New York City!

Brad turned the BIG 30 last week, so we thought it would be best to celebrate by visiting the BIG CITY! We were lucky enough to be able to stay with friends in nearby New Jersey - we met them here in Pittsfield before they moved. Having also lived in Manhattan at one point, we were spoiled to have Colleen as our very own tour guide on Friday. She drove us into the city - going over the George Washington bridge and catching that first glimpse of downtown Manhattan really got us excited to explore! Our first glimpse as to just what a high commodity space can be in the city came at the parking lot where they actually stack the cars!

Our first order of business was to find a bathroom, lol. We headed into the mall at Columbus Circle and found a restroom, as well as the HUGEST Whole Foods market ever! Then we relaxed in a corner of central park so I could nurse Owen before our first Subway experience. Heading down underground with the crowds, I was really glad we had Colleen with us to show us the ropes. I would have been so nervous otherwise! We took the subway downtown to the Staten Island Ferry. We scored some DELICIOUS lunch from one of the street vendors that specialized in gyros. YUM YUM! We ate in a little park at Bowling Green - the first "city center" of New York from back in the Dutch Colonial times (1600's maybe?). It was a beautiful little gem surrounded by the upward sprawl of the city.


We all had a treat from the icecream truck, and Eli enjoyed his first cone! Everytime I took it to lick the drips off the sides, he screamed "no mama! E-I's icecream!"


With our tummies full, we made it onto the Staten Island ferry for a glimpse of Lady Liberty, and a look back at the Manhattan skyline. Both sights were breathtaking, though I do wish we'd been able to get a little closer to Liberty. Eli LOVED the boatride, and kept looking for whales the entire time.



After the ferry, we got some more excellently guided sightseeing. We were able to see the historic spot where the ship Brooklyn sailed from NY to California with a full passenger list of early LDS saints. It sailed the same day that the first group of pioneers left Nauvoo on foot headed West. Nearby is old Pearl St. where some historic buildings still stand. The prophet Joseph Smith stayed in a hotel on Pearl St. on a visit to New York - he was impressed with the grandeur of the city at the time - the tallest building then was a mere fraction of the height of the average skyscrapers now!

We took a walk down Wall ST and took a photo op at the New York Stock Exchange, as well as at Trinity Church - the graveyard was especially beautiful with all the trees in bloom.


We were also able stop at "ground zero" where the twin towers stood until they were destroyed by terrorist hi-jaked planes in 2001. They are starting work on the new World Trade Center towers and museum, and are still working on dismantling the huge scraper next to the site that was damaged. They cannot implode it, so have to take it down piece by piece, which I imagine will take a few years.


We caught another train up to Little Italy after that, and met one of my old AZ friends for Pizza. She is attending grad school at NYU.

After some "authentic" pizza, Kim introduced us to Rice to Riches for dessert - a trendy little place that specializes in rice pudding of all things. I never knew that rice pudding could come in so many yummy flavors! We got rocky road and coconut. Then we took an evening walk through SOHO, and finally took a train/walked back to the car and got our exhausted kids home to bed!


On Saturday we got to brave the city ALONE! After a couple of false starts (bank card issue and a POOPY blowout that required turning the car around to get clean clothes) we made it into the city around 2pm. This time we went in via the Lincoln Tunnel - and I DROVE. ALL THE WAY. IN NYC TRAFFIC. I am woman, hear me roar! Lol. We parked at the stacked up place again, and walked into the city to see the LDS Manhattan Temple. It is beautiful in it's own way, but interesting to see it right in the city adjacent to skyscrapers like that. Most Temples are surrounded by manicured grounds.



We had another street vendor lunch - hotdogs and icecream cones this time - and took a walk through Central Park. It was a HOT day and everyone was out to enjoy it. I had that feeling of being in a crowd at some kind of event/concert just as it's getting out... anticipating the moment when it will finally clear.... only it doesn't clear! It's just CROWDED in New York. And hectic. Just check out the bodies scattered across the park! There's a whole different concept of "personal space" out there.

It's really impressive to see the massive scrapers rising up in the background of the beautiful park.

And of course we went to the Central Park Zoo - pretty much Eli's favorite thing besides the train and the boat. We spent the whole time watching the seals and the penguins. Eli did NOT want to leave the seals to go see anything else. Did I mention it was HOT? Probably like 87, which is an INFERNO after the winter we've had - not to mention it was still cold in Pittsfield when we left. So, kind of a shock to the system.



