Owen was up bright and early on Easter morning with bright smiles at finding his basket. Jonathan was of course, thrilled with his. My handsome boy is ready for church.

Let the Easter Egg hunt begin! Jonathan generously handed out candy from his Easter Eggs. The Easter bunny put caps in the basket this year and Owen had a great fun with a hammer.

Fun at home. Jon creatively taped up a spring launcher to the window, arranged two chairs and promptly took on the role of pilot. He made the annoucements, then flew the plane safely to Boston.

Owen worked hard for his Light of Christ medal for Cub Scouts. He complete a booklet then had an interview with Father Bob. On a Sunday during the service, he was awarded the medal. Way to go, Owen!

It was Cub Scout day at the Pawtucket Red Sox so Michael and Owen got to parade on the field before the first pitch. Then we got to stay for the game. Jonathan was impressed with the snacks but not so much with the game.

First stop was the Transit Authority Museum in Brooklyn. We spent a lot of time looking at the old turnstiles, buying tickets and the boys drove a few buses. Here's Jon's old fashioned bus. Owen spent a lot of time operating the levers while keeping an eye on the traffic light. Jonathan was thrilled with this trolley and the working windshield wipers.

A great way to get back to Manhattan is to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. Both boys loved the views and didn't complain about the over one mile walk. Owen and Michael lead the way. Michael points out the Statue of Liberty to Jonathan. The famous arms-length shot of Michael and me with Manhattan in the background.

At the entrance to Central Park, we found some climbable art. Owen got right up and then of course Jonathan wanted to follow. He made it -- almost.

In Cental Park, the boys wasted no time scrambling up the huge rocks. Then they were so proud to have made it to the top. On the walk to the playground, we found the tulips in full bloom. It was then time for a ride on the carousel.

We took a spin through FAO Swartz to find the big piano. Owen did a great rendition of the opening of Star Wars.

We stayed at the Carlton Arms hostel where a different artist paints murals in each room. We visited three rooms and the boys chose this animal themed room. Great fun! Here I am with a bird and a bee. Owen and Michael check out the ceiling. Jonathan said the giraffe was his favorite. At our hotel, the boys leaned out the second story window while Michael checked out. They were safe, right?

I found more tulips with the Empire State building in the background.

Even those city folks need a few nails and replacement pipes.

Walking through Greenwich Village, we spied a locksmith who made great use of leftover keys.

We had planned on a ride to Roosevelt Island on the tramway but the website didn't mention that it was under construction until August. With our new found "free time" in New York, the boys voted for a return ride on the Staten Island ferry. It's fun, free and a great way to see the city skyline. Jon was happy to watch the wake the whole time. Then he wanted to regale stories about the birds who were following us. "Maybe they needed to get home quickly and wanted to make sure they were going the right way."

A highlight for all of us was the peanut butter restaurant with (almost) everything made with peanut butter. Owen loved his bagel with pb, cinnamon and honey. Jonathan was so excited with the sampler platter with 8 different flavors of pb.

While planning this trip, the boys really wanted to go to the M&M store in Times Square I had told them about after I went last summer. I guess it was poor planning to head there last since Jonathan fell asleep on the subway. We tried to wake him up when we got there, but he was out. When he woke up later, the first thing he said was, "I want to go the the M&M store." We didn't have the heart to tell him he slept through it.

Life in the city. Michael and Owen went back to the hostel to carry out the luggage and Jonathan and I went to Madison Square Park to wait in the looong line at Shake Shack (a must eat place!). Jonathan got tired of waiting in line so he stretched out on a bench between a cell phone texter and a dad reading a book to his boy. While waiting for our food, Jon found the TV showing slides of the park and pulled up a chair while Owen and I pose for the camera.

Two tired boys on the way back to the Connecticut station where the car was parked.