So--knowing there is only one year of school left for Phillip, it automatically turns our sights to "what next" or in other words translated to, "we need a job", "what will that job be?" or for me the particularly heavy question: "where will that job be?"
Well, folks...right now the forecast is looking far, far, away.
I've been working on processing this lately and it just so happens I popped over to the famous Seriously So Blessed** blog for the first time in awhile and read this. So funny to me. Good to know I'm not the only one in this situation ;)
**In case you haven't heard of this blog, go here.
Oh and to note, we made it safely back to Provo. In an effort to unpack and let Ryder play with every single toy he has missed over the summer, our house looks like a bomb exploded. This needs my attention first, but I plan to blog more soon.
GOOD-BYE, NEW YORK
Our time here in the city is coming to an end. I have a lot of thoughts and memories to take with me from our summer spent in NYC. Some good--some not so good. Although, a large part of me wants to humorously document all of those not-so-good experiences, it's always better to end on a positive note. So here is to the good times and all of the things I will miss about this city and our experience here...
Friends: I'm so grateful for good friends! Had it not been for many other amazing mothers and their kind attitudes, funny senses of humor, great planning skills and adventuresome spirits, there is a good possibility the three of us may have stayed holed up in are teensy apartment everyday. The many park days, outings downtown, babysitting swaps not only made living in NYC with small children doable, but fun. There is something about getting caught in a downpour with your children, with 10 blocks to go, getting hit with a wall of water on a curb (ya know-like on the movies, when a car drives through a big puddle), and getting trapped in an elevator, OK because your with a great group of women who are all in the same boat, that you can laugh it off with. And yes, this all happened in the same half-hour. So grateful for them and they're cute kids who provide, oh yes, countless hours of entertainment and fun for Ryder and Penny.
Parks: In an effort to make NYC kid-friendly, they do have A LOT of amazing parks. from a one with a 20-ft granite slide to one on top of the Museum of Natural History, we were always going to a new, cool park and there were still a lot we didn't get to. However, I have no idea what you would do with your kids here in the winter:)
Shake Shack: Dear Shake Shack, thank you for your deliciously greasy shack burger on your soft buns and root beer on tap. Tasty indeed. Check out the new poster boys for the new Shake Shack ads. Weren't they so cooperative with me to all be drinking their shakes at the same time :)
NYC Iconic Locations: When I first got here, I couldn't quit thinking of how many of these places I'd seen in one movie or another. So it's really fun to always be walking by things, even if by chance or accident and seeing things that are constantly being referenced. For example, yesterday, I got a little lost and ended up in Bryant Park, and for the millionth time thought, "Oh so that's where this is." We also live about two blocks ways from this restaurant below. Look familiar? We see people taking pictures in front of it all the time and finally got one of our own last weekend.
Walking: There is something about being able to walk everywhere to run your errands that makes you feel cool. "Honey, I'm just going to run out and get us a freshly tossed salad at our European-styled-market, with two isles devoted solely to cheese. See you in a minute!"
NYC Styled Pizza: Yummy. I didn't really find one pizza place better than the next, but you can probably guess what I liked about this one! Now that's my kind of serving!
My Babes: My biggest beef with NYC is that it's not more kid friendly (I'm mean seriously, did children not exist when they built the subways?) But I can't imagine having this experience without these two cute babies. They make make me excited to get up in the morning and have been such troopers adjusting to this new environment.
Phil: The reason we're here! And the most important thing! I couldn't be more grateful for this man and the time he's put into his internship here and the experience he's had with such a great company. I'm so proud of him and the opportunity this has been for him and us.
And so I say, NY, farewell, adieu to you, and you and youa.
I'll be spending the next couple of days strategically packing our luggage to accomodate our newly acquired stuff and then it's off to Seattle to welcome home Phil's little sister from her mission (yay!) and then back to Happy Valley for one more year of school.
Until then~
Friends: I'm so grateful for good friends! Had it not been for many other amazing mothers and their kind attitudes, funny senses of humor, great planning skills and adventuresome spirits, there is a good possibility the three of us may have stayed holed up in are teensy apartment everyday. The many park days, outings downtown, babysitting swaps not only made living in NYC with small children doable, but fun. There is something about getting caught in a downpour with your children, with 10 blocks to go, getting hit with a wall of water on a curb (ya know-like on the movies, when a car drives through a big puddle), and getting trapped in an elevator, OK because your with a great group of women who are all in the same boat, that you can laugh it off with. And yes, this all happened in the same half-hour. So grateful for them and they're cute kids who provide, oh yes, countless hours of entertainment and fun for Ryder and Penny.
