Friday

The weekend started with a wild goose chase for green tea matcha powder:



I finally found it!

And then I made green tea cupcakes with it. Happy Birthday, Dad!



Ben got in, and he had shaved his beard! Can you believe it:



Here is a photo of my dad posing with a green tea cupcake. He was very happy with how they came out (The vodka penne, however, was an abomination! Totally weird, due to burnt garlic and pastey tomatoes. Everyone was very polite about it, but... ew.)



After dinner, we went to BAMCafe, and they were doing this cool Korean music night. It was gorgeous up there on the second floor. Lots of twinkly lights...



We then came home and went to bed...

Saturday

Perfect Saturday, Phase One:
Long Meandering Walk to Go Get Coffee.

We went through the farmer's market at Grand Army Plaza...



Then I returned a library book. You know something's right in the world when there's a line of people waiting to bang down the door of the library on a Saturday morning.



I sat Mom and Dad down in front of the fountain I'm in love with, the one right outside of the Brooklyn Museum. They agreed it is the best, most charismatic fountain they've ever spent time with.



At last! We made it to the Glass Shop, in Prospect Heights. They liked it a lot:




Phase Two:
Brooklyn Flea Market.



So rad. I bought earrings that look like safety pins.

Then we were starving. So we went to Olea's.

Phase Three:
Outrageously Delicious Mediterranean Brunch.



I will spare you most of the gory details, only to mention that the appetizer we got was a baguette with tahini-honey to spread on it, with coarse sea salt to sprinkle over it. When we ordered it, the waiter's eyes grew wide with approval and I was pretty sure he was going to join us for it.

Phase Three:
Go to Central Park and Meet the Little David-and-Oona-Nugget

Leo Rocket is beautiful. He crawls and makes a lot of fish-like movements.



I had a great brief talk with David about fatherhood, gender, and playwriting school.

Phase Four:
If I Had to Spend a Night in Any Museum...

The American Natural History Museum is worth all the hype, and MORE.



(it was crazy to feel like some of these skeletons were my friends because of the movie.)



BIRDS ARE DINOSAURS THAT STILL EXIST !!!!



(coolest 3D genealogical chart EVER:)



(this is a dinosaur armpit:)



This was not a museum that was afraid to hang heavy things from the ceiling...



This was definitely the weirdest, awesomest new dinosaur discovery of the day for me (and that's saying a lot). Is it just me, or would he have followed me home and become my best friend if it wasn't for that glass between us? :



Mr. Mastadon Farm...



Ladies and Gentlemen, the following picture is not for the faint of heart. You are about to see a tiny dinosaur built like a gazelle but sized more like a bunny rabbit, escaping from its predator.



That's crazy.

Anyway, a lot of this museum's education took place on the floor, which I liked.



A triceratops, staring me down with its hollow eye sockets...



We become weirdly invested in the minutiae of various stages of evolution!...



Echoes of the movie...





Between you, me, and Whoopi Goldberg (the narrator), the "Journey to the Stars" show at the planetarium made me cry. And I am still trying to figure out how we can be made up of a teaspoon of former stars.



Phase Four:
Cut Through Central Park to Get to Dinner

The park was really acting like it had something to prove about the glory of the world. It was pulling out all the stops...



This is a white bird we saw in a beam of sunlight:



And this is Mom and Dad at a castle, observing the bird with wonder:



Phase Five:
Spontaeous Trip to the Roof of the Met

Sometimes you've just got to seize opportunity:



I love the roof of the Met:



So did my dad:



So did my mom:



Our whole day was starting to make me feel blessed by little tiny angels:



And believe it or not, it then got better.

Phase Six:
Insanely Delicious Vegan Restaurant



When you walk into Candle Cafe, it actually SMELLS green.

Aaah, the rare luxury (and favorite torture) of an entirely safe menu in which all choices are viable...



ALWAYS GO FOR THE SEITAN (especially when marinated mushrooms are involved):



"Oops! Did I order this?"



And then, just because we were insatiable, we went back to the Met for more art. It looked pretty at night:



Phase Seven:
Q Train Home!

Sunday

We started the day with a stop at Gorilla Coffee Roasters...



We then took a slight detour to the site of the Best Muffins I've Ever Had, to tide people over til Brunch. This is Mom and Dad wracked with indecision about which muffin to choose.



This is their choice:



Then we bought bagels on our way to Prospect Park for a picnic under a tree. Mmmm, I want to be there now.



Next stop: BROOKLYN BOTANICAL GARDENS!



I love stuff like this:



No need to apartment hunt! I've found our new house, Mike...



Forget-Me-Nots! And lots of them!



This place was a haven for turtles...



But THIS place is downright Turtle Paradise...



PEONY MADNESS!!!!



Happy Mother's Day, Mom!!



A really beautiful day to wander around in there. And the wisteria didn't hurt.



Next: a jaunt to the Lower East Side! This is Dad posing by the KATZ sign, which was more of a tourist adventure than a culinary one since the line for a pastrami sandwich was down the block.



Then back to Brooklyn, with time running out. This is us ordering sandwiches at Bierkraft, which were tragically not ready in time for Mom and Dad to eat. But as God as my witness, they did not go to waste!!



A blissful time was had by all! Thanks to everyone who made it possible.