Sewing

I've sewn crafty things before...but never anything to actually wear! I had three opportunities this past week - Clara needed a green skirt to wear for her first grade play....Emi needed a white Egyptian outfit for Egypt day and then the girls 'needed' some cute church skirts!


Clara was a carrot in her first grade play :)


Emi the Egyptian - her skirt is made out of an old dress shirt of Jim's!


I saw this cute skirt pattern and had to give it a try. My good friend is a 'seamstress extrordinare' and she guided me through the process.


Front shot.


Back shot.

New York City

When Mark, Kimmie and baby Spencer were visiting, we decided to have an 'adventure' and take everyone to New York City. Jim and I have gone to NYC many times.....alone, and have loved it. We figured the kids were all old enough now, plus we had one adult to every child. Safety first! We packed some snacks, piled into the car and viola! Two hours later our party of seven was exploring New York City.

The day was a great success. The weather was perfect, the kids behaved beautifully and we enjoyed lots of touristy things - Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, China Town, Time Square and Central Park.

"Excitement" during the day: Sarah 'misreading' the map and we ended up traveling through the Bronx. Seeing Jack Sparrow walk down 5th Avenue. Jim having his pocket knife confiscated at the Statue of Liberty (security check!). Jim loosing my nice McClaren stroller. (He likes to say someone stole it from him at gunpoint, but he actually left it leaning against a bench in the subway). James being quite traumatized by the number of people he saw with piercings and "stamps" on their bodies. Emi and Clara periodically plugging their noses and saying "What is that gross smell?" Seeing a bald man walking down the street with a cat sitting on his head.

We all had a fantastic time in New York City!


Waiting at the Subway Station


In line for the ferry to Ellis Island and Statue of Liberty. A nearly two hour wait!


On the ferry boat. The kids loved the boat ride!


There were some serious 'gale winds' on the ferry ride! Just kidding, this is actually Jim showing off his upper body strength....much to the pleasure of those on board the boat!


The kids loved the statue of liberty. They all came home with souvenir Statue of Liberty key chains!


Lady Liberty


Not a great candid shot of me and Mark....but this is us on Ellis Island. A fascinating place. Very interesting!


The fam at Time Square. Jim does not have a happy face in this pic. Probably because he had just lost my stroller....and I was not too pleased with him! :)


Last stop of the day was Central Park. The kids loved running and climbing on the huge rock formations in the park. I have no idea where their energy came from at the end of such a long and adventurous day!

Life Cycle

Today I was driving James and his "best buddy" to school. This is the conversation that I overheard from the backseat.

Andrew - "I have a loose tooth"
James - "Ohhh - Wow! After you loose all of your teeth, you get to be a pirate!"
Andrew - "Yah, and after that, when you die, you get to be a skeleton!
James - "Awesome!"

So there you have it! The life cycle according to 5-year-old boys!

BOY------PIRATE------SKELETON

Birthdays

Emi and Clara had their birthdays months ago, but they were very patient in waiting for their 'friend' parties! We had both parties on one Saturday. Clara's from 10 to 12 and Emi's from 1 to 3. They were a great success! Here are a few pics of the fun day. Clara's pics are first.




For Emi's party we played BINGO. Instead of bringing birthday gifts, each girl brought five small bingo prizes. Every time we had a winner, that girl would choose a prize from the prize table - and put the prize in their 'goodie bag'. Each girl left with eight fun prizes. It worked wonderfully!




I also celebrated my birthday this month. I was in Utah for General Conference on my actual birthday (a fabulous trip!), and I returned home to house full of decorations and cards. Jim bought an adorable little cake and insisted that it be lit with all 34 candles. The kids thought the cake was hilarious and looked like a fire! I also have wonderful neighbors and friends who surprised me with lots of yummy goodies.

Double Digits!

It's been nearly a month since Emi turned the big 10. Here are a few pics from her special day.

Delicious!

Look familiar?


I saw this desirable fruit at Stop&Shop (our grocery store) the other day.....and I HAD to buy it! Is this awesome or what!? We've had lots of fun with this forbidden fruit - I can't wait to see what it tastes like :)


Two days later this fruit is now a beautiful orange/red color. More true to
life - thus I needed to add one more picture!

More Snow

REALLY? This snow business is getting to be down right ridiculous! These pics are after two more consecutive days of snow and sleet. We easily have a good four feet of snow in the middle of the yard, let alone along the sides of the road and driveway where great mountains have formed! Jim has had to clean off the roof twice already. A risky business, but somebody's got to do it! Roof cave-ins and water damage are a serious issue around here! One man started his house on fire yesterday while using a propane torch to melt the snow off of his roof! :)

I'm afraid I've got a serious case of cabin fever. We've had so many substantial snow storms that my kids have not attended a full week of school since before Christmas break!