Feb
20

From Anguish to Joy…

11 years ago…something was missing from our lives.  Every time I took a pregnancy test, my heart broke a little bit more.  Why not me, I asked God?  Was He convinced I’d be a bad Mother?  At that point, I gave up.  Not wanting to fail any more tests, I threw the stack away and tried to move on.  Every time I tried to convince myself I didn’t need a child, I got a shocking reminder of just how much I did.  When I’d see babies in strollers, when I visited my niece and nephew…they were all reminders of what others had that I couldn’t have.  And my heart would break all over again.

A little over 10 years ago…I started a new job with a great bunch of people.  Some of those people were adoptive parents.  I’d think about what an amazing journey they must have had and how wonderful they must have felt when they met their children.  I couldn’t imagine ever doing anything like it, yet I couldn’t stop thinking about the idea.  And then one day, one of my co-workers pulled me aside.  He’d heard through the grapevine that I couldn’t have children and he wanted to let me know that his wife was a social worker, who happened to work for a local adoption agency.  And that made me stop and think about this path I had been on.  My perfectly planned path, with one gaping hole in the middle.  And then, I found myself thinking about something so terrifying, I couldn’t help but wonder if this had been what God had been planning all along.

A little over 9 years ago…I got on an airplane headed for Siberia.  This is craziness, I told myself.  After planning, and filling out paperwork, and paying huge amounts of money, and getting government approval, Joe and I were headed into the unknown.  To spend a week trusting people we’d never met and meeting babies who might become our children.  It was a week of chaos, of tears and happiness, of knowing with absolute certainty that we had made the right decision.  That the path that God had picked for us was the one we were supposed to take.  Not being overly religious, that was a leap for me to make.  But I can find no other good explanation for how we ended up in Siberia holding two beautiful babies because MY plan certainly never would have taken us down this path.  A week after landing in Siberia, I found myself on another plane, empty handed…knowing that I’d soon be back, but still feeling like I’d left my entire heart split between two orphanages in Russia.

A little less than 9 years ago…we flew back to Siberia.  This trip was entirely different.  It was filled with court dates, official documents, and the arrival of two little baby boys in our lives.  It was filled with learning how to make them smile, learning how to get them to eat, learning how to get them to sleep…and learning how to deal with such a feeling of love, that it would completely overwhelm me.  When I feared God would never let me have one child, He had suddenly given me two.  And I had never been happier.

In a little less than one week…we will celebrate the 9th anniversary of the adoption of our boys.  9 years of happiness and joy.  9 years of frustration and sleeplessness.  9 years of constant worry about whether I have made the right decisions and taught them the right things.  9 years of hoping that when they grow up, they will still be as loving and caring as they have always been.  9 years of hugs and kisses and “I love you’s”.  9 years based on one moment in time and a decision to follow an unknown path.  9 years I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world.

 

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Feb
09

I’m Still Alive…

It seems fitting that the last post I published is right around the same time I started a new position at work.  The last couple of months have been full of twists and turns, learning and self-doubt, confidence and tiredness, excitement and satisfaction…did I mention tiredness? :-)

I didn’t feel comfortable talking about this before, because in my mind I was still trying to figure out how the hell I got here.  When you spend years doing something, and doing it well, you sometimes forget to look at the bigger picture.  In my case, people who thought highly of me looked at the bigger picture for me and threw my name into a hat that I would have never considered for myself.  That hat is called the Ford IT Leadership Program (you can read the details here).  At a high level, it’s a 3 year program, with very challenging assignments, to determine your fitness for higher level IT management.  It comes with executive sponsorship/mentoring and the type of visibility most people don’t normally get.

When you are a person on the fence about going into management because you love the technical aspects of your job, it can come as quite a shock to the system to find out that you’ve been nominated for this type of program.  And when I did find out, I seriously doubted I would really be considered for it.  I didn’t consider myself an ideal candidate for many reasons.  I don’t have degrees from prestigious universities, I sometimes speak my mind without considering the fallout, I’m a little older than the average person selected, and I sometimes roll my eyes when annoyed.  I do that last one more than I’d care to admit, but I’ve gotten much better at controlling it!

