"I do" love Ali.

Ali is my oldest friend. We have been friends since preschool, and despite having never gone to the same school since, we only grown closer through the years.

On Saturday she married her sweetheart, Bill.

I was honored to be there!

I couldn't stop taking pictures all weekend long because every detail was BEAUTIFUL.

Here are some highlights!

All of the flowers were arranged by one of Ali's bridesmaids--insane talent!

Love this bride-to-be.

Our view of Birmingham from the rehearsal dinner spot.

Cute couple.

Wedding Day!!

Hooray!

Don't you love her shoes? Why didn't I do that?

The dress was SO Ali.

I LOVED the bridesmaids dresses Ali chose. It was the first time I had gotten dressed up and wore a dress that really fit since before Will was born. It's sad but true.

I think I might just wear it around NYC some days because I love it so much. It's not too fancy for the playground or subway, don't you think?

My sweet Daddy-O and the bride.

Thank God for my parents this week.

And thank God for Clay's aunt Anita and cousin Carey and her husband Mark for watching Will on Saturday night and Sunday morning so we could par-tay it up with Ali and Bill.

Ali's married!

The next day we drove back to Louisville.

The day after that Will and I flew back to NYC.

And the day after that, I exhaled.

We did it.

Ali's wedding was the grand finale of our crazy transition summer.

We made it to NYC.

We survived Wolfeboro.

We loved our time in Maine.

We laughed through our power-less stint at Lake George.

We drove the car into and out of the city.

We drove the car back down to Kentucky.

And then one day all three of us woke up in a 400 square foot apartment in New York City and went about our day like it was normal. Our new normal.

And you know what Will did the first full day we were back in the city?

He walked all over the apartment! It's like he was waiting for us to settle before he took off.

We're here. We're happy. We're thankful.

Chattanooga!

I am back in NYC, but I am still dreaming of my AWESOME trip south!

Will and I had a great few days in Louisville getting 1,984,789,537 things done. My mom is a champ. In just two days, we had two dinners with dear family, raced through a children's consignment sale and bought Will the most adorable clothes for the fall and winter (including a dinosaur costume for Halloween--ah, adorable!), dropped off and picked up my dress at the tailor's, got a oil change for the warrior Honda Pilot (Clay and I realized we have put 40,000 miles on this puppy in TWO years. Sheesh! It deserves a long winter's rest this year in Kentucky), got 160 pictures developed for my NYC apartment project (see upcoming post), bought three PRECIOUS outfits at beautiful children's store where Mom now works, shuffled through the photo albums to find baby pictures of Ali and me for my toast, and unpacked and repacked and organized organized organized my bursting closets in my room back home.

Tuesday was my mom's birthday. I got her a tiny gift card to the spa. She deserves a week there.

This week once again confirmed that a girl will forever need her mama--and her daddy.

Bless them both. They are the entire reason why Will and I are still in one piece, the car is safely stored in KY, and I was able to participate in Ali's wedding.

Will agrees.

So on Thursday we left for brief visit to Chattanooga.

A bunch of my friends made the selfless effort to come meet us at a local park for a picnic dinner that night despite the suddenly cold temps and the fact that it was a workday and school night.

I LOVED seeing all of them, and Will simply loved his minestrone soup :-).

Gilly is thinking, "This kid is a mess!"

Look at my beautiful friends! And I got to meet baby Elouise!

I miss this girl. Katie continues to amaze me with her faithfulness, fun spirit, and friendship. And she stays in touch on top of being a rockstar mama to her three PRECIOUS kiddos and winning awards in her job as G's librarian. She is one of many people I saw this week who inspire me.

Sweet Will has been a T*R*O*O*P*E*R through all of this transition.

This is how he felt after Chattanooga. That's how I felt, too...but we had a best friend in Birmingham to walk down the aisle!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIMI!!!

You are the best mother in the world--and now you are the best Mimi!

WE LOVE YOU!!!!

The adventure continues...

What an awesome week it has been! Here are some highlights:

Brittany spent the night Monday before flying back to California

Lots of plumbing issues, so we welcomed several plumbers into our apartment

Sara obsessively checked craigslist for good deals on side tables, tv stands, and strollers

Clay started class and is working hard on case briefs, cognitive science, and a city internship

Will took his first two subway rides and was freaked out the entire time. Yes, I was that mother on the subway singing "The Wheels on the Bus" while my little guy wailed and everyone stared :-)

Clay and I each carried a heavy side tables 30 blocks from the Salvation Army to our apartment

Attended a Klig opening reception where Will cried almost the entire time (his shoes were too small; thus, a minor mother guilt trip ensued)

I got two tutoring jobs--holla!

Clay and I went on a date which began with me having a meltdown but ended with me having a drink. I have the best husband in the world.

Thank God for mothers. Thank God for MY mother.

She arrived Thursday, and thus I slept really well that night knowing we would all be okay.

Mom came in town to help me drive our car back down to Louisville--and let's be honest: she also came because she is amazing and I needed her help!

