NYC Day 2

i know i've been slacking on the blog, but i've been out in the country which means no internet connection what. so. ever. but here's day 2 of my trip to NYC...

sooo...after some starbucks drinks and pastries we packed up again and headed to the waldorf = astoria. i haven’t figured out why the equal sign is there yet, but i know now that’s the correct way to write it.  the hotel was probably my most favorite part of the whole trip...as lame as that sounds. it was amazing!  it was built in the 1920s and it is still just as b-e-a-utiful as it was back then.  you should click here to see pictures of the waldorf.  your jaw will drop it's that amazing. i felt like a little kid running around finding all the cool hiding places and little nooks and crannies everywhere.  it was like every corner you turned led to something new.  it was great!  ok sorry, i get really excited talking about the hotel! but if you ever have the opportunity to stay there i would highly recommend doing it!  and no bed bugs which is a plus :)

the clock in the lobby

some Christmas decorations

the chandelier was gorgeous!

our room (and my purse)

once checked in and after exploring a little bit we went to lunch at Junior's, a local restaurant in times square.  it’s known for having the best cheesecake in new york! mom, morgan, and dad all ordered cheeseburgers and i ordered a BLT.  they gave you SO much food so i only ate half of my sandwich.  after stuffing our faces we walked right next door to our broadway show!  we saw a show called Memphis and it was wonderful! click here and watch to see what it's about!

 eating at Junior's!

doesn’t it sound good?! well it definitely was and i would recommend seeing it if you can! what surprised me the most about the whole broadway experience was how tiny the theater was. i had no idea it would be so small! i imagined the broadway theaters to be a lot bigger than they were. but overall my first broadway experience was fabulous! 

after the show we walked around the times square/rockefeller center area.  the Christmas tree looked phenomenal!  i actually thought that was going to be bigger than it actually was also, but nonetheless it was still gorgeous!  i think the whole world wanted to see the tree so it was VERY crowded.  i mean there were people eeeeverywhere! that's one reason why i could never live in NYC...there are too many people. i love people and i'm definitely an extrovert and all, but to have that many people around you all the time is just too overwhelming and exhausting! next we made our way to the nbc store.  upstairs they had places where you could record yourself doing the weather like you were the weatherman on tv, tours of where they record the today show, and huge ipods that served as tables to play games and stuff on. then we went to the hershey store! that place was crazy! then we headed over to saks 5^th avenue.  their window displays were amazing! there was a line you had to wait in just to walk around and look at the windows which told a story. it was really neat.  but the inside was even neater! we were really impressed with all their Christmas decorations. everything was white and silver and shimmery, but then in the middle there was a mannequin dressed in an elegant, bright red dress that stood out like a sore thumb.  it was totes gorge!  i think i walked around saks with my mouth hanging open the whole time because all the dresses were just sooo pretty!

times square  

massive hershey's syrup

matt lauer and i (if only he was real...)

saks 5th avenue

so then it came dinner time.  morgan was feeling sick and needed some drugs so dad and i went on a hunt to find some.  as soon as we got to duane reades (a pharmacy store) the man told us it just closed.  so we moved on and found a restaurant and a pharmacy in the same spot.  it was like a 2 in 1 deal! we grabbed some pizza and lots of Dayquil and Nyquil and brought it back and we all passed out watching santa clause 3!  it was a great ending to an even greater day! and that’s it for day 2! day 3 tomorrow and i promise it will be up!

New York City: Winter Wonderland

3 words: oh my goodness.  i really don’t know where to even begin describing our trip, but I do know that new york city + Christmas = magical (the math major coming out in me). seriously though.  there’s so much to write about so i’ve decided to break it up by day.  so today is day 1!

on friday night the fam and i packed up the car, grabbed some taste unlimited sandwiches,  and drove up the eastern shore to new jersey.  we arrived at our hotel and before we could do anything mom had to check our room for bed bugs. yes, bed bugs.  you might not think this is funny, but my sister and i thought it was hilarious.  she pulled off every layer of sheets on one corner of each bed until she got to the mattress.  she searched for the little black bugs on each layer.  the best part? she seriously brought a magnifying glass to inspect the beds with.  i died laughing when she whipped it out of her suitcase. but fortunately, we were free of bed bugs at every hotel we stayed in. phew.  

