I Want to Wake Up in a City That Doesn't Sleep!

I recently returned from visiting New York City! My nephew is working as an intern on The Late Show with David Letterman and I went with my sister and nieces to visit him and The Big Apple. The last time I visited New York was in college...This time, it was fun having our own tour guide (my nephew). He really knows the city and the best eateries!

My nephew and I waiting outside Shubert Theatre.

We saw Blithe Spirit with Angela Lansbury and Rupert Everett.

City skyline from Brooklyn Bridge.

Highlight of this day --Grimaldi's Pizzeria!

We visited Rector Chapel near Ground Zero. It has been turned into a beautiful memorial site for victims of 9/11. This is a mound of Emergency Response System patches from those who helped from around the country. This historic chapel housed exhausted firefighters on its pews.






Ground Zero

Pam and I navigated our way to the LDS Manhattan Temple.













Ribbon and button heaven! M & J Trimmings


Dylan's Candy Bar on 3rd Avenue. Real candy on the floor boards. My favorite at Dylan's are the chocolate covered cookie dough balls.

My nephew and niece outside FAO Schwartz. Taking a break from shopping.

Central Park ~ Alice in Wonderland sculpture.

We went to The Martha Stewart Show. They chose my question for the "Ask Martha" segment of the show. I asked, "In a high elevation I find that sometimes my cookies dry out. Should I change the measurement of the ingredients or change the oven temperature?" She responded that I should change the amount of the levening ingredients. It was fun to see her and her beautiful set.

Our hotel had beautiful spring cherry blossoms in the lobby.

They gave me hope that spring might be around the corner..?

Waiting for our Broadway show ~Blithe Spirit. This was also the night that they dimmed the lights on Broadway in memory of Natasha Richardson.

Pam and I braved a blizzard to go to Rockefeller Center to see The Today Show. Meredith Vierra waved to us through the window.

Times Square













Ed Sullivan Theatre





















We visited Rupert at Hello Deli.
















I left my 5 boys at home under the wonderful care of Jeff and many others who made it possible for me to go. I arrived at JFK during the St. Patrick's Day Parade and made my way through a sea of wanna-be-leprechauns to finally arrive at our hotel. My sister and nieces arrived later that evening. Our adventure had begun! During the week we: shopped, ate, visited ground zero, ate the best Mac 'n Cheese at SMAC, went to the Martha Stewart show, saw a Broadway play, ate Magnolia's cupcakes, shopped, walked through Central Park, visited The Metropolitan Museum of Art, learned all of the Subway lines, ate the best pizza at a restaurant under the Brooklyn Bridge, saw Lady Liberty, the Empire State Building, the Manhattan LDS temple, saw Meredith Vierra at The Rockefeller Center, bought a purse on Canal Street, visited Dylan's Candy Bar and walked from the top to the bottom of Manhattan and saw everything in between.


I missed all of my boys while I was away. When I returned home my family had a new appreciation of the word "Mommy".

California Here We Come!

We just returned from "the happiest place on earth" and

escaped the winter weather for sunny southern California.

The boys loved our time at Crystal Cove Beach, near Laguna Beach. The highlight was seeing dolphins swimming and jumping just out from where we were standing.

Our new favorite ride is Toy Story Mania at California Adventure. Gabe loved seeing Mickey's house and riding on Pirates, Nemo, and the Haunted Mansion. Prior to our trip, Gavin measured everyone to see what rides they could go on. He was so excited to go on The Tower of Terror, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Splash Mountain. He asked me, the 5 foot tall mother, if she was tall enough to go on all of the rides.

Because the lines were short~Ian, Isaac and I were able to go on Splash Mountain 4 times in a row without having to get off the ride!

Our dad really is Mr. Incredible!

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We returned home to Utah just in time for one of our spring snow storms.

At least our memories of the trip can keep us warm!

Once There Were Some Snowmen...

Snow fun at Grandpa's Cabin





Name Masterpiece.

Who live's in a Pineapple Under the Sea?

Snowboarding Adventure!

Ike's famous bathtub cake for the Blue and Gold Banquet.

Gavin meeting his favorite author, Brandon Mull who wrote Fablehaven.

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February included a lot of snow activities for the boys. Jeff, my brother and my dad took the kids to grandpa's cabin "The Hearthstone". They had fun snowmobiling and spending time with their cousins.

Gavin went to Snowbird to snowboard for the first time. Once he got the snowboard on and got his balance he took off like he'd done it a million times before. Jeff couldn't catch him! Gavin didn't want Jeff's help or his big brother Isaac's help and he requested that his dad snowboard on the other side of the hill. Jeff's got another snowboarding buddy! Jeff also took the scouts snow caving this month. Unfortunately, there wasn't much snow to construct the perfect snow cave.

Valentine's Week was filled with school activities. Gavin made a Spongebob Square Pants valentine box and I was able to help with the valentine parties in all of the boys classes. Ian is on the student council and they planned their first Jr. High dance. Everyone had a fun time and they stayed in a large group in the center of the gym to dance most of the night! The boys surprised me with flowers on Valentine's Day and Jeff and I were able to spend a quiet evening out.

Gabe the Great...Our 4 Year Old Magician

Performing his magic for his 4 year old friends.

Magic rabbit in the hat cake.

Birthday dinner. His favorite ~ Mac'n Cheese at The Olive Garden.

Gabe turned four on the 6th of January. We had a month long celebration with family and friends. His favorite gifts were Playmobil sets, a Batman Cave and magician supplies including a cape, hat and magic wand. He has perfected his magical performance and will mesmerize any guest entering our home. My favorite quote from him is, "Mom, remember when I was just a little kid."