For the First Time

I love New York City.  I always have.  I always will.  From the days of mother/daughter trips, to girls trips, to husband & me trips, I love every minute of being there.  We were there for the past four days and had an absolutely amazing time.  No kids, no whining, no housework, no cooking, no worries...just pure f-u-n.  Here's a look...

Day 1...got in around 4pm, dropped our bags & did a quick wardrobe change at our wonderful friend Michelle's Upper East Side apartment.  Within 15 minutes, we were off to our first stop of the night, an awesome little Mexican place for margaritas and apps.  Then we jumped on the subway and headed to the West Village (our new favorite place in the city)...we did a bar tour from Sushi Samba, to Wilfie & Nell, The Spotted Pig, Kingswood, (a minor detour to Duane Reade to get flip-flops to replace my high heels!), dinner at Crispo, and then back up to the UES for late night dessert at the local diner...the perfect night.  (And in between all of that, my night was complete when I got the chance to sit on Carrie's stoop from Sex & The City...lame, I know!)

Day 2...slept in until 9-that was a great start!-and headed to the Lower East Side to try and get into this well-known tiny cafe for one of the best brunches in town...unfortunately though, our sleeping in cost us and we would have had to wait 90 minutes with the rest of the crowd that was lining the block.  So, instead we headed west and found a crazy, unique place serving brunch and I had the most amazing waffles I've ever tasted with bourbon syrup...unbelievable.  That's the way to start the day!  We then headed over to SoHo, did some shopping, hit up Little Italy for some gelato, checked out the Meatpacking District, and stopped for drinks at the new Beergarden they recently opened next to The Standard...a great afternoon watering hole!  Union Square was our next stop for shopping...gotta love Filene's Basement for good deals...and then due to the extreme heat and sore feet, we headed home for showers and the couch for an hour.  After some good R&R, we headed out to dinner and drinks...it was a gorgeous night, hence our theme was 'patio seating only!'

Day 3...feet were a little beat up by today, so we took it a little slow.  First stop, the Today show...the other half had never been, and obviously lived it up! 

Grabbed a quick bagel and Jamba Juice for breakfast in Bryant Park, spent some time at St. Patrick's Cathedral, hit up the shops on 5th Ave, and landed in Central Park where we ended up falling asleep under the trees which was the most relaxing part of the whole trip.  We woke up revived and ready to go, got lunch to go at Pret and took it over to Bryant Park again, grabbed some drink at the beergarden there, and then were given the best suggestion of the whole trip to check out Jimmy's Corner on 44th.  Best idea ever.  It is probably one of the top dive bars in the city, but the two of us had the best time. 

We met up with friends for dinner at yes, Bryant Park!  We grabbed dinner at the Cafe' there and then picked up some dessert at Magnolia Bakery and back to the UES we went.  It was our last night, so of course we were back out on the town for drinks, but stayed low-key as there was a big morning ahead of us...

Day 4...this was what I had been saving up for...my awesome husband worked his magic and got us VIP tickets to Regis & Kelly!!  I am such a sucker for TV personalities and have loved this show forever.  It also checks a 'to do' off my bucket list!  We got there at 8am and didn't get out of there until 11:30.  They filmed 3 shows with us as the audience...so in addition to being on Tuesday's show, we will also be on Friday, June 11th and Monday, June 21st!  Even with all the background knowledge I have about what goes on 'behind the scenes' of a tv production...I was still amazed at how they put this show together.  There had to be at least 20 people surrounding R & K the whole show, telling them what to say, where to go, telling us when to clap, when to laugh, etc.  It was a great time and I couldn't be more thankful to my husband for not only working to get the tickets, but for sitting in that tiny little seat for 3 1/2 hours with me as I soaked in every minute.

Then came the rest of our day....I'll try to make it short...over brunch at The Barking Dog and dessert at Crumbs Bakery, we spent a lot of the day talking about how great it was to have a few days on our own, but how anxious and excited we were to get home and see the girls that night as this was the longest we had been away from them....so, we were to leave JFK at 8:45pm and fly straight through arriving home at 11:30.  As we get ready to step onto the subway, my phone rings.  Flight cancelled.  Re-booked for the next day at 4:45 PM.  No.  Not possible.  I flip out.  We call the airline.  They tell us there is bad weather and no flights are landing at CVG.  I call home...it's sunny.  I'm even more frustrated.  The earliest they can get us on a plane is the next morning at 6:30.  Still not good enough.  We go to LaGuardia.  The women there really try to help us but tell us we will probably be staying on the floor that night.  I bring on the tears.  They find us a flight that leaves in 20 minutes.  We haul ass to the terminal that is 10 minutes away and make it just in time.  We fly to D.C. and then to Lexington.  We rent a car and and at 1am I was covering up Bug and Monkey and kissing them goodnight. 

I love New York City.  There is something about it that is unlike any other city I have ever been to.  I love San Diego, Phoenix, Vegas, Erie, and our little getaway places in the Carolinas as well...but NYC is in a category all by itself.  But for the first time in two years, something I never thought I would hear myself say came out of my mouth when we were driving home from Lexington...

 "I love Kentucky." (gasp)

I love the smell, the green grass, our backyard, and not feeling like we live in a fishbowl.  And it wasn't just an 'at the moment, glad to be home' statement because even now, two days later, I still feel the same way.  I love it here for many different reasons, for many big reasons.  Don't tell anyone...