One of the most fun family visits ever!

Since we've lived in New York, Brent and I have had many visitors of all different types - from parents to sons of former bosses.

Though all those visits have been fun in their own unique way, I must say that I had an absolute blast when my cousins, sisters Gillian and Alexis, came to visit.

I grew up with these girls, who are now both in college back in Ohio, but have never spent more than a few hours at a time with either of them. Now that they have spent four entire days with me, I realized how much more I have in common with both of them.

Take Alexis, for example. She and I both have an unconditional love for travel, musicals, plays, and all things Broadway. So I was thrilled that she was just as excited as me to see The Little Mermaid, which was - by far - the most amazing show I've ever seen on Broadway. It might have something to do with the fact that The Little Mermaid was my favorite movie as a kid, but as far as the show, the special effects were nothing short of phenomenal. I mean there was a thunderstorm and shipwreck ON THE STAGE! The costumes were big and colorful, tentacles came out from the stage at the audience when Ursula was onstage, and all the sea creatures wore those shoes with skates on the ends of them so they could glide as if they were swimming.

And since going to a show is a great excuse to dress up, the two girls thought it would be just the time to give me a makeover. I wore Alexis' dress and used Gillian's purse and jewelry. Alexis told me how to do my makeup, and Gillian attacked my hair with a hair straightener. The photo I included here is the result of their hard work.

As far as Gillian is concerned, I found out that our personalities jive more than I initially thought. We seem to have similar views on relationships - and have been through some similar situations - and the same type of thirst for chilling out at bars and just having a good time. Although, I have to admit that the college girl's thirst for going to bars is a bit more extensive than my married one!

What I liked most about the girls' visit was that I got to spend time with both of them together and each of them individually. Together, the three of us walked through Central Park, went up the Statue of Liberty, discovered the deliciousness of rice pudding, marveled at the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree and the lights on 5th Avenue, and went on an hours-long, old-fashioned bar crawl. The three of us also spent time with Brent as well at some dinners - including one I made in my fondue pot on Sunday night before we all played games - and at the dive bar we live above - which became Gillian's favorite.

Individually, I went to the bar downstairs with Gillian one night when Alexis wasn't feeling well and spent hours at The Little Mermaid with Alexis. It worked well that when I was with one sister, Brent usually was with the other, so we both got individual time with each of them just to chat and catch up.

My favorite activity that the three of us did together, however, was the bar crawl we did on Sunday night - the last night they were going to be in New York City. The three of us donned our cutest red shoes and off we went down 9th Avenue stopping everywhere from a classy wine bar to a dirty college bar. The only reason we headed home around 2 a.m. (bars close at 4 a.m. in NYC) was that none of their kitchens were open and we were STARVING. Though it was literally freezing outside and we were all wearing dresses and high heels and I actually took a little spill mostly from the ice, but probably also because of the inebriation, it was fun as hell. Just like their entire visit! Miss you girls!