NYC: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly!

Anyone who saw the above photo would look at it and think oh what a cute family on a fun vacation in NYC at Christmas Time, How Fun!!

Well don't let it fool you!!

This is what I spent the majority of the trip doing and feeling!!

To really tell this story, let me back up a few days before the trip. Monday, Kailie woke up from her nap not her usual happy self so Jared was rocking her, he thought she was asleep but instead she looks up at him and then throws-up all over him. Poor baby! This was her first time really throwing up so it was a new experience for us all especially since diabetes and throwing up don't really work well together. Anyways, the next day she felt fine. Fast forward to Thursday, the day we were heading down to NYC. Jared shows up at home from work around noon and says that he threw-up twice in the OR and then went straight to bed and slept for the next 6 hours. The guy never was sick a single day of Residency but now the day we are leaving he gets it. I wake him up around 6 and we head out on our 4 1/2 hour drive to the city. Jared slept the whole trip except when Kai needed something and I who was driving couldn't get it for her. I was feeling fine but the closer we got the more my stomach started to churn inside. I wasn't sure if it was just me thinking and worrying about getting sick since Jared was or if I was really getting sick. By the time we checked into our hotel in Jersey, I knew I was sick. I spent that whole night awake and sick. Thankfully Jared was feeling better the next day so at least one of us was sane. Of course Jared and Kai only lost their food twice, me on the other hand every time I get sick it is always bad. This time thanks to the drug Zofran it was only about half as much!! Needless to say by the time we got into the city and finally found our hotel I was drained, exhausted, mad and so frustrated that the one time we are in NYC at Christmas and I am so sick I can barely walk.  Friday was a total bust for me. I spent the day and evening sleeping while Jared and Kai met up with our friends and had fun.

This trip definitely had some good parts, some bad parts and some really ugly parts!!

Friday night: Jared and Kai met up with our friends the West's. They went to Rockefeller Plaza, Macy's and Time Square. Here Kai is checking out a window display at Macy's.

One of these is not like the others?

I was looking through the photos Jared took and this one caught me off guard. Some crazy little squirt doesn't belong in this family!! The West Family! They are so cute and tons of fun! I guess Kris the Dad was trying to recreate scenes from the movie Elf, like jumping on the white lines, going up the escalator all spread out, eating pretend gum off the the railing and so forth.

Jared and Kai all bundled up. Funny story: The past three months or so I have been looking for new winter clothes since I don't have a lot and I kept asking Jared if there was anything he needed or wanted for winter and he kept saying no. Flash forward to the night we are packing for this trip, I have all my warm clothes I have been buying and searching out and Jared just keeps saying "Oh I don't have a hat or gloves or boots, or sweaters, etc." I was like are you kidding me I have been asking you for months if you had all of this and you said yes, so he got to wear anything of my stuff that would fit him like my beanie and gloves and we planned on spending some time on Friday shopping for new clothes for him, which of course didn't happen. 

Saturday Morning I woke up weak but feeling 80% better than the day before and there was no way I was sitting in that hotel room any longer. So away we went and we went all day!

First stop-Bryant Park holiday shopping stands, since it was right by our hotel. Kailie throwing one of her many fits about having to be in a stroller.

Enjoying some snacks.

After Kai's above tantrum we checked her blood sugar and sure enough 63. So we stopped for a few fruits snacks. It is amazing how much better she feels instantly when she is low and then eats something.

I quickly discovered that I was still really weak and Nausea's so I had to sit down quite a bit and I drank a lot of gatorade trying to rehydrate myself.

Chasing Pigeon's. I don't think it would be a complete trip in the city with out doing this!

Then it was off to meet up with the West's. Kai threw another little fit on the way there. 

Man I love two Year Olds.

  She obviously didn't want to sit in her stroller, I on the other hand would have gladly sat in it for her. I even did a few times.

Nothing says PEACE  like a sleeping toddler!

 Taking a break in front of this really cool building.

Love this!!

It has Christmas lights all over it and was so cool looking. Too bad  I didn't see it in the dark! That is my kind of fire truck.

 

For lunch we went to this place called Jekyll and Hyde based off of the play.

The setting was fun and kept the kids entertained but the prices were pretty high. $15 for a kids meal is a little much and they won't let you share meal. 