The journey from nomination to selection took about 10 months and something really interesting happened along the way.  At some point I went from doubting I was a good candidate to realizing that I was just as good as any other candidate.  And that scared me because before I’d been okay with the idea of not being selected because I still had my doubts…but once I realized I was capable and could do it, I knew I was going to be crushed if I wasn’t selected.

Since I started this post off mentioning a new position at work, it probably shouldn’t come as a big surprise when I say I was selected.  Everyday since has been full of new experiences and I’m busier than I’ve ever been before (hence the lack of blogging), but I absolutely love this new opportunity and the chance to implement things I’ve only previously thought about.  And I thought it was time to write this, not just to talk about how I came to see the light, but more as a thank you.  A thank you to the people who were looking out for me and saw things I didn’t necessarily see in myself. A thank you to the people who quietly and consistently helped me realize my own potential and helped me to STOP getting in my own way.  I won’t call you out by name, but you know who you are.  Never doubt that I will always, ALWAYS be grateful.

One more thing before I close, and this is more for my fellow women.  We have a tendency to think less of ourselves.  I’ve seen it happen to others…as you can see from what I’ve written above, I’ve done it myself.  I am a work in progress, as are you.  NEVER doubt your potential for anything.  Fear/self-doubt can stop us from embarking on the most incredible journeys and then we’ll only end up with regret.  I don’t ever want to look back and have regret…life is too short for that.  It’s hard to change the way we think…trust me, I know.  But the beauty of living is the opportunity to learn and to evolve.  And as long as we breathe, there is always a chance to fulfill our dreams.  I’m working on mine right now.  Won’t you join me?

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Dec
09

Random Thoughts

It’s 2:44 AM and I can’t sleep, so I suppose it’s time for some random thoughts to help clear my mind…

  • The last time Joe and I went anywhere by ourselves was in June…  #EPICFAIL
  • The drainage in my sinus cavity is pissing me off…
  • The boil on my hip is pissing me off more than the sinus drainage…
  • My to-do list keeps getting longer, yet I haven’t been crossing anything off…
  • It’s time to give up TV and try to actually exercise…and work on my to-do list…
  • My new job will be good once I don’t feel totally stupid anymore (yes, I’ve reverted to my 16 year old self and used “totally” as part of my sentence structure)…
  • I wish my Escape had 3 settings for the butt-warmer instead of just on/off…by the way, butt-warmers are the best invention ever…
  • I wish my Escape was a Flex…I miss my Flex…and my Jeep, but it wouldn’t be appropriate to drive one when Ford pays me a very handsome salary…
  • Speaking of watching too much TV, is anyone else enjoying “Scandal” as much as I am?
  • Does anyone ever get tired of being polite?  I find the older I get, the more I want to tell people exactly what I’m thinking, but restrain myself as to not hurt anyone…it gets tiring sometimes…
  • It seems that a mouse might have invaded the house and is now stuck in the wall…Joe put out traps and I’m hoping I don’t start to smell something rotting in a few days…
  • Newest obsession = following a page on Facebook about a puppy that was set on fire and his journey since he was rescued…makes me think about the fine line between good and evil…
  • I’ve realized that I haven’t read a fiction book in ages (50 Shades doesn’t count because it was garbage)…another #EPICFAIL
  • I watched the latest Batman movie tonight and was underwhelmed…it was too long and Bane did nothing for me…
  • Is it wrong that I want to ditch my family duties on Christmas Day and go see Les Misérables?
  • I keep thinking about Hawaii…
  • I need to figure out which state is next in my quest for 50…perhaps Mississippi?
  • My youngest child will be the same height as me in 5.5 more inches…I’m not ready for that…
  • I wish that I had magical genie powers and with a twitch of my nose, all my home projects would be done…
  • I don’t really want 300 million dollars, but winning that would have been nice…of course, I probably should have bought a ticket for a chance to win…
  • I hate shoes…
  • And pantyhose…
  • And static cling (not your dog Mom, actual static cling – see the pantyhose remark)…
  • And winter…
  • And peas…
  • And SpongeBob…

That’s all for now.

