One of the greatest moments of my life...
A trip to the aquarium created the new "forever meme" in our family
Starting this past Saturday morning, our nanny has been off for two weeks. Yes, sound the alarms 🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨 things are about to get hectic. Before I go any further, and so I don't fully sound like a spoiled father, I want to explain the New York nanny situation to my friends from other cities….
Jess moved to NYC in 2016, and I followed shortly after. What drew us to this city was an incredible career opportunity for her and a significant life one for me. I met the woman of my dreams, and just six months after our first date, fate took her out east to become a news anchor in the world's #1 TV/media market. Sensing what I risked losing, I sold my house and car, packed up three dogs, and moved across the country as quickly as possible (I think I just showed up on her doorstep one day saying I would move in).
So, for me personally, 🍎 = ✈️→🙋🏻♀️→💍→👰🏻♀️→🤰🏻→👶🏽👶🏽→👨👩👧👦
Suddenly, together, we had our whole lives ahead of us here in the city. What we didn't have? Our parents or siblings anywhere near us (critical support systems for new parents). So, without family, we would naturally turn to friends for support… but that's not how shit works in Manhattan, at least not like it does in the suburbs of Las Vegas.
People's lives are scheduled down to the second here, so there isn't much time to hang out for a few hours while the kids play in the backyard or basement. We didn't have reliable babysitters or even apartment neighbors who could walk our dog in a pinch, leave alone take care of our kids for an hour. Daycares are expensive and, with the rise of the pandemic, were not a risk we were willing to take. So, without options, we searched for a full-time nanny.
Thankfully, Ana came into our lives almost like a gift from the heavens. She became a core part of our family and a vital force in our kids' lives. She's been with us since Nico was 6 months old, so the better part of 4 years, and I thought we appreciated her to an extreme degree. It turns out we need a reminder every now and then.
Enter the current situation, Ana is off for her summer vacation, my mother-in-law is saving us this week by watching them solo for the very first time, and I'm working out of our gym, 1/2 a block away in case I'm needed for any emergency from an injury to a vomit-inducing tantrum about how when mommy's on TV, she doesn't talk to them like when she's on FaceTime 🤷🏾♂️. It'll be like this for the next 6 days. It'll feel like a month. Things will never be the same again.
The first big activity I planned for our first weekend with the kids was a trip to the New York Aquarium. So, last Sunday morning, Grammy and I packed up the kids and hopped the 1→2→Q trains for our hour-long trek to Coney Island. We saw sharks, penguins, jellyfish, king crabs, lobsters, all kinds of fish of all sizes, and…. a 550-pound seal at the Aquatheater Show.
I started this week's newsletter by mentioning one of the greatest moments of my life that even inspired the creation of a new family meme. It should be no surprise that everything I've written up to this point is nothing more than a lead-in to that moment. Rather than bother it by over-explaining, I will simply present you with… Coco's first time seeing a seal and the joyous laugh made this moment one of the greatest of my life.*
*Yes, the little things mean everything these days.
Thank you for reading! Be good to each other,
Rehan