#wildmeyers review of NYC

Let’s actually start this review in Philly. We took the train to NYC, Penn Station, from Philadelphia’s 30th street station. The trip is just over an hour, and it went extremely quick. We left the bus parked in our spot on Temple’s campus. Highly recommend travel by rail. Quick and painless, and more sights than a plane.

We departed Penn Station and walked to our hotel. We were staying on 6th Ave between 53rd and 54th street at the The Residences by Hilton Midtown. These are an awesome place to stay. Close enough to many of the tourist sites, the Upper East Side, and Central Park. We were able to pack all our gear in our rucks (best backpacks ever made www.GORUCK.com) so we walked the distance to the hotel. We walked through Times Square, up 5th Avenue, by Radio City Music Hall, and Rockefeller’s Plaza.

Central Park – read our whole Central Park blog on our site entitled…. #wildmeyers review of Central Park

Ferry Ride to see Statue of Liberty This is FREE!! Go catch the Staten Island Ferry … 1 Bay Street (St George Terminal). Hop on and take the 30 min boat ride across. You’ll see great view of the Statue of Liberty, little lighthouse, and the skyline. And it’s FREE!! You do have to exit the boat and get back in line (no line when we went at the end of the day). And take the 30 min ride back. Beautiful!!! Go at sunset for even better views!! When leaving nyc look out the right side of the boat to see the Lady Liberty. You don’t get to stop at the statue, but at the port on the other side is a little gift shop and we stood by “a statue” which was enough for us!! https://www1.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/ferrybus/staten-island-ferry.shtml

We stayed at our Hilton Grand Vacation Club. Which was incredible. Far reaching views of Central Park and the city! We’ve been members for 11+ years and these rooms are on the top 44-45 floors. The bottom 43 floors are The Hilton Midtown which is still a great hotel. Close to Times Square, Central Park, Upper East Side, Radio City, Broadway, and much more!! https://club.hiltongrandvacations.com

Strolling the streets of nyc …

Dinner @ R Lounge WOW!!! Views of Times Square flooded into this cute dinner lounge in the floor to ceiling windows!! What a view! Thanks to Doreen who recommended this!! It’s a must for dinner with a view! Make reservations before you go! It doesn’t have great kid selections but our kids don’t eat the typical chicken fingers and fries. Definitely not a place kids can run crazy so if your kids aren’t great at sit down dinners I’d skip this! Such great views https://www.marriott.com/hotels/hotel-information/restaurant/nycrt-renaissance-new-york-times-square-hotel/?scid=bb1a189a-fec3-4d19-a255-54ba596febe2

Today Show… just a few fun pictures… but read about Jen’s Today show appearance on our blog here entitled #wildmeyers on tv…

Frozen on Broadway. Wonderful!!! Kids loved it!! Parents loved it!! A little different from the view but same story just a few added parts/songs. Great drinks in collectible cups. Great Sven stuffed animal souvenir. Great length for kids. Had a hard time not singing along!!! We sat in 2nd row in balcony and they were great seats!

Dinner @ Burke Tavern on Park Ave …. random find, but delicious! Once again our kids sit well during sit down dinners and have a very “older than 4 and 7 yrs old palette” …. delicious and fun to go to after our Broadway Play

FAO Schwartz …. must go visit and play the big piano, see all the demonstrations, play for a bit, and buy 1 toy!

USA Parade for Women’s Soccer Team WOW!! The USA Women’s team won the World Cup and there was a parade. We happens to be there so we HAD to go! If you’re in nyc and there’s a parade- thanksgiving, Christmas, anything…. GO!!! Live in the moment!!

9/11 Memorial …. we didn’t plan to go here because Dan wanted to spend more time than the kids would be up for but we happened to be walking past it so did stop for about 5 minutes if rememberance. Very powerful and beautiful. Definitely could have spent hours there.

Subways … Check out subway system, hop on, take a ride! Easy to navigate and fun to experience new fun transportation.