Right out of the park, we strolled down 5th Ave to shop with the rich and famous. We went into FAO Schwartz the toystore, but realized that was only going to lead to tantrums from our tired toddler so we got out of there quickly. I got to take a mommy-only detour into Tiffany's and tryon a $4K diamond ring. That was fun! =) As for the rest of 5th Ave, I guess designer labels don't really light my fire. I wish we would have used our time to go see Times Square, but there's only so much you can do in two days with two babies!



We had Pizza for dinner again, and headed down to Grand Central Station. It was too dark to get a good picture of it, which is sad because it's a BEAUTIFUL building! We could see the Chryssler building all lit up behind it as well - quite a sight! We actually caught the subway right from Grand Central (all by ourselves!!!) and went down to the Brooklyn Bridge. Eli got the hang of riding the train, and someone commented to us that he's a true New Yorker already =). Oh, and we actually saw RATS running down in the subway a few times.


We walked across the Brooklyn Bridge at night - what a SIGHT! I think that besides the ferry ride, this was my favorite part of the trip. I wish my camera could have captured that skyline all lit up. It was stunning to turn around and see everything all lit up - the city, the lights of the neighboring bridges, Lady Liberty's torch - all with the NYC traffic whizzing by below (the walking path is above traffic). Here's a stock photo I found that captures the view we had (minus the Twin Towers).


We got back to our friends' house that night after midnight - we had two toasted boys in the backseat! There is so much more we wish we could have seen, but maybe we'll have to go back one day when the kids are bigger. We're glad we had the New York "experience." Honestly one of the best parts is just walking around the city, amidst all the crowds and noise and smells and just seeing how people live! The whole atmosphere is so foreign to a suburbanite like me that it's like visiting another country. I wish I could have just taken pictures of all of the people - so many interesting and fabulously dressed city folks!


We are so grateful to our friends for hosting us and spoiling us while we were there! Their new home is beautiful - we felt like we were at a high class bed and breakfast the whole time with a great room and bathroom all to ourselves! Breakfast was always laid out perfectly for us - and just check out the view from the dining room window! It is friends like these who have truly made our "back east" experience memorable.

Washington DC

We didn't think that Washington DC was going to be a possible destination this year, but Brad was able to trade around his days off and arrange four days in a row at the last minute.... so we headed down to DC to stay with Julie and Glenn (one of my longtime best friends and her husband). They've been in DC for the past year while Glenn worked as an attorney for President Bush... since there' s a new president now they will be moving in a few short weeks and we were lucky to catch a visit with them, and get a tour from people "in the know."

It took us 9-ish hours to drive down there, and we were able to drive through Gettysburg, PA though it was dark when we got there, darn it. And while Eli is an expert traveler now, Owen HATED every minute of it and was sure to let us know! We were pretty frazzled after the drive, but the next two days totally made up for it. Glenn and Julie live in Northern Virginia, right on the border of DC. So we were able to ride the Metro (public transit, like the subway) into the city. On Friday we were able to take a scheduled tour of the Capital (where the Senate and House of Reps meet). It is such a magestic building, and really set the tone for the rest of our visit. The only bummer was that in going through security to get in, I had to throw away all the snacks I had brought for us for the day- no food allowed! It was fabulous to see the inside. I would have loved to actually see a session of Congress, but that wasn't part of our tour that day. I spent most of the time chasing Eli rather than listening to our tour guide, but it was still neat to see all of the history in there! Something I noticed while walking around DC is that it seemed really quiet, clean, and peaceful downtown for a big city.

Riding the Metro

Inside the Metro tunnel

In front of the Capital

Inside the Capital, looking up into the dome.

From the grounds at the Capital, we could also see the Supreme Court Building and the Library of Congress.

Supreme Court Building

Library of Congress

After our tour, we had lunch at one of Glenn and Julie's favorites - Potbelly's. It was a yummy sandwich place with live music! Right across the street from the White House, we felt like true city folk dining there =). After lunch, we headed over to the White House. From photos of it with the sprawling lawn and trees, I hadn't realized that it was really surrounded on all sides by the big city. If you weren't looking down the right street for it, you might miss it. I was surprised by that... at the same time it reminded me that it's an actual RESIDENCE for the president and his family =). I wondered out loud that it didn't look like what I expected, when Julie reminded me we were looking at the back of it, lol. The front entrance is structured differently, which you will see next.

