This past weekend Ebby Lee and I headed out on a GIRL’S TRIP TO NEW YORK CITY with Shay and Kensington to celebrate Kensington’s 10th birthday! This birthday trip has been in the works for a while so we were absolutely pumped about the day finally arriving!
We caught an early flight out of Dallas so we could soak up as much time as possible hitting the city on Thursday. Hello, 6:30 a.m. flight! With four kiddos at home, it’s tough sometimes to get a big chunk of one-on-one time with any one kiddo. This trip will be treasured for so many reasons but one being all the time I got with Ebby Lee.
*I’ll add any links to things we were wearing if they’re still available. I got several questions about items and will link them. I promise.*
WE MADE IT!
I clearly need to work on my elevator selfie game. WHAT am I doing?! hahaha!
We arrived, grabbed bags, and headed directly to our hotel to drop our bags and HIT THE CITY! Sidenote: We stayed at the JW Marriott Essex House Hotel and I’d highly recommend it. It was super nice, in a great location, and had the best views! {not sponsored at all-just sharing in case you’re looking for a good one.}
We were starving and were right down the street from the Plaza Hotel, which houses that cute, chic food hall on the concourse level. You won’t find any McDonald’s or Taco Bells at this food court. 😉
Shay and I had these DELICIOUS lobster rolls from Luke’s Lobsters for lunch. I was one small step away from licking that little paper container.
Central Park was up next! We misunderstood and totally thought that was Jessie’s penthouse from the hit Disney show. Wait for it… {That was our hotel with, “Essex House” above it.}
After a quick popsicle break, we realized that was actually the Jessie building. 🙂
With alarms that went off at 2:50 a.m., these mamas were in MAJOR need of some coffee!
This girl has my heart.
Erika: Dress {Mine is from a couple years ago so the camo is not available but this is the same brand}, Necklace, Shoes, Crossbody {I know…shocker, I was carrying something. Right?}
Ten was the very best age to take this kind of trip. They’re in that sweet spot between skipping down the sidewalk and begging to have a “real coffee” from Starbucks. And they weren’t embarrassed a bit by us moms, which I know is definitely fleeting as they get older. ha!
We made a quick stop at The American Girl store where they both got a little souvenir.
I don’t have any pictures of this next adventure…but we stopped into Saks Fifth Avenue to grab a few things. One thing led to another and Shay and I found ourselves in the Bobbi Brown make-up chairs. Keep in mind…we applied make-up at 3:00 a.m. that morning so they pretty much could have talked us into ANYTHING! This was something that wasn’t planned…just a spontaneous little walk into the store but turned into one of my favorite New York City trip memories. We walked out with New York City makeovers and two bags of new make-up. 🙂
And then it was back to the hotel to get ready for dinner.
For dinner we had reservations at The Mercer Kitchen. It was super chic, “very fancy”-in the words of Ebby Lee, and the food was delicious!
Ebby Lee-Dress-{sold out}, Bow
Erika-Dress {40% off!}
Day One was a complete success!
Day Two began with an Uber ride to our breakfast spot, La Pecora Bianca.
This place was CUTE! It was very girly {not that a guy wouldn’t enjoy a meal here}, the food was delicious, and my coffee was on point!
Holy Yum! Take a second to check out that plate! DELICIOUS! That’s a truffle omelet served with home fries and a latte.
My favorite nine-year-old 🙂
Erika-Top {sold out}, Shorts {are Old Navy and sold out}, Earrings, Necklace, and Shoes {this style is supposed to be a little different but all the sizes are fully stocked and I can’t even tell the difference from the picture}
Love this bestie friend of mine!
These two were living their best life!
On top of the world….errrr, the 86th Floor of the Empire State Building. And I’ve gotta add, us mamas were living our best lives too.
Checking out that VIEW!
Then we made it all the way up to the 102nd Floor. 🙂
Once again, no pictures of this…but we went to the 9/11 Museum next for several hours. The museum was absolutely amazing. What a tribute to all those who lost lives and sacrificed themselves to save others. I’d definitely recommend this if you’re traveling to NYC.
