Wedding Blog

Mr. Lovebug and I were fortunate enough to be able take a break from wedding planning and escape to the Big Apple for a Christmas mini-moon! Despite living in Arizona, I’m a cold-weather girl at heart. So it was an absolute treat to spend a week bundled up, strolling around the city and enjoying the holiday scene. But I have some concerns about that great city…

Apparently, New Yorkers think electricity grows on trees. There must have been, like, a hundred lights on this thing. Hello? Fire hazard? And check this out:

This is the downstairs bar in our hotel, the W Times Square. Is it me, or is it pretty cruel to taunt all those cold people outside with these cozy, glowing tables? You can just feel the 40-degree difference.

This was a horse-drawn carriage we hijacked from less assertive tourists in Central Park. We climbed inside, ready for a cozy, romantic ride. I pulled the wool blanket onto our laps. Five seconds later: “Um, what’s that smell? Oh my god. I think the horse PEED on this blanket!”

Having foolishly forgotten my battery-operated black light, I couldn’t verify for certain that the blanket was in fact a pee sponge, but I guarantee you that he sleeps with the thing at night. We REEKED. So bad, in fact, that we couldn’t make our dinner reservation at Po, where a friend had reserved us the chef’s table! We had to go back and de-tox, burn our outerwear, etc. Attention, New Yorkers: if you need me to organize a horse blanket drive, I can do so. Seriously, just say the word.

Oh, here’s a shot of us in Times Square. Really great photo, eh? Thank you, random francophone tourist who took the shot. It’s a real classic.

Oh, but I wanted to tell you guys about something. Don’t tell anyone, but if you walk the streets of Time Square late at night, you can find dudes selling real designer goods at crazy prices! I got a pair of genuine Chanel sunglasses for $15! I know, right?! There must be some kind of market glut right now. Anyway, keep it on the DL.

Here’s a place we found to hang out and watch people wipe out in front of a huge crowd. Actually, I kept expecting to see someone pop the question center-rink, but it didn’t happen.

This was some store (Barney’s? Saks? Can’t remember) that made me painfully aware of my tax bracket. I couldn’t even afford the free coffee.

To make matters worse, we stopped by the Cartier store, where Mr. Lovebug found a wedding band he really liked (but we did not get). Actually, it wasn’t horrifically expensive at all. Note his devious smile:

They’d decked out all the scaffolding around the store with lights. It was magical. Mosh-pit crowded, but magical. And here are a couple of my favorite shop windows:

One of our favorite things was the Met, which absolutely blew me away. I could live there. Just a cot in the coat room, that’s all I need. I can dine on the delicious miniature pears they sell in the cafeteria. Here’s Mr. Lovebug in the Medieval weapons exhibit (could there be a more guy-friendly exhibit?):

LOL - doesn’t he look like he’s deciding whether to buy it?

2nd best moment of the trip was when I got chosen to be an extra in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee! It was such a kick, even if my heart was slamming the whole time I was on stage. If you’ve never heard of it, it’s a Broadway show where audience members get a chance to be included, as real bee contestants. You don’t know your words ahead of time; you’re really trying to spell! I lost on “knicknik” or something crazy, and was given a juicebox, a hug, and sent back to my seat. I got to be a bee in a bee! It was so meta.

But the very best part of the trip was meeting Mr. and Mrs. Bee! They treated Mr. Lovebug and I to a delicious dinner at the cozy Da Andrea in the West Village. We discussed the pros and cons of city living (Mr. L and I are dying to move there) over wine and incredible food (still dreaming about my salmon risotto). If you’ve never had the pleasure of meeting the Bees, take it from me: they are adorable together. Mr. Bee looks at Mrs. Bee so lovingly - it was really touching to see.

Anyway, we were very lucky to be able to have a mini-moon, horse pee notwithstanding. I hope all of you get the chance to sneak away for a bit before your big day!