The White House

We walked around to the front of the White House on our way to the monuments, when Julie spotted people out on the lawn, and tipped us off that "something" was about to happen. We waited around for a few minutes, and were able to see Marine One (the Presiden'ts helicopter) and the two decoy helicopters fly right over our heads. Marine One landed right on the White House lawn! Of cours we were on the other side of the gate, so the helicopter blocked any actual view of President Obama when he got off, though we're sure one of the pairs of feet we could see were his. It was pretty exciting to see those choppers buzz over us, the wind from their blades whipping our hair and their loud humming in our ears, with the Washington monument in the background! We really got lucky on this one.

Washington Monument and Marine One

Marine One leaving White House lawn

After the White House, we walked up to the Lincoln Memorial (Monument?), passing by the WWII and Vietnam Memorials. It really is stunning in real life. I wish we had more time to enjoy it, but by this time we had all walked our legs off, it was getting cold, and the kiddos were worn out! I'm so glad we got to see it though!

Outside the Lincoln Memorial

Inside with Lincoln

Eli with Derek and Evan (Julie's boys) on Lincoln Memorial steps

Reflecting on Vietnam

On Saturday we were all rested up and ready for more adventure! This time, we rode the Metro into the city all by ourselves - pretty exciting! We started off at the National Archives and were able to see the ACTUAL Magna Carta (800 year old copy!), the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. They are kept in a dimly lit room (no flash photography so my pics are blurry) to help preserve them, and the lighting along with the reverent hush really reminded me how blessed we are to live in this country, and to have the Constitution. Our forefathers truly sacrificed so much to found this land and to protect it - men and women die every day to continue protecting our freedoms. I hope we all realize and appreciate this on a daily basis, and do our part to keep our freedom and our Nation safe.

The National Archive

The Constitution, first page

Eli's favorite part of the trip was Saturday afternoon when we visited two of the Smithsonian museums. First up, the National Museum of Natural History. We saw lots of awesome things including a life sized whale, a real hammer-head shark ("Hamma Sock" according to Eli) and Dinosaur bones! It must be the kid in me, but I've always wanted to see a T-Rex skeleton, it was great! We also stopped at the Air and Space Museum. We didn't get to spend a lot of time there, but the airplanes were a hit. There was one exhibit that was half of a passenger plane that you could go in. Eli loved it but threw a fit that he wasn't allowed to cross the ropes and sit in the seats... the kid loves planes! I figure he'll either be a marine biologist or a pilot one day =).

The Natural History Museum

The Air and Space Museum

The drive back home went a little more smoothly. We took a slightly different route home through Lancaster, PA and the Amish country out there. It was beautiful, even in mid-winter. I'm disappointed that my camera battery was dead and I didn't get any pics. I really fell in love with Pennsylvania. And that's our trip! We can't thank the Ropers enough for wearing themselves out taking us around, and taking such good care of us. We are lucky to have such great friends, and to be able to make such lasting memories while we are out here!

A Trip to Boston

We spent the day after we got to Pittsfield napping! My sister helped get us settled in and even stayed up late the night we arrived buying food and preparing it for the next day - what a lifesaver! After we laid around all day, we went out to a "Mexican" food place. Ick - I don't know if I'll be eating much Mexican while we live out here. The next morning (Tuesday the 17th) we ventured into Boston.

I have to say, driving in Boston is literally risking your life! I have never been in such a huge city (and I came from Phoenix!) nor have I seen such crazy traffic! I was the one driving and I am certainly glad we had GPS. We did a quick tour of the Boston Common and started out on the "Freedom Trail" or the trail of historical sites in Boston. We didn't make it to many places considering we were lugging a cranky toddler, a cranky pregnant woman, and a hungry and cranky college student, lol. We did see the capital building, the cemetary where Paul Revere, several signers of the Declaration of Independence, and other historical figures are buried, and an old church where town meetings were held. There was a lot more to see but we had to get Aubrey to the airport. On the way to the airport, the freeway goes underground. While inside the tunnel, traffic got a little backed up - because of a RAGING car fire! It was seriously a ball of flames and police were frantically motioning to people to get moving so the firetrucks could make it into the tunnel. Everything was clouded in smoke.... what a day! Maybe we'll be brave enough to venture back out there and take a trolley tour or something in order to see more sights without having to navigate the crazy streets.