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Whenever Kai would get scared she would go sit in Mariah's lap instead of mine. Guess she found a new buddy!

After our two hour long lunch we headed out into the cold again and into Central Park. 

 Enter in this Photo again since it is the only one I took in the park. If I wanted to ice skate in the city I would definitely pick Central Park. It was the biggest and least crowded. In the background is the The Plaza hotel.

The Plaza!

I wanted to go in but we were in a hurry!

I really want to go to FAO Schwarz, well this was the line to get in if you had a stroller. The other line was clear around the building and down the block. We actually saw it on the news that night so it must have been unusually long. Needless to say we didn't make it in.

You know in movies how it has the streets of New York looking like this. Well this wasn't any movie. It really was like this. At least in the tourist areas.I was so amazed that the West were able to keep track of all their kids in this craziness but come to find out, later that evening they actually lost their 6 year old. Jamie said she was running around crazy, yelling and pushing people trying to find him. Miraculously, people kept saying he was over by the fence and sure enough Jamie found him with a nice family that was taking him to the police. Thank goodness for good people!!

Stopped in this beautiful church to take a break and get warm on our long crowded walk back to Times Square. 

Took a quick photo in front of the Rockefeller Tree. It was such a blur to me walking past this that if I didn't have this picture I wouldn't have believed that I actually saw the tree. You really can't get any closer because there is like a million people surrounding the tree.

Then we went to Toy R Us. Can you say Crazy!!!!

I was feeling much better by this time but being in there made me sick. I was waiting for Kai and Jared and some fight broke out between this older guy and a lady, some guy who was holding a toddler was trying to break it up. I was thinking what are you doing, you have a toddler in your arms. As soon as Jared got back I told him we had to get out of there or I was going to go crazy! We lost the West 's in all the craziness but Kris called and said they bought 4 lbs of candy and it cost like $50. So funny!

 

Jared and Kai were ready for a break so they headed back here to to the hotel

 

There was no way I was going back to the Hotel so I went and walked around Bryant Park again. I didn't know there was an Ice Skating rink there as well. 

Our hotel was right in between Grand Central Station and the beautiful Chrysler building so that was nice and convenient.

Later that night we had planned all along to go over to Brooklyn to Dyker Heights which is this really awesome neighborhood that decorated like crazy for Christmas. We saw it on a TV show and planned to go but after the long day Jared didn't want to go which was frustrating because I didn't want to just sit in the hotel all night but I definitely was not going to go by myself. Finally Jared said he would go but by the time we got ready and went to go it was cutting it really close to the closing time so we weren't sure if we would make it. So we decided not to go and instead the concierge suggested going to Union Square to the markets there. Well we get there and all of the shops were closing. Great!!! We were not to pleased but it just fit in with the theme of the trip.

The next morning we woke up late and had to rush to church. I of course was feeling super Nausea's again so we decided to take a cab.
Holy Crab-our cab driver was insane!!!! Jared called him the Top Gun Taxi driver because he was all over the road but he did get us there on time. I was just grateful I got there with out throwing-up in his car.

Church was definitely one of the highlights of the trip. We ended up being in a singles ward which was funny and Kailie of course was crazy and loud. I don't think she was a ton different than normal there was just no other sound besides her so it was like magnified. It was so funny to be back in the singles ward and just made me so grateful that I am not still single. Although it would be totally a blast to live in the city when you are single or newlyweds.

Some random floats we passed on the way to church!

After church we met up with Joy, Jared's friend from Med school for breakfast. We took another taxi and this time I knew I was sick. I am not sure why I felt good on Saturday but then Sunday was sick again. The only explanation is that Jared gave me a blessing on Friday and in it he said that I would feel better Saturday but he said nothing about Sunday. So I guess it was just a blessing that I was able to get out on Saturday. 

The drive home was not so fun, between feeling sick and then having to drive through a blizzard I was just glad to be home and done with the trip.

Moral of the story: if  you are planning on going to NYC during the holidays BE PREPARED for absolute chaos and craziness and millions of people. Oh and be sure not to get SICK while you are there. 

The biggest thing I am bummed about is not being able to eat at The Clinton St. Baking Company. I have been dying to go there for over a year now.