NYC Day 3 Recap

Ya'll day 3 was hands down my favorite day of our trip! The day was truly magical with a winter wonderland we got to experience.  I was so bummed it was our last day and was bound and determined to make the best day !


Staten Island Ferry
We headed into the Big Apple by train and caught the Staten Island Ferry.  The 5 mile, 25 minute ride also provides a majestic view of New York Harbor and the Statue of Liberty for FREE!!! This was our main reason for taking the ferry. We wanted the kids to see the Lady Liberty. But with it so cold out we loved that the ferry provided a heated inside area where we could also rest our feet! (so much walking !!) We caught the ferry at the perfect time too. We had gorgeous views of the harbor and Statue on the way to Staten Island. The Staten Island Terminal features a wide range of shops and restaurants, and an outdoor plaza. We were able to grab lunch here before taking the ferry back to Manhattan. It had started snowing and our return trip (and did not stop the entire day) you could not see a thing in the distance! Once back on the mainland we walked around the Battery and grabbed Starbucks to warm up!

Exploring the Financial District

From Battery Park we explored Manhattan and the Financial District. There are so many spots of interest to see including the NY Stock Exchange and Federal Reserve Bank. Lower Manhattan we were able to see City Hall, the Chamber of Commerce Building as well as Federal Hall all the while the kids played in the snow! One of my favorite things to do anywhere we go is just walking up and down the streets and immersing myself into the surroundings.

Little Italy and Chinatown

We made our way from the Financial District to Little Italy and Chinatown. By this time it was getting later. The time was flying by it seemed like. It always does on the last day! Had we been early I would have loved to grab a "snack" in Chinatown. As we walked through Little Italy Nick picked out a place we were going to eat dinner. OMG it was amazing! Probably the best dinner we have ever had and to think he just randomly picked it! Since it was to celebrate my birthday too we splurged a little bit more than we would normally do on food. Plus we were in New York City so why the hell not!!

Rockefeller Center

After dinner we had to see Rockefeller Center one more time. The Christmas tree is freaking amazing at night. Add the snow that was falling and it was picturesque. We took in all the sights and sounds trying to soak in all the memories. Oh and did a little shopping. I spotted a scarf at Top Shop that I had to have. But I waited til the last day to make sure I still had some birthday and Christmas money left haha. We were all sad to see the trip come to an end but it was late and kids were exhausted from all the walking we did

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The next morning we were up bright and early to catch our flight home. We landed back in the Bluegrass State in time to catch my Cats tip off. While we waited to board our flight I created a Kroger's clicklist to pick up for that evening since we were coming home to an empty fridge and pantry(best invention ever!!). I am so thankful that we were able to take our kids on this trip. All the extra 3rd shifts and sleepless days to be able to provide all the memories we so worth it. I was worried that since this was their main Christmas present they might miss all the extra gifts from us and Santa that would have been under the tree that they would be upset Christmas morning! But I should not have worried. No one missed anything (plus they still got a few things) because we were still on an NYC high. We all can't wait to go back!

Until next time NYC!!


Check out my other posts for our trip:
day 1
day 2
NYC Travel Guide

NYC Day 2 Recap

Day 2 we woke up tired and didn’t head into the Big Apple as early as I would have liked. I was hoping to grab breakfast at Wafels & Dinges in Herald Square across from Macy’s (next time for sure . Their waffles look to die for). We had reservations at noon for Santa Land inside Macy’s. It was like being in a line at Disney. We waited about an hour before seeing Santa. But the line thru Santa land kept you entertained with all the beautiful Christmas decorations. I am not sure if we would do this again. But was marked off my list. This Macy’s was incredible.  Lots of high end shopping with a Louie section that had me drooling and begging Nick (who could not be talked into getting me one lol). This Macy’s also had the original wooden escalators which was pretty cool. 

After leaving Macy’s we grabbed lunch . We were starving by this   point . We then hailed a taxi and off we went to the Plaza Hotel. We had to see the inside of the Plaza . I have wanted to see this hotel since Home alone : lost in New York . It did not disappoint. The chandeliers , carpet, security oh my! Amazing!! Central Park is across the street so we walked through it on the way to The Natural History museum. There is also ice skating in Central Park but we were on a mission and did not have the time allotted . Plus it was cold !! I would love to go back in spring or fall and see Central Park in all its glory!

We wanted to explore one of the many museums NYC has to offer. We decided on the Museum of Natural History mainly for their dinosaur exhibit. The AMNH complex comprises 28 interconnected buildings housing 45 permanent exhibition halls, in addition to a planetarium and a library. The museum collections contain over 33 million specimens^[of plants, animals, fossils, minerals, rocks, meteorites, human remains, and human cultural artifacts. Our favorite part was definitely the dinosaurs and the planetarium. There was so much hands on learning for the kids and it was easy on our wallets. FYI if you ever plan a trip to NYC and want to do some museums, if you buy your tickets at the museum you can "pay as you wish". You can literally pay any amount. But this can only be done in person. I think for 2 adults and 2 kids I ended up paying $30.

Meredith had been begging to use her Christmas money at the American Girl Store probably the second we got off our flight! After the museum that's is where we went. It is in the perfect location near Rockefeller Center. The store is gigantic and beautifully decorated for Christmas. The good thing with Mere she knew she wanted a bitty baby and clothes. That is right where we went. We were in and out in less than an hour! My girl knows how to shop! Little Max picked the Lego Store to buy something with his Christmas money. That place was PACKED!! Of course he takes 5 times longer to pick what he wants! We also stopped in the Dyson vacuum store (Max is obsessed with vacuums ) and saw a Trump protest!! We walked around Rockefeller Center and then took the train back to New Jersey!

If you missed Day 1's Recap check it out here and my NYC travel guide here!