Happy Halloween!
We went to a haunting howliday party this weekend and had a great time! There were 3 Sarah Palins, 2 Edward Cullins and an assortment of White Trash couples along with the usual monsters like us. We took advantage of my DH's height and went with Frankenstein and his bride. This is the first time he was willing to wear face paint! He even shaved his beard for it (YEAH!) and let me spray his hair black for the night. He made a great Frankenstein, if I do say so myself! I made the neck bolts myself. You can find directions on the internet- thanks to all those creative people who took the time to post it online!

For my DH's birthday we went to see Bobby Flay at the NC State Fair. My DH thinks Bobby Flay is the best chef on Food Network- his favorite TV channel, so when I found out Bobby was coming we had to get tickets. Bobby was great. He answered questions from the audience while cooking up a sweet potato clam chowder, pork chops and barbequed oysters. We're not oyster fans but liked the tarragon butter they were grilled with and plan to use that for another recipe. Bobby seems like a down-to-earth guy and we enjoyed watching him cook in person.

I had a wonderful time in New York City. I loved all the sights and shows. I had been dreaming of a trip to the big city for a long time. I had hoped that my dear husband and I could go for our 10th anniversary but it came and went and no trip happened- we're on our 13th year now! Then this year the stars aligned and I got back in touch with one of my best friends from high school and found out he was moving to the Bronx. I was invited to visit and I jumped at the chance to see my good friend more and see the city that never sleeps. I smiled so much my mouth hurt. I got blisters on my feet but nothing stopped me.

The best part wasn't in the city - it was at home. My husband was amazing. He never once asked how much the trip cost us. He never complained that I would be gone for 4 nights. He even took a day off work to help out with the girls. I took a 6am flight home (which meant I had to get up at 4 am) and expected to come home to a mess- after all, I'd been gone for most of the week. I was exhausted and I walked in the door and it was clean! He'd cleaned while I was gone! I was able to take a nice 4 hour nap and he cooked dinner and did the dishes too! I have to brag about my husband because he gave me the best gift!

I love NY but I love my husband so much more!

I did it! I ran a half marathon today. When I was done, I plugged in my ipod and realized I have also run over 100 miles with my Nike Plus. Follow this link http://nikeplus.nike.com/nikeplus/v1/html/milestones/print_certif.html?id=1089886213&region=us&language=en&locale=en_us&dateFormat=MM/DD/YY to see. If you don't know what Nike Plus is, please let me share my favorite running tool with you! It's this nifty sensor that goes in your shoe (you can buy a pouch off Amazon so it can go with any shoe, not just Nike) and it sends a signal to your ipod tracking your miles, calories, time, speed and more. I love it and wouldn't do my marathon without it!

I got this email from a friend asking for one word answers- which is harder to do than one might think. You answer and send it on to other friends. I thought I would share this with my blogging friends and encourage them to do the same. One word is all you get. :)
1. Where is your cell phone? purse
2. Your significant other? Steve
3. Your hair? long
4. Your mother? talking
5. Your father? working
6. Your favorite thing? family
7. Your dream last night? hurricane
8. Your favorite drink? lemonade
9. Your dream/goal? travel
10. The room you're in? dining
11. Your hobby? photography
12. Your fear? bugs
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? healthy
14. Where were you last night? party
15. What you're not? short
16. Muffins? berry
17. One of your wish list items? Peace
18. Where you grew up? Raleigh
19. The last thing you did? run
20. What are you wearing? cotton
21. Your TV? --- on
22. Your pets? dog
23. Your computer? addicted
24. Your life? Blessed
25. Your mood? thankful
26. Missing someone? megan
27. Your car? abused
28. Something you're not wearing? socks
29. Favorite store? goodwill
30. Your summer? fast
31. Like someone? friends
32. Your favorite color? pink
33. When is the last time you laughed? today
34. Last time you cried? forgot
35. Who will resend this? everybody

Me waiting for the subway. We got lucky most of the time and had barely any wait during the day but evenings were a bit slower.

