*Queue New York, New York by Ryan Adams*

My mom and I took our annual mother-daughter trip to New York City last week, and we both are ready to go back again very soon. We had a blast running around the city, doing some shopping, trying new SoulCycle studios and eating all the foods.

Of course, I'm not going to detail every single thing we did while we were there, but I wanted to share a few of my favorite things.

PIZZA // Our flight didn't land until 1am east coast time, so by the time we actually got to our hotel, it was super late. We were starving, so we decided to walk around the corner to a little pizza shop at 3rd & 56th St. We had New York pizza last summer too and thought it was amazing - I would say this was even better. We even had more late night pizza on Monday night after seeing a show on Broadway. I would recommend the chicken bacon ranch pizza - omg so good.

LITTLE ITALY // This is something else we did last summer too and will, of course, continue in the tradition. Little Italy is in lower Manhattan along Mulberry St. All the restaurants have nice outdoor seating, and it feels like a giant party full of people in the street. There are shops here and there, but honestly, there are a ton of restaurants. It's a good atmosphere.

We ate at La Mela, and I would recommend this restaurant a thousand times over. It was SO good. I ordered the Penne Vodka, and I think I could have eaten it forever if I hadn't gotten so full so quickly. Honestly, if I could pick one meal to eat for the rest of my life, this would definitely be the one - not even exaggerating.

BRUNCH // You can't spend a weekend in New York City and skip brunch. We went to SoulCycle Saturday morning, and one of the girls working the front desk recommended that we try Sarabeth's. They have five different locations, but we went to the one on the south side of Central Park. My mom and I were smart right off the bat too because we decided to each order something, then we just split it. That way, we could try a little of each and get the full experience :) Here, I would recommend the Toasted Coconut Waffle. Holy cow, I wish I could describe it to you, but I just can't. You'll just have to go for yourself ;)

Our next brunch stop was The Park in Chelsea. But first, before we even got to brunch, we had already had such a day - I'll put the story at the end of the post :). The story of this brunch spot is what made it such a great experience. It was an old parking deck that they now have turned into a cute restaurant. There is a garden area located in between two buildings, and the whole restaurant is full of windows and beautiful natural lighting. We got the Crunchy French Toast and some eggs to share. Another amazing brunch spot that I would say is worth it to try. It was located right underneath the High Line, which is somewhere you NEED to go for some great New York views (though I would recommend going earlier in the day to avoid crowds).

THE TODAY SHOW // We always love to visit Rockefeller Plaza when were in New York. Last summer we went to the Today Show on a Friday morning and got to see Gwen Stefani perform. This year, we showed up super early to get a good spot in line and ended up being right in front of the camera when the anchors came outside! we got to shake hands with Hoda and got tons of face time on TV - we're famous! This is another one of those traditions that will never get old.

In addition to all of the fun things we were able to do and see while in New York, the view from our hotel was breathtaking. Arriving in the city at 2am and getting to see the Chrysler Building lit up in all its glory was amazing.

COFFEE // I had an entire list of coffee shops to visit - some I found on Pinterest and some were recommended to me. I actually only made it to one that I was planning on visited (and I was a little underwhelmed), but we did find this cute one for our last morning in the city. It is called Joe & the Juice, and it's located right in Times Square on 57th St. We spotted its cuteness on our way back to the hotel from the Broadway show (another notable stop!), and we had coffee and a small breakfast before heading to the airport that morning.

"The Story": There is an Instagram famous dog named Louboutina, who my mom loves to follow along on Instagram. We originally went to Chelsea to see Louboutina, who turned out to be so so cute and such a sweet dog. Not only did we see Louboutina, we saw JUSTIN BIEBER walking down the street. Okay, if you know me at all, you know I had a slight obsession with him in my middle school days (and maybe still do?), so I tried to play it cool but as soon as I realized it was him I thought I was going to die. I immediately texted my roommate (who is just as obsessed), and I honestly think she freaked out more than I did. Much love, Caroline, much love.

There are so many things I didn't even touch on that were amazing and notable and so memorable. In addition to the photos here, I've posted all the from the trip in the Photography tab right here! Make sure to check them out - every time I look at them I get super nostalgic and just want to teleport back right this very minute.

Much love to my momma for running the city with me for three and a half days! xoxo