NYC The Last Day

It’s safe to say that by the last day in NYC we were exhausted!!! We didn’t make it to the train station until about 11, and I will take all the blame. I was moving slow, and it was suppose to rain on us! We were lucky enough that Nicole had generously volunteered to watch Nixon for us so that we could enjoy a day in the City by ourselves. We jumped at the offer, and I am still so so so grateful! Nixon was at an age where we couldn’t even  leave him in nursery without him crying. Luckily this really helped him get over that! He ate what he was given, didn’t cry, and didn’t talk! That last part isn’t the best, but hey, it wasn’t crying! At the end of the night, after all those babies were bathed, they snuggled in to watch a movie. Ridge isn’t much of a cuddler so Nicole was happy to have Nixon cuddle with her! She got up to get something and he got a little upset and so Jade jumped in and sure enough he cuddled with her! I wish I could have seen it! I’m so happy that I have such a great family that loves my baby as their own!
Anyway, it’s an hour train ride into the City from Parsippany so we didn’t get there until about noon. We knew we wouldn’t be able to eat until much later so we grabbed a quick lunch at Penn Station and then headed for the subway. Things were looking good, not rainy yet but by the time we got downtown it was raining. We stopped and grabbed an umbrella and it broke just a few minutes later. I would expect nothing less! We then headed for non other than the Statue of Liberty!

This was the main reason we didn’t want to bring Nixon, Nicole had said the lines and everything were absolutely insane and if we could avoid it we should. I actually have mixed feelings about our trip to the Statue. She’s great, large and copper and everything, but it was cold. Like so cold. and wet. Very wet. But there weren’t a ton of people there like you see in everyone else’s pictures, so that’s nice. All the tickets to go to the pedestal were sold out so we just walked around the island. We had the audio tour, and let me tell you, booooooooooring. Like painfully. After going to Alcatraz twice, there is not an audio tour I think we will enjoy again. We cut it short. Took some pictures, and headed for the boat.

The next stop was Ellis Island and that was more enjoyable. The Audio tour was better than The Statue, but it was no Alcatraz. But it was inside! And there was a bathroom, and it was INSIDE! We stayed for awhile, took a bunch of selfies, and hopped back on the boat. By this time it was 5 or 6 at night, I will admit, I was straight up lazy. We had the whole night ahead and endless options of things to do and see, and I was lame. I was typical me, indecisive and ready to be taken care of. We walked up wall street and saw the business men, took a picture by the bull, and then walked on to the 9/11 memorial and saw the pools. I just cannot comprehend how massive those building really were.

We then continued to walk North and somehow stumbled upon a little festival. There was a concert going on, and a giant, unlit Christmas tree! It turns out Ingrid Michaelson was singing, and they were about to light the tree! We stuck around for awhile to watch the festivities and it ALMOST made up for not seeing the Rockefeller tree by ONE DAY (they lit it the day we flew out. boo.) We were right by the Library and I really really wanted to see it! We walked around in there for a bit when Jim got the call from his friend Danny, who lives and works (A LOT) in NYC as a Lawyer, that he had a free minute for dinner! We were close so we ran over to Grand Central and got our THIRD meal there and headed back to his apartment. Can I just say, him and his wife have the most dreamy apartment? You always hear about how tiny and cramped NYC living is but in their space I know I could make it work. It was small, definitely. But even with a toddler I feel like I could do it. Plus they have an amazing wrap around balcony that really makes it all worth it! We were able to visit with them for about an hour before Danny had to head back to work, and we needed to head for the train. Sadly, we didn’t get a picture! I’m super bummed about that, Danny and Jim have been BFF since they were little and we never get to see him anymore. After that, we headed for the train and left The City for one last time. I left a part of me there too. There’s just not enough time! I didn’t eat everything I wanted to (like 2 bagels the whole time, ugh) I didn’t try 1000 different black and white cookies (though my soul connected with them and I know they were made for me) There was no walk along the high line, or across the Brooklyn Bridge, No Jimmy Fallon or Kelly Rippa or Matt Lauer, but that City. That CITY! I’m all sorts of heart eyes for it and ready to sell everything  I own at the drop of a hat to make it work. I will willingly let my child sleep in a closet, and have a mini fridge and kitchen with limited counter space just to call that place home. Someday I suppose.
The true hero’s of our story are Cody, Nicole, and Jim. We ate their food, inconvenienced their sleeping hours (Cody picked us up at like 11 from the train… TWICE!) and made a mess of their house and I never heard one bad thing. They watched Nixon for us twice and he is alive and was loved the whole time. I gave Jim a pretty much endless list of everything I wanted to see and do and he made it happen. I can’t tell you how lazy of a traveler I am. I am so happy to go along with everyone else’s plan, but making my own just seems so daunting. That is what makes us so compatible. He’s an easy going planner, and I’m a lazy want-to-see-everythinger. Match made in heaven.
Until Next Time NYC…