Our cool points have been taking a beating as of late, and we’re barely staying afloat at 34 cp (alright). Well, we’re still up in NYC and having fun, so that’s gotta be good for something. Here’s a rundown of what’s been going on.

- There’s a very fun place for kids to play, but the membership fee was quite steep (for us frugal Floridians). We took the boy there for a free promotional night, and I must confess, I got a little misty-eyed seeing how much fun he was having.

Here’s this amazing 1 and a 1/2-yr old who’s been lugged around the Southeastern US and Europe, and now plucked from his quiet, comfy Florida home and dropped in the middle of loud, hectic Manhattan. I reminisce about what and who we’ve left behind, but at least I understand why we’re not there anymore. Cool Baby does not have that luxury.

Cool Mum and I realized that we moved here for our excitement and fun. We needed to sacrifice a little to give the boy some fun and excitement all his own, so we bought the membership pretty much the next day. [+10 cool points]

- We’ve never seen the Food Network show Throwdown, but my co-worker told me about a bakery on the Upper West Side that won one episode for the best chocolate chip cookie. After that, I couldn’t stop thinking about the place.

Last weekend, after some time at CB’s new stomping grounds, we walked through the falling snow to the renowned Levain Bakery. Again, our cheap selves would normally balk at a $3.75 chocolate chip cookie, BUT this is how it was described to me:

“huge mound”
“crispy on the outside, chewy in the middle”
“warm with melted chocolate chips”
“like eating a hamburger”

I felt destined to patronize the bakery, so patronize we did. Some out-of-focus shots of these little mounds of heaven:

Oh man, those pictures bring me back. Anyway, I feel pretty cool for having what the Food Network thinks is the best chocolate chip cookie in New York, and that we didn’t let $3.75 each stop us. For one moment, I guess I felt like a real Manhattanite, and not a crazy weird miserly neurotic who keeps track of how cool he is using a points system. [+5 cool points]

- Tomorrow, we plan to meet friends for brunch at The Shake Shack, take CB to his play place, and CM might take a dance lesson. And none of those things involve a laptop (unless I get creative). I can’t remember the last time, if ever, we met someone for “brunch.” I feel like we should take a chopper out to The Hamptons on Sunday. Who are we and what have we done with the Cool ‘Rents?? [+10 cool points]

Related posts:

1. Our favorite new game with Cool Baby: Semantics
2. Tantrum-fighting cheesy powder at 30,000 feet
3. We miss pancakes, but life is good
4. You’re stuck with one fast-food place for life – which would you choose?
5. We may have created a cookie monster