We successfully dropped Aubrey at the airport, then went to visit one of my old friends and college roommates - Jen! On the drive there, we had to make a U-turn on the freeway and ended up paying one toll twice. I tell ya, these toll roads out here can get annoying. Anyway, we had a nice visit with Jen and her cutie pie Ian. He and Eli played a little bit outside while we all tried to fend off the giant mosquitos. Jen gave me lots of good advice about mosquitos and ticks =).

The Ultimate Road Trip

What do you get when you take one small Saturn Ion, three adults - including one pregnant woman who pees on the hour, one 18 month old in a giant car seat, a bunch of luggage, toys, and snacks, put them all together for six days on the road? The ultimate road trip! That's right folks, we drove all the way out here to Pittsfield, MA from Tucson, AZ!!! It's over 2500 miles, and 40+ hours of driving. I'll try to just hit the hi-lights.

Brad's graduation was on Friday the 6th of June, the next day the movers came, the day after that we finished cleaning the house and went down to Tucson. We were supposed to leave Monday but ended up sticking around to tie up some loose ends (most of which were caused by the terrible movers - we don't recommend them by the way!) and to rest a bit from the hectic life we'd been living the past month. My sister drove down from Utah to make the trip with us. So, Tuesday June 10th we were off!

Day 1: Tucson to Santa Fe, NM. We were supposed to make it all the way to Kansas, but got a late start. After an 8 hour drive, we'd had it (and it was only the first day!). Really though, we were impressed with how well Eli did on the trip as he hadn't been on one since he was about 11 months old. The DVD player we splurged on helped, but we didn't even use it until the end of the day. There was a lot of ugliness on the drive though - just dry, dusty, non-scenic scenery. Santa Fe was cute. We stayed in a motel and ate dinner at a Mexican/Southwestern place. The next morning we went to the historic downtown plaza to look around. The plaza is over 300 years old, and we saw an old adobe church, as well as two other very old Catholic churches.

Day 2: Santa Fe to Elkhart, KS. After our tour of Santa Fe, we headed to Kansas, our shortest drive of the week at about six hours. Where in the heck is Elkhart you ask? It is a tiny little town just over the border from Oklahoma, and I have family there. We stayed the night with Aunt Joanie and Uncle Chris, and got to see my cousin Heather and her 10 month old daughter, who is DARLING. She took a liking to Eli and kept tackling him, which really freaked him out. It was funny to see. It was really windy that night, and there were tornadoes in other parts of the state, which made me a little nervous. Luckily none touched down near where we were. It was great to see these guys again as it's been a few years!

Day 3: Elkhart to Columbia, MO. This was a really long drive - about 11 hours total. And a lot of it was BORING! I'm so sorry, but a lot of southern Kansas, though not ugly, is just boring to drive through. It is F-L-A-T and grassy, dotted here and there by a silo or cows. Once we went through Wichita, things got a little more interesting with trees. We stayed at a motel in Columbia, which took forever to find because there was some kind of convention in town and things were booked up and expensive. We were all very tired that night but were discouraged that there were only double beds (me, Brad and Eli all in a double is tight!). So we pushed the beds together and all slept together, lol. Brad on one end, then Eli, then me, then Aubrey. One big happy fam! We hoped to see more of the town since we will be moving there next summer for the rest of Brad's residency, but there wasn't time.

During the night in Columbia, it started to rain. And I mean RAIN. We had one of these roof bags on our car in order to fit everything for the trip. since our car does not have a rack, the straps that hold the bag on actually thread through the doors, inside the car. It's a good design - nice and sturdy. BUT, the straps themselves soaked with water from the rain and transferred it to the inside of our car!

