PLAE AT THE MET

Get an extra 20% off...see how at the end of the post

One thing about visiting so many museums with my preschooler, is that he's just at the cusp of stroller versus no stroller.  For long treks, I usually opt for the stroller and let him walk when we arrive.  As a born and bred New Yorker, he usually has a pretty good attitude about doing a hefty amount of walking.  But it usually means, I have to go overboard in making sure that his clothes, shoes, sun protection are in tip top shape and he is well fed to prevent potential meltdowns.  This week we test drove the new line of adorable shoes from Plae (see my earlier post about the brand here) and went to the most exhausting museum of all, the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  This behometh monster of a museum can bring the average tourist to their knees, so I knew it would be a good test of both shoe and stamina!

My son is already enamored with the sneakers.  Although they look cute in the photos, they look even hipper in real life.  The best part is they come in different colors with remove-able velcro tabs (straps) that can be swapped out to match any mood.  We were pleasantly surprised with how easy it is to change these tabs out.  For a control obsessed toddler, this is a dream come true.  On this fine summer day, my son color coordinated with his Michael Jackson shirt and away we went to check out the Ken Price sculpture retrospective at the Met.

This Frank Gehry designed exhibit (he was a BFF of the late artist), is a retrospective of Ken Price's life's work: mostly organically shaped ceramic sculptures that look almost other worldly in their smoothness.  The glazed objects are beautiful and are basically begging to be touched by little dirty fingers.  To avoid this, my son got a piggy back ride through the exhibit to prevent a disaster of epic proportions.   

The key to the Met is taking frequent breaks and not looking at too much art in one day.  After the beauty of Ken Price, we decided to take a snack break on the roof.  Champagne for mom and dad, and water and pretzels for Lincoln, helped keep up our energy levels.  Our son is currently taking hip-hop dance lessons, and he showed off some of his moves for us (and the scores of out of towner onlookers.)  Before he started busking, we took a bathroom break and finished off with the modern wing at the Met.  While my sandals were already starting to pinch, Lincoln seemed to be bouncing off the walls in his Plae kicks.  Modern greats Giacometti, Picasso, Bacon are all represented here.  It's easy to forget that the Met even has a modern collection, but given it's size and scope, it really does have everything under one roof.  A few hours in the museum was enough for us, but surprisingly Lincoln still had energy to burn.  We headed into the great lawn at Central Park and let him run loose as he zig zagged across the meadow.  Eventually, he tired himself out and joined us where we lay exhausted on the ground.  Even when we got home though, he refused to take off the new shoes.  

P.S. The folk at Plae are extending their Back-to-School offer for readers.  Through 9/2, you can get your child their own pair of these fly new sneaks for an extra 20% off just by using the code AS76 at check out.