When Mom comes in town, things just GET DONE. What a gift, especially considering we had a lot that still needed doing. One of the greatest things Mom did while she was here was rescue Will and Camden when a fire (yes, a FIRE) broke out on the 5th floor of our building. Clay and I were running around Manhattan (and I mean literally running) looking for cheap cheap furniture, and when we came back with our beautiful $12.99 side tables, we were greeted by multiple fire trucks and all of the residents of our building hanging out on the sidewalks. I had a panic mother moment, thinking to myself "Oh my gosh, that's my LIFE in there" before I saw Mama smiling and waving at us from across the sidewalk. There she was, Will in the stroller (enthralled with all the commotion) and Cam on the leash. All was well, even on the 5th floor.

Thank God for my mother, my hero.

We were planning on leaving NYC on Sunday to head to Baltimore and then on to Louisville, but the increased 9/11 police presence at all of the public transportation locations made it tricky for us to get on a subway and then a train to get to our car, which was parked in Summit, NJ. Thus, my OTHER hero, my wonderful husband, ended up going out to get the car on Saturday and driving it back into the city so we could avoid the trains altogether the next day.

Suddenly, we had our car for one more day in the city.

So what did a mother and daughter, both of whom are eager to nest, do?

That's right: we headed to the Harlem Target.

$200 and 2 hours later, our apartment was totally furnished.

Thank God for mothers.

Mom also gave us a date night (THANK YOU!) in the city, so I put together a fun evening that I thought would allow us to see the city from the water (the FREE Staten Island ferry), the sky (the top of the Empire State Building) and from slightly above (The High Line). I also planned on us going to this romantic garden Thai restaurant I had read about in one of my nifty NYC guide books.

What really happened: We left late, so no time for the ferry. Got to the restaurant: CLOSED. We wandered around Chelsea looking for another super cool place to eat, but I was bummed and Clay was hungry, so we ended up choosing one quickly and trying to regroup. I was so determined to go to THE coolest places in NYC that I had trouble letting the date just happen, but I quickly remembered that NYC is full of little gems and adventures to discover and experience. NYC is awesome in that there is so much cool stuff to do, but at the same time it can be overwhelming to choose and not think about all of the other stuff you could be doing with your time. So there I was, in a delicious thai restaurant with the love of my life, yet again telling myself to breathe and go with the flow. You think I would have learned this lesson by now.

In the midst of this week's craziness, we discovered that Will loves NYC bagels. In our opinion, Absolute Bagels on the corner of Broadway and 107th are the best.

Also in the midst of all this, the 10th anniversary of 9/11 captured our minds and hearts. It's weird: we have lived in this city for only a week, but already we feel a sense of admiration and pride for this strong, determined city. The people are (for the most part) very warm and friendly, and 9/11 seemed to foster an even greater sense of community and kind understanding. As I wove my way through streets of tall skyscrapers and subway transfer stations this week, I couldn't help but think of those who lost their lives so suddenly 10 years ago. It was a gentle reminder that we must take advantage of the time we have now to love others a little better, hug those we love a little longer, and smile at strangers just because it might make them a little happier. It also makes me want to know everyone's stories.

Mom and I also took Will to the High Line on Saturday. He especially loved the cool water feature!

My little yogi

And then on Sunday, we drove across the George Washington Bridge and under its bridge-wide American flag, and headed south.

Let adventure #4956734857248563 begin.

3.5 hours later, we were in Baltimore's Inner Harbor, visiting dear family.

My aunt Sally and cousin Allison were delightful, generous hosts, showing us all around their homes (Allison is in grad school there), their offices, and the Inner Harbor.

But Will mostly wanted to look at Allison. I don't blame him. She's pretty darn wonderful.

After dinner, we discovered a fountain and Will could NOT GET ENOUGH.

We both got soaked--but we also both laughed and laughed and laughed. It might have been the happiest I have ever seen him. What a gift that was to me that night, as I was already missing Clay.

JOY.

The next morning we got up early, drove to Silver Spring, MD, to buy the City Mini stroller I had been researching and shopping for endlessly since our arrival in the city, and then we continued on to Hagerstown, my former home. Crazy weird. We made a quick stop at the outlets there, where Will and Mimi discovered the fun kiddie rides!

Vroom Vroom!

Will's in school too!

After 14 hours of driving yesterday, we are gloriously back in Louisville, reorganizing, regrouping, and LOVING being home. On Thursday we leave for Chattanooga (!!) and then Birmingham for Ali and Bill's wedding (!!). Will and I fly back to NYC on Monday...but until then, fun fun fun with Mimi and Poppy!

(this has been my life this summer: packing, unpacking, repacking, packing again. Phew.)

Love love love to all!

Home Sweet Home in The Big Apple!

We made it. We're finally here. After three months of transition and adventure in New England, we finally drove our packed Pilot into Manhattan and unloaded it for good. To be completely honest, I was nervous I wouldn't like New York. But I have to confess that after just two nights here, I already love it. Sure, it's loud and dirty, but there is a magic to this city that has charmed me. Every little store, every street, every building is a little mystery to be discovered.