At the Yankee Stadium entrance to the subway, you wait above ground- that was unusual, most are undergrond.

They are building the new Yankee Stadium across the street from the old one! We had a good view of both on the platform for the subway.

My last view of the city- I took this one in the taxi on my way out of town at 5 am.

Israel in Central Park.

2nd on my to do list was run in Central Park. I loved this stretch near the Jackie O. reservoir. Absolutely breathtaking. I had to stop to look around several times. I LOVE Central Park. Especially in the fall.

Dean & Deluca's is a gourmet grocery store in the city. They sell truffles! I would have to order them off the web to get some in NC. I love this store. Some great stuff for sale here.

I wanted to eat all sorts of cuisines that I couldn't get at home. This was at the Dominican restaurant we ate at on Friday night. I also got Thai, Korean, Vietnamese and Indian. Loved it all!

Union Station farmers market rocks! Fresh produce was cheaper there than it is in NC. I stopped and got a yummy apple for a snack. I would go here all the time if I lived in NYC.

Me at the Temple of Nabor at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Israel took our photo in the reflection of a large candy heart sculptureby Jeff Koons. You can see another of his sculptures in the background- it's a balloon dog. :)

I've always wanted to go ice skating at Rockefeller Center but I had so many blisters from walking miles and miles each day that ice skating was out of the question.

The Brooklyn Bridge. We walked all the way across to eat authentic Brooklyn style pizza at Grimaldi's (Frank Sinatra used to eat there). It was not bad- but they burnt half of the pie! I complained and they gave us a discount but I wouldn't go there again.

The other Broadway show I saw was Spamalot. Very funny but not for everyone- a lot like the movie. So if you liked the movie, you will like the show.

Israel and I got front row seats to Spamalot. That is the stage in front of us. We saw Clay Aiken, a Raleigh, NC native and American Idol star. He did a great job but we weren't there to see him in particular. The lady seated beside us was though. She was a true "Claymate"- she knew Clay's schedule, details from his past, etc. At one point in the show Clay comes right in front of us and we were suprised she didn't reach out and touch him- we know she wanted to!

The TKTS booth- Israel & I were third in line. This is a great way to get discount tickets (50% off) to Broadway shows but get there an hour before they open so you are sure to get the best of what's available.

A depressing place nowadays but Wall Street will recover. There was a band playing when we went by. Ralph Nader was there speaking to protest the government bailout. There are always fun things going on in New York.

The Statue of Liberty- as seen from the Staten Island ferry- also a must see for me.

My #1 thing I wanted to do in NYC was see "Wicked" the musical! I loved it! I recommend it highly to everyone. Go check it out and listen to the songs at http://www.wickedthemusical.com - and go see it! Great story, songs, costumes, set... the best!

Lots of US flags in NYC. I loved this display of patriotism.

My girls are American Girl fanatics. I took this photo just for them. "Follow Your Inner Star" is their theme. I love that!

This was taken in one of the cathedrals in New York- very ornate inside.

Me in Times Square! I thought it was like the NC Fair- crowded with lots of lights, food and people trying to get you to come to their venue.

There are lots of street performers in NY- in the parks, sidewalks, subway... Most are great, some you just feel sorry for!

Taxis are everywhere and very expensive. I took two- one from the airport and one back to the airport. Each were over $30.

The globe near Columbus Circle.

There isn't a Target in NYC but there is this huge ad for Target! I thought that was pretty ironic. There are a few Targets in some of the neighboring boroughs, but none in the city itself.

Sunrise in NYC in Brooklyn.

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. This is the view from Israel's window.

Times Square at dusk.

There is only one Broadway!

This is my great friend Israel Ehrisman. He was my tour guide for the week and host. I had the best time thanks to him! We were best friends in high school. Although we lost touch with each other over the past 10 years or more, we were able to pick up where we left off. After catching up on old times, we got on to making new great memories in NYC!

This is in Times Square and the days' headlines run by as the tourists crowd by.