Day 4: Columbia to Columbus, OH. So day 4 was the worst drive of the trip. It was a long one as well - another 11 or so hours. We had a soggy drive from the straps leaking. Eli's carseat was so wet, that he was soaked up to his armpits when we took him out at our first gas stop. We changed him and lined his seat with some dry clothes, meanwhile water just flowed in from the straps and dripped on our arms whenever we'd come to a stop! It POURED the entire drive through Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, and into Ohio. And I mean, torrential rain that tempted us to stop every time. Also, the cruise control on the car went out, and the DVD player stopped working (after Eli had gotten attached the last few days). Brad had to sit in the back to keep Eli entertained (I get carsick) so I ended doing most of the white knuckle driving. And since the cruise was broken and I had to maintain one position the whole time, I ended up with pretty swollen ankles that night. I was one CRANKY pregnant woman. I think Brad and Aubrey were ready to let me out to walk, lol. By the last hour I had lost my mind and was cackling uncontrollably - not a good thing when you are pregnant, stuck in the car, with a full bladder! At one point, we called my mom and had Eli talk to his ga-ma and he let her have it! He must have talked to her for 20 minutes, just jabbering on. Apparently he'd had enough of the trip that day too =). Luckily, we got to spend the night with our good friends the Demills in Ohio. It cheered us all up to have a home cooked meal, and Eli had a good time running around with the kids. For some reason I didn't get any pictures on my camera, but if I get some from my sister I'll post one! I will say of the midwest - I have never seen so many trees in my life!!!!!!!!!!! I was feeling claustrophobic even from being so surrounded!

Day 5: Columbus to Kirtland, OH to Buffalo, NY. This turned out to be an interesting day. We drove a few hours to Kirtland, OH and made a stop to see the old Kirtland Temple - the first Temple built by the early saints. It is now owned by the Community of Christ - a group that splintered off from the church when Joseph Smith was killed back 1844. We were able to take a tour of the Temple, and then we went to see some of the original town buildings, including the Whitney store where in the upper room Joseph Smith received many sections of the Doctrine and Covenants by revelation including the Word of Wisdom (Section 89). I was also reminded of how often the early saints had to move from place to place - with carts and horses, no internet or GPS, and no way but letters to stay in touch with family left behind. It left me feeling less sorry for myself and the stress of moving across country. Also, it was really neat to see some of these places we have studied about. However I will say that Eli is not too fond of touring historic buildings full of antiques that he is not allowed to touch. After our full afternoon of tours, we drove up through Pennsylvania, into New York and through Buffalo, NY. We stayed in a motel just outside of Niagara Falls, NY. It was by far, the seediest, yuckiest place we stayed. It was late though, and Buffalo was too big a city to be wandering around in at that hour to find a place. Luckily we at least found something cheap that was close to the falls. But that was all that was good about it. There was an odd moldy/smokey smell, there was mold on the shower curtain which was missing several rings, tiles were missing, and the cold water nozzle came of when you turned it. Yippee, we were glad to get out of there the next morning!

Day 6: Niagara Falls to Palmyra, NY to Pitssfield! Day 6 was a special day - June 15th to be exact. Father's day, and my and Brad's SIXTH ANNIVERSARY! We both admit it was probably the least romantic anniversary we've ever had, but probably the most interesting so far! We got up and went to Niagara Falls in the morning.

What a beautiful sight! My sister and I had always wanted to see it since we were kids. Eli was fascinated. He kept pointing to the boats below and saying "There!" He got pretty mad when we wouldn't let him climb over the railing =).

After the falls, we headed East and stopped in Palmyra. We were able to see the Hill Cumorah (where the gold plates were hidden for centuries until they were shown to Joseph Smith which he translated into the Book of Mormon) as well as the Sacred Grove (where Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph Smith following his prayer as a 14 year old boy about which church he should join). We didn't have time to tour the Smith farm, but the Grove was breathtaking. It was much bigger than I had imagined - more of a forest than a grove in my mind! But so beautiful and peaceful I can imagine why Heavenly Father would choose to appear there. We spent some time in the car trying to appease a cranky Eli who had skipped a nap after the falls, so it was a short trip, but very worth it. I'm glad we got to stop and see this sacred and beautiful place in person. The only draw back? My sister seems to be allergic to New York and couldn't stop sneezing the entire day! =) Finally, at 9:30pm we arrived at our new home in Pittsfield, MA!

So here's to the longest and most ultimate road trip ever! Seriously, Eli outgrew his shoes on the trip. They fit when we left, and when we got here I couldn't get them on his feet. We had to buy new ones the next day. And this is the longest blog post I will ever make!!!!