Utah

Feeling a bit overwhelmed by the amount of info I have to post tonight! I'm going for quick and to the point, so pardon my brevity. (Unless you welcome brevity, in which case, you probably stopped reading my blog a long time ago!)

 Utah, we love thee! We spent two weeks in Utah over Easter break, and it was awesome. Thank you to our peeps for being such great hosts and playmates and for hanging with us. We miss you all dearly!

Spring Time Funnies

Man, this place is spectacular in the spring. Cherry blossoms, 80 degrees, birds chirping in the early morning hours. It's pretty ideal. This is probably why EVERYONE comes here in the spring. We tried to do a Sunday outing/picnic at the Tidal Basin among all the cherry blossoms, but it was so crowded we couldn't find parking. And then our kids got hungry as we were driving around looking; so we ate in the car, never getting out to actually walk around. Still, the views were stunning.

Lucy's funnies:

Mom: (noticing it was a little chilly out) Hey, Luce do you need your jacket.

Lucy: No Mom. Spring is on!

Mom: It's time to go to bed guys. (I still shoot for 7:30 even with daylight savings).

Lucy: But it's not nighttime, it's light time!

Sundays

I'm not telling you that I have the worst time in the world for church (3:00 pm to 6:00 pm) so that you'll feel sorry for me. Really, I'm not. I just want you to count whatever time you have as a blessing. I kid. While 3 to 6 church isn't ideal, there are perks.

Perk #1:
PJ's 'til noon and the "family bed"

Sorry so dark!

I read a book about sleep when Sabrina was a baby, and it mentioned that some families choose to have a "family bed." Paul and I have joked about how "wonderful" that would be ever since. This scenario isn't really chosen by us, but it somehow seems to happen every Sunday morning. (Note: I do NOT condone a family bed. The few times (like twice) that we've had kids in the bed to sleep have been the least restful experiences I've had.)

Perk #2
Pre-church outings

Again, super dark!

We usually choose to just put the girls in the car for a family drive some place before church, but last week we decided to head up to the temple and do the visitor's center. I adore this picture! Sabrina isn't really trying to put Lucy in a choke hold, she's just trying to teach her to look at the camera and smile. The cute sister missionary at the visitor's center gave them "Junior Missionary" sticker tags. They wore them all day and were quite disappointed to find the stick gone the next day. As the weather warms, our Sunday outings will vary some we hope.

And why post on your blog if you're not going to show a pic of your cute baby:

Of course, no one thinks your kids are as cute as you do, but man...she's got me wrapped, and I'm the disciplinarian around here; so can you imagine what that face is going to get away with? Trouble, I tell you.

Some Recents...

Sister Lee and Sister Vaitai were a big hit when they came for dinner and to do a quick FHE lesson. (Sister Lee is Justice Lee's daughter and they just randomly tracted into my house one day...the world is a small place, my friends.) Lucy asked me the next day when the "Michelin Men" were coming back. These two are much cuter than the Michelin Man. After correction, she now asks when the "Missions" are coming back. Sabrina thought that Jesus needed to be in the picture too.


This wreath I made out of cut up toilet paper/paper towel rolls and yarn, and perhaps it can tell you better than anything I could ever write, how I am doing. Bored. Very bored. Craftiness done wrong.


This little one made quite the splash at church wearing a Grandma Sampson original sweater, booties and hat. I had one gal tell me that she nearly interrupted Sunday School when she saw Julesy from across the room in this darling get-up. Craftiness done right.

It's Up To You... NEW YORK, NEW YORK!

The last two weeks or so have been fabulous. First of all, Grandma Shar came to town! We basically just hung out and chatted the entire time, which was fun for me (possibly not as fun for Grandma). I don't think that I am such a good tour guide right now due to Sabrina's little schedule, Lucy's little schedule, and Julia's every 3 hour eating schedule and every 2 hour sleeping schedule. But Grandma did get ample grandkid time because she got to play mom for 50+ hours while we headed for a weekend getaway to celebrate this dinosaur turning...

The BIG 30!!

(Oh, and we threw in Valentine's Day too.)

In NYC! With the Blackhursts!

Imagine my surprise about a month ago when Aish and I were on the phone and discovered that we had both planned on going to New York the same weekend. We knew it was meant to be. And can I just say that it was the funnest, 45 hour trip I have ever had.

There's just something about dirty, smelly, crowded New York that brings a smile to my heart. (Although, I can't imagine why someone would live there over DC if given the choice...I'm probably a little bias.) It's been 10+ years since I last saw the big apple and it was every bit as magical as I remember.

Here's a rundown of events:

*Ground zero/9/11 memorial:


Awesome memorial. Quite amazing that huge buildings once stood here, and quite sobering remembering all the victims of that terrible day.

We then headed over to the little chapel across the street that served as a hospital/meeting place/place of worship on September 11. Good stuff.

*Ate lupper at a French restaurant where the hostess took one look at us and said, "Um, what are you guys looking to eat? Maybe you'd rather go to the sandwich shop next door." Yeah, for such a condescending place, the food wasn't that great. We had a good laugh though.

*Went to the Museum of Natural History (see Dino Pic above). So glad that it was closing in 45 minutes because they let us in for free (either that or Aish used the "Where can I recommend you for employee of the month!" line on the people at admissions, and they were charmed) ...because really, this place is maybe worth $2.

