Black and White Wednesday - "NYC"

We had a WONDERFUL day in New York City!
Pat and I arrived just before noon and the minute we exited the port authority we saw Marla and Derek standing across the street waiving their arms in the air!

We were so excited to see Marla again and to finally meet Derek. Even though it has only been a few months since I saw Marla, it feels like it has been so much longer. My only regret is that she did not get to see Reagan this trip, but there is always next time:)

The weather was just beautiful and we stood on the street talking and catching up for about twenty minutes and then decided we should find a place to get some lunch.

There are probably a dozen restaurants within each city block and it can be overwhelming trying to pick one. We assumed the first thing we should do was choose a cuisine and then go from there. Sushi seemed to work for the four of us, so we were on the hunt for a good Japanese restaurant.

We ended up in cute little place in Hell's Kitchen where we had Bento Boxes and a few celebratory cocktails.

After our lunch we walked through times square and started to head towards a very crowded central park.


As we were walking through the park we got the call from Dita and JR that they were on their way to pick us up so we could head down to SOHO where we had dinner reservations.


We were a little early for dinner so we went into a trendy tavern that had open doors and windows. It was the perfect place for the 6 of us to sit back, relax, and enjoy each others company. Many funny stories were told and before we knew it, it was time to move the party to the next restaurant.


Dinner was INCREDIBLE......thanks to Dita who knows the city inside and out, she knew all the perfect spots to take her "foodie" friends! We ate at this great Italian restaurtant called I Tre Merli. By the time we left, I think we came close to collectively sampling the entire menu. There were so many things to rave about, but I think the one thing we are all still talking about was the Nutella Pizza that we shared for dessert!

The day could not have been more perfect(except for the race to make our bus back home) All six of us got along so well and have so much in common. My only complaint was that the day seemed to go by way too quickly. I felt as though we had just gotten there and we were alreedy having to say goodbye to our good friends.

I didn't get to take as many pictures as I had anticipated, but in this instnace, it is a good thing...... it means I left the camera in my bag and just had PLAIN OLD FUN with my husband and friends! Something that this trip made me realize we need to do more often.

We have not done much of anything since returning from China and that is something that we need to change. As important as it is to be there for our children, we also need to make time for each other.

We had such a fun day with four fabulous friends and hope that we will all be reunited again sooner rather than later. Whether we are in New Jersey, Philly, SOHO, NOHO, or Fort Worth...we can't wait to see you all again!