A 13th Birthday Adventure

March 12th:
Juliet and Madison turn *13* ten weeks apart.  Since Juliet was visiting from Texas for spring break, we were blessed to steal her for a day so I could take the girls on a birthday adventure to NYC.  We'd been scheming for a while- what to do, where to go.  I mapped out our stops and we got an early start.  Early into the car ride, Gramma called to let the girls know about a little spending money she'd like to give them for the day.  Well, that kicked their scheming into high gear!  :)

Indicative of thirteen, I suppose, no Broadway shows were on tap.  Just shopping.  And honestly, just being together for the day was the best gift of all!  These two gems are developing into beautiful young women.  They are a trip to be with- funny, kind, chatty, inquisitive, and energetic.

We had an easy two hour ride into the Big Apple.  I didn't even need the GPS! :)  The day was gray, but warm.  We parked right near Carnegie Hall, under a bit of a facelift.

So happy together...

Never seen this building before:

We started just at the bottom of Central Park, mostly to say we'd 'done Central Park.'  Remember the priority?  Shopping!

Madison on Madison Avenue, even though the sign is blurred.

F.A.O. Schwarz

Ooohing and ahhhing over the adorable doll house accessories.

This was so cool!  A pregnancy torso to show where everything moves to in order to accommodate baby.  I was going to buy it for my midwife, but it was $60.

The most anticipated stop of the day:  MAC.  Also, as it turns out, was the most memorable.  We had a very nice gentleman help us, but he was a bit pushy, kept hovering, and was more [what's the PC way to say this?] sparkly (?) than the girls are used to.

Within 5 minutes Madison had wowed him with her make-up know-how, asking him about dual fiber brushes.  Also within 5 minutes, he pegged her as a dancer, said he could tell from her posture.  He was a professional dancer for 17 years.

The girls are still, two weeks later, giggling about their experience here.

I walked the girls past St. Patrick's Cathedral undergoing some major restoration.

Then we passed through Rockefeller Plaza.

Next stop: The American Girl Doll Store to meet the 2014 Girl of the Year.

Passed the Diamond Exchange.

Then Times Square...

...and into the M and M store, where we picked up little treats for little siblings.

Last stop, Macy's.  Holy cow is that place huge!  The entire first floor is entirely cosmetics.  Counter after counter after counter with dozens of people in white coats or black aprons coming at you with testers and the secret to youthful skin and endless beauty.

The girls were giddy with excitement.  I raised the white flag and told them I'd be waiting in the Starbucks on the Mezzanine.

Favorite picture of the day!  It had just started to drizzle a bit.

The Empire State building:

Surprise!!!  The girls didn't know I'd arranged dinner with Johnny, who works 1/2 a block from Macy's.

As Johnny's luck would have it, the only 20 minute spurt of rain we had all day was walking a few blocks with him and waiting for a cab!

Dinner at an Irish pub.

We walked through the Theater District to get back to the car.  Standing in a crowd on a corner, waiting for the light to change, some guy tried to pull Juliet's umbrella from her.  She thought it was hilarious!

And for the "Only-in-New-York" site of the day...

It's a terrible picture because I took it while driving through the intersection, but the whole road was closed and there was a taxi sideways up on the sidewalk.  It had taken out a mailbox and stopped just shy of the shop's windows.

Tucked in cozy, couldn't be happier!

Thanks, Gramma for the goodies!

And thanks, Ninny and Papa, for holding down the fort!

What a treasury of special moments and forever memories from this day.  I hope these girls always have each other and always stay as sweet and innocent as they are right now.  Happy 13th Birthday, Precious Girls!!!