NYC part 2

Tuesday, we went to the New York City Fire Museum. We expected there to be fire trucks for Little Man to be able to climb on, but we were mistaken.  Instead, we found 100 year old, man-pulled or horse-drawn fire trucks.




















Wednesday we went to Central Park Zoo and then Dylan's Candy Bar.  O. M. G.  Three floors of yumminess... more types of candy than I ever dreamed of!

 

 Thursday we visited the Statue of Liberty.  I have been to NYC several times, but I have never been to Liberty Island.  I've always taken the boat tour by Lady Liberty.  It was neat to go inside the museum in the pedastal and see how she was made.  I didn't get to see/read everything b/c I had a certain 2-year-old with us, but it was still a neat experience.

Friday, we visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  We didn't get to see a lot (because of the same 2-year-old) but we did get to see some Picasso, O'Keefe, Renoir, Polluck, Degas, etc.  I think it is very important for my children (well, the Sisters right now) to see and appreciate Art.  The studied a lot of "the masters" in art at their old elementary school, so I think it is neat for them to see the actual paintings/sculptures they've studied.  Sister #2 was a little disappointed... she saw some people sketching and she didn't know that was an option.  We did load up on things in the museum store (I always try to buy postcards of the paintings we saw).

Edward Hopper, one of our favorite artists

New York City

Our family vacation this year is to NYC... yes, we're nuts.  But there's a story behind our reasoning... but that's for another day.  So here's a run down of the past few days:

Friday, Aug. 5:  The Mister is already in NY, so the kids and I flew out of DFW to meet him.  We payed for the 5 Star Service by American Airlines, and it was worth every penny.  "John" met us at the curb (our driver kept calling him with our location) with a luggage person and cart.  He had our boarding passes already printed and in his pocket.  He helped us get thru security and then escorted us to the Admirals Lounge.  While we were waiting, our flight was cancelled.   John was on it!  He found us another flight that left 10 minutes later, but flew into Newark instead of JFK.  Once it was time to go to the gate, he had a cart waiting right outside the Admirals Lounge and drove us to the gate (with a stop at the food court on the way).  When we got to the gate, the pilot had made the executive decision to delay boarding until the plane cooled down.  Apparently it had been sitting in the Texas sun all day and the inside of the plane was 105+ degrees.  About 45 minutes later we boarded (it was about 90 degrees inside the plane) quickly...wanting to get in the air as fast as possible because the a/c would work better, plus the -50 degree air outside the plane would help, too.  The flight was ok... we didn't use the car seat for the Little Man (John said when he tried, it wouldn't tighten up and therefore wouldn't be very safe).  That made the flight a bit of a challenge... Little Man can buckle and unbuckle the seatbelt by himself.  But all in all it was a good flight.   The Mister met us in baggage claim and had a car service (SUV) waiting.  The car service took us to the hotel (in the middle of Times Square)... checked in... blah blah blah... good night.

Saturday, Aug. 6:  This was a "boring" day.  We walked around the southern corner of central park in the morning and then the NY Library and Grand Central Station in the late afternoon.

  

Sunday, Aug. 7:  American Museum of Natural History... I've never been here before, even though I've been to NYC several times.  We really had a good time.  Funny story... I bought "Night at the Museum" for the Sisters to watch to prep them for the museum. So Sat. evening, they go to watch it, and it turns out I bought the second movie, you know, the one that takes place in the Smithsonian.  Oh well.  We did try to find several things from the movie, including Dum Dum:

The girls and I then went to see The Lion King during Little Man's nap.  OMG!  It was wonderful!  Probably one of the best musicals I've seen!  The costumes were AMAZING and the music/singing were UNBELIEVABLE!  I'd love to see it again, but it was pretty costly!

Monday, Aug. 8:  The Bronx Zoo... Another "landmark" in NYC I've never been to.  We had a good day; it's a really large zoo.

For Today...

