Concrete Jungle Where Dreams Are Made Of -NEW YORK!...

If you know me at all, you know that I have ALWAYS wanted to go to NYC, and this weekend, my dreams came true! When we found out we were moving to Pennsylvania, my first thought was " I wonder how far we will be from New York?"

I was ready to go to NYC like THE DAY we moved here, unfortunately, snow over the roof of the car was a bit of a deterrent! Nevertheless, I hinted almost daily! My cell ringtone was changed to "New York State of Mind" by Alicia Keys and JayZ ( dont judge, i was trying to make a point!), I got an I Love NY shirt that i wear all the time, and I was always singing the lyrics to Wicked and leaving hints around like Wicked dates on the computer. Poor Joe!

Well, my good friend, A, who is the Pastor's daughter, and her mom invited me to NYC with them this week and I jumped at the opportunity! Although it was a very quick trip (26 hours in the city to be exact) we had a wonderful time! I got to see Central Park, Times Square, eat at some really fun little restaurants, and best of all, I got to see WICKED on Broadway!!! It was amazing!

Central park



Eating at a little pizza place called Artichoke


Funny Sidenote: Long story, but there were four of us girls and we were only able to get two tickets, so A and J hung out (they had both seen it already) while her mom D and I saw the play. We are sitting down and the lights are dimming and the music swells ( I'm so excited I could spit) and D looks at me and says, "So, like, does this have anything to do with the Wizard of Oz?" I laughed so hard! She had listened to the soundtrack all these years and NEVER realized what they were singing about!

Funny Sidenote#2: Joe and I were talking a few months ago and he starts talking about a guy who works with him at the plant and says, " Yeah, he needed time off so he could go see his daughter. She's in that play you wannna see....Wicked, right?" Me: Oh really who is she? Joe:" Oh I dunno... some green girl I think!" SHE'S ELPHABA'S UNDERSTUDY PEOPLE! THE MAIN CHARACTER!!!! Silly boy...says it so nonchalantly like it's no big deal! :)

Waiting in the raffle line to try to win $25 tickets


If you ever get the chance to see WICKED on Broadway, you MUST go! It was fabulous! I thought Lion King was amazing, but this easily beat it ten times over! ( You may be afraid of the flying monkeys like I was, but just cover your eyes!)


This was a girl who was my disciple now leader in high school and I ran into her and her hubby at the play ( small world!). He is a pro baseball player for the Mariners and they were in town playing the Yankees, so she flew in to spend the weekend with him. When I look back, I remember her being the one who encouraged us in high school/junior high to stay pure and save ourselves for marriage. It was interesting to run into her in a different phase in life, both being happily married. God is so good!



I kept saying "all I want for my NYC experience to be complete is someone to whisper 'bags/purses' and lead me down a back alley to a room full of cheap bags." Well, about an hour before we left, headed back to the subway, we were on canal street and a HUGE black man whispers "bags" and we followed. We were passed off to three different people, who led us into a "jewelry store", who called down to another person on walkie talkies "I'm bringing down four." They lead us into a room full of every kind of designer bag you can think of and I was like a kid in a candy store! I got a great "Coach" bag for $28. (I know some may think this was not a good thing to do, but I choose to look at it as "getting cultured." Plus, I think they are ripping you off in stores charging that much for a bag...come on! And, if you still think I was doing something wrong buying bootlegged bags, remember that the pastors wife was doing it too...so that must make it right, RIGHT?)

...And a great time was had by all! Looking forward to the next time I can get back to NYC already! Thank you, friends, for inviting me, and thank you hubby for letting me go and not getting too mad i followed strangers into a dark basement to get a good deal!:)