saturday morning we woke up, packed up again, and headed to the big apple.  the hotel we stayed in that night was on canal street and was brand spankin’ new.  can you say shopping?! it was totally not what i was expecting.  there were vendors everywhere trying to get you to buy their products.  people would jump out at you saying (in their cool accents), “louis vuitton, chanel, coach?”  i learned quickly not to answer them, and just keep walking.  that day we walked around china town, little italy, and soho.  china town was a lot different than what i expected.  the best part was all the fresh produce and meat everywhere.  then we wandered over to little italy.  we got talked into eating at a cute, very tiny italian restaurant called caffe napoli.  the Christmas decorations were adorable!  and the food was SO GOOD!  we were all thrilled with what we ordered.

morgan and dad at caffe napoli

mom and me

caffe napoli in little italy

china town

after lunch we walked down to soho.  with all my favorite stores within a couple of feet of each other, it was hard for me to contain all my excitement.  was i excited about the prices? no. not at all.  they were ridiculous!  but it was fun to dream.  however, gap had great deals with their $12.95 sweaters and turtlenecks!!  for dinner that night we went to china town and ate at a restaurant called amazing 66. mmm mmm good.  we got sesame chicken, chicken and broccoli, spring rolls, and a very strange dish that dad ordered (pictured below).  right across the street from us, at another restaurant, they were filming a show.  they saw me leaving our restaurant and asked if i would play a part in it.  i thought to myself, “ how do they know i’m such a good actress?”  but i kindly told them that my skills were meant to be used for bigger and better productions.  ok i made that all up.  i stink at acting and i would never say that.  but the whole part about filming a show across from us is true.  it was called Treme and it shows on HBO and it’s based in New Orleans, but there is a character that visits New York frequently and that’s what they were filming there.  look for it and look for me acting in it.:)

dad's weird dish

with full stummies, but still enough room for dessert, we walked back over to little italy to grab some cappuccinos and pastries.  this was probably one of my favorite parts of our whole trip.  we found a cute place known for "the best cannoli's on planet earth!"  morgan, mom, and dad ordered eclairs, marble cheesecake, and a cannoli.  i chowed down a bomb.  obviously, not literally. it was a peanut butter gelato ball covered in chocolate with carmel drizzled on top and in the very middle there was a gooey carmel center.  yummm! it was the bomb diggity! get it? BOMB diggity! well i thought it was funny. 

cappuccino!

(aren't the glasses fun?!)

chocolate cannoli!

dad and me with the chef (he's fake if you can't tell)

that pretty much wraps up day 1 in "the city that never sleeps."  i’ll talk about day 2 tomorrow and day 2 was one of my favorites!  we headed up town to times square, central park, and BROADWAY!!  here are some random pictures from day 1!

view from our room!

some of the Christmas decorations in little italy

xoxo,

erin with a p and a double r

home sweet home

i'm back, i'm back, i'm back! exams are done and i'm back in business with blogging. because i missed friday AND monday, i'm going to combine everything on a wednesday! i know, i know. totally illegal. but i'm going do it anyways.         

so...favorites. today my favorites are random. very random actually.  

1. the middle seat on the bus

i told you they were random... 

having a class in memorial hall (a building further away from campus) means i take the bus every day to and from class. there is one seat that as soon as i get on the bus i look to see if someone is sitting there. if not, i rush to get it before somebody else does. if so, i might say a few foul words in my head directed towards them. kidding. but i do get a little upset when that seat is occupied. why do i get so angry? i don't think you'll understand, but i'll try to explain anyways. first, it's perfect for people watching and i'm a big fan of people watching. you can look to your left, right, and straight down to the end of the bus at all the people. so great. secondly, it's right by the heat and i loooove heat. especially when it's freeeezing (literally) outside. 

this is me in my seat (see the heater behind me!!)

friends around me and my seat!