Also, our girls had heard about 9/11 but seeing all the information at the museum really brought the event to life for them. There were certain parts we had them skip simply because things were graphic but for the most part they walked through the exhibits and really learned so much.
Someone told us about the festival going on in Little Italy so we headed there for lunch.
A pit stop for pasta and pizza!
The streets were full of vendors, there were lots of people, and the energy was fabulous!
Georgetown Cupcakes was up next! And let me tell you…that Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cupcake did NOT disappoint!
According to these faces, the unicorn cupcakes didn’t either. 😉
Look how CUTE these two looked for dinner on night two.
Ebby Lee-Dress
Uber ridin’ with two of my favorite girlies.
We had dinner at The Loeb Boat House in Central Park and it was the girl’s FAVORITE!
Our table was right beside this water and the sweet staff kept the girls supplied with bread to feed the fish throughout the entire meal. The crab cake was absolutely delicious! And then my entree was great too…bacon-wrapped fish!
We took a little pedicab ride over to one side of Central Park…
where we had a CARRIAGE RIDE through Central Park!
Saturday we woke up with a TEN-YEAR-OLD in our room!
We had a yummy breakfast at Sarabeth’s right by our hotel. I had a jalapeno and cheddar omelet-it was just as delicious as it sounds. 🙂
We walked around the Upper West Side and then made our way back to Central Park.
This is what a Saturday stroll looks like in New York City. 🙂
Erika-Top {Can’t find it-boo!}, Shorts
Can you name that movie?
And then this sweet police officer agreed to step in for a pic too.
We got all fancy one last time to celebrate Kensington’s special day with dinner at Carmine’s.
Erika-Dress
These two kept us and surrounding patrons entertained while we waited. 🙂
Then it was FROZEN time!
This show was SO good…the music, Ana and Elsa, and ALL THE SETS! It was SUCH a good show to see. If you’re taking your kiddos, SEE THIS! Ebby Lee loved gave it two thumbs up!
We’ve been listening to the musical’s soundtrack since we got back on Sunday. #cantstop
A HUGE thank you to Shay and Kensington for inviting us to celebrate with them this weekend. We made four days worth of amazing memories we’ll never forget.
XO
Oh my gosh, so many things to say! What a trip this was and it has inspired me to get some one on one time with my best girl, too. Y'all all looked precious and what a way to ring in 10! {Oh and I know bags aren't your thing but girl, that one is CUTE! I think I need the grey, yes?} xo
What a blast and a special way to celebrate 10! I just took my daughter to NYC for her sweet 16 – special memories!
So excited to look into your dresses! I’ve been looking for some Fallish dresses!
What a sweet trip!!! The pictures are adorable, and I know the girls had a blast!! What fun!!
Let's go back right now!! I want to do it again!! Thank you girls so much for going with us! It was one of my very favorite trips EVER! Love you two!!
What a WONDERFUL TRIP and WONDERFUL MEMORIES with your girls! Great pictures!
What an amazing trip that you all & the girls will remember forever! So special!
Loved all of these pictures so much!! That Inspired Chick
How did you get from the airport to your hotel? Did you use Uber?
looks like so much FUNNN! I do have a question though… how do you talk your hubbies into
keeping the other kiddos for 4 days!! 🙂 🙂 what special memories!!!!
What a fun weekend away and so special to share that one on one time with Ebby Lee!
What an awesome trip! I have a 9 year old turning 10 in December and we are totally doing this!!! So many great tips! And thanks for linking the high top tennis! 😍
We had a car service ready and waiting at the airport. 🙂
And Julie-we’ll pay them back when they ski in the winter. :). But my mom came because Tab had football. He was out of town too.
You girls are so sweet! Looks like you had an amazing trip ! The city is a great place to visit!! Next time go to the observatory at the top of the Freedom Tower!! A litttle advice from a NYC girl please don’t let your sweet girls sit on the dirty filty sidewalks!!! Rats walk those sidewalks at night( especially during the feast) and urine( thanks to the mayor urinating in public is legal) need I say more! You girls are lucky you live in a nice clean town.
Looks like this will be a trip to remember.. what a wonderful time.
The pictures are great..
We love Sarabeth's.
http://www.henatayeb.blogspot.com