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Nov
30

From Russia with Love – An Adoption and Travel Story (Part X): A Court Date, A Finalized Adoption, AND Instant Parenthood!

Where We Left Off…

Wow…it’s been a while, hasn’t it?  If any of you are still following along, sorry for the lengthy delay in updating.  I’m not quite sure how this got away from me, but let’s get back on track and finish this story, shall we?

Previously we discussed the amount of time it took to finally get our INS approval and once we had that, we had to wait for our adoption agency to finalize our travel dates with the agency in Russia.  Before we knew it, we had a travel date.  Now it was time to fly…

Leaving Detroit

Leaving Detroit was a bit stressful because between the two of us, we were carrying approximately $11,000 USD and we were worried about losing the money or getting robbed.  I was wearing two money belts – one wrapped around my waist under my jeans and another under my shirt.  Hubby had similar belts, plus one that went around his ankle under his sock.  I went through security without issue, but on this particular day the TSA officers at Detroit Metro Airport decided that Hubby looked like trouble and decided to pull him aside.  At this point we decided we’d better tell them about all the money and why we had it, so Hubby got to go for a lovely chat behind closed doors.  He was gone for about 10 minutes and the entire time I was positive he was coming out of that room minus 1/2 of our adoption money.  When they finally opened the door and let him go (with the money), I let out a sigh of relief.  After all that, I needed a drink.

Laura Happy That The TSA Didn’t Steal Our Money!

Hubby Still Annoyed About The Trip To The Private Room – Does He Look Like Trouble To You?

A Whirlwind Trip

After traveling for 20+ hours and going through a zillion time zones plus crossing the International Dateline, we arrived in Vladivostok the morning of Monday, February 23rd, 2004.  When we landed, Anya and Stas met us and told us that our court date was still scheduled for the next day, but the court wanted us to visit each baby one more time.  Because Baby Oleg was so far away, we immediately jumped in the car and drove the 3 hour one-way trip to spend about 2 hours with him.  We were both so tired, but also so excited to see him again.  He hadn’t grown much, but he still had the Snoopy stuffed animal we had left with him from the first trip.  He didn’t really seem to remember us, but that was okay.  We knew we’d have plenty of time to spend with him soon.

Baby Oleg With His Soon-To-Be Daddy

After the 3 hour trip back, a decision was made that we’d go to the hotel for the evening and visit with Baby Andrey in the morning, before our scheduled court appearance.  I really wanted to go see him that night, but realized that it was too late in the day and that we really needed some sleep.  Anya and Stas took us to our hotel, which was different from the first hotel.  This time they had us stay at the Vlad Motor Inn, which was geared towards families.  The hotel had an English speaking staff (good news, especially if you’ve ever read my travel story about Hubby) and all the amenities we’d need for spending a week (or possibly more) with the babies.  Finally settled in for the night, Hubby and I collapsed, knowing that the next day would also be very busy and potentially very long.

The next day, we got up and got ready for court.  Hoping our suits were good enough for the judge, we set out with Anya and Stas to visit Baby Andrey.  When we got there we found he had another cold, similar to the cold he had during our first visit.  I felt so bad for him, but I was able to hold him and walk around with him until it was time to leave.  As I handed him back over to the orphanage doctor, I was hoping it was the last time I’d ever have to leave him behind.

