Last weekend, I celebrated my 30th birthday in New York City with a four ladies who I've been friends with since my awkward teenage years (one has even been my friend since age 7 - we recently determined that apart from family members, of all the people I keep in touch with, she's known me the longest!). We're now spread all over the country and don't get to see each other very often, so this trip was extra special.

Some of the highlights of the visit included a walk through the Moma, shopping at Kiosk - a fantastic d.i.y. style boutique that sells a carefully curated selection of treasures from rotating countries, and picnic-ing in Central Park. There were also lots of subway rides, excursions to Chinatown and Mid-town, dumplings, sushi, Vietnamese sandwiches, foot massages and even a surprise spotting of Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul herself, in the restroom of the St. Regis!

Now for the mandatory onslaught of photos: