Grandma and Grandpa Part 2: On the Road

A big part of Grandma and Grandpa's visit was our church history trip, visiting nearby sites, including Carthage Jail, Nauvoo, Adam-ondi-aman, Far West, and Independence. Here are some highlights:

Carthage Jail:

During our time in Nauvoo, we stayed in a quaint little log cabin on the plains:

Isn't the Nauvoo temple beautiful? These pictures remind me of the phrase "Our shadow by day and our pillar by night." We walked the Trail of Hope, the path the pioneers walked in 1846 as they were forced to abandon Nauvoo. Of the experience, Newel Knight wrote: " . . . Here we all halted and took a farewell view of our delightful city . . . We also beheld the magnificent Temple rearing its lofty tower towards the heavens . . . My heart did swell within me."

Also in that exodus, Zina Huntington Jacobs Young gave birth to a baby, and she recounted: "I was delivered of a fine son. Occasionally the wagon had to be stopped that I might take breath. Thus I journeyed on. But I did not mind the hardship of my situation, for my life and been preserved, and my babe was so beautiful." Talk about looking for the flower among the thorns! I cannot believe the strength and power of the pioneers' spirits. 

 The mischievousness of James:

First of all, this little guy came hard-wired with a homing device for all things chords. Last summer in Dinosaur, Utah, he located not one, not two, but three vacuums: one in the dinosaur quarry, one in the hotel, and a third in the middle of a desert camp ground bathroom in Goblin Valley! In Capitol Reef park, he found the hose at our campground. And in Nauvoo, he did it yet again!

(right next to the prophet Joseph Smith's house!)

Next on this little boy's list was the play Rendezvous in Old Nauvoo. He actually sat really well through the entire play, which started after his bedtime. There was one character who was a really annoying woman, and her husband --who was fed up with her--allowed someone to take her in for examination on the premise that she was crazy. Just after she was carted off stage with loud protestations, James shouted for all to hear: "She go in BIG PIME OUT!!"

This next photo is perhaps inappropriate. I apologize, but Andrew just thinks it's so darn funny. James was trying to give the pioneers some oxygen ;)

Waiting for the wagon ride around town: 

I really wanted to get a brick from the brickyard, but I got so much more. The story the missionary told of the refining process required to produce such a brick was really beautiful to me. He spoke of the intense heat the bricks had to undergo, and pointed out that small rocks and other impurities cannot withstand the heat, so they shoot out of the clay while in the furnace. He likened it to our lives and how we must undergo a refining process, and the heat and trials we experience are required to remove our impurities and imperfections. It was a beautiful way to end my visit to Nauvoo.

In the Smith family graveyard, where the prophet, his brother, and many other are buried. Such a beautiful location:

Adam-ondi-aham took me by surprise, and was more of an experience than I had anticipated. The fall colors also made it a great shot for taking photos: 

Far West temple site: 

James was very helpful with our luggage in the KC hotel:

 Temple site in Independence:

 Visitor's Center in Independence: 

 (Isn't she darling?)

We were lucky that this WW2 memorial in Kansas City was open, just after the government shutdown came to an end!

We all enjoyed this view from the top, er. . . well, some of us enjoyed it, but we all went! :) 

We had to squeeze in one more temple site. Here's Kansas City temple:

SO fun with Grandma and Grandpa! It was wonderful to have all the time in the car to chat, and for the kids to have the constant attention of their adoring grandparents!

Grandma and Grandpa Part 1

Andrew's parents were our very first visitors to our new home, and we were SO excited to have them. I seriously thought about their coming every day leading up to it for weeks and weeks. They were the best house guests, bringing our children's happiness level to complete bliss. It was so great, too, to have Andrew on vacation. It's amazing how much easier meals/bedtime can be with 4 adults in the house!

Welcoming Grandma & Grandpa at the airport: 

 

While they were here, we celebrated James's 2nd birthday. This little guy LOVES to "dip it" so for his birthday dinner/Grandma and Grandpa's welcome meal, we had veggies, apple slices, and mini hot dogs with ranch, nutella, and ketchup. :) 

Andrew gave us all a tour of the hospital. So great to see where he spends so much of his time. We are all so proud of you, and thankful for how hard you work!

 Sunday evening, we walked the temple grounds:

A big part of our time with Grandma and Grandpa was spent on the road as we toured church history sites.

 Reading with Grandpa in the car:

 

Coming up next: On the road to Carthage, Nauvoo, Adam-ondi-ahman, Far West, Independence, and Kansas City.

Halloween

Playing catch up here . . .