Baby Andrey With His Soon-To-Be Mommy

Court

As Hubby and I waited in the hallway outside the courtroom, I was very nervous.  I had thought of a dozen different scenarios for why the judge wouldn’t give us the boys.  Perhaps I wouldn’t pronounce their full Russian names correctly or the judge wouldn’t like redheads or something crazy along those lines.  By the time the door opened, I was just praying for it all to be over.

Once in the courtroom, I was surprised to find a room full of females…even the judge.  For some reason I had been expecting a male judge…I’m not sure why.  After we were all seated, the judge started asking questions, which Anya translated for us.  I wish I could remember exactly what she asked, but it’s all a blur now.  I remember some questions about our jobs and how much money we made and how we’d care for the boys, but I really don’t remember the specifics anymore…and I’m not sure that I would even if I were walking out of that room right now.  The only thing I remember for certain is the speech I made.  It wasn’t prepared, but the judge gave me an opportunity to make a final statement to the court and I made sure it would count.  I talked about our love for each other and how we wanted to share our love with the babies.  I talked about being able to provide a stable environment and medical care and college in the distant future.  I talked about Baby Oleg’s health issues and how they didn’t matter to us and how very lucky we were to live so close to such wonderful medical institutions so that we could have him taken care of properly.  I pretty much begged her for those boys.

After I was done, the judge asked us to leave the room so she could make her final decision.  As we walked out into the hallway, I wondered how long we’d have to wait to learn our fate.  And this part I remember as clear as if it happened today.  Not more than a MINUTE later that door opened and they asked us to come back in.  The judge congratulated us, told us the adoption was final, and also waived the 10 day waiting period, which meant that we could pick up the boys IMMEDIATELY.  We were so overjoyed, the tears just came and wouldn’t stop.  I couldn’t believe we were finally going to have our babies with us.

One More Road Trip

The court gave us multiple copies of the finalized adoption paperwork.  Anya had already arranged for another driver and interpreter in case the judge let us pick them up immediately, so Hubby headed for Baby Andrey and I took the 3 hour one-way car ride to get Baby Oleg.  We both had diaper bags full of supplies and had been warned that all that the orphanage would give us was a naked baby…no diaper, no clothes, no nothing.  I wasn’t sure I believed them, but packed everything just in case.

When the driver arrived at Baby Oleg’s baby hospital, I was so excited.  I really couldn’t believe that I’d be taking him with me.  When we got inside, sure enough, they brought me a naked baby in a blanket.  He was so small and seemed fascinated by my every move.  I put his diaper on and got him dressed without any problem, but once I started putting on his new snowsuit and coat, he got a little fussy.  Honestly, if someone was trying to drown me in all that clothing, I’d get fussy too.  However, I’d been warned that the orphanage workers didn’t want the babies to be cold when they went outside, so he was going into that snowsuit no matter what.

After the baby hospital staff wished me good luck, we walked out of the baby hospital and got in the car.  It was at that point that I remembered that Russia (at least this part of Russia) didn’t require car seats for babies and that no one had brought one for us to use.  Hubby and I had brought backpack baby carriers for the trip back to Michigan, but it never occurred to us to bring car seats to transport them to the hotel or to the airport, etc.  Oy…our first major parenting mistake!  I ended up having to hold Baby Oleg (now officially John Oleg) for the entire trip, which turned out to be quite the battle of wills.  What he lacked in size and strength, he made up for in determination.  For that entire 3 hour trip, he tried to escape my arms to grab at all of the objects in the back seat.  It was exhausting, but I didn’t care.  Because he was mine.

Together At Last

Finally, the driver made it back to the Vlad Motor Inn.  When John and I entered our room, Hubby was already there with Baby Andrey (now officially James Andrey) and we both just looked at each other, wondering what to do next.  (It wasn’t until years later that Hubby admitted that he was terrified and was so happy when John and I finally got back.  He’d never been alone with a baby before and was afraid because he wasn’t sure how to take care of him.  I like to periodically remind him how wonderful he was with his new sons).  Anya told us that they would call us the next afternoon as there was still much to do before we could leave Russia, but finally we were alone with our babies.