Dinner at Black Tap… MUST GO … https://blacktap.com … over the top CRAZYSHAKES …. yummy dinner. Did have to wait about 30 min in line but I’ve never had a shake like that! So much fun and DELICIOUS!!!

Other must see places… Radio City Music Hall, Rockefeller Tree Spot, Times Square, and of course ice cream food trucks!

You’ll be tired but ignore bedtimes and just live in the city while you’re there! Eat ice cream like crazy, have fun, and you can always sleep while someone else carry’s you…. Such a fun visit to nyc…

#wildmeyers review of Central Park

WOW! Central Park is the largest park in Manhattan, New York City. It occupies an area of 840 acres and extends between 59th and 110th streets (about 2.5 miles) and between Fifth and Eighth avenues (about 0.5 miles).

It is MASSIVE!!! We only walked around parts of it but it was phenomenal to see and explore! #wildmeyers could have spent many more hours here as parks and leisure are more our style than the hustle and bustle of nyc city streets. We will have to come back and explore more of this beautiful park!!!

It’s wonderful to just take a few steps off the busy streets and be in an enchanted park. There are lakes, trees, walking/biking paths. There are carriage rides, playgrounds, splash pads, benches, bridges, birds and ducks, and so much more! It’s a piece of paradise!

Kids can climb and play and adults can join in or converse. You can relax and retreat from the busy life on the outskirts of the park.

So many times in our life we need a park to retreat to. What is your “central park” in your life? Where do you go for you 5 minutes (or more) of peace and tranquility? God can rescue us from the busyness of life and give us rest. He tells us … “run to me you who are weary and I will give you rest”…. wow. What a promise!!! (Matthew 11:28-30)

Next time you’re in a busy season of life-remember that verse and remember to just be still and let God BE in your life!!!

And next time you’re in NYC…. take time to explore Central Park… and if you’re not in NYC- find your own park you can retreat to and play and run and jump and climb and just BE!

And if you’re not in NYC… and don’t really like parks… just buy the ice cream!!! (We were in NYC and loved the park, but we bought the ice cream too!) …..

just to see who is reading these- comment on this blog your favorite ice cream and you’ll have a chance to win a PRIZE!!!!!

My Sunday Selah

As seen on @selahstsimons.com

Guest blogger on Katie Tippett’s Blog…..

Selah. I heard this phrase a few years ago from my friend Katie. I would read her blog, listen to her in a conversation, or just in passing, and that word stuck with me. Last fall, I was in a small group, lead by Katie, and we met weekly to discus what Selah meant to us and how we could fully apply that theory to our lives.

Selah simply means Pause and Pray. During this study I felt God tugging at my heart to breath more. To pause more. To pray and give thanks more. To be with my family more. He wanted me to breathe with my family. To be a breath for my family.

All these ideas rumbling through my head, reminded me of a study from a few years back, ‘one thousand gifts’ by Ann Voskamp. Could I really breath and give thanks for 1000 things! In order to do this, I needed to be present more with my family of 4! Reminded of another study before I did, Present over Perfect, by Shauna Niequist– how can I be present all the time, not aiming to be perfect and fit in just so …… ok God I hear you!!!

For several months I struggled with and prayed to God to see what he wanted from me. To see where we wanted to lead my family. I had several conversations with Dan as well as trusted friends and mentors about aligning my love of God and Others and what that looked like.

I believed that we needed to add NO to our routine. To add NO to others so we could say yes to each other. I knew God was leading us to empower our family to say no to frivolous things. We needed to say no to things so we could say yes to each other. We needed to go against what society tells us and leave our jobs, leave our town, and just be.

Four years ago we had began on our Konmari journey (Japanese art of decluttering) and beginning to decluttering and live a more minimalistic lifestyle. This was so freeing but there was something still missing. I loved my job, my mission, my passion, my calling— but there was a huge part of our family life missing. I was pouring out and had nothing left to give our family of 4! I needed a break! I needed a reset! I needed a recharge!