We loved our first Halloween in St. Louis, even though there was a torrential downpour the moment we stepped out for trick-or-treating! (Luckily, it let up quickly, though my feet were soaked from the get go.) Our friends the Mechams joined us for chili, trick-or-treating, and a movie. We had a great time. Andrew even talked me into watching a scary movie . . . scary according to Megan's standards. The movie was Contagion (and I really enjoyed it!). But, I digress. The real purpose of this post is to see the kids in costume, right? Without further ado:

 The "roar!" from this little boy was about the cutest thing for Halloween!

 Not sure I can handle her in makeup:

 Daddy came to the rescue with a car when Emma's wet feet could carry her grace no farther:

 The spoils:

Stay tuned . . . up next, Grandma and Grandpa come to visit!

Kids Say the Darndest Things

After taking raw meat from James while he was trying to carry it into his room from the fridge, while holding the door shut on James crying, stomping and pounding refusing to go to sleep, 
Emma: "Daddy, I know being a mommy or a daddy can be hard. Taking care of kids can be hard, and you guys do it a lot! It would be much easier with just a mommy and a daddy." 
Andrew: "Yes, but we love kids, we love taking care of kids."  (Hard to convince her given the circumstances :) )
Emma: "Well, there won't be kids around for very long! I'm turning 5 next year and I won't be a kid anymore."

Emma: "I think I know what I'm getting for Christmas: a dog, a computer, or an iPhone." :) 
Shoot for the stars. :) What she's getting: a book.

James, after trying to guess a string of letters and getting them all wrong: 
"James, what's this?" 
"Letter!" With a big smile. :)

Emma, after Megan made numerous unsuccessful attempts to get James to correctly identify letters on a white board: "All right mom, I'll take it from here." Emma took the white board, pointed to a letter, and said "What's this, James?" James: "A 'B'!" Correct. :( Sister's touch I guess.

Toddler Art at the Library

James is loving all the one-on-one Mommy time while Emma is at preschool. She will look at something on the fridge in a bit of disbelief: "Who did that?"
James is so proud of what he's doing; so grateful for this cute little guy.

Would You??!!!

And now for a segment I'm calling, "Would You??!!!" where I ask real questions searching for honest responses.

Would you leave a note if you bumped into someone's car and left a tiny scratch? Would it depend on how many other scratches the car already had? Would you base your decision on the size of the scratch or the price of a repair? Would you hesitate to leave a note if you thought the car owner would ask you to pay for the repair and you didn't think you could afford it or if you figured it would be a bigger hit to your pocket book than theirs? Would you feel the impact of whatever caused this to your car if you were in it at the time of collision? (See photo) Would you notice such a mark on your own car immediately or would you by chance not notice it for a few days? Would you call the aeration company that used a large machine to aerate your lawn to within a foot of where this is on the car and ask them to check with the employee (who seemed like an upstanding fellow) to see if there is any chance he might have done this and forgotten to notice or mention it to you when he told you the job was complete? Would you suspect a high schooler, or more likely, a preschooler's parent responsible for this in the preschool drop off zone at the local high school? Would you pay what it took to repair it, perhaps $500-$600 as guessed by the dealer to fix it to avoid people viewing your car as a clunker, or you as a careless driver who doesn't mind the dings and scratches that come to what may seem to some a cheaper car, but what is to you luxury and the biggest you could dream of six years out of college with another five to go before you could possibly think otherwise????!!!!!!

Back to School

Emma started up preschool just after Labor Day, and she's loving it! When we first talked to her about it, and informed her that it was going to be a lot larger than the preschool she attended last year, she had a few reservations. However, the day before school started, Emma, James, and I went to an open house where we had a look around, and helped ourselves to some refreshments (lots of donut holes, thank you, James!). After that, she was ready to go!

The official first day, as I dropped her off to begin the school year, she gave me a big hug, said, "I love you, Mommy!" and ran in without turning back. I was a little sad that she didn't look back, but I'm grateful she had a wonderful day. James was excited, too . . . 

until he realized he didn't make the cut:

Poor kid, cried his heart out: "James go preschool, too!!!" Weeks later, he's still saying that every time we drop her off. And, while we're out and about, he'll ask, "Where Emma go?" or "Go find Emma." It's really sweet. 

Just to illustrate how their love runs deep: This week, while Andrew and Emma were talking, they somehow came upon the topic of how Andrew and I decided to marry. Emma had lots of questions and Andrew explained to her that when she's older, she can find someone who she has a lot in common with, someone who she wants to spend her life with, someone she loves. Emma declared, "I already know who I want to marry, Daddy. James! I want to be with him forever!"