Our apartment also rocks. 450 sq. feet never felt so huge. I love our little home base in the middle of this bustling metropolis. When I walked in for the first time on Friday, I could literally feel my chest relax; we can live here, yes yes we can. Above is the view from inside our front door.

Forgive the mess, but Will's closet lacks a hanging bar at the moment (no worries: there is a hardware store at the end of our block. Holla!). Will's room is the first room on the right when you walk down the hallway. There is a twin bed eagerly awaiting visitors (that means you! come visit us!). Like the drapes? They don't go down to the floor, but considering they came from a Walmart in NJ that we visited early on Saturday morning before we said goodbye to the dear Pilot, they ain't going back. They cover the window--so they work for me!

Here is Will's new crib. Where did this come from? Somewhere deep in Brooklyn. How did we get it? MY SISTER IS AWESOME. She and I drove to Brooklyn to pick up this bad boy from a family selling it on Craig's List. Why didn't I buy a crib in, say, a neighborhood closer to us (which would pretty much be ANY neighborhood)? Because I am a naive transplant who freely admits she is way out of her league in this city. But hey, it's a handsome crib, huh?

Okay, here is our living room. Let me point out a few key features:

1. The TV. Got this for free off craig'slist from a woman who simply wanted it out of her apartment. When Brittany and I drove to her apartment on Broadway, we realized why: this TV is HUMONGOUS. It must weigh 400 pounds. With the help of a towel and an elevator, Brittany and I manage to get this from her 4th floor apartment to the front door of her building. In order to get it into the car, I had to bat my eyelashes at 6 Canadian guys walking by on the street. Bless those boys. They--and my awesome husband who helped get it inside our apartment--are the reason we are able to watch Food Network (me) and football (Clay) right now.

2. The rug. Bought this in 3 minutes at Lowe's. Hilarious. But its perfect.

3. The lamp. Clay, Will, and I walk 25 blocks to buy four lamps today--and then 25 blocks back. A cab would have been the easy way out, right? We like making things harder :-).

4. The curtains. We live on the first floor. Our first night here, everyone who walked by could see everything we were doing inside. Shopping list item #1? Curtains :-).

This is the still the living room; I took this in front of the window in the picture above. Our fridge is in the living room, yes, but thank God we have a full size fridge!

I wondered all summer what Columbia's understand of a "kitchenette" was. Now I know. There is room for ONE person and ONE person only in this space. But instead of this making me cry, this makes me laugh. Am I crazy to say that this might be my favorite kitchen we've ever had? It is so cozy! Now if only we could find inexpensive dinnerware so we have something to eat on...

As I said, we got rid of the car on Saturday at noon. Friday night Clay and I realize that we really need to make the most of the time with the car that we have left, so Saturday morning we wake up and drive out to NJ so we can hit up Walmart (I really don't like shopping there, but hey, we needed food AND house stuff--and we're on a tight budget--AND we had a time crunch. Walmart, here we came...). I am not joking when I say we filled up FOUR carts. USAA froze our credit card because they suspected illegal activity. Hilarious. I mean, WHO ARE WE???? WHAT IS OUR LIFE??? I was THAT woman in Walmart buying 12 cans of beans and 6 bags of pretzels. I would have had a meltdown if I had had time. Instead, I shopped and shopped and shopped for the next 9 months. Who knows the next time we will see prices like these? NYC is expensive!

Here's our lovely bath. It looks like every other bathroom I have ever seen in NYC.

Here's one side of our bedroom. Look at how much room we have! Crazy! Clay has already been hard at work at his desk. Classes start Tuesday!

Here's the other side of our bedroom. See those side tables? Those are totally GOD. I may have had a minor, er, major meltdown today (it was bound to happen, right?) over bedside tables and dinnerware. Don't ask me why; it was just the breaking point. In the midst of this meltdown, Will wakes up from his nap, so he and I decide to get some fresh air by walking around the block. What did we find? A display of FREE STUFF outside someone's apartment building that included these TV tables and plates. Dude, someone was watching out for us. Amazing grace, indeed.

Here I am with sweet Sue and Sandy. Sandy is my grandmother's sister-in-law, and Sue is her daughter. They are the angels from NJ who drove into the city and picked up our car to drive it back to their house for safekeeping. When my mom comes (!) next weekend, we will head out to New Jersey, pick up the car, and drive it south. It will live in Kentucky for the year. Today was our first full day without a car. I know its easier to NOT have a car in NYC, but man, having a car sure makes getting places (and stuff to and from those places) easier. Now we are officially car-less!

Brittany comes back tomorrow from her friend's bachelorette party weekend, so we can't wait to see her again before she heads back to the west coast. Tuesday is Clay's full day of orientation and class--but then we have our first date in the city when we head to the Yankees-Orioles game! Mom comes in on Thursday, we head out of the city on Sunday, and then the adventure continues...

What we are doing is exhausting and expensive and challenging in many ways. But we know it is the right thing, and that peace grounds us more often than we expected.