Dan and I knew we needed to resign from our jobs to be together more as a family. To focus on being home with our boys. Traveling. Breathing. Being. Practicing what we preach. Love God, Love Others.

We also needed to provide more therapy for our son Kaden and there were special programs he needed and we needed to figure out how to get him there. Near the end of our jobs, we found a camp program for Kaden… applied and we’re accepted within 24 hours! We had to be there in 8 days!

Thankfully we had our Skoolie to live in and provide us lodging and transportation. A Skoolie is a school bus converted into a home. This Skoolie if ours is amazing. 250 square feet with couches, kitchen, bed, bathroom- everything we could need!

We would depart, get to this camp, and live together. All 4 of us, in 250 square feet of a renovated school bus, for 2 months in order to get our son the best treatment possible! In order to be together. To unplug from our community for 2 months to be totally immersed in each other’s lives.

This Skoolie is amazing. It’s our whole house on wheels. It’s an old school bus converted into our home. We are able to focus on the 4 of us being together. We’re growing closer and learning more and more about each other.

Click here for our tour of the Skoolie https://wildmeyers.com/2019/06/09/wildmeyers-inside-the-skoolie-tour/

What is so exciting about this adventure is that we’re allowing God to lead us. We’re stepping out on a faith journey. To some it sounds crazy, to some it is their dream, to some they totally get it. We wanted to be intentional about creating room for each other this summer. We wanted to be able to just sit and talk and play board games. We wanted to read books together and say yes to a playground for the 10th time today! (My kids love playgrounds). We wanted to be intentional with what we chose to do each day.

We no longer wanted to wake up and have the same routine each day. We needed a breather. We needed a Selah moment. This 2 months is our time away to Pause and Pray.

These little men in my life are growing up so fast. Life is way too important to be lost in the shuffle. My family is so important and I needed a breath of fresh air so I could pour that into them to continue to make them thrive!

How are you feeling? Are you in need of a Selah moment? Pause and Pray and see where God is leading you! See where He wants you to focus more on and where he wants you to say no more! This week, no RiGHT NOW— Pause and Pray!! Take a Selah moment for yourself and see where God leads!

For more from Jennifer & Dan about their #wildmeyers journey follow along at http://www.wildmeyers.com or on Instagram: @wildmeyers

Playgrounds of the USA : part 3

Walker & Kaden truly are playing together so we’ll this summer! They love making up games and running and jumping! I value these moments seeing them bond so much!!

We found a FREE zoo in Cape May Courthouse New Jersey…. here is the playground. What is neat about this playground is there are tons of picnic tables, areas to run and play, pavilions, and then to top it off- the FREE ZOO!!!!!!

http://www.capemaycountynj.gov/1008/Park-Zoo

An easy way to find fun things to do in new towns is go on social media, type in your town and date, and hit search! Fun things are going on everywhere! I’ll say it again… immerse yourself in the culture where you are! Find the local spots! Enjoy!

This was the grand opening of a playground on Avalon Beach, New Jersey (Jersey Shore) called Surfside Park! This playground was great but was made even better because of ……..

Free cotton candy
Free funnel cakes
Free Face painting
Free Ice Cream
Beach front ocean breezes
Live music
Tons of families
Free water
Bubbles, character sightings, and much more!

This might be our favorite park so far! Save this location and go visit!!

https://avalonboro.net/17559-2/

I might have spoken too soon!! The last playground was best so far because of all the high energy, free food, and live music of the grand opening! This next park is FABULOUS!!!

We spent 3+ hours at this park one Sunday afternoon, and could have stayed longer if it wasn’t time to get to our night location.

This is Fasola Park bear Swedesboro, NJ. We happened to find this one on a map and it was huge! 5 separate play areas, a sprayground, a walking trail, ball fields, and shade and sun areas! Also, an ice cream truck came by several times!!

