A Dream Come True...

I have always dreamed of living in New York City for a summer - enjoying the park, the shopping and the sites but as a local not a tourist. All the pieces have come together and my dream has come true. Getting to share all of this with family and friends will make this an unforgettable summer...

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Tuesday Day 29

So this is it....went for a long run this morning to say goodbye to my park....:( I have had the best time imaginable.....Thank you to everyone who has followed my blog....this was such a good idea...I will always have this to look back on....I truly feel blessed to have had these wonderful experiences and appreciate all of the people who helped to make this so wonderful!! I love you all.....see you in Arizona.....til next time!! :)

Monday, July 26, 2010

Monday, Day 28

So today is my last full day here...I honestly feel that i have done everything I have set out to do...I have some last minute things to buy, but other than that I am good to go. I miss my husband..:) my daughter and my beautiful grandbabies...I decided to make sure I saw every neighborhood in the city....So I started out at Riverside Park and walked up to 110th st then walked along the north end of the park to 5th avenue...then I cut over to the east side at 86th to Madison, Park and Lexington Ave. My feet really started to hurt...so I took the subway home to take a break, change my shoes and have something to eat....then back out to Bed, Bath and Beyond for some essentials...back home and then out again to buy Ella and Jonah some Crocs from the Croc store....Picked up dinner on the way back...a slice...paired it with some wine...and home again...Had to continue with the packing...it's getting a little scary....hope I can get this all home....off to bed....til tomorrow!! :)

Sunday Day 27

Woke up early and went for a great 5 miler in the park....it was pretty hot and humid but it felt great...Jimmy and Leighann got ready early to catch the 11:30 train out of Penn to the Island. For some reason the station at 86th is closed again so they just took a cab. Alone again...but this time it's for my last few days..........So today I started packing...and doing some laundry. Then I went to see Mary Poppins....alone..its was fun and all but sort of strange not having someone to share it with....I took the subway to 66 th st. and walked around checking out some discount stores and then headed home. I stopped along the way to pick up dinner....a chicken parmigian panini...yum....home, bed early......I'm tired....:) til tomorrow..

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Saturday Day 26

I held off on my run because Jimmy and Leighann wanted to walk the park...I took them up to the fountain and then to Belevedes Castle....thee are such wonderful views from up there. We then headed over to Debbie's to let her son Kevin's dog out. We headed home so they could get showered for their show....It has been extrrmely hot and humid here..So just a few minutes outside and you need a shower. We tried to take the subway to 50th st, but for some reason the stop at 86th was closed....I knew there was also a stop at 79the so we started walking....we got there is few minutes walked down the stairs only to find that it was closed also....The next stop was at 72nd and we were all tired of walking so we hailed a cab. Jimmy actually told the cabbie to step on it....which wasn't really necessary since we weren't late....lol....i dropped them at Promises, Promises at 1:30 and hung out in Times Square for a few hours. At 4:30 I went to pick them up and thought it would be fun to show them how to get autographs....well imagine my surprise to find hardly anyone waiting at the stage door....So we had a great place and sure enough Sean Hayes came right up to us and Leighann got his autograph and I got his photograph and then a few minutes late Kristen Chenoweth came out...It is amazing how incredibly little she is. After getting photos...we walked thru Times Square and they actually bought souveniers...funny since they live in New York..lol..I took them down to Battery Park so they could see the statue and then over to Little Italy...Unfortunately in order to get to our restaurant we need to go on Canal St and go thru Chinatown...which was especially nasty...and smelly yuck...We made it to Puglis's in Little italy and were shown to a table where you eat family style...so we had another family of 4 at our table..The waiter took quite a while to take our drink order which should have been a sign to us of things to come.....they service was not exactly the best...but we were entertained by a man playing the keyboard and singing Italian songs....the whole place was joinging in, waving napkins and signing...so much fun.....I could actually pretend we wer in Italy for moment...but...it took over an hour for us to get our food......so of course they compensated with 2 carafes of wine.........I felt sorry for the family next to us with 2 small kids......but we did enjoy visiting with them...great couple from the upper east side....Once we finished dinner we were off to check out a bakery that was around the corner...and then off to the subway.....for some reasonthe trains were not running properly...which was par for the course this night and they kept sropping in the tunnels...for as long as 15 min at a time...it was taking forever to get home, so at one point we just left the station and took a cab home....long day....good night !! til tomorrow!! :)

