parent's house. There was so much rain in the area that everything was overgrown like a jungle. We tried to bring some rain back with us to Austin, but had no such luck.

Grand Central Station

After our day and a half in NYC it was time to head back to CT. We took the subway down to Grand Central Station and hopped on the New Haven line. Ty has visited the station before when his only frame of reference was the movie Madagascar. This time he wasn't as excited about the station as he was about riding the train. Dad just wanted to sit down.

Ty and GG

Ty grows as GG shrinks. At least that's what she said as well.

We had a nice lunch and visit with Ty's great-grandmother while in the city. She doesn't get many opportunities to see him and it is very special that he got to spend time with her on this trip.

(Editor note: In real time Ty and I have already returned from our 2nd summer trip, but we are still catching up with images and stories from this visit. Eventually it will all sort out, but be excited to see the awesome shots coming soon from Aruba!)

Happy Birthday America

Ty proudly standing in front of the NY Stock Exchange building.

The Big Piano

No visit to FAO in NYC is complete without checking out the BIG piano.

Look Out Frank Oz

Our NYC visit also took us to the other side of Central Park where Fifth Avenue meets 59th Street. Home of one of the only two remaining FAO Schwarz retail stores in the USA. Thankfully this place is still there because it remains one of my favorite stores to browse. I personally know a lot about it having worked there one summer after college.

They did not, however, have this new cool department where I snapped this photo of Ty. You can create your own Muppet! How cool is that? Here's Ty holding one of the samples that really works. One of the puppeteers showed him how to hold the puppet and the rod. Great gift idea indeed.