**note to self : google “sprayground near me” to find water features- they’re not called splash pads up here **

These playgrounds are endless and we keep playing on them to see what our favorite features are! These parks up here are so nice. They have handicap accessible areas, bathrooms, shade and sun, tables, pavilions, and nice equipment! They definitely spend a lot of money on these areas and the families take advantage of them!!

Be active this summer! #goplaytoday with your family!!

Comment below to show us pictures of you adults playing with your kiddos! Comment with a photo for your chance to WIN a FREE PRIZE From #wildmeyers …..

Be Thou my Vision

When you’re driving a bus there is a HUGE windshield! Everytime we stop for gas, Dan cleans the window off! It reminds me of a verse, Matthew 7:3-5 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?”

We have to always be keeping our eyes opens for blessings. We did a Bible study a few years ago called “God Sightings”. It reminded us to look for God every day, even in the mundane. We have to analyze our own lives, not worry about other people lives. We can’t look at dust in their eyes and have a plank in our own eye. When we focus on negative, we lose sight of all the good things God is doing around us.

When Dan cleans this windshield every time we stop for gas, he is keeping his front view clean. If it gets speckled with dead bugs, dirt, grime, he can’t see where he is going. He would have an idea of where we are heading if he looked at the GPS, but the view would be blurry. He will not see the whole pictures and miss some of the beauty.

We must keep our vision clear. Everyday we need to take a moment, wipe away the grime from the day before and focus on where God is blessing us so we can see the beauty all around us. God wants our journey to be smooth and enjoyable (Jeremiah 29:11), so we must look for Him and thank Him everyday.

Sharing love through popsicles

Over the 4th of July we wanted to give our kids a few treats so we decided to buy some popsicles! We were staying in a Hilton for a few days, so we would have a freezer. So I grabbed a box of those popsicles at Sam’s Club for the week. You know the kind, the liquid kind that you freeze and they are delicious!

We’ll, the only box they had was a 96 count. And being our only good stop, we just figured we’d freeze a few and eat what we could and save the others.

We’ll, I wasn’t thinking and put the whole box in the freezer.

As the week went on, we ate 2-4 each and we gave out the rest. Philly has a large population of homeless sitting on the streets. They’re not always asking for things, just sitting, and living outside. They’re in the heat- and it’s the 4th of July holiday! They deserved a treat too!

We provably handed out 60 popsicles over the course of 3 days! And everyone we talked with and gave one to was SO grateful! They were thankful and most replied with “happy 4th too”…”thank you, God bless”… “wow for me?”… “for free?”

There are mission opportunities everywhere! What can you spare? Can you buy extra popsicles and hand out at the park or in a city to the homeless? Can you buy extra canned goods and deliver to food pantries? Can you buy extra Nutra Grain bars and hand out at stop signs? There are many more ideas… think of some as a family and do them this summer!

We are more blessed than we know, and we can share that with others in many ways!

Don’t look the other way when you pass by those in need. Reach out. You might be the only love that person feels today! Look others in the eyes. Talk to them. They are children of God and deserve love and kindness.

This leads to, Why do we give?

When we were headed out of Philly for a weekend getaway to a dairy farm, we came to a stop sign. A lady was standing there with a sign “Hungry & Struggling”. So I jumped up, grabbed 3 snack items and a lemonade from our cabinets. I handed it to Dan and told him to pass it out the window! We exchanged a glance, smile, and she expressed thankfulness!

Walker started asking, “why was she there? What did she need? Is she homeless? What did you give her?” It was a teachable moment! Then he said “yeah, because we have extras we can give.” This is when Dan chimed in and said that we should give even if it was our last one. That our faith is in God that he will provide for us. If we felt called to give, we should, no matter what we posses. I then said “If you’ve got it, give it!” Walker liked this idea, and seems to be grasping the concept of giving because we are called, not only because we have extra.

We then explored the ideas with him of how much God has provided for us. He has given us this adventure and provided in ways we never could have imagined! So we can give to others. We are called to love God and love others. We don’t just do this because we’re called to, but we do this because we want to. We love God and want to share that love with others by giving.

