...These Streets Will Make You Feel Brand-New (Or Else They'll Give You 37 Blisters On Your Feet)

Now that it's been over a month since our trip to NYC, I think I'll blog about it.

Why now, you ask?

Why not?

Let me start by saying, I love New York.  Seriously.  It's probably one of my very favorite places to visit.  But, I'm always ready to come home.  As much as I love it, I really don't understand a city that a) never sleeps, b) doesn't have sweet tea.  Anywhere.  Believe me, I tried. And c) looks at you as if you're clinically insane when you say "hi" to a stranger on the sidewalk.

Wanna immediately get pegged as a tourist?  Say "hey, how are ya?" when you accidentally make eye contact with a random stranger.  Actually, just make eye contact with a random stranger, and that's probably enough, in and of itself.

Wearing jeans AND tennis shoes at the same time? Dead giveaway. Accidentally saying "y'all" to somebody?  It's all over.  You might as well strap on a fanny pack.

Y'all.


I actually had the following conversation with a (very hipster-ish) sales guy in a store:


Hipster Sales Guy:  So, where are you from?


Me:  How do you know I'm not from here?


Hipster Guy (snorting):  Honey?  You're wearing jeans and tennis shoes.  And you just said y'all.  Soooo, I'm gonna go with the south.


Me:  Not just the south.....the BEST southern state.  


(Not trying to get all feisty, just gotta throw out some Georgia pride.)


Hipster Guy:  Texas?


Me:  WHAT?!  No.  They're way too big for their britches over in Texas.


Hipster Guy:  Um, yeah.  You definitely just said "britches."


(Dear Texas, I actually love you. Don't hate me. I was just teasin' y'all.  Ha!)

Smoochin' in Times Square.
(Apparently I now feel the need to talk as southern as I possibly can.)

There's nothing like embarrassing yourself in the middle of Times Square, just for the joy it'll bring your child later.
And no, Starbucks didn't pay me for that product placement.
Actually, I paid them. So......

Family fun, looking NOT AT ALL touristy.

Yep. Out of the entire store, we ended up with the same two items.

I seem to have permanently attached a Starbucks cup to my hand.
No shame.

Our tour of NBC studios, during which we spotted Usher, and almost got kicked out of the building.

So, you may notice that I have changed races just a bit of a tan in some of these.
I'll just say this: it's usually not a good thing when, at the end of a spray tan appointment, your technician says "uh-oh."  

Again, just trying to impress a certain 2 year-old.
I didn't tell her that Elmo made us pay him $2, and smelled like urine.

Okay, I really DID try to wear cute shoes during the day.
But on day 4 of band-aiding my feet constantly, I just gave up.

Walking across the Brooklyn Bridge to have pizza in Brooklyn.  

Squeeze pic!

The unbelievable Manhattan skyline

Clearly, Jamey has a bit of a shopping problem.  
He made us hold his bags all day....what a diva.

Aw, brothers and sisters.
And I'm totally jealous of Sara's ability to rock a hat like that.

Our last night, at Carnegie Hall for the Nashville Symphony's performance.
I wish I could say I had a blast, but at that point, I had come down with some kind of funk that made me lose my voice and cough like a maniac constantly.

(Which is SUPER fun when you're at the symphony and you're supposed to be quiet.  Luckily, I had some water and M&M's in my purse.)

(Yes, M&M's are obviously the cure for a raging cough.)

It was an incredible trip, and we loved every minute!  Even if I did have to tape our HGTV reveal the day after we got home, while sounding like "4 packs a day Gladys".

Totally worth it.