Celebrating 30 in NYC

New York. Where to begin? New York was simply amazing, but then again, it always is. I know I've never been to Seattle, Chicago, Boston or LA, but you can go ahead and put me on record stating that NYC is my most favorite city in the US!

This vacation was much needed for both Tarl and myself. Not just for us solely but for us as a married couple too. You see, 2016 has been hard, truly difficult. With the passing of my mom and then Cadence's diabetes diagnosis and then her celiac diagnosis (we're gluten free now!) and late nights, early mornings, appetite fighting, carb counting, all the while being emotionally unhinged because moms passing is still fresh, it's been hard!

We had this trip planned and booked prior to all of those bad things happening. Then they happened and we still decided to go because #1 you couldn't get your money back and #2 we really wanted to go. Then the hurricane hit us and my husband works a job that requires him to stay. The hurricane hit the same day our plane was supposed to fly out. Oh well. We re-booked and celebrated the beginning of November, and you know what? It was wonderful!

The weather was great. A perfect chill in the air. Fall leaves were scattered all throughout the city, especially Central Park. The skating rink had just opened at Rockefeller Center and we even managed to see a few businesses with their Christmas lights up.

We did lots of eating. Lots of walking. Lots of looking up. It's funny but true, that tourists spend a majority of their time in NYC looking up, but the architecture in the city is truly amazing.

This is my third trip to NYC. The first two times we stayed in Times Square and I hated it. It's so loud and too crowded. This time we stayed at a wonderful hotel (The W) right off of Lexington and it was great. The hotel was beautiful, the staff was amazing, and it was centrally located within a walking distance of everything. Central Park, 5th avenue, Times Square and Herald Square were all within a great walking distance. Tarl and I both agree'd that we would stay in this hotel again in a heartbeat. 

This trip was just what we needed. We got to relax and spend one on one time together for four days straight. We got to eat dinners without carb counting and worrying if it was gluten free or not. We adore Cadence and we are blessed to have the opportunity the Lord has given us with these diseases (because that's how we look at them, opportunities. These aren't disablements as they are manageable and we learn so very much in the process.)but the break and togetherness we had was amazing and something I will always cherish. 

I am so fortunate the Lord chose him for me. I couldn't imagine doing this life with anyone else but Tarl! Sweetheart, if you're reading this, thank you for being my most favorite travel companion. I pray we have many more opportunities to freak out together while we're 35k feet in the air!