So in the city of Brotherly love, we’re trying to share love with each other, as well as new friends we’re meeting along the way, as well as with those we just pass by and see they need more! We’re trying to share the love of Christ in small tangible ways this summer. Everyone can share that love of Christ every day!!! Try it today! You won’t regret it!

Playgrounds of the USA : part 2

Kaden & Walker are back sharing their favorite playgrounds of the summer!

Sometimes when it rains for days and is so cold in June in upstate New York (Rochester) you find an indoor playground! In this case it was a whole museum called “The Strong Museum” http://www.museumofplay.org lots of fun inside! Kids activities galore!

When you’re just on a journey and can stop anytime you want to just explore and look out the windows! When you see something you want to do, just stop! Have you ever done this? Are we always focused on getting somewhere and not enjoying the journey. Just breathe and let your kids choose where to stop!

Sometimes it’s not a playground at all; you stop for it’s an old tractor and huge pig on the side of the road! Sure why not!! Kendall NY

Next up, water front on Lake Ontario park! What fun. If it was warmer we could have swam, but we were the lone visitors to the water and park but it was so quiet and beautiful! And don’t just stand and watch your kids play, join in on the fun! Hamlin Beach State Park.

Antique Automobile Club of America in Hershey… playgrounds come in all shapes and sizes… this is a fire truck playground! Simple, fun, climbing and using imagination!

Stay tuned… part 3 coming soon. Just today someone gave us a playground name to go visit! They saw a cool one in NYC and recommended it to us! We’ll be sure to make it by there!

As always, get out there and play! #goplaytoday #wildmeyers wants to hear from you about your favorite place to play!

Happy 4th of July from #wildmeyers

City of Brotherly Love

Philadelphia is known as the “City of Brotherly Love”, it was named this by the Quakers who founded this city who wanted to focus this city on peace and love. They wanted everyone here to love each other and treat others with kindness. I see this kind of love displayed in my son, Walker’s life daily.

Our oldest son is Jonathan Walker Meyers (meaning Gift of God). Our youngest son is Kaden Daniel Meyers (meaning Strength of the Cask or Strength of the Marshland). These two young men are our blessings from God. Each day is a gift with them and they teach us as adults so much.

I have worked with children for the past 10 years at our church, and have babysat and taken care of children for well over 25 years. I always try to treat kids as small adults. Yes, they are young, but they still have feelings, emotions, thoughts, and have a right to express those. They do need guidance and love and support from adults, but we can’t diminish them and ignore what they’re telling us. I refer to my 2 sons as “little men” a lot! Last week someone questioned me why I was calling for my “little men” to follow me. I responded by telling them that I wanted to treat them with respect because I expected them to respect me. I want them to know from an early age that they are men and should hold themselves to a high standard of being Godly men.

This past May when we resigned from our jobs we didn’t know what the world held for us, but we knew God would provide and lead us the way he wanted. We knew we needed to draw ourselves away from jobs we loved but were spending too much time at to be as a family more. We found out 8 days before we had to be in Philly that this was an opportunity for Kaden. Kaden is why we’re in Philly and we’re hoping this summer is life changing for him!

My “little man” Walker has really stepped up as a “little MAN” these past several weeks. He has been growing taller and learning more the past few years, but these past 2 months have really made him shine! Walker has always been an old soul. As a little toddler he would walk and talk with my Papa Carl and carry on “conversations” with adults with ease. Being raised in the church, he shakes hands and looks adults in the eyes most of the time and tries to talk about relevant conversations with adults.

2 days after we found out we would be going to Philadelphia, Walker & Kaden were cuddling up for bed. They share a room, and on some weekends ask to have a pallet on the floor to share like they’re camping! As Dan and I finished the housework and were getting ready to watch a show, we heard the quietest discussion between the two boys.
……Walker : “you know were going to Philadelphia in a few days?”
Kaden : “mmhh (yes)”
Walker : “we are going there for you Kaden. You are going to learn to talk more. You are finally going to be able to tell me everything you want to say”….

