Welcome To New York

People will tell you that this city is intense... but you really can't appreciate the gravity of that statement until you're surrounded by it. The noise. The smells. Bumping shoulders. In every direction.

It's an atmosphere.

It's also a sensory overload for someone like myself, that grew up in a smaller city along the beach and then later in a town from Arkansas with 5 red lights. Can I say, though, that it was everything I dreamed it would be and more?! I was SO blessed to be able to take this tip with my sweet Mother & Sister-in-law! They were my guides through the craziness as they have made this trip several times over the years!

As far as accommodations go, we stayed at a Comfort Inn that was just around the corner from Time Square, and really, walking distance from most everything that we wanted to see. I think we were only in our hotel long enough for our face to hit the pillow for bed each night -- because we weren't about to waste our time on room service.

My Mother-In-law got us these passes called, 'The New York Pass' which allowed us discounted rates and access to over 90 popular attractions, skipping ticket lines, and a days use of the Big Bus Hop-On Hop-Off Tour. I would highly recommend getting this as we definitely got our money's worth!

I wanted to create a useful list of places that we were able to see both with our New York Passes and also for free on our own. As we had 2.5 days to explore the city, we rushed to use our  pass for as many of the following places. ***As a side note I've put them in order of which ones were my favorites out of each category! 

The things we were able to see using our New York Pass:
*9/11 Memorial Museum
Empire State Building
Rockefeller Center
Madame Tussaunds
American Museum of Natural History

Things that were free:
*Central Park
Time Square
New York Public Library at Bryant Park
Union Station

Fun places to stop by or eat at:
*John's Pizza
Browns Bagels
M&M World
Hershey's Store

Things I will add to my future New York 'must see' list:
​Broadway Musical
Riding The Subway
Statue Of Liberty
Coney Island
​China Town

I didn't realize how vast this city would be and just how much time you would spend in transit or waiting to get into the next place you're going. I would definitely allot yourself plenty of time for that while also remembering to nourish yourself in-between, ha! My gals made sure this pregnant momma was stuffed full of snacks at all times!

I think the coolest part about this city is, because it is so infinite, you could never be finished seeing all that you want to see. It just leaves you wanting to come back for more. I feel like we did so so much, yet we hardly scratched the surface of what New York has to offer! 

Definitely put aside whatever heels or wedges you planned on wearing and just opt for something that can still be cute, but comfortable. I was able to wear my Steve Madden Sandals & slip-ons for those days comfortably, but after walking roughly 35 miles over the course of my travels that week, my ensemble was really the least of my concerns. -- Also being 4 months pregnant wasn't doing me any favors for my back. *sweat face*

I will cherish these moments I had with my Mom and Sister forever! They both live in Washington D.C. and ever since Eric and I got married over a year ago this is the most quality time I've been able to have with them! This was also my first ever girls trip and it was so much more fun than I could have imagined. My family is such a huge blessing to me!

Here are a few additional shots of us and places along the way that spoke to me. I hope this was helpful!
​-xx