Start Spreadin' the News.....

I'm leaving today
I want to be a part of it
New York, New York
Last week Ivory Homes took TJ and I, along with some other folks to NEW YORK! We found out about this trip last fall, and I have been SO excited ever since. TJ and I went there for our 5th anniversary two years ago and LOVED it, so we were thrilled to be able to go again. New York is such an amazing place, the food is incredible, I love the energy, the history, the sights, the entertainment, the shopping ;) The arts there are 1st class, it's the place to be for anybody and everybody in that line of work. Last time we went TJ and I went to see the NY Philharmonic, a world class symphony. This time we decided to see some museums and more shows.

Okay, so the one bad thing about New York (for me) is getting there. I don't love to fly. I can't handle sitting in a little tube for hours with no choice of getting out, and I just don't love turbulence. I don't want my fear of flying to keep me from having some really great experiences, so I just bucked it up and faced my fears. Actually, I took some zanax and it made both flights a joy to be on. I slept for half of both of them (yay!) But I was awake long enough to read, watch friends on my ipod and take these:







After we got checked into our hotel, we rushed over to a food festival just two blocks from where we were staying. It was highly rated, and by the time we got there, we had just 45 minutes until it was over. So, we rushed around trying everything! We had gyros, sweet potato fries, funnel cakes, fried oreos, chocolate covered strawberries, ice-cream.... It was so fun, there was quite the diversity of people-but it was cool to see all of the different people. I feel like we got to see New Yorkers in their real environment.



After the food festival, we went over to times square to look around. Times square is crowded and crazy, but so cool! There is some awesome shopping, and I just love the energy! There are crazies, people trying to sell you stuff, and it's hard to get anywhere, but it's TImes Square!







After Times Square we went to a place that we found two years ago by accident. It's a rice pudding place, and it's so yummy! It's kind of like Cold Stone, there's a bunch of flavors of pudding and mix ins and toppings. TJ went there FOUR times while we were there, and has plans to open one here in Utah ;)


The next morning we got up and had breakfast at a local deli across the street from our hotel. Going to the deli's are such a great way to have an authentic New York experience! After breakfast we met up with the rest of the ivory group and went on a bike ride through central park. I didn't get that many photos, I wish I would have gotten more... but I did get this funny one of TJ trying to find a helmet that would fit ;)


I loved the design on this stone pillar.


There were some cool musicians to listen to:




We went to Katz deli (a famous and authentic deli) for pastrami sandwiches. The food was good, the quantities were HUGE and I'm not a meat lover, so it wasn't my favorite, but it was fun try something new!


After lunch, TJ and I went on our own to go shopping. I had a list of places that I wanted to go to that I can't go to here in Utah. One of the stores we went to was in the Flatiron building:


One of the absolute highlights of the trip was going to the Yankees game. Last time we were in NY, we got tickets but the game was rained out and TJ was devastated!! This time was a completely different experience. We sat in great seats, had authentic NY baseball food...it was awesome. The game started out awesome, the first 2 innings were great...we were ahead and then the Boston Red Sox came up from behind to lead in the 8th. At the last minute, we won the game and the excitement was so invigorating! It was late and I was tired and dizzy, and we almost left because it looked like we were going to loose the game, but we won!!! I'm so glad we stayed :)









The next day the weather was awful, and thank goodness we planned to go to a couple of museums and to go to a show that night. We went to the Museum of Natural history first...and I really like seeing the dinosaur bones, but other than that I wasn't too impressed. I've been to the Natural History museum in Chicago 5 times and to the Smithonian, so I felt like I'd already seen what there was to see:







For lunch TJ and I and Jill and Kerry went to the Shake Shack in Madison Square. We'd heard about it from a few people and it was worth having to stand out in the rain underneath umbrellas while being attacked by hungry squirrels and birds for the food.
TJ and I went to the MET (Metropolitan Museum of Art). We both loved it and wished we'd had more time to spend there. Here are some of the highlights for me :)







That night we went to Wicked, and LOVED it! We had made plans for an authentic italian restaurant and while we were there, we happened to look at the tickets and noticed that the show was supposed to start an hour earlier than we had planned! We rushed through dinner (it was amazing!!) and rushed to get to the show on time. Our seats were much better than last time and the music and singing was incredible! It was another one of the highlights of the trip for sure!!

On Wednesday, we got up and went to the donut plant (SOO good!!) Then we went to chinatown and to little italy. We got in some good shopping and we got some cute name paintings for the boys. I love the photo I got of the artist doing his thing :)

After China town and Little Italy, we went to Lombardi's for lunch (the FIRST pizza place in the country!!) and then to Mary Poppins. The show was pretty good, not my favorite...I loved the actor who played Mary Poppins, she was incredible!!

A funny guy we saw in union square!


For dinner we went to a place called Chocolate by the Bald Man. Another recommendation that was amazing!! The plating was gorgeous, the food was delicious, but the dessert...mmmm, the dessert was incredible!!





After dinner, TJ and I walked down 5th avenue and I got some photos of rockefeller center and St. Patricks Cathedral.




Of course, I had a to get a photo of one of my most favorite places to shop! ;)



On our last day, TJ got up early to go to the today show. It was really close to our hotel, but I didn't want to get up so early, I was really tired.


Later, we walked across the Brooklyn Bridge with Jill and Kerry. It was one of my favorite parts of NY last time we went and this time as well. I loved seeing the amazing skyline, the statue of liberty, the other bridges, the water, and the architecture of the bridge is incredible. I love the lines and and the brick. I'm pretty happy with the photos I got :)






After the bridge, TJ took off to go get some Rice to Riches one last time and Jill, Kerry and I headed over to the Shake Shack for a quick lunch before we had to go to the airport. SO GOOD!!!




We had SO much fun with Kerry and Jill. I'm so glad we were able to go and spend time with them. They were a blast to hang out with!!




I'm SO grateful that we were able to go on this trip! I love New York, I love the diversity, the crazies, the subway-I love that we could go anywhere, and FAST! I loved the architecture, the beauty and history in central park. I loved the energy, the fact that the city was still busy at midnight! I loved going to the deli every morning for breakfast, I loved all the amazing food and that we tried new things instead of going to some lame chain places. I loved the shows, the baseball game, walking around until my feet hurt SOOO bad, but still doing more so I didn't have any regrets. I loved the shopping and totally unique places. I miss it already and hope I can go to New York again soon! Thanks to Ivory for this AMAZING trip :)