There was not a dry eye in the living room! It was such innocent truth from Walker to Kaden. It is what we were all thinking, hoping, feeling put into words! You see, Walker has been the best big brother ever! He translates for his brother, comforts him, stands beside him, and always encourages him. Walker could easily get frusterated with Kaden when he cries and mumbles things that we can’t understand. Walker could easily just push his brother aside when he comes to him for comfort and love. He could easily just ignore him babbling and keep to himself. (There are times when he is just a pure 7 year old boy and says I don’t know Kaden just be quiet, but for the most part)… But, Walker is outgoing and a genuine kid! He really wants to help Kaden along the way, and realized how important this summer really is! He is truly a blessing to us all!

One example, since we have been on the road, we were at a playground (surprise, surprise)… Kaden saying words to other kids who couldn’t understand him. He got easily upset and ran to Walker. Walker, in stride, put a side comforting hug around him, and said, “it’s alright let’s go up these steps”. He didn’t confront the kid who didn’t understand, he didn’t try to se what Kaden was trying to tell them, he just simply comforted him and redirected him to play and have fun! Walker didn’t need to be taught to do that, it’s just innate in him. He just knows. He has a loving heart and it shows daily.

Dan and I strive to teach our children (and others around us), about love and kindness. We try to show them “loving God and loving Others” each day, and Walker is getting it! Especially when it comes to baby brother!

Brotherly love in the biblical sense is thought of as an extension of the natural affection associated with near kin. It’s a love that we should show toward the greater community of fellow believers. It goes beyond the mere duty in Leviticus 19:18 to, “love thy neighbour as thyself.” We should have genuine love and care for those around us. We should be searching for when and how we can help others. Not just the “needy” and “homeless” when we see signs for giving donations, but how we can help our brothers, friends, co-workers, family, friends on a daily basis. We should show this love as a pure love from our heart that extends naturally not just giving a fake hand to help.

These boys share such a special bond and this summer is giving them even more time to love on each other! Let’s all try and follow their lead by helping those around us and truly loving and caring for them! I will never look at the town name Philadelphia the same. I will never hear the phrase “Brotherly Love” the same. I will always have etched in my head and heart these two boys love for each other and this #wild summer 2019 in this special place!

#boymom #wildmeyers

…it’s my turn!!!!

What is today? What are we doing next? It’s my turn!….

Do you hear these phrases all the time at home? Sometime kids need guidelines and structure even during the summer.

When we took off on our bus adventure I tried to think of a few things to help the kids know where we’re headed and what we’re doing each day. And even a few things to keep us learning all summer!

We have a “what day is it chart” because during the summer, all the days seem to run together….

We have reading bingo for Walker! He loves reading and is reading so much! This is a fun way to help him remember what he’s reading! Note : you can only cross off 1 box per book! There is a $1 reward once whole Bingo Board is crossed off! (25 books). Also, we’re keeping up with our Library Reading Chart which is all online with our “Beanstack Tracker”.

We even have 2 little buses that have the boys name on it so we know each day “who gets to open the door of the bus today”! (You could use this for who gets to pick first, decide on the tv to watch, feed the dog, anything).

Learning is key to this summer for us! We’re keeping journals and keeping “what we did flash cards” (as Dan likes to pick on me). We’ve got letters on the wall to learn, books with study questions to work on, notebooks of workbook pages, and much more! The #summertimeslump is real and we’re trying to stay on top of it! Kids need to keep practicing what they learned so they can be ahead in August, not behind! How do you stay ahead during the summer? Show us your creative ideas!!

One other thing we have up on our wall is our #phillybucketlist so we don’t forget to do anything fun while we’re in Philly this summer! We haven’t checked any off yet- but make sure to let us know your favorite philly activities!