Girls Trip - NYC

A couple of weekends ago Ella and I took a little girls trip to NYC, while Isaac and Craig had guy time at home (and Isaac have grandma/grandpa time, and grammy/papa time on the Friday and Monday when Craig had to work - thanks!!!!).

We went to NYC to visit our good friends (and old next door neighbors), the Kellers, and stayed with them in their great little apartment right in the heart of the city.  Really, it's about a 10 (or less) minute walk to Central Park.  We saw so many cool things, ate so much good food, and had a blast with our friends.  And I know Ella was especially thrilled to have time with Eliza again, and to have sleepovers with her! - which actually turned out to be not so great, since they woke up at 4:30 the first morning, and were just wide awake and chatting.

Here are some pictures and more descriptions from our trip:

On the train to DC.  Ella LOVED the train ride.  She was especially excited when she handed the conductor her ticket and he said, "Thank you, Ella!"  She couldnt believe that he knew her name.  She still talks about that.

... and on the bus.  Not as exciting as the train... but not nearly as bad as you might expect!

The girls were so happy to see each other and just picked up where they left off.

 One of my favorite parts of the trip:  visiting the 9/11 Memorial.  What a special experience, and what a breathtaking memorial.  I had not been to NYC since 9/11, and did not know anyone who was there during that horrible attack, so this made it all so much more real and emotional than ever for me.   My friend Amber and I talked about where we were and what we were doing when it happened.  It's pretty incredible that probably every single person in this country remembers that day well, and will never forget it. 

 There are tons of cool parks all over the city.  This was our favorite:

 We also saw the Statue of Liberty from across the water at Battery Park (I didn't feel the need to get upclose and personal, especially with the crazy line that there was), and the girls found some cool metal plates to jump on that made bell sounds.

 This is where we spent a lot of time.  In the subway.  And this is the only time we were in the subway without being crammed in like sardines.  I wish I had a picture of that.

 We ate at a delicious burger place (which is apparently a must eat place in the city) called the Shake Shack.  It was pretty much amazing.  I could totally use one of there shakes right now.  If you go there, get the Black and White shake... fo' real.

 Right down the street from the Shake Shack was the Empire State Building, and the Flatiron Building.  And it totally looked crazy flat from that angle. 

 This is one of my favorite pictures from the trip.  Ella was totally Audrey Hepburning it up.

My friend (and tour guide), Amber and I tried for two nights in a row to win the Wicked lottery with no luck :(  So on the second night after our big loss we walked around Time Square.  We were going to buy discounted tickets to another show, but after being let down so bad (maybe a little dramatic) we didn't really feel like spending so much on a show we werent completely excited about.  Instead we found this great Thai restaurant called Room Service, ate and chatted away.

 

 While there, I was able to take the photos of their adorable family in Central Park.  You can see them here.  

Here are Ella and I in Central Park.  It was seriously beautiful that it almost looked fake.

  

I SOOO loved having that special one-on-one time with my girl.  What a great trip!