I ~Heart~ New York!!

So, I love New York - I really, really do! We just got back on Sunday and I still feel exhilarated. My mom, my aunt and I went to visit my sister who just landed her first solo art show at the Monya Rowe Gallery in Chelsea. We were absolutely ecstatic and decided to make it a girls getaway weekend!

What I love about New York is the vibrancy and constant movement of the city. I love how you can get from place to place on the subway (I swear I lost 5 pounds!) without ever worrying about parking. I love the little corner stores that sell flowers on the sidewalk. I love the hot dog and soft pretzel sellers in the street. I love the little Italian restaurants that have been in the same spot for decades. I love the skyscrapers and the beautiful brick townhouses.

We began our weekend on Times Square the night we arrived and had a fabulous time, despite the rain. We stood on the concrete island in the middle of Broadway and snapped photos, along with other dazzle-eyed tourists! We had martinis at the Marriott Marquis. We talked late into the night.

The next day was the gallery opening and we were shocked to discover that seven of the 20 paintings sold before the the show even opened! We celebrated along with her friends and had a delicious midnight breakfast at a corner diner.

The few days following, we relaxed, we shopped, we had fabulous food. One highlight was discovering a group of etsy.com crafters from Portland, OR in Cameron Gardens, Brooklyn! What an amazing and talented group of artists. It was such a treat to chat with them and I found Zeldaloo's Mermaids irresistible and bought one of my own! This little beauty now sits in my office beside the coconut monkey from the NC State Fair (more on this later...) Some of my other favorites were Leah's Glass, Mmm Fiber, Curly Girl Glass, Urbana Pottery, and Ta-Dah Glass Creations! They were all so sweet and gave me a little treat bag to take home!

Ahh, what a lovely extended weekend! My sister's apartment is beautiful, her paintings are breathtaking, her friends crack me up and New York is just amazing. My daughter saw an "I ~heart~ New York" bumper sticker a couple weeks ago and she asked me what it meant. I said, Well, it means I love New York. She said, Mommy, I do love New York! So I brought her a slew of "I ~heart~ New York" souvenirs and she was ecstatic. Despite the draw of such a wonderful city, it was still nice to be home. I got a TON of kisses - from my daughter, my husband and our dog! Yes - it's great to be home, but what a lovely time was had by all!