The first thing I did was get out of that stupid suit I’d been wearing all day.  Next, I just sat and stared at my babies.  You could tell they were confused about their new surroundings, so we tried to keep things simple.  We held them and then sat them on the floor (on a blanket) next to each other to get to know each other.  We tried to give them bottles of milk, but they didn’t seem to understand how to use them, so we quickly switched to sippy cups.  James got the hang of that quickly, but we realized John had never learned how to suck properly, so we had to put more holes in the sippy cup so the fluid would come out easier.

Once we had them drinking, we decided to feed them.  We had a ton of baby food, so we opened up a few jars to see if they would eat it.  It was then that we were reminded of John’s little game.  The day before they had let us feed him and he would bite down on the spoon.  He grinned the entire time and the only way to get it out of his mouth would be to move it from side to side until he finally let go.  He started doing this again, but not until his little belly was full of food.  In the mean time, James had discovered a great love for his new sippy cup.  As I was trying to get the spoon from John, James crawled over and stole his brother’s sippy cup.  This would become a habit once we got home, but it was so damn cute to see it happen the very first time.  I couldn’t believe how happy I felt just watching them and taking care of them.

More Food Now!

After feeding them, we decided it was time to try to bathe them.  We weren’t sure what their reaction would be since we didn’t know if they’d ever been in a bath tub before, but we weren’t surprised when they cried.  I felt bad for them, but I wanted them to enjoy bath time, so I made sure that I brought bath toys with me.  I got them out and started squirting them with the rubber ducky and their cries turned to adorable baby laughs.  God, that was probably the first time we’d ever heard James laugh and it was a full belly laugh.  He had the best laugh as a baby…it was music to my ears.

After getting them out of the tub, we got them ready for bed.  We gave them more milk and put them in their cribs to see if they’d go to sleep.  We quickly discovered that neither baby was interested in sleeping if they could still see us, so we turned out the majority of the lights and went to the bedroom (the hotel room was more like a small apartment).  After about 10 minutes of listening to baby sounds, we came back out to find them sound asleep.  They looked like little angels.  James had two fingers stuck in his mouth, sucking away on them, and John was on his tummy, with his little butt in the air.  I wish I had thought to take pictures then, but I was happy to just be able to stand there and watch them.

The next morning, I woke up and went to check on the babies.  I was surprised they were still both asleep almost 12 hours later, but it gave me more time to watch them (and of course I made sure that everyone was still breathing properly, as I had done 4 other times that night!).  I also got to discover which baby was a morning person (James) and which had no interest in waking up (John).  Once James opened his eyes, he popped right up with a grin on his face, held out his arms and expected me to pick him up.  John looked at me, rolled over, closed his eyes and tried to rock himself back to sleep.  I got that lazy baby out of bed so I could properly feed him.  Once I got some food in his mouth, he was as happy as his new brother.

We spent that first morning in seclusion, learning more about them.  That’s when we discovered that John was fascinated by his reflection from the glass in the oven door.  He’d keep crawling over there to pull himself up and look at himself, turning this way and that to see himself from another angle.  And we discovered that James was going to be a Daddy’s boy.  He liked my hugs, but he wanted to sit on Daddy and never move again.  We also learned that he liked to hold onto ears while he was sucking his two fingers.  His own ear wasn’t good enough for him, so we had to let him hold onto ours.  It amazed us how unique they were.  And how much our love had grown in just 24 hours.

Next Up:  The conclusion of the saga…a few final things to take care of in Russia, the journey home with our bundles of joy, and coming down that escalator at Detroit Metro Airport to meet the family!

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Aug
11

Bath Time, Aire Style…

How Did I Get Here?

