Cherry Blossoms

I honestly don't know what season I love most in Philly, spring or fall. They're both so beautiful in such different ways. My very favorite part about the spring here are the cherry blossoms. They range from white, to pink, to the brightest purple you've ever seen. So last month we thought we'd check out the blossoms in their full glory over at Fairmount Park, close to the Japanese House. It was a lot of fun and a great way to practice using my camera (which I still need a LOT of work on!)

Easter

The Saturday before Easter we went to an egg hunt at Houston Park with the students in the ward. It was a gorgeous day and there were a ton of people there. The spot were they hide eggs is so perfect with lots of trees and grass. The kids wasted no time finding all twelve of their eggs, and then tearing into them with everything they have.

Later that night we dyed our real eggs at home in preparation for the morning to come. I don't know why, but dying eggs has always been one of my favorite traditions. Maybe it's all the deviled eggs I get in the morning, or maybe I just really like bright colors. Luckily my kids love it too, so I have many more years of enjoying it with them.


The next morning they woke up to their baskets and hidden eggs to find. They did a great job finding them quickly. We got ready for the day and enjoyed the rest of our day at the Millers, eating a crazy awesome breakfast courtesy of Master Chef Alissa! We watched conference and played several rounds of Settlers of Catan. A very nice weekend.

My Birthday!

I turned 29 in March! I never look forward to my birthday, but I always enjoy it. I have decided that on the actual day of my birthday will be spent doing fun things with the kids, and that's exactly what we did. We went to the mall, got lunch, rode the merry-go-round, played at the fountain and ate ice cream. Then we went to the library and read books. Glenn made me a killer cake that I have also made a tradition of eating half of before he's able to put candles in it. It's a tradition I love, Glenn doesn't care for it so much.

The surrounding days of my birthday were also lovely. A breakfast at the Smorgasbord, lunch at Olive Garden and a fun field trip to Whole Foods to try our their lunch as well (delicious, but expensive). And the day before my birthday Glenn took me to see the Body Worlds exhibit that happened to be at the Franklin Institute. It's really cool, kind of creepy, but very informative. I learned a TON about the body. They don't allow you to take pictures, but in all honesty I don't know if I would have even posted them. If you haven't heard about it, google it, it's pretty cool!

Culinary Art (literally)

Jayda has become quite the artist, and I really mean that. She loves to create beautiful things. She'll put outfits together that I would never think of that actually look good! She also talks constantly about how she'd like to redecorate the house. I'm actually quite relieved, her mother is far from artistic and having a creative daughter might mean saving money when it really is time to decorate a home!

So I was rather amused to see her latest creation made with the grapes in the fridge. Once again, never would have thought to do that!

Philly Day

Unfortunately I didn't get many pictures of the next three days of our visit, and the ones that Keisha took I'm not able to turn, but sometimes it's nice to just enjoy yourself without having to worry about snapping a picture every where you go!

Wednesday we spent the day in Philly seeing as many sites as possible. We saw the bell, took the walking tour, ate at the Reading Terminal (of course), got some killer crepes, but swore to myself that next time I'm getting the sushi! The two sideways pictures were too cute to leave out. Damian was able to hop over the little stands in the sidewalk, so the next picture was Jayda attempting to do the same!

We don't make it into the city very often, but everytime we do I'm always reminded of how cool it is to live so close to so much history and culture.

Thursday we started our day out at the Shady Maple Smorgasbord. I seriously can't even count now how many times I've been there, but I never get sick of it. Perhaps we will move in one day!


At the Smorgasbord, there was a guy that made carvings out of wood. His biggest product were carved chickens. Above is his tiniest chicken, look at it compared to the penny, but the funny thing was that you could still tell it was a chicken!

After that we went straight to Hershey to take the tour and check out all the chocolate goods. There's not a whole lot to do in Hershey (at least not when you don't have a whole lot of cash), but I still enjoy it and it's always worth the trip.



On our way home we stopped in Kitchen Kettle, another place that I've been too a lot. I love the samples and the jams. I always have to go home with something, usually a sampler of meat and cheeses, love it!


While we were there, Rachel treated us to a horse buggy ride through the area. It was really cool because the guy that took us was born into the Amish community, but during his time of experiencing the world outside of the Amish world, he decided not to go back. He still has very close connections to his family though and talked about how his kids get to experience best of both worlds. It was cool and really eye opening.


Our last day was spent taking it easy, enjoying each other's company, and eating good food (as always). We had a wonderful time with Rachel, Keisha and Damian. It was a fantastic way to spend Spring Break!

Pop Shop and Ocean City

The next day of our visit with Keisha, Rachel and Damian we went decided to take a trip to Ocean City so they could get a taste of the Atlantic Ocean. And on our way we had to stop at the Pop Shop, a place we're getting to know very well for their amazing grilled cheese sandwiches. Keisha and I split ours, something I highly recommend doing.




After that we made it to Ocean City. We spent a lot of time walking the boardwalk, playing in the sand and eating fudge made in one of the local shops. It was fun, but very chilly! The minute the sun went down we hightailed it back to the van.

Our Day in DC

The tough thing about blogging a big day like DC is that there are so many pictures from so many different cameras, that before you know it, I've assumed the fetal position in a dark corner, dreaming of happier times. So I finally gave up trying to find and organize them all, that is another job for another day.

We began big with the girls by taking a day to DC. They really wanted to see Arlington Cemetary and some of the Smithsonian sites, so that's what we head out to see.

The Arlington Cemetary was incredible, reverent and very humbling. To think of all the thousands of people who died for our safety and freedom put a whole new perspective on the great country we live in. We got to see the changing of the guard, which is an incredibly precise and exact ceremony. I remember watching a clip about it a few years ago. Those soldiers undergo hours of training and inspection before they are given the honor of protecting the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It's very touching.

On the unfortunate side, Arlington Cemetary is a tough place to take kids. After the third time of being yelled at for my kid less-than-reverent behavior, I was ready to go! It will be nice to go back when they're a bit older and can appreciate the meaning behind it all.

Afterward we went over to the Smithsonian, which is a cool place to see without going into a single building. On one end is the capital, the other is the Washington Monument, and a whole bunch of statues and museums in between. Glenn, Rachel, Skyler and Damian went to the Museum of Natural History, while the rest of us girls went to the Museum of American History. What a cool museum! Seeing Julia Child's kitchen was the highlight for me, but Jayda loved the ruby slippers from Wizard of Oz.

And of course, we couldn't finish our trip without a trip to Krispy Kreme. A very fun day indeed!