NYC with the Hubs

A little over a week ago, Jeremy and I left the kiddos with my parents and headed to New Jersey to photograph a wedding.  I think it was in April that I received an email from a young lady who was a blog reader, asking if I'd like to photograph her wedding the coming November.  When I first received the email, I didn't think there was any way I could make it happen (thinking I might have been pregnant plus the logistics of leaving the kids, blah blah blah).  But, plans started to unfold, and we made it work.  Our originals plans were to spend an extra 3-4 days in the city and the West Point area (where Jeremy went to undergrad) as a belated 40th birthday celebration.  But, as the dates drew near, a few things came up, and we were only to have 48 hours between coming and going flights.

So, we nixed plans to even go into the city, thinking we'd head south to the wedding site instead. Well, as we were walking off our plane in Newark, we both looked at each other and said, "We have to go into the city!"

So, we did.  For three hours, we packed it in.  Eating pizza at a great restaurant in the theatre district, grabbing a few gifts for the kids, seeing the beginnings of Christmas decorations going up on some of the major storefronts, lighting a few candles in St. Patrick's Cathedral, and grabbing a handful of M&Ms from the giant store, it was so much fun!  We did everything as fast as out little (or big, pregnant, swollen) feet would carry us, and then we left knowing we had made the very most of those few hours.

Jeremy lovingly carried my camera bag everywhere, because I always feel like I'm going to take a million photos, and I end up taking maybe ten, ha!

Fresh ice...

We then went to Montclair, NJ for some amazing Cuban food and only wish we would have shown up earlier - talk about the best little town!  So many fun shops to explore!

The next day was spent photographing the most beautiful, holy wedding (and it was so great to have Jeremy by my side)!  The minute we stepped out of our car to knock on the door of the unknown young lady who had emailed me months before, her family greeted us with the most loving, welcoming hugs, and from that moment on began one of beautiful days we've witnessed...as outsiders who left feeling like family.

The next morning at the crack of dawn, we boarded a plane back to New Mexico and the little ones. Such a quick trip, and so worth it, even as hard as it was leaving them to begin with (Carter started crying and said he would just "pray all weekend that our guardian angels protected us from being hurt" - talk about making it hard to walk away).

NYC/NJ - you were fun.  We'll be back!