I am a self-diagnosed information junkie who wants to know everything about everything.  If I’m not extremely careful, I can lose an entire day just clicking link after link on my laptop, trying to learn about more things before I have to finally give in to sleep (or the children, or my husband…you get the idea).  But every now and then, my addiction skill can really pay off.  It was on such a day that I stumbled upon an article in the Business Insider about a new bath house (Aire Ancient Baths) that had opened in TriBeCa (don’t you just love how that looks?).  This little gem of information was important to me for two reasons.  One, I was heading to BlogHer12 in about a week, which happened to be in NYC.  And two – HELLO, I JUST SAID BATH HOUSE!  Now…this might be a little more info than my fair readers would like, but in addition to my information junkie habit, I’ve got a thing for my bathtub.  I can spend hours in there just relaxing and reading.  When most normal people get out of the bath, I put more hot water in and plan to stay another hour…or two…or three.  So imagine my excitement when I figured out that this lovely bath house was only a short subway ride away from my hotel location in midtown.  I knew right then that I had to try it or I would forever regret it…

Entrance - Photo Credit: Photo Provided by Aire Ancient Baths NYC

A Warm Welcome…

My excitement continued to build until I finally found myself in front of the building (with my BlogHer12 roomie/bestie).  I knew from my research that just beyond the door were six different types of baths, a steam room, and massage areas.  Now…time for another confession.  I’d somehow managed to make it to 41 years of age without ever getting a professional massage.  I had never been even remotely interested in having my person rubbed down by a complete stranger, even though family and friends had been raving about it for years.  At Aire, they let you add on massage packages to the bath house rates (more on that in a bit), and I discovered that I could get a massage that only lasted 15 minutes.  I thought about it and decided that even if I hated the massage, it was only 15 minutes long…and surely I could withstand anything for only 15 minutes.  So, in I walked, ready for my 90 minute bath session and 15 minute massage.

Lobby Area - Photo Credit: Photo Provided by Aire Ancient Baths NYC

The relaxation begins once you walk through the front door.  The lobby is a tranquil area where plush furniture beckons you to sit down.  While cozy in chairs, the staff brought us ice cold water, and explained how the visit would work.  First we’d shower and put on our bathing suits, then we’d be escorted to the bath area, where another staff member would give us a tour and suggestions on how to best utilize the baths.  This may sound a little odd, but it will make more sense in a few minutes.  And either at the beginning or end of our session, we would get a 15 minute massage.  I was secretly hoping it would be at the end, but I didn’t say anything and proceeded to follow the next staff member to the ladies changing room.

The changing room was a soothing area and my inner techie got her geek on when she saw the lockers.  Before being led to the changing room, the check-in staff had given me a wristband to wear.  Using the wristband, I was able to lock/unlock the locker just by holding the circular section against the locker handle.  A pretty cool design, IMHO.

Bath Time for a Couple of Goddesses…

After showering and changing (robes and slippers were provided), we were escorted to the lower level, where the baths, steam room, and massage rooms were located.  As we descended into the lower level, my initial reaction was one of pure joy.  It looked exactly like the pictures online and exactly as my imagination had thought an ancient Greek or Roman bath house should look.  Dim lighting, steam rising, lounge areas made of stone, water in all its perfection.  For just a moment, I could have been persuaded to believe that I had been transported back to ancient times.

A very helpful young man gave us a tour, telling us about the different baths and making his recommends about how to enjoy them.  There is a warm water bath at 97 degrees that most people use first to get acclimated to the baths.  It’s long and narrow, near the back of the bath house, with crevices that make you feel like you are hiding in your own little sanctuary.  There is also a jet-propelled bath (also 97 degrees) near the front of the bath house that helps the body relax in preparation for the massage.  The bath I was most fascinated with was the salt-water bath (100 degrees), also near the front of the bath house.  The idea of being buoyant in the water was a foreign concept to me, but one that I’d been anxious to experience.  The young man recommended going from the salt-water bath directly to the steam room (102 degrees).  The experience of the steam room is intensified by aromatherapy.  On the day we visited I couldn’t decide which fragrance was in the air, but thinking back upon it, I believe it might have been eucalyptus.  Regardless, it was a wonderful smell.