2. post-it notes

the randomness is not getting any better is it?

but i seriously don't know what i would do without them! they keep me sane. i use them for anything and everything. it was the one thing i made sure i stocked up on before coming to school. some of the current ones hanging on the wall in my dorm are "remember pencils for the morning," "Philippians 4:6-7 'Do not be anxious about anything...'" and "mail in rebate for cell phone." see what i mean? they keep me sane. i would forget so much if it wasn't for these little sticky pieces of paper. i don't only stick them on the wall though. books, Bible, mirror, anywhere i can get some free space, there's sure to be a sticky note. the pictures below are an example of another great use of post-it notes. these were all posted on my wall in my room from some dear friends when i got home from thanksgiving. so fun!

my favorite

and now for the christmas favorite! (this is where the mistletoe monday part comes in).

3. my favorite Christmas movie, and don't laugh, but it's White Christmas. ahhh so good!! it's a classic. again, don't laugh, but i'm watching it right now while sitting in front of the fireplace and writing this anticipating the snow tonight for my white Christmas. as a little girl, i would watch this movie ALL the time; whether it was Christmas or not. i loved the music, the dancing, and i admired how beautiful Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen were. plus it's got Bing Crosby and Danny Kaye. so talented! i think i pretty much have all the lines memorized and after watching it over and over again i never get sick of it.

i'm going to finish my movie now and make some Zen tea that my momma got me for the care package she never sent. yeah, typical mom... but make sure you check the blog this week because i will be leaving for the big apple on friday night and will have lots to talk about!!!! i'm not excited at all. just kidding! i can hardly wait!! i'm counting down the hours! so, make sure you check it friday! hope you're staying warm and enjoying your night! 

xoxo,

erin with a p and a double r

  

Mistletoe Monday

"...it's the most wonderful time of the year..." has been stuck in my head all morning.  but it seriously is the most wonderful time of the year! this morning it has been flurrying (one of my friday favorites) and there's so much excitement in the air! i'm sitting in starbucks listening to Christmas music as i type this thinking about what a great time of year this really is! 
before i tell you all the reasons this is most wonderful time of the year i have to tell you all about my fabulous night last night. my roommate, kayla, some of our other girlfriends, and i were made an incredible dinner last night by our oh so great guy friends. they really outdid themselves! we had our dinner in hoffman hall (a newly renovated dorm on campus) and we made our own little dining room table using some coffee tables already there. we walked in and of course, none other but michael buble (my future husband) is playing in the background. such great music! the guys were cooking away as us girls did absolutely nothing. NOTHING! the guys were so sweet and didn't let us do a thing, even when we tried cleaning the dishes afterwards.  we started off by sipping on our Welch's sparkling grape juice and chowing down on our mozzarella, tomato, and fresh basil (otherwise called a caprese salad) appetizer.  then we moved on to our side salad and shrimp scampi which was delicious!! lastly, we had dessert which was a shortcake with mixed berries and cool whip on top. yummm! everything was just so good! and our entertainment was fabulous as well. i felt like i was watching the circus. we can't stop talking about how awesome you guys are and how thankful we are to have you as friends! thanks so much sam, brandon, micah, james, and john! 
ok Christmas time...
i have 3 reasons for today why Christmas is so great. are you ready for them?
1. Christmas tree decorating. i actually got to do it twice this year; once while i was at home and another when i got back to school. it's a family tradition to put up our tree while having all of our favorite junk food and listening to christmas music. pina coladas, sugar cookies, queso dip, and so much more are what we get to nibble on during the decorating. i know what you're thinking...YUM! because that's exactly what i think every year! after snacking, we all assume our positions. mom, the boss and perfectionist, starts decorating and makes sure every ornament is perfectly placed.  dad, the scrooge, sits there and hands us the ornaments to put up. and morgan, the complainer, acts like she's helping while she really just eats and wanders around. i love admiring all the meaningful ornaments like "just married" and "baby's first Christmas," laughing at all the homemade ornaments from when we were little, and remembering all the vacations we've been on from looking at the ornaments we bought there. at school, kayla and i decorated a little, lime green tree. we hope to get more ornaments throughout the year, but for now, our scarce tree will have to do. at first we didn't have anything to put on top so kayla stuck a rolled up poster on top. that was not going to work for me. so, on saturday i bought a cute silver, glittery star from wal-mart to put on top. it works perfectly! (pictures to come tomorrow!)
2. Christmas music.  it's everywhere! i'm not going to lie, but i started listening to Christmas music on November 1st. i was just so excited i had to start! and it's like drugs because once you start you can't stop! what are some of my favorites this year? well first, my friend laura introduced me to the mariah carey pandora station and it's simply fantastic. it's such a great mix of everything! from frank sinatra (if he was still alive he would be a future husband too) to backstreet boys, it's just marvelous! another favorite is the michael buble (i know, i'm obsessed) christmas cd titled Let it Snow. i play it over and over again and never get sick of it, but i think kayla does.  
3. most importantly, Christmas is so great because it's the biggest celebration of the year! we get to celebrate the birth of God's son! how great is that?! the whole Christmas story just blows my mind. one of my favorite Christmas songs is "A Baby Changes Everything" by faith hill and if you think about it how much did God sending his son to earth change everything?! Because of Jesus and his death on the cross later in life we are able to be in a relationship with the God of the Universe! That just gives me chills every time. When i hear the story of the birth of Jesus i think about Mary a lot. i like to think about what I would do if i was told by an angel that i was to give birth to God's son? How crazy would that be?! what would i do? well i know i'd probably let out one of my high pitched squeals in utter shock, but once i settled down, what exactly would my reaction be? just something to think about. 


