NYC Trip

At the beginning of December, Ryan and I took a weekend and went to NYC to see everything decorated for Christmas. It was so much fun! I should have kept count of all the Christmas trees we saw in store windows and lit up around the city. There is definitely something magical about the Big Apple during the holidays. We stayed with some good family friends, the Montgomery's, who live right across the bay in Jersey City. It was great to have a place to stay so close to the city for FREE! Can't beat that. Plus, we love the Montgomery's, so it was fun to be able to catch up with them. My parents were nice enough to take Justin for the weekend (thanks Mom and Dad), so it was just me and Ryan. I was worried about the flight there and back with being sick from pregnancy, but I managed to make it until the moment we pulled back into our driveway before actually getting sick. The flight there was okay, it was the flight home that just about did me in. While we were there, I managed okay for the most part, but I definitely wore myself out. I don't think I've ever been so tired from a vacation as I was from our whirl wind weekend. But, it was still well worth it, we had a great time!

A spice stand at an outdoor market at Columbus Square. We got some peppermint hot chocolate and a spiced apple cider and strolled around the holiday boutique. SO fun!

One of our favorite memories ever. A carriage ride through Central Park!

 We were able to go to a couple of shows. Loved them both!

Times Square is ALWAYS so packed. It always seemed to amaze us just how many people there were in such a small area.

We couldn't go to NYC without seeing one of my best friends, Laurel, and her husband Brad. They showed us a couple of the local spots for good eats. It was great to spend time with good friends.

This is the oldest running hotel in NYC and is where my Grandpa Bob and Nana used to meet up for drinks before going out on the town for dates back in the late 1930's. They have preserved most of the natural charm it had back in it's hay day, so it was fun to imagine them there. I called Nana from a table inside, and she told me to have a drink for her!

The most famous Christmas Tree in the world. (I think!) Rockefeller Center of course!

Our last morning there we were able to go visit the 9/11 Memorial. So glad we fit it in. It was absolutely beautiful and such a nice tribute to the many people who were lost in the tragedy. It definitely made you stop and think about how lucky we are to live in this country where we are not accustomed to having war on our own soil. Hopefully we never will. It is going to be an amazing site when the museum and everything in the plans is completed.

We took the PATH train in and out of the city everyday, and even so, we never got used to the huge crowds and frenzied pace of all the people in NYC. We must have taken this picture at an unusually slow time of day for there not to be hundreds of people on the escalators.