The final baths are in the middle of the bath house and this is where things get even more interesting.  There is a hot water bath (102 degrees) and right next to it, are two cold water baths.  One is 61 degrees and the other is below 46 degrees (with a piece of ice floating in it…yes, seriously, a piece of ice).  The cheerful young man explained that the idea is to go from hot to cold (or cold to hot) to open ones pores and fully experience the sensation of hot and cold.  My friend looked at the young man like he’d grown another head, but I was intrigued by the idea.  I had immediately dismissed the idea of the cold baths when first reading about them, but now, up close and personal, I wondered how it would feel.  Before I could further ponder the idea, I was quickly distracted when we were told that the stone seats in the lounge area were heated.  Of course, my first instinct was to make sure he was telling me the truth, so I sat down and sure enough…warmth radiated through my robe. Heavenly.

Lounge/Relaxation Area - Photo Credit: Photo Provided by Aire Ancient Baths NYC

Salt-Water Bath - Photo Credit: Photo Provided by Aire Ancient Baths NYC

Hot Bath - Photo Credit: Photo Provided by Aire Ancient Baths NYC

With the tour finished, we were free to explore on our own.  Just as we were trying to decide where to start, we were told that we could get our massages now instead of waiting until the end.  With a bit of hesitation, I followed everyone to the massage area, where I was momentarily shocked to see two men.  It had never occurred to me that I would be getting a massage from a man and for a moment, I considered backing out.  I wasn’t quite sure how I was going to explain this to my lovely husband, but then I remembered that he’d gotten a massage on our last cruise…and it had been given to him by a woman.  So I decided that perhaps it didn’t really matter and again reminded myself that it was only 15 minutes.  I would survive, right?

Massage Rooms - Photo Credit: Photo Provided by Aire Ancient Baths NYC

Maybe This Wasn’t Such a Good Idea…

When we first walked into the double massage room, I was really nervous…especially when he wanted me to rearrange my swimsuit a bit.  I did as he asked and laid down on the table.  I wasn’t quite sure where to put my hands, but figured out there was a little rest area for my hands and forearms just underneath the head of the table.  There was very soothing music playing and he started by putting a sheet over me and moving it this way and that way until he could access my feet.  He then removed the slippers I had been wearing and proceeded to massage my feet.  And…Oh. My. God.  Why didn’t you people try to convince me years ago to get a massage?  I had NO idea what I had been missing out on.

After my feet were thoroughly massaged, he moved on to my thighs and my back.  My thighs hadn’t realized they needed a massage until he started doing his thing and it felt wonderful.  I have to admit that I was paying close attention to how high his hands went when they were on my inner thighs because it felt so odd to let someone besides my husband anywhere near that area.  I probably should have done this massage thing 20 years ago so I wouldn’t have been so surprised by how it worked, but now that I know I will be much more comfortable the next time (yes, there WILL be a next time)!

When he moved to my back, I could feel him really working to get the knots out..knots I hadn’t realized were there until he started rubbing them.  I think it was at this point that I finally let myself completely relax, because the next thing I knew he was slipping a pair of dry, heated slippers onto my feet and the time was up.  As I walked out of the room, I was regretting having only booked 15 minutes, but was so pleased that I now knew that I would actually enjoy a massage.  With that momentous milestone behind me, it was time to focus on the baths and steam room.

Floating on Water…

Based on the recommendations we had received, we decided to start in the salt-water bath.  Nothing else I had ever swum in could have prepared me for the feeling in that bath.  Knowing that you are going to be buoyant is completely different from actually being buoyant.  It was as if I could actually sit in water without exerting any effort, which was the oddest feeling in the world.  We had a good time just floating in the salt-water pool before we decided to visit the steam room.  The steam room was similar to others I had been in, but the aromatherapy really made the experience more pleasurable.  It was nice to just be able to sit there and relax in the steam and heat.  We forgot exactly how warm it was until we exited and found ourselves suddenly chilly, but that was quickly rectified by sitting on the heated stone bench in the lounge area and pouring ourselves more ice cold water from the waiting pitcher.

