Launching 22 Year Old Twins in the Big City!

Shipping our girls off to NYC to start their new lives felt......different. 

When we dropped them at college, we always knew they'd be coming back for long vacations. We knew we could visit them and see all their pals....we knew where they were and that they were pretty safe.

Dropping them in NYC for LIFE was weird because we know we'll see them less. They'll have weekends with us here and there, but their vacation time will be SO much less which means less guaranteed time with them. So weird.

This drop-off also felt kinda sad, to be honest.  With Billy, he stayed in Dallas and didn't require us to actually move him in, so it seemed like that transition was easier. BUT, he doesn't come home much either :( and the more I think about it, the more sad I feel knowing that HIS life started two years ago! I guess I'm still getting used to it.

Anyhoo, the trip was FUN and funny and eye-opening all at the same time. It started off with the girls laying out ALL their clothes on a tarp in the garage. (Don’t ask….we had just gotten their stuff out of storage.) They were playing "Hamilton" loudly and having fun being together for one of their last times as "roommates". (See the video HERE).  In their first 8 years of life they were roommates (after being womb-mates) at two different homes in LA.  When we moved to Boulder, they had their own room and that was a BIG deal.  They spent a LOT of time in own rooms, but often times, I'd find them laying on the other one's bed just watching a show or catching up :)

Soooo…..we put EVERYTHING into a U-Haul trailer that turned out to be pretty necessary because there would have been little to NO room in the car with four of us - even with a rooftop carrier!

Managing and maneuvering that thing on the freeway was SCARY.  One quick move and we all could have gone right over.  I learned to manage it, but for the most part, Bing drove. (I think that was the safer option 🙂 )

Arriving on the Lower East Side of Manhattan was HILARIOUS.  Thank goodness it was a Saturday! The streets were manageable since most people leave the city in the summer. We unloaded the trailer and hauled out all of Paige’s stuff first. We could then put Libby’s things in the car and Bing drove to Queens to drop off the damn Uhaul. What a relief.

We saw Paige's apartment and my heart sank. While it is nice and newer, it is a 5th (more like 6) floor walk-up, four bedroom (if you can call them that) and ONE bath - OMG!  Libby, having never spent much time in NYC, looked a little bit like a deer in headlights.  Her sister was moving into THIS?  The only thing on her mind was, "What in the world is MY apartment going to look like?”

On another note, can we talk about Facebook Marketplace for a second?  You can get ANYTHING on there and everything is SO close by, so it was easy.  HIGHLY recommend buying ANY furniture on there.  We bought THIS BED for her (on Facebook) because it has drawers underneath which was PERFECT. The guy selling the bed clearly bought it off Facebook for cheap and then was selling it for MORE by including delivery and assembly.  That was GENIUS - so much so that we did the SAME thing for Libby.  Paige doesn't have a CLOSET (!), so we got THIS RACK for her. It was sturdy and decent-looking at the same time.  We found a perfectly sized dresser and night stand (also Facebook) and with that, her room was complete!

I'm a mom (obvi), but I also do people's closets all the time, so I have a few tricks that I was forcing them to adhere to.  First of all, they had to fold their t-shirts etc. in the "Marie Kondo" style, where they roll them and place them in drawers so you can SEE them.  We folded their pants and jeans so there was a proper crease down the legs - that took a few times - haha. We also folded sweaters in my "triangle" fold so that the sweater has way less wrinkles.  It took them a minute to understand how important it is to fold efficiently in order to save space and not look like a wrinkled mess.

Next stop was the Carlyle Hotel.  OMG - that place NEVER gets old. It's Heaven on earth, that's for sure. 

We went to Bemelmans Bar for a tiny 'tini and a burger all while listening to the fabulous piano player playing Billy Joes (Libby's all-time fav).  It was magical because they got to see what a "goals' evening out in NYC would be.  They LOVED it and hadn't been there since they were probably 9. I had taken them for tea when I worked for Oscar de la Renta. Side note, check out this picture of them with Oscar. So special.

Next stop was Libby's new place, only......the lease was not signed.  That whole process is a RACKET and I mean a RACKET.  We had to be guarantors for the rent (rip off) without even having stepped foot in the apartment. Once we wrapped that up after getting a notary via zoom (!?) we starting up the stairs to her 4th floor walk-up. I've never gotten so many steps in in all my life :).  Libby’s new apartment is in the East Village.  It's BEAUTIFUL, but beyond tiny - like crazy tiny. (See video above).  We spent much of the day with the bed guy and putting away all the stuff she needed for work (the next day!).  Her room is about the same as Paige's...which again is not much.  I'm fascinated that these kids want to live in this section of Manhattan that is kinda dirty and MAJORLY over-priced.  But, that's what they want to do and if they can afford it (with a little help from us) then that's what they're going to do.

We managed to get in SOME shopping around town. We had the most fun at Zara, of course, because you can get anything there and the price is right...and so is the quality, honestly.  You can see all my finds HERE.  So far, y'all have loved THIS DRESS the most.  It's amazing.

Later, we walked around Bryant Park which is close to Libby's office.  Since Libby has not spent much time in NYC, we walked her from her apartment (on Sunday) to her subway stop, rode the subway two stops and landed at her office. We were happy to do that so we could get her used to her new route :). We ate lunch at Pura Vida which was DELICIOUS and healthy.  That place is a MUST for anyone in NYC.

Lucky for us, Paige had been in NYC for a month, so she's got it all down.  Her office was closed, but we managed to see the location which is gorgeous - Upper East Side - of course it is. :). Took a trip to Butterfield Market to get a scone and just see the beautiful display of fruits and veggies - unlike anything I've ever seen in a grocery store.

After that, we were SO excited to join or Boulder BFF's at their Lowe's Hotel suite that they had for a couple of weeks. It was SO beautiful.  We ate at Uva on the UES which was delish - highly recommend.

After all that….it was time to say adios.  Again, it was bittersweet. I'm glad that they are launched and I'm SO glad that we were there to help them get settled. It's going to be a change for ALL of us, but I know we're going to survive just fine (tissues please).

The ride home felt quiet and long.....but of course my McDonalds meal helped out as well as some peanut M&M's and Mel Brooks’ memoir “All About Me” - super fun to hear him narrate.

So, there you have it.  REAL empty-nesting has begun. Three launched and Bo in his second year at UVA.  At least I've still got him....kinda