empire state of mind

Last week I mentioned having a hard time remembering it's almost Christmas. Wellp! Problem officially solved. 

This weekend I went to New York to visit my friend Austin and am now 110 percent in the holiday spirit. The city is in such close quarters and every inch of it is decorated with Christmassyness.

Katie and I coordinated our travel plans, so we arrived from Chicago and Atlanta simultaneously Friday night. And although we weren't staying together, it felt very happy being there at the same time. We shared a cab into the city and I think the driver might have thought we were a little obnoxious and hyper, but I'm not even sorry about it because I just love being with her.

From the moment our planes landed, the weekend was a whirlwind. On Friday, Austin and I went out with Katie and Blake and some of his friends.

On Saturday, we went to brunch in SoHo, then to Chelsea Market and the High Line. Last time I was in New York, I decided Rockefeller Center was my favorite part, and this time around, it did not disappoint. The tree is ginormous! You could actually fit a million presents under it.

After that, we went to Traffic, which is an IU bar, to watch the game. It was so much fun being with a lot of familiar faces, especially since we won. Being in Atlanta, I sometimes forget that my friends in Chicago, NYC and Indy have the ability to see each other so regularly. I was loving it.

Finally, Saturday night, we went to dinner at the Breslin with Katie and Blake, Emily and Steven, and a few other friends.

On our walk home from dinner, I got to see the Shake Shack, which has been my obsession ever since I saw a documentary on it this spring. Although we didn't actually eat there, I felt pretty fulfilled just having seen it. Especially because the lights on it, although I think permanent, seemed holidayish. It was literally Christmas loving everywhere you looked.

My only regret is that I somehow forgot gloves and warm shoesies so my fingers and toes were slightly numb throughout the whole weekend. However, other than that minor misstep on my part, the trip was just perfect. Austin kept telling me it was "actually pretty warm" and I'm not sure which one of us is confused, here, but I'd say we can meet in the middle on the fact that it was warmer than Chicago, but colder than Atlanta. Here's to hoping for actual pretty warmness in Indiana later this week. And sun! Di!

Thanks, Austin, for a great weekend! I hope your weekend was wonderful, too! Less than one week!