Brave Diaries : the city: a little more beautiful

i love my family.

Every year my grandmother hosts a girls retreat of some kind. Whether it is a trip to Salt Lake City or near the coast to San Francisco, my cousins and I get spoiled. lucky for me, they decided to come visit me for a few days. i was so excited for their arrival, I could hardly sleep.

preface: i am a home body.

i love my family so terribly much!

moving so much as a child, my sisters truly became my best friends. we would entertain ourselves for days at a time in our unfinished basement without even the slightest thought that there was life outside of our little world.

needless to say, i thoroughly enjoy the time i spend with my family. even though we are all growing up and going our separate ways...i always seem to become a child again when they are around.

early (i mean early, 6:45am) Sunday morning my phone started making noise. thinking i was turning off my alarm clock, i quickly realized Hannie was calling. they had landed and were traveling to the hotel. i quickly got dressed to meet them in Times Square. fortunately/unfortunately they had taken the red-eye flight. by the time i reached the hotel, everyone, with the exception of my grandma had fallen asleep on the hotel beds.

after sneakily charging our phones in the nearest AT&T store, we went to church at the Lincoln Center. let's just say there were many a bobbalin' heads on our pew--luckily there were cute babies to keep some of us smiling and awake.

we followed sacrament meeting how every meeting should end, with the most delicious, wonderful creation--wafels and dinges.

yum. everyone experienced the goodness.

Joyce, Claire and Emily (my aunt and cousins from Connecticut) met up with us later to explore the city and contribute to the overall party.

i love my family, did i mention that?

Our four days together consisted of lots of giggling, shopping, reminiscing, people-watching, reality-TV smackin', and everything girls do. it is so fun to see my mother with her sister and mother. this generational thing we have going on is quite remarkable. i am grateful for the relationships i have not only with my nuclear family but my extended family as well.

Some of my fondest moments over the course of their stay, here in good ole NYC:

Discovering the joys of Uniqlo--what an amazing store with the softest, most modest clothing I have seen (outside of Utah)--and it's designer, what!?!
Running through the streets like mad-women as the rain came pouring down all over our unprepared heads.
Renting boats in Central Park--and failing miserably for the first half hour. (we only hit three boats.)
Disappointing our waiter at Carmines because none of us drink alcohol...then making a mess all over the table cloth because of the "oil bottle."
Watching Abby frantically gather her shoes at a crucial moment of exiting the subway.
Dragging everyone around Central Park--empty bellies, bad shoes, and no shade=not a very happy Jackson family:)
Being startled by the "vulnerability" of some people's children--paint just won't cover it.
Hosting our very own Bachelorette party--Marriott style.
Shniking ALL of the cookies from the Marriott's lounge--i'm talking plates full.
Being swarmed by all the PacSun employees who are being paid on commission--guaranteed.
Seeing the city from a double-decker bus--it's always good to get a different view.
Robbing H&M for all it's worth.
Eating fruit cups (worth as much as a good meal at Stardust) on the side of Times Square while watching the Tony's live.
Sharing rice pudding from Rice to Riches in SoHo--butterscotch was surprisingly a favorite.
Watching Grandma dominate several New Yorkers--don't mess with g-ma.
Finding out about Abby's love life.
Finding out about Hannie's love life.
Finding out about Liza's hipster lifestyle.
Nightly fashion shows in the hotel rooms.
Watching Cinderella--FRONT ROW--close enough we could see touch the bald spots on the conductor's head.
Eliza wondering if the conductor would be attending the whole show.
Receiving, "I can be whatever I want to be," shirts from Grandma-->great motto to live by.
Going to Kelly and Michael's Morning Show--> AND getting some airtime.
Mom and I's kiss goodbye--"Hey Claire, me and her, we kissed on the lips." *the good accidental turn.
Watching Rach take pictures like a pro--she's in a photography class. (*some of the pics below are hers.)
Having a missionary moment in the taxi with the cab driver.
Causing scenes wherever we go--> that many women in one place can do no less.

living in the "city that never sleeps," surrounded by thousands of strangers every day, i have learned a valuable lesson--it is the people that make the place. in a city where there are more people in one square mile than anywhere i have been before, i still long to find a place that makes me comfortable and at home. although i have never felt more loved than i have while living here (with all the messages from home), i have also never felt more alone.

lucky for me, i have had the privilege of hosting many visitors while living out here. i love them dearly and it is always refreshing to see a familiar face amongst the usual crowd of strangers.

so please excuse me while i reminisce of my family in my little apartment so very far from home. i could show you the many wonderful places we went together or the wonderful things we saw and ate, but to me the best part of their visit was being surrounded by their beautiful faces.