Friday Day 25

So we are off again on a wonderful adventure....Joann and I woke up at 5:15 and left the apartment a half hour later to walk across the park, to see Sheryl Crow.....GMA Summer Concert series. This was a totally differnt experience than seeing Lady GaGa. There were very few people there at 6:10. so we quickly found a place close to the stage. The place gradually started to fill up, but we were set. Sheryl came out early to do sound checks...so she basically performed from about 7:15 on and off til 9.....At first she came out in jeans....but she got really warm and even asks the crew to shut off some of the lights...One of her people came out with a huge fan and was fanning her,,,,but I think she thought that was weird because she kept making fun of him...it was cute...Later she came out in an orange dress that I think was much cooler. She played a nice mixture of old and new songs from her most recent album. 100 miles from Memphis, which is where she grew up. After the concert we went and had breakfast at the Boathouse...one of my favorite places to eat in Central Park...a yummy eggwhite omlet with spinach and feta, and coffee....perfect..a nice walk back to the apartment so Joann could get ready to go give a talk at one of the local hospitals and then she was off to Albany...great time with the sista..
I started some laundry...sheets and towels again because Jimmy and Leighann were scheduled to come in later that evening..I also ran to the corner fruit stand for some bananas and blueberries...
They arrived close to 7, so we headed up Amsterdam for dinner...We ate at an Italian restaurant called Lisca....it was really delicious...but while we were dining a storm came thru.....we watched the terrenticial downpour and wondered how long we would be wholed up there since we neglected to bring umbrellas.There was quite a light show outside........Jimmy checked his phone and found out there was a tonado watch in effect.....wild....well the storm only lasted about a half hour and then we were fine leaving and actually went for a nice walk since the storm had cooled things off.............sat up visiting for awhile ...then off to bed :) til tomorrow.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Thursday Day 24

Yea I am caught up.....Jo and I got up this morning and went for a walk around the resevoir in the park....came right home to get ready for our day....So excited because today we are going to the Met......The Metropolitan Museum of Art...We headed up to Central Park West to get a cab....didn't think we wanted to walk that far and then be on our feet all day...There were no cabs to be had....we tried and tried and tried....then we tried the bus but I needed to refill my metro card...so no bus...we finally gave up and decided to walk..which wasn't too bad because it was a beautiful morning...cool lovely breeze..maybe 75...fabulous. We started the museum with the gift shop where a bought a watch that few people will have....great!! We then started the viewing...Picasso, Renoir, American Women, Tutankhamun's Funeral, The New American Wing....unbelievable exhibits....we had a great time.....Waldorf salad for lunch......It was all perfect..Then we decided that since we were in the neighborhood that we would check out Bloomingdale's for sales.....needless to say we spent the rest of the afternoon there....only bought a shirt...actually we bought the same one...which really never happens...but they are cute..a wild cab ride back home....or not home to the wine store....and then home... waiting for friend Debbie to come back to the city from the island...she called and is stuck on the LIE in Queens.....going to dinner with her soon...if we don't drink too much pinot..:) til tomorrow..:)

Wednesday Day 23

Started the day with a run in the park...I usually run to the Bethesda Fountain...and run the stairs....but this morning when I got to the stairs a strange man stopped me....apparently they were filming a movie....Friends With Benefits....and I couldn't run the stairs....bummer..so I hung out for a bit until someone asked me if I was an extra...I should have said yes...but I didn't so I headed over to the resevoir and ran once around that....home to spend sometime alone...only to realize I needed to color my hair..ran to CVS...got color and had a leisurely morning...this has been the first day..really that I have spent alone this whole trip....wow..but then the sista called..Jo.."hey I am in the city...meet me and my friend Ginny for lunch at Lincoln Center at 2" It is restaurant week in the city so lunch is only $24.07.....What a bargain...that didn't include cocktails...cause you've gotta have cocktails at lunch..come on....So first i needed to scope out some white watches....they are the rage here....do I want to be like everyone else....we will discuss that later. So rode the subway around town I got the text that they were in Lululemon....again...didn't want to miss that so headed to Lincoln Center..found the 2 of them spending lots of money...and we headed to Bar Boulud. Lunch menu included appetizer, entree, and dessert....but with these girls we had to start with French Fries....God help me....We ordered our cocktails...Ginny a mojito, Jo a pear rouge, and me a watermelon martini.....Ginny hated her mojito which was ladened with mint and ginger....yucky...sent hers back thru a very understanding manager...thanks Phil.....she ordered the same drink as me because it was so yummy....We ordered lunch I had the smoked pork, steak and chocolate......We had a wonderful time ...Ginny is a riot....She has a house in Maine and a Maple Sugar Farm in Mass......we can visit her anytime...After lunch Jo and i went to macy's to check out white watches....no go...so we went home....hung out for the evening .....What a fun day!!Did i also say that we had rose` at lunch too.....these people drink .....a lot....til tomorrow :)