Sunday, December 28, 2008

Our Nation's Capital

Because the Christmas season isn't busy enough we decided to go to D.C. just days before Christmas. Here are a few of the TONS of things we did... ...Iwo Jima Memorial...
...Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery...
...Kevin breathing in the Supreme Court...
...Capitol Building...
...the Hope Diamond...
...I dragged Kevin up to see Dorthy's ruby slippers in one of the many Smithsonian museum's...
...the Vietnam War Memorial...
...good old Abe...
...the Washington Monument...
...the White House decked out for the Holidays...
...freezing our Hawaiian bums is the breezy cold weather...
...and all the while Bennett was at Grandma's living it up!

Monday, December 15, 2008

New York, New York

After foolishly flying across the country by myself, I decided it was a good idea to join Dana, Ashlee and Peyton and go to New York. After all New York with two babies is always a good idea! Bennett and Peyton had lots of playtime including Bennett's first bath with someone else. I think he found it much more interesting than being in there by himself!
The boys loved FAO Schwartz, but I am sure not as much as the adults did.

This was Bennett's straight jacket for the two days we were there. He hated it.

Here is the New York temple. This is the only angle you can take of the temple without including cars and tons of people. It really is quiet in there though!Bennett may have actually enjoyed Central Park. He was awake and in his straight jacket and not screaming...miracle!Even though it was the dead of winter the park really was pretty. I would love to see the fall colors there.Being that it was Christmas time, Rockefeller Center was a must!We went to Times Square both days, but I will get to the reason for that.It was nice to see the Statue of Liberty, even from a distance. This is the World Trade Center in its current state. The train we had to take to get into New York went right through there. Both times taking the train through there the train would slow down and it was noticeable that everyone was a little quieter. You don't realize how massive those buildings were until you see the sizable hole they left. There are massive buildings on every side and the construction area is pretty deep. On a lighter note--this is the reason for going to Times Square two days in a row. Charmin restrooms is the place to be!The nice man in the toilet costume greeted us outside and persuaded us to come on in to use the restroom. They had 20 restrooms, which were cleaned after every use. There were several large enough to fit a stroller and equipped with changing tables. They even brought you a diaper for the babies. In New York a clean restroom with changing table is impossible to find!The whole time they have music pumping with the lyrics "Charmin, where the going is always good." (yes, it gets stuck in your head) They had people dancing on the dance floor, but the babes preferred playing with the pom poms. They had a playhouse, a campfire and a sleigh to take pictures on. It was the strangest and most memorable place I have ever been! All in all it was a great trip. Bennett had so much fun with Peyton, but after two days on going non-stop the poor babes were tired! Here's to New York again soon--hopefully.

Thursday, December 4, 2008

Inevitable Truths of Traveling with a Babe

  1. Never even dare to think that things will go as planned.
  2. Count on having to make at least one cross airport journey with less than an hour layover.
  3. Expect that a poopy diaper will only happen when you have limited time and are running across the airport.
  4. Always try to get an empty seat next to you, even if it means sitting by the bathroom.
  5. You are never allowed to go the bathroom.
  6. Don't expect flight attendants to help you in any way as you juggle the babe and two carry-on's down the narrow aisle as the little Asian man tries to go the wrong way back to his seat.
  7. Crying will happen.
  8. Stop crying quickly--resort to bribery.
  9. Forget about sleeping; it's not going to happen.
  10. Talk to or smile sympathetically to every other mother travelling alone.
  11. Look at mother's travelling with their spouse with total and complete envy.
  12. Don't be offended when the man sitting in front of you goes to the bathroom and never comes back.
  13. Upon arrival at destination, for sanity's sake, quickly hand baby off to anyone willing to take him.
  14. Realize you have learned your lesson and you will never travel alone again.
  15. Understand you will look back at this and forget the pain of the situation and decide to do it again.

Aprons

Lately I have had a strange obsession about aprons. I think it stems from years of watching adults wear aprons that were ugly and often times cheesy and now suddenly there are cute sassy aprons. A friend just wrote on her blog about a new website, Mymby, which happens to have aprons, much to my delight. Seeing this reminding me of my desire to go put one on, only to discover that all the aprons I have, well, aren't cute. I LOVE the one at the very bottom of the page. Maybe Santa will bring a cute aprons for Christmas.

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

Busy Busy Busy

(Sorry, the internet isn't working on the computer with all the pictures, so a picture-less post this must be.)

fun visitors. art projects. abi's baptism. finishing gratitude book. thanksgiving...twice. pondering christmas presents for people. new windows. buying the perfect skirt. finding out the perfect skirt isn't so perfect. returning perfect skirt. too many trips to the grocery store. chasing a rolling, creeping boy all around. seminary. juli's baby shower. school. visit from the anti-tooth fairy (who brings much screaming and fussing for everyone). doctor's appointments. church activities. family dinners. work. crocheting project still unfinished. cleaning. packing. yard work. finding where our christmas music went to. discovery of where the evil tooth is coming in. cutting hair. making beds over and over. laundry. dismantling the back door so that is stops locking me out. sleep, or the lack thereof.