Outside my window... freshly mowed grass (love love love having a yard service!) and dying plants... in this heat there's no possible way to keep everything alive and looking good

I am thinking... about our family vacation... making plans for NYC, Boston, maybe some Mystic, Connecticut and Cape Cod, Mass.
I am thankful for...  my bed... after a week sleeping on a bunk at summer camp (church),  my bed has become my new favorite place

From the kitchen... not much.  planned to grill hot dogs last night, but then realized I didn't buy hot dog buns.  maybe tonight.  after a quick trip to the store.  maybe.
I am wearing... t-shirt & capris
I am creating... a mini-album for Sister #1... in the shape of a cupcake (her current obsession)... shhh!  don't tell!
I am going... to take the little Mister to get a haircut and maybe Barnes & Noble for book for said vacation

I am reading... The Life of Pi... good so far... not "into" it yet

I am hearing... a 2-year-old babbling about sisters at piano camp and mowers and 'puters and wipes and too hot for sand
Around the house... everything is picked up... waiting for the cleaning ladies to come today (they are from heaven!)
One of my favorite things... fruit ninja and words with friends (both are consuming entirely too much of my time lately)

A few plans for the rest of the week... taking the Sister's to grandma/grandpa's house on Saturday... will be (semi) quiet here for a few days

Letters #5 and #6

Dear Lewisville Public Library,
We need to talk.  Your performance level is going downhill.  Things need to improve or we are going to have to let you go.  You are now on probation.  If the following areas do not improve before the next time we visit, we will have to replace you with a library that can fulfill the role and perform at a higher standard.

• Electronic card catalogue/computers... what's the point of have a dozen or so in the children's area if they are all out of order?  My children do not just wander the aisles looking for something interesting.  They have specific books in mind (but they never know the author... that is not our fault and yes, I know we could look it up before we go to the library, but you are assuming we pre-plan our visits.).  
• Train tables in the children's area... Could you please get trains that actually fit on the tracks?  Or tracks that fit the trains you already have?  A certain 2-year-old loves trains, but gets extremely frustrated when the train dwarfs the tracks and therefore doesn't work.  And then I'm supposed to keep that certain 2-year-old quiet because it's a library.
• Display... please figure out a better way to display your books, or maybe how to explain EXACTLY where the book is that is on display.  I am frustrated because 90% of the time I look up a book on your computer and it says that all of the copies on the shelf are checked out, but there is one on display.  Um, ok.  WHERE?  My time to look for a book is extremely limited (have I mentioned a certain 2-year-old?) and so I don't have hours to wander aimlessly looking for a particular book.  Especially when Melvil Dewey took a lot of time to figure out how to organize books in a library.  Just sayin'.

Thank you, 

Me

Dear Barnes & Noble, 

Things are looking up for you!  

:)

Me

Letter #4

Dear Chipotle,
I love you.  Madly. Deeply.  It's true.   If I were stranded on a desert isle, and could only have 1 restaurant to supply all my food, I would choose you.  Yes, that kind of love.
I love the witty stories on the side of the cups.  I love the fact that I haven't come across the same story twice.  I love your fresh ingredients.  I love your employees (you know, the ones that act like they don't know me, even though I'm in there ordering the EXACT same thing 2, 3, maybe 4 times a week).  I love the fact that you are less than 5 minutes from my house.  I love your chips.  I LOVE your rice.
I love you,
Me


P.S.  Any ideas on how to fix the header... you know, the right side of the box that isn't showing up and therefore looks stupid?

Summer Card Camp

I am participating in Summer Card Camp 2011... organized by two of my favorite paper craft artists:  Jennifer McGuire and Kristina Warner.  Here's my card for week 1:

Letters #2 and #3

Dear Sleep,
I must compliment you on your ability to be allusive (spelling?).  Impressive.  However, now is not the time to show off.  I've got a crazy busy week with Vacation Bible School, never mind the fact that the Mister is out of town and I have a 2-year-old who thinks he's center of the universe.  Of course, what 2-year-old doesn't?  But I digress.
It's 5:45 a.m. now, and I have missed you for about an hour now.  I'll let it slide today, but don't let it happen again!
So, Sleep, I expect you meet you tonight in my bed, at oh, say 10:30.  Please don't be late.
Sincerely,
Me

Dear Sonic,
As much as I love your beloved Sonic ice, and believe no Diet Coke can compare to one in a styrofoam cup filled with your ice, I admit it may be a long, long time before I have one of your breakfast burritos again.  In my conscience, I link last night's breakfast burrito to this morning's inability to find Sleep.
Thanks.
Me

And we're back...

so to kick start my return to blogging, I thought I would copy my friend Wild and Precious, and write a few letters this week...

