Team Awesome Does Manhattan

New York is easily one of the nation's "most visited" cities - and that means that we get very frequent visitors as you can tell from some of my past posts.  But Winter is not the most popular time of year to visit NYC - and it gets lonely!  Mike and I haven't had any visitors since Christmastime, so you can imagine our excitement when we were forwarded the flight confirmation from our favorite California cousins (or as we often to refer to them...Team Awespme) confirming that they were coming to the Big Apple over President's weekend to celebrate Mrs. Julie Blades' birthday!

The first order of business during their 4 day stay in the city was a delicious birthday celebration for Julie at one of our favorite Italian restaurants in the city.  Two other couples joined us for a festive dinner to make the birthday girl feel like the special little woman she is.  We knew it would be a hit with the Blades' when we ordered 6 piadinas filled with burrata and prosciutto for the table.  Gradisca truly is one of our favorite little spots and whenever we can share our discoveries with the people we love, it makes us SO happy.

James & Julie did not have an agenda for the rest of their visit in New York which means that we spent the rest of their trip playing with them around the city and spending time as though they were just a few neighbors who were around for the weekend.  Mike and I have almost lived in the city for 3 years, and we hadn't had a true, non-work related visit from both James & Julie together, so it was such a treat to take them to some of our favorite restaurants for brunch and our favorite bars for cocktails.  Since Valentine's Day had just passed, we had to fit Rolf's in so that they could see the crazy display of pink & red balloons that covered the entire ceiling. I wish that they had better weather during their stay in Manhattan, but the frigid cold made for more whiskey to warm our bellies and more nights spent in some of New York's coziest pubs.

After three days of absorbing the best of what Manhattan has to offer, the four of us were a little exhausted and spent the final day of their visit recharging our batteries at the apartment.  As you know, I love the tradition of cooking a good ol' fashioned Sunday Dinner --and it's even more enjoyable when you can spend Sunday Dinner with family!  Julie and I combined forces to make a cheesy & delightful turkey lasagna and a crunchy fresh spinach salad for our men.   We were quite beat from an eventful 3 days of making the most of their time in the city, but a family dinner before they left was the perfect way to spend their last night together.

When we lived in LA, Mike and I spent almost every weekend with James & Julie.  Every Saturday morning, we had brunch together, we hiked together, we vacationed together, we spent holidays together, we got both engaged the same weekend, and the Blades' even live in our old apartment!  They were our closest friends out in LA - and what's even better is they are our FAMILY!  Mike and I miss them tons, but we feel so thankful to have Team Awesome as our buddies & as our cousins.  Having them here just reminded us of how little we get to see one of our favorite couples.  James & Julie - we can't wait until we get to see you guys again, and thank you for making the trip out to our city to spend some much needed time with us.  We love you tons!