Overdue

Well, I've clearly underestimated how difficult it would be to keep up with the blog and work full time and be a good father and husband. But since being a good father and husband is my top priority, and working is necessarily my second, the blog must come further down the list. Nonetheless, I'm going to try to keep up with it albeit less frequently.

I got back from Tajikistan on Friday afternoon, which gave us exactly a week to take care of our many doctors appointments and gather our belongings for the move to New York. Aiden grew so much in the few weeks that I was in Dushanbe, I felt like I had to get to know him all over again. Now he's laughing and babbling and playing all the time. I don't think he forgot me because he smiled when he saw me.

Another milestone was giving him his first non-formula meal. We got some baby cereal, mixed it with his formula, and went to town. It wasn't a total failure because I'm sure he actually ate some, but a lot came out his nose or got sneezed all over me and Stephanie. Nonetheless, we had fun. Before we left for New York, Aiden got to meet his new 2nd cousin, Olivia. She's only a few months younger than him, so it will be nice that he has someone his age in the family.

For my assignment in New York, no funding was provided for Stephanie and Aiden's travel, or to move our belongings. So we decided to rent a van. Getting all of Aiden's things plus everything Stephanie and I need for four months into one van was no small task, but the months we spent moving around every couple of weeks gave me some formidable packing skills and I made it happen. I could even see out of the side view mirrors.

Our trip up was blessedly uneventful - no traffic at all until we hit the Lincoln Tunnel. And then, there we were, back in Manhattan! It was a wonderful feeling. Our apartment is a rather spacious one bedroom with an embarrassment of closet space by New York standards. We have a very nice view of the Queensborough Bridge, which allows us to appreciate both sunrises and moonrises.

The location in mid-town couldn't be better. There's a grocery store a couple of blocks away, and a cheese store with every type of cheese you can imagine just around the corner from us. There's no shortage of restaurants either, so we have plenty to keep us busy - there's even a Japanese restaurant across the street that does all-you-can-eat sushi for $25! Oh how we've missed New York. Aiden loves the city and enjoys going for walks in his stroller. He gets lots of attention when we go out - people literally stop and ooh and ahh over him - and that's really unusual in New York. (Not that we're surprised).

Aiden gets a lot of attention in restaurants too - we've had at least two experiences where waiters wanted to take Aiden back to the kitchen. Once, a guy actually took him from Stephanie to play with him - that was a little unnerving, but the guy meant well. Aiden got to go on his first subway ride when we went down to the San Genaro festival in Little Italy - he seemed to enjoy it.

While we were downtown, we had donuts from the Doughnut Plant - which were amazing. I could write an entire other blog about the things we eat, but I'll move on.

My office is almost directly across the street from the UN, and only about a 10 minute walk from home, so that's been nice. I couldn't ask for a better commute. Aiden and Stephanie even walk me to work sometimes.

The work is challenging and the hours can be long, but I enjoy it. Part of my job was to report on the speeches given as part of the general debate in the General Assembly (every country and some observers give a speech - almost 200 in total). Luckily I didn't have to cover them all, but it was interesting to hear what countries from all over the world have to say. The speeches are a matter of public record, but I won't comment on them too much. But there were some interesting times when the U.S. was getting bashed pretty harshly and it was odd sitting at the United States' table during those.

We had a nice surprise at work shortly after we arrived. Secretary Clinton and President Obama came to the building for a 'meet n greet' where they each gave speeches about the importance of the work we do. It was a really neat experience. Even better, I was able to get Stephanie and Aiden in too. At the end, President Obama was shaking hands with the children but we weren't that close to the front. Just as he turned away, I held Aiden out and said "Sir, how about a footshake?" That seemed to get his attention because he smiled, reached out, grabbed Aiden's foot, and gave it a little shake. It was a great moment. Unfortunately, Stephanie wasn't in a good spot to take a picture, but it will be a fun story to share with Aiden when he gets older.