Dear employees/customers of Ulta today,
     I apologize for interrupting your normal, quiet shopping afternoon by bringing my 2 year old to Ulta.  I should've known better.  I should've known HE would be drawn to make-up.  I should've known he would want to take everything off the shelves and put it in our basket and then throw a fit when I make him put it back.  I should've known he would want to hold all of the hair dryers on display.  I should've known he would crawl on all fours to the line to check-out. I should've known he was going to scream when I told him we had to give the basket of merchandise to the girl at the cash register to pay for it all.  I should've known.

Sincerely,
Me


Dear girl in Ulta,
     Although your Yorkie is cute (especially with the name Dallas), I don't think Ulta is an appropriate store to bring your dog into.  She can't give you advice on make-up colors, or what shampoo is best for your color, so I don't really know why you brought her with you.  Did you wake-up this morning and say to yourself, "I need new shampoo, a new lipgloss, and a fun color of nail polish... I know!  I'll take my dog to Ulta!"  Because if that's what you said to yourself, you need to seek advice from someone older and wiser.  Someone who'll tell you Ulta (or really any retail store minus those pet stores) is not an appropriate place for a dog.  Good luck... and leave Dallas at home next time.

Sincerely,
Me

Durango, Colorado

I think we have found our favorite ski resort.  Favorite, as in... it has on site childcare, plenty of variety of slopes (greens & blues), and lodging is reasonable.  We've found a neighborhood that has a lot of rental townhomes.  We like having a kitchen for meals, and the space for the kids.  The one we stayed in this year was a 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath, loft, den, yadda yadda yadda, fabulous townhome:

When we leave the neighborhood, if we turn right, it's 20 minutes to the slopes.  If we turn left, it's 20 minutes to town.  Perfect!

We skied the first day (Sunday) together.  Monday we stayed "home" and hung out (the Mister had to work).  Tuesday, the Mister dropped the rest of us off at the mountain.  Little Man went to childcare, and the sisters and I skied.  We had fun! Then we skied Wednesday & Thursday together (I am certain 4 days of skiing is plenty for my body... maybe even 3).  Friday we took a train ride... there's an old steam engine train that takes you up into the mountains and back.  It was neat:

The train ride was eventful, with a 20-month-old on board.  Luckily, there were 2 other families with toddlers in our car, so the screams and fussiness were the norm.  Of course, Little Man fell asleep 5 minutes before we stopped for lunch:

But the scenery was beautiful!  A true reminder of a God who has an imagination.

Happy New Year!

So, December was a blur.  Truly.

The beginning of the month had its usual piano recital, Christmas party at church for the sisters, Sister #1 had a few school choir performances ( I won't bore you with the details, but it was a little much... especially for a 4th grader), and then the school "holiday" parties.  Oh, and the neighborhood Christmas play.  That's right. The neighborhood play.  I'll save that one for another post.

Then there was The Holiday.  We choose to skip the (extended)family dramatics and go skiing.  So much simpler.  Since we were leaving town on the day the sisters got out of school, we decided to celebrate Christmas early.  And we let the cat out of the bag.  That's right.  We are the mean, harsh parents that popped their children's fantasy of a big jolly man coming down the chimney (we don't have one... our fireplace just has this weird metal box that vents in the backyard) and leaving presents for good girls.  They took it pretty well. Just a couple of questions about logistics, and they were fine with it all.  We did tell them not to spoil it for other kids, which I think they get.  They've had a few kids at school try to spoil it for them, and I reminded them they didn't want to be lumped into the same category as them.

Anywho... here's a few pics of our holiday:

And then here are a few pics of our ski trip:

I'll go into detail on the ski trip another day...