well, hope you enjoyed my reasons for this great season and that you're enjoying the "most wonderful time of the year" today. :)
xoxo,
erin with a p and a double r 

Favorite Fridays :)

disclaimer: this is my first post so give me some slack. 

i've decided that i have a lot of favorite things, so i'm dedicating every friday to sharing 4 or 5 of them. this week my favorites have a lot to do with the freeeezing cold weather here in harrisonburg. me, being from the beach, is not used to this and am having a VERY hard time coping with it. ok well i'll stop blabbing and get to the favorites:

1. Tazo Zen Tea

if you like peppermint tea and green tea then you'll love Zen! it's the best of both worlds.  i put just a little bit of sugar and that's it. it's delicious!! plus, it's caffeinated which makes it great for those late nights in carrier (jmu's library). i like to put it in my cute travel mug and sip it on the way to class in the mornings when it's below freezing. try it, i promise you'll love it.

2. Warm Socks

are they not the best? right now i'm wearing a pair of black, thick socks that are keeping my feet toasty warm. i'm pretty sure they're from my dad's closet so don't tell him i stole them. is it weird that my feet sweat when i wear them? maybe a little. but i'm still going to wear them.  

3. Snow Flurries!!

as i'm writing this i'm seeing my first flurries here in harrisonburg right outside my window! how exciting! i hate the cold, but i LOVE snow! i don't think that makes sense, but do you know what i mean? snow is just so great. you can have snowball fights, make snowmen, eat snow cream, then go inside and have hot cocoa with marshmallows galore and sit by a fire and watch movies! it's seriously the best. well now that i've gotten so excited about the snow the flurries have sadly disappeared. looks like we'll be saving all the fun for another day! 

4. Movie Nights

they rock. especially when you've trekked all the way across campus in the bitter cold because then you can grab blankets and friends and snuggle and watch your favorite films! tonight my friends and i are having one. we're all bringing our favorite teas (mine of course is Zen) and popcorn and snuggling up to watch Love Actually. i haven't seen it yet so i'll let you know how it is.                   

well that's all the favorites i've got for this friday, but don't worry, i've got lots of them stored up in my head for next friday. tonight my friends (yes, i have friends) and i are eating at e-hall (the best dining hall on campus because d-hall is gross) and then we are heading over to intervarsity large group (whoop whoop!) and then we're having our movie night. sounds like my ideal friday night. well hope you've enjoyed reading my first post and that you'll come back monday for "Mistletoe Mondays" where i'll talk all about CHRISTMAS!! :) 

xoxo

erin with a p and a double r.