Next we decided to try the jet-propelled bath.  This bath was the most similar to other hot tubs I’d tried before and it was nice to sit by the jets and let them further massage my body.  We didn’t stay in the jet-propelled bath long because I was anxious to get to the middle section.  I like my baths really, really hot, so I wanted to feel the 102 degree bath.  It did not disappoint, though it was a little too warm for my friend.  She headed to the warm water bath in the very back and I joined her after a few moments in the hot water bath.  As I sat in the warm water bath, letting the water gently rock me, I found myself staring at the cold water baths.  That I was even contemplating getting in them was crazy since I do NOT like to be cold.  But I knew I had to do it.  When was I ever going to get an opportunity to try something like this again?  Plus, I wanted to experience the sensation of going from hot to cold and from cold to hot.  With my goal set, I headed back to the hot water bath.

Cold Water Baths - Photo Credit: Photo Provided by Aire Ancient Baths NYC

Laura Thinks She’s a Polar Bear…

After sitting in the hot water bath for a few minutes, I finally talked myself into getting out and going to the 61 degree bath.  Sending a little prayer heavenward, I quickly climbed down the ladder and dipped myself until the water hit my shoulders.  HOLY MOTHER OF GOD WAS IT COLD!  I came right back up that ladder and had to stop myself from running back to the hot water bath.  As I descended into the hot water bath, I realized the young man was right.  Going from extremely cold to extremely hot was a sensation unlike any other…it was like my pores had exploded and the hot water was tingling what had just moments before been freezing.  You would think once would have been enough, but now I HAD to know what it felt like if the cold bath was even colder, so after feeling warm again I walked over to the bath with the ice floating in it.  Again, I quickly climbed down the ladder and this time there was really no conscious thought when coming out of it.  My body reacted to the intense cold and my nervous system took over, propelling my body upward and out of the bath.  Without running, I made it back to the hot water bath and experienced the tingling sensation again, only this time more intensely.  I know it sounds crazy, but even as I write this…I want to do it again.  It was strangely addictive, which completely surprised me.

Winding Down…

Since we still had a little time left in our session, we decided to enjoy the salt-water bath and steam room one last time.  When we decided we were done, we headed back to the locker room on the upper level.  As I walked up the steps, I stopped to look down, trying to make sure that my mental pictures would stay intact and that I wouldn’t forget a moment of the wonderful experience.  And I also took a moment to thank my inner information junkie.  Without her, I would have never discovered this glorious place. In the locker room, the attendant dried our bathing suits while we showered and changed back into our street clothes.  As we headed out onto the dark NYC streets, I felt as though a weight had been lifted from me and all was right with the world.  It was a feeling of peace in a moment of perfection…a moment I wished could have lasted forever.

Other Things You Need to Know…

  • Aire is open from 7AM – 11PM.
  • A 90 minute session for the thermal baths costs $75.
  • A 15 minute massage like the one I enjoyed cost an extra $20.  Longer massage times are available for additional cost.
  • If you forget or don’t have a bathing suit, Aire will provide one for you.
  • There are separate locker rooms for men and women, but the bath area is co-ed.
  • Bathing suits must be worn at all times.
  • Long hair must be pulled back, but doesn’t need to be covered.

I truly enjoyed my experience at Aire Ancient Baths.  If you live in NYC or happen to be visiting, I would highly recommend treating yourself to this wonderful and peaceful experience.  I promise, you won’t be disappointed.

Yours in Relaxation,

Disclosure:  Aire Ancient Baths provided use of the thermal baths free of charge in exchange for writing this review.  I paid for the massages and tips.  All opinions contained within are my own.

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