Tea for three

Alexis took Harry and me to a darling little (25 seats max) English restaurant in Chelsea when we visited her in New York to celebrate her 30th birthday over Labor Day weekend. We had the waitress take our picture as we ate Shepherd's pie, salmon and cream cheese tea sandwiches and a salad with walnuts and Stilton. The food was quite divine, like being back in England. They even bring you your own china teapot when your order your tea, filled with boiling water (unlike the very fancy place where we had dinner that night), just like they do in "jolly old."

Alexis recently moved to the upper east side near the Hunter Graduate School of Social Work where she started classes in late August. She can walk to school and her internship at another CUNY university is nearby. Her new elevator-free apartment is only two floors up, unlike the six-floor walk-up she inhabited in Queens. We were grateful to La Fitness as we were not panting for breath when we reached her apartment door. Her cute new apartment is New York small, but has a new kitchen and bathroom. She is a block from a scenic part of the East River and a short bus ride to Central Park.

Living in New York is not for the faint of heart, and on this trip I felt a bit faint at times. The noise and pace of the city is intense. Even our noisy spot in St. Louis Park, with all the highway construction noise outside our windows, seems quiet compared to life in Manhattan. We went to the Museum of Natural History, and the MMA, and we spent a couple hours quietly reading in Central Park. We took a stroll through Times Square at night (my favorite!) and went back by day to a National Geographic King Tut Exhibition, which was fantastic. Our last lunch together, near Lexi's apartment, found us listening to workers drilling holes in the street as we ate Reuben sandwiches at our sidewalk table. I must say I have never had a better Reuben in my life nor have I eaten with so much noise going on, but after five days in New York we hardly noticed.

We took a series of subways and a bus to New Jersey on Sunday to meet Lexi's roommate Jana's family. We were running late, needing to catch the two o'clock bus to Clifton, New Jersey. We made the New Jersey bus, just barely. Harry and I were trucking along as fast as we could. I cannot believe how fast my daughter can walk! I flashed back to how she and her Dad used to speed-walk around Lake Harriet. Little did I know what great training this would eventually be for when she moved to New York. Jana cooked us a great meal on the grill and we got to meet her extended Slovakian family.

We had a great time in New York, but most importantly, it is very rewarding to see your kid pursuing her dreams.