NYC - Part 4

 We were in our room LATE Wednesday night when we looked at the forecast for Thursday and saw that it was going to be drizzly in the morning and after a busy few days decided to re-evaluate our plans to walk to Bryant Park, the public library and Grand Central Station.  I think that they really would have enjoyed seeing those things BUT I think it would have been A LOT so instead we booked a carriage ride through Central Park!  

As soon as we told them we were going to NYC Griffin goes, "do we get to ride in a carriage??" and, honestly, I hadn't booked it because I didn't think it would be that great compared to other things and then when we got there and she kept petting the horses and telling us how she'd "always dreamed of riding one" we knew that it would be the perfect chance to do it.  We booked online using Three Jays carriages only because we wanted to have something kind of "solid" in terms of plans and while I can't compare it to just hopping on a carriage at the entrance to the park I can say that our guide was great and the kids really enjoyed the tour.

It was about an hour through the park and we stopped three times to get out, take pictures, etc.  He pointed out LOTS of movie scene spots including movies and shows that my kids would be familiar with which was great.

The Friends fountain!

I'm so glad that we ended up doing the carriage ride because when we were talking about our favorite parts of the trip it was Griffin's number one and on Mason's list as well. 

After the carriage ride we took an Uber to Hudson Yard and got on the High Line.

"The High Line is a public park built on a historic freight rail line elevated above the streets on Manhattan’s West Side. Saved from demolition by neighborhood residents and the City of New York, the High Line opened in 2009 as a hybrid public space where visitors experience nature, art, and design"

This was one of my favorite things we did - when I went to NYC on our girls trip a few years ago we got to see a bit of the highline on our food tour but not the whole thing and I'm so glad we got to talk it all on this trip!

There were several cute little seating areas along the walk with plexiglass observation areas which were fun.

A little more than halfway we got off the high line and headed to Chelsea Market.  I could spend all day here but my kids had approximately zero interest in checking out the stores...

... so I drowned my sorrows in a grilled cheese and soup ;) 

We grabbed burgers, grilled cheese sandwiches and milkshakes from Creamline and ate outside because the weather was so pretty.

We finished the high line walk (it ends right at the Whitney Museum of Art)...

... and then grabbed an Uber to the 9/11 Memorial and Museum.  Lookin' like the carriage ride decision was a good one - everyone was BEAT at this point ;) hahaha

Our tickets to the 9/11 Museum were part of our City Pass and we showed up about 15 minutes early for our reserved time.  There was a LONG line of people waiting to get in and so we checked out the memorial portion first and then hopped in line which ended up moving really fast through security.

We are SO GRATEFUL that we got to take our kids here and definitely think that it's something that they'll remember and be impacted by for years to come.  The museum is incredibly well done and, if we hadn't had our kids with us, Dave and I easily could have spent twice as much time there.  

The ONLY negative thing I have to say about our experience was how insanely crowded the exhibit portion was.  Like JAM PACKED.  It really took away from being able to pause and talk to our kids about things and, honestly, was really the only time during the whole trip I was a little nervous about losing a kid.  JAM PACKED.  It's been interesting because all three of our kids have brought up different things they saw over the past couple of weeks so I know they're processing.  If you ever have the chance to go and/or take your kids I can't recommend it enough!

We ubered back to the hotel, changed pretty quickly and then walked to Times Square for our reservation at Carmine's!  We ate here on our girls trip and I KNEW my fam would love it.  The food is great, the atmosphere is fun and it felt "special" without feeling stuffy or too fancy for kids.

On our way there we saw them filming the World Cup host city announcement which was cool.

We had tickets for Lion King that night and we were already excited!

Can you tell which one of my kids is always down for a pic ;) hahaha

The food is served family style and we did cheese ravioli and chicken parmesan.  Everything was SO GOOD and, as I had anticipated, this was my kids favorite meal of the trip.  We loaded up on carbs and cheese...

... and then walked like one block over to the theater for Lion King!

Our seats weren't as great as they were for Aladdin (we were in the mezzanine here) but there were zero complaints from our crew.  Lion King is unlike anything else you can see and we all loved it!

If we get a chance to go again (touring or NYC) I'll definitely try to get tickets a bit earlier and, hopefully, 

a bit closer so that we can see more details of the costumes and puppets - everything is so well done!

After checking out the view of Times Square from the theater...

... we walked straight out of the theater and directly into the line for dessert at Juniors next door ;)

Fueled by cheesecake and chocolate layer cake we made our way back to the hotel making one more stop in Times Square.

Radio City was about a block from our hotel and it was so fun to pass by every night on our way back. 

It was a fantastic last full day and the PERFECT night to end our trip! 

I have one more post planned for next week talking about our last morning and answering questions that I received on instagram.  If you have any questions leave them here in the comments and I'll be sure to answer them next week. 

HAPPY Thursday, friends!!!