Travel Diaries: New York
For Fall Break this year, we took the girls back up to New York. If you have followed along Instagram or the blog at all, you know how much we love New York. We love taking the girls and often go without a plan aside from a few dinner reservations. We simply go with the idea of enjoying the city like a regular NYC resident. With that said, I wanted to share what we did this time in case you’re planning a trip to the city for the holidays.
First stop is always The Plaza to visit the Eloise Store. They have adorable children’s clothing for little girls, but the girls LOVE the Eloise books, so we always go home with a new notepad, pencil, lipgloss…you name it - I think we have had all things Eloise at some point and they just love it! It is a must see NYC shop for little girls!
We always spend time in the basement of The Plaza upon arrival between the Eloise shop and the dessert displays. The girls LOVE picking out a quick macaroon from Ladurée.
American Girl in New York is definitely worth the visit with little girls. There are lots of fun, interactive displays and so much to see in a large, well designed space!
I’m excited to share this new experience Caroline and I both had in the garment district. We took a private lesson at The Fashion Class and I cannot recommend it enough! Our lesson was located in Bryant Park, where we met our instructor at Mood Fabrics. This happens to be the same spot where Project Runway takes place, so that made it extra fun! She took us around the (enormous) fabric store and had us pick out a fabric to take back to the studio to make a skirt. I could have stayed in Mood Fabrics all day!. I ended up buying other fabrics too! Once back at The Fashion Class, our sweet instructor, Elizabeth, went over step by step on how to make a skirt. She taught us the best way to make the pattern, how to work the sewing machine, and how to execute the plan. Not only did Caroline and I have the best time with an afternoon of one on one time, it was really fun for us to both learn something new together. I think you can tell from the pictures how proud of her skirt she was; in fact, she wore it the rest of the day with her sweater and booties. I know we’ll plan to do this again sometime and I’ll definitely take Sarah back when she’s older.
We were there about the time department stores were beginning to put out their Christmas decorations, so the girls absolutely loved going in Bergdorf, Saks, and Bloomingdale’s!
The girls had a ball in Dylan’s Candy Shop. Caroline had been before, but Sarah was in heaven!
On Sunday night, we ate at Serafina…our favorite pizza place in the city!
Whether you are young or old, what is there not to love about a trip to FAO Swartz? We loved the new Rockefeller Center location and spent lots of time following the girls around as they watched the demonstrations and got Christmas ideas. It is just such a magical place!
Eating at Forty Carrots in Bloomingdale’s is such a treat! I definitely recommend a trip here for lunch with kids, even if it is for a afternoon yogurt or green juice! It is a fun city spot!
This was a quick trip for us! It was a gorgeous weekend, so we spent a lot of time walking around in Central Park and the streets. As a family, we love enjoying the energy that surrounds you by just by being there! I rounded up our favorite activities with kids in the city and rounded up our favorite restaurants too! Some of our best friends live in the heart of the city, so I feel like over the years we’ve tried a lot of new places, but this is a list of the ones we continue to go back to each visit!
Restaurants:
Serafina ~ This is great salads, pizza, and pasta.
Harry Cipriani ~ We love the one next to The Sherry-Netherland and have taken the kids there too!
Todd English Food Hall ~ We love the food hall and the restaurant, but the restaurant is our preference when eating there. Plus, this is in the basement of The Plaza, so you have the added bonus of going the The Eloise store while there!
Nobu 57 ~ This one does not need an explanation, it is just that good! All four of us love it!!
Sara Beth’s ~ This is one of the best brunch spots in the city! It is right on Central Park and has a fabulous brunch menu!
Polo Bar ~ This is great, you just have to get a reservation 30 days in advance….or keep calling to see if there are any cancellations.
Forty Carrots ~ This is a fun, quick lunch at the top of Bloomingdale’s on 57th.
Lobster Club ~ This one is not really for kids, but we went with our friends over fall break and it was fabulous!
Things our family likes to do:
Central Park Zoo
Broadway Shows ~ We loved Frozen this past trip, but our all time favorites for kids at Lion King and Aladdin
Walk The High Line
Radio City Rockettes at Christmas is AMAZING
The Fashion Class in Bryant Park
Library Lions
Statue of Liberty
The Met
Rockefeller Center ~ (American Girl, Lego Store, FAO Swartz, Ice Skating Rink)
American Museum of Natural History
9/11 Memorial (we’ve only taken Caroline to this, we will take Sarah in a few years)
SHOPPING :)
Dylan’s Candy Shop
Playgrounds along the Hudson River in Battery Park
Obviously, there are so many more places to eat and there is so much more to do, but these are things we love and the restaurants we know are consistently great! XOXO, Tracy