Amy and Echo had never been to NYC so I knew I wanted them to see ALL the famous sights. So we took the NEW YORK SIGHTSEEING tour. You get on their double decker bus and they travel around all the sights. You can get on and off whenever you want. Of course, we wanted to be on top so we could take lots of photos.
Do you recognize this building?
We went by this shop and I really wanted to stop and shop there. No such luck! Not sure if it would have been a great place to shop at or not.
The EMPIRE STATE building. It was rainy and cold on the day we toured the city.
I spy... The INK PAD. I would have LOVED to stop and shop.
Rockefeller Center- a must go to if you visit NYC
This is the wall and chandelier inside Juicy Couture. Ummm... I thought it was so pretty!!!!! Loved all the gold mirrors.
The store was really well designed and beautiful. LOVED the large white frame.
This was really special for me. We visited St. Patrick Cathedral. It was simply beautiful and I felt such a feeling of peace there.
Oh, and no trip to NYC would be complete without a visit to MAGNOLIA BAKERY. Okay, the cupcakes will melt in your mouth. I had the red velvet and savored it! Yes, I gained weight on my trip. However, I came home and did a complete cleanse the next day and lost it all within a couple days home. The key for me is to go right back to my no sugar/starches eating plan. I feel like you have to have balance in your life and vacation is when I allow myself to eat things that I don't eat day to day anymore. Just so you know I still struggle EVERY day to maintain the 32 lbs gone. I have no secret and I think it's harder to maintain than to actually lose it... for me! I am just constantly re-motivated by the way I feel now.
Okay... now for the crazy Wednesday. We got up at 5 am to head to Rockefeller center and watch the TODAY show live.
There is quite the crowd of fans that go to watch the show everyday.
Here is Al Roker. He seems to have a bad knee. He walked slow and seemed to have some kind of injury.
Hanging out watching the show...
Matt Lauer is so skinny... oh yes, he is one skinny man. He looked just like he does on TV.
Also, on the show today was Dr. Oz and Martha Stewart.
Fun to see Gene Simmons from KISS. Seems like a really nice guy. The crowd loved and cheered for him.
I was most impressed with Ann Curry. She was small, tiny and deeply sweet to everyone there. I witnessed her hugging people and seemed so down to earth.
We were on the show about THREE times that morning. Then it was almost over and the producer for Hoda and Kathie Lee came over to us and asked if we wanted to be apart of their show and be a contestant on the game show segment. Of course, Amy was excited and did not hesitate to do it. Echo and I would be her helpers.
We were told to come here at 10am and they would come for us.
Kathie Lee shows up and she is so kind and talks to the crowd. Such a sweet person! She thought Amy was a hoot.
Honestly, I loved that she was just a normal (albeit slim) woman. She wasn't super skinny or overly made up. Just seemed to be 'real." Amy was on the show and we were in the background "not really" helping her. Sorry... no photos from this. We were facebooking and on Twitter. So cool that so many people were following us and saw us on TV that day. Amy missed the question and was so cute about it. She did win a CD from Kathie Lee. Amy, have you listened to it yet?
Then we went back to touring NYC. Oh my... this place... I was overcome with feelings of sadness. I watched the videos. It was so real and all these years later... it's painful. I happened to know a girl who was on the plane that crashed into the field. I think of her every single time I think of 9/11. It was such a horrible day and I know we all know where we were on that fateful day.
Later that day we went to Ellis Island and to the Statue of Liberty.
This was my second time visiting both places and I still felt so much thankfulness for our pioneers and ancestors. I am thankful to live in a country where we have freedom.
Thanks Amy for taking photos of me. I know it's crazy but I feel so strongly that we have to put "ourself" into our life stories. Photos truly have a way of taking us back to a time, a place, a day....etc.
We are getting off the ferry boat here. We had been going NON-STOP all day and we were pretty tired!
So thankful to have seen her again...
That night we went to go see WICKED. The absolute PERFECT way to end the trip! I had seen it in Chicago a couple of years ago. It was just as good. I cried again... the meaning always get to me. I truly will NEVER forget this trip. I especially loved that I was with Amy and Echo. I highly recommend a trip with girlfriends. I have not done this in FOREVER. Watch for my book that I'm designing on a future episode on My Craft Channel.
Have a great day!
