Cooper's life...

While we've been in Miami, Cooper has been living the good life in Newport Beach. He's been cruising the city with Jax and friends, skateboarding, hanging at the beach, having shopping trips with Mimi, sleepovers and fishing a ton!

 Dave and Buster's with the family...

 Shopping for fishing gear...

 New wheels...

good beach days...

 Although it's hard to be away from him, I miss him a ton, I'm so glad he's having a fun time!

Miami Beach...Week 1

Monday
We were up and ready for Zoe's first day of her summer dance program. The bus stop is only a few blocks from our place, so it's easy to walk to...

We made it!

 Love the art-deco style of this building!

 It's so different from the studios in New York. While Zoe was waiting to check-in, I walked around and looked at the photos, sculptures and posters.

On the schedule board, they posted all of the countries that the dancers have come from this summer. What a great opportunity to meet kids from all over the world!

 Zoe spent the day doing a placement class, having lunch, meeting the other dancers, and going through a quick orientation. I found a grocery store and used Uber for the first time to get back to the apartment. After I picked up Zoe she wanted to go to Whole Foods to get a couple more things that I couldn't find at the other market. Of course, when we're there, one must get macarons!

 Then we headed to the beautiful beach!

 We watched the cruise ships departing...

 and spent a while soaking in the warm blue water...

 We picked up a quick dinner and headed back to our place for the night.  Zoe will find out her level tomorrow morning, but the first day went well!

I was finally catching up on Facebook, and got to see a picture of the final bow from Julie Kent, who finished her almost 30 year career with American Ballet Theatre. She is a truly fine example of a principal ballerina, who had a long, incredible journey on this crazy career path. I am so glad we got to see her perform in Swan Lake two years ago, but the ballet world won't be the same without her!

Tuesday
Zoe got to the studio and found that she has been placed in level 4 (out of 6). She was very happy as this is considered advanced for her age group. Hopefully it will be a good, and challenging experience for her!
 I decided to walk the boardwalk along the beach. It was hot, humid, but beautiful!

 Love seeing the art-deco buildings along Ocean Blvd.

 I decided to keep walking all the way down to South Pointe Park (stopping at Starbuck's for some iced tea since I was feeling a little dehydrated!)

 The view up South Beach...

 and over towards Miami...

I then walked all the way back up to the apartment. I was a hot, dripping mess when I got back. I spent a little time relaxing on the couch, loving the A/C, before picking up Zoe. We enjoyed some tacos on the beach for dinner before spending an hour or so in the water...

 and stopping for some delicious gelato on the way back! (There is gelato on every corner around here!)

Wednesday
It was a good and uneventful day...Zoe enjoyed her classes and is making a couple of great friends. I spent time walking and finishing some computer work before picking her up. We walked to Lincoln Road, which is an outdoor mall, with lots of shops and restaurants. It was hot, but nice to walk around and go in an out of the stores.

Of course, we found some macarons at a nice French bakery/cafe...

At the end of the road, we felt like we were back in New York...several of our favorites were there...

 Shake Shack is ALWAYS a good idea...

 and the best news ever...Laduree has opened in Miami Beach!! I don't think this girl could be any happier.

Looks like we will be making frequent stops back here!

Thursday
While Zoe was at dance, I took a long walk to the bigger Publix grocery store to stock up a little more. I passed the high school, which a lot of the year-round dance students attend here part-time, while working in the pre-professional program.

 A beautiful church...

 Espanola Way is close to our apartment. This is such a quaint place...with a very famous history. It became popular in the 1920's for celebrities and the wealthy to meet up...and has gone through many transitions over the years. Gangsters ran gambling organizations here, and Desi Arnaz played his famous bongos in the clubs here! It was also a backdrop for many Miami Vice shots. At night and on the weekends, it is booming with people eating at the many restaurants, street performers and music...

After the grocery store, I ended up on an afternoon bus adventure...going the wrong way on the route, having to get off and on a different bus, and finally getting back to my place. I'm not really loving the local bus system around here...a non-consistent schedule, and the many different "characters" I'm encountering are quite a challenge. Oh where or where is the easy subway system??!

Zoe came out of dance so happy. She loves her contemporary teacher, and they rehearsed a great piece today. We ate dinner at the apartment, and then decided to walk around for a while and get a dessert. Although still hot, it was so nice to step outside and see the sun behind clouds! No storm here, but loved the cloud cover to provide a little relief.

I've been waiting to get to this place...

 and it did NOT disappoint. ;)

 The best cookiewhich ever! I chose the chocolate chunk cookie on top, peanut butter cookie on the bottom, with cookies 'n cream ice cream...so delicious!

Friday

It was a bit of a long night, since Joe called to say his wallet had been stolen. Ugh! That meant a lot of calls to the bank, credit card companies, etc. trying to get cards cancelled and fraud stopped...and a lot of lost money. I really have a hard time with thieves...it just makes me so mad! Anyway, trying to focus on the positives, and just glad everyone is safe.

I spent the morning walking through the Botanical Gardens...

 It was peaceful, and pretty.

Around the corner is the Holocaust Memorial. This is one of the most moving memorials I have ever been to. It was hard to walk through, but always good to remember this important piece of our world's history.

On each side is a quote from Anne Frank...

 Surrounding the large sculpture in the center is a walkway with granite walls.

 The walls have the written history of the Holocaust, as well as photographs and captions etched in. The images are graphic, and no matter how much I've read and seen, it never stops being incredibly overwhelming.

 In the center is an eternal flame with a beautiful bible verse underneath...

 The walkway has audio playing of children singing Hebrew hymns.
 The opening leads to the center sculpture...

 The walls surrounding it are engraved with just some some of the 6 million lives that were lost in this horrific event.

 The sculptures are life-like and appalling. Such a grim reminder...

On the other side, is a continuation of more names of people lost.

I'm so glad I found this place. It was a somber experience, but a good one.

 After dinner, Zoe and I headed to South Pointe Park, stopping for some Boba tea along the way...

I'm loving this precious time with my girl!

 We walked on the jetty...

and admired the crystal clear water...

 We spent about an hour in the water, and watched the gorgeous skies.

 We walked along the beach, back to the bus stop, and saw more fun lifeguard stations.

 Love all the fun stuff around this town...

Zoe's program is going really well, except for the floors in the studios. She is used to some hi-tech quadruple sprung floors at her studio, which go a long way in preventing injuries to dancers. Unfortunately, the floors here are pretty hard, and her legs, knees and Achilles are feeling the pain more than usual. Time for some serious icy/hot, KT tape, and aleve!

Saturday
Zoe's program has Saturday classes also, so off she went for another day (although an hour shorter). I walked along the boardwalk and then spent a couple hours at the beach.

 With the federal government passing Marriage Equality yesterday, there was a lot of celebrating here in South Beach, and I passed this small marriage ceremony on the beach today, as well as several wedding photos taking place around the area!

 The storm clouds were coming in...

 After picking up Zoe, we stopped at a French bakery for her usual...

 After a little time resting, we headed out to pick up some dinner. The small storm came in and we actually got some rain, along with some thunder. It was nice that the temperature finally dropped into the 80's...it felt great!

 We enjoyed a delicious salad and a variety of empanadas. Yum!

Time to get home and rest this poor girl's legs!! She finally has a day off tomorrow, so maybe some relaxation and a little fun! :) Our first week was a success, with only a few minor challenges, and we are so happy to be here!