*Did NOT see this:


*Went to Spiderman:Turn Off The Dark:

(Got a crummy, no flash pic.) Really the star of this show is the acrobatic team! Wow. This show is all about staging, sets, and wow moments. (Like when Spiderman was right over my shoulder and I didn't even realize it until the spotlight was on me and I screamed.) Unforgettable.

*Explored Time Square:

That place is wack. You just can't stop looking around. The stimulation is overwhelming. And the people watching is prime.

And that was only Friday.

*We did Temple Sealings early Saturday morning:

Here's Aish and I in front of the temple (this pic was actually taken on Friday). Aish and I both stood out like sore thumbs in our white coats. Note to self...New Yorkers never wear white! The temple was beautiful. Tiny, but beautiful.

*Walked through Central Park:




I adore Central Park. No really. I may reconsider living in New York if I could be right by this place.

*Ate at The Boathouse restaurant in Central Park:

Why don't I have a picture!! This was my favorite part of the whole trip. It was just so atmospheric! Very good food (Paul's french toast was the winner meal), and the guy behind us tickling the ivories made it all the more cool! I MUST get back there in my lifetime.

*Went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art:


Boy, for four kids who passed the AP Art History test, we sure didn't remember a darn thing! I tried to sound smart by rattling off something about Egyptian art...it was a huge fail. I did remember that Van Gogh is my favorite. Hands down. Paul impressed us most by taking a nap on a concrete wall, proving that yes, he can sleep anywhere. (AND also proving that we were nearly dead from all the walking at this point). The Met is amazing. And huge. We probably saw 10% of it.

*Saw Grand Central Station:

This is a really large and very cool-looking train terminal. Our birthday boy celebrated at the new and huge Apple Store, playing on an iPad. The rest of us reveled in our tired silly phase by taking goofy pictures. Sorry, Blackhursts. I just had to post this. Just had to.

*Ate dinner at Rockefeller Plaza and went to The Top of The Rock:

(Here's where my phone [and the only camera I took] died.) Awesome look out. I liked it better than the Empire State Building, and although it was freezing cold, it was also incredibly romantical.

*Went to St. Patrick's Cathedral:
Huge, Beautiful. Ornate. Very Cool.

*Got cupcakes at Magnolia's Bakery:
Um, not so much. Pretty sure I could do better and that's saying something because I can't bake. Still perplexed at why this place was packed.

*CAME HOME TO MY BABIES:
They made us Valentines and Paul a birthday sign on the door. Oh, how their mother missed them!

*Lost my wallet:
This is another post for another day. Let's keep this one positive!

Dear Blackhursts and Grandma Shar,
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! We just keep talking about how much fun we had over and over again, which means that we must do something like this over and over again. Mom, you're the best! Thanks for taking such good care (no really, you didn't have to do the laundry too) of my girls. Please come back to us soon!

Dear PJ,
Happy Happy Birthday! Couldn't love you more. So glad you were born!

The Yayhoos Conquer Dance and Gymnastics

Just like the last post, I really don't know who started calling Sabrina and Lucy "The Yayhoos", but I'm guessing it was me in reference to their goof ball status 85% of the time. And it sounds like something my dad would say, so yeah, probably me.

Sabrina started dance and Lucy started dance and gymnastics last week. They are both loving it.

Sabrina is really taken by the whole idea of dance. She listens to her teacher and tries her very best. (Note: She's the little one with the pink leotard and black leggings. It's interesting to note that she's nearly 2 years older than some of these kids. Poor girl.)



Lucy takes the more "free and easy" approach to her lessons. She's the little one in black leading the chaos.



I'd say that Lu Lu prefers the "structured chaos" of gymnastics a little more than dance right now.


And after a long day at gymnastics, (nice transition, right?) Lucy always wants to help make dinner, which leads to Sabrina wanting to help make dinner. Apparently, yayhoos do things in twos. And where there's two, there's got to be a Julesy. So this is what dinner prep often looks like:



And yes, Lucy is sitting precariously close to that flame, and that Bumbo is on an elevated surface. We live on the edge around here.

Julesy Julesy Jelly Bean

This post is all about the baby. I don't know who started calling Julia "Jelly Bean", but it has a nice ring to it, so it is sticking. The girls walk around all day long saying "Julesy Julesy Jelly Bean" in a sing-song sort of way.

Julia is now nearly 4 months old. She is the light of our lives. She loves the bath, rice cereal (I started her early...and now she sleeps 12 hours at night...this is NOT a myth, young mothers...it's true!), and will now laugh a great belly laugh when something strikes her funny bone.

I will forever credit baby Julia for turning me into a baby person. I'm apologizing to my first two lovely little ones, but it seems to me that when they were babies I was too busy sterilizing bottles and reading books on brain development and milestones to really enjoy just being with the baby. I was forever "looking forward to the day when..." with them to really live in the moment, but with Julia it's different.

She gets her own private bath time, and even sitting down to feed her is a joy. These things used to seem like chores. I do regret that I don't have the time to play with her on the floor more because when she's under the gym, there's usually something to be done, so I guess Sub and Lu Lu did get more floor time with mom. Maybe that's why I enjoy the feeding and bathing even more because it's my time with just her.

P.S. Don't let the above tub picture fool you. She really does enjoy the bath. Now that I look at it, she looks like she's on the verge of tears in that pic.