Amber, AKA HeWoman. This must be noted. since I was carrying Penny, Amber volunteered to go get our strollers in the most precarious situation imaginable (tangled amongst other strollers in a huge crowd of people) while I kept an eye on the boys. The next time I see her she is walking out of the Shake Shack carrying not one, but TWO strollers, one of which was a double. HELLO! Amazing? I think so. Thank you Amber for posing for this shot at my request, when I can imagine the only thing you really wanted me to do was to take my own stroller :)
Parks: In an effort to make NYC kid-friendly, they do have A LOT of amazing parks. from a one with a 20-ft granite slide to one on top of the Museum of Natural History, we were always going to a new, cool park and there were still a lot we didn't get to. However, I have no idea what you would do with your kids here in the winter:)
not bruised--just really, really dirty
Penny eating sand...
...and more sand
...and a little more sand.
Shake Shack: Dear Shake Shack, thank you for your deliciously greasy shack burger on your soft buns and root beer on tap. Tasty indeed. Check out the new poster boys for the new Shake Shack ads. Weren't they so cooperative with me to all be drinking their shakes at the same time :)
NYC Iconic Locations: When I first got here, I couldn't quit thinking of how many of these places I'd seen in one movie or another. So it's really fun to always be walking by things, even if by chance or accident and seeing things that are constantly being referenced. For example, yesterday, I got a little lost and ended up in Bryant Park, and for the millionth time thought, "Oh so that's where this is." We also live about two blocks ways from this restaurant below. Look familiar? We see people taking pictures in front of it all the time and finally got one of our own last weekend.
Walking: There is something about being able to walk everywhere to run your errands that makes you feel cool. "Honey, I'm just going to run out and get us a freshly tossed salad at our European-styled-market, with two isles devoted solely to cheese. See you in a minute!"
NYC Styled Pizza: Yummy. I didn't really find one pizza place better than the next, but you can probably guess what I liked about this one! Now that's my kind of serving!
My Babes: My biggest beef with NYC is that it's not more kid friendly (I'm mean seriously, did children not exist when they built the subways?) But I can't imagine having this experience without these two cute babies. They make make me excited to get up in the morning and have been such troopers adjusting to this new environment.
Phil: The reason we're here! And the most important thing! I couldn't be more grateful for this man and the time he's put into his internship here and the experience he's had with such a great company. I'm so proud of him and the opportunity this has been for him and us.
And so I say, NY, farewell, adieu to you, and you and youa.
I'll be spending the next couple of days strategically packing our luggage to accomodate our newly acquired stuff and then it's off to Seattle to welcome home Phil's little sister from her mission (yay!) and then back to Happy Valley for one more year of school.
Until then~
UPSETTING
-I don't want to offend anybody
-But my views shouldn't offend anybody
-But how I deliver them might
-Who might ever find any sort of value in what I write on this blog
-My children
-What would Jesus do
-His beliefs were never a secret, neither was his love for every one.
-I want my children to know that I don't keep what I believe a secret, be it through a forum as small as this blog, because I was scared of being ridiculed or unpopular.
So I say with all the love I can in a straightforward manner: I am sad that Proposition 8 was overturned. I believe marriage to be between a man and a woman and I feel heartbroken to be living in a world that doesn't consider morals as a basis for making decisions anymore.
THE REST OF JULY II: THE HILL CUMORAH PAGEANT
The fam in front of The Sacred Grove
In mid-July Phil's family came out for a visit and to see the city and road trip it up to Palmyra for a little Hill Cumorah Pageant. After spending a couple days in the city we rented two cars and drove the six (which may or may not have taken us ten) hours up to Palmyra or more specifically Canandaigua, NY.
Side Note: Upstate New York=BEAUTIFUL. If I had been one of those immigrants who came across the ocean and landed in the NYC, I would have said, forget this crowded island! I'm going a few more miles north to make a living among the lush greens and charm. I'm just so surprised with all the beautiful room to roam in this state, everyone insisted on staying put...well, not everyone, but you get my point.
After finally arriving at our hotel, (P.S. Penny thinks she is a city girl now and does not take well to a car seat any more :( :( ) well, we went to bed. Because it was late. In the morning, however, we got up and went out to breakfast and made our way to Palmyra to visit the house Joseph Smith grew up in and to see the Sacred Grove. I LOVED IT! It was beautiful. I loved the spirit there. I loved the sister missionaries there. I even loved how they decorated and restored the interiors of the log home and Lucy Mack Smith's home. I'm really glad I got the opportunity to see these sites and it was just a huge reconfirmation of my testimony of Joseph Smith and all that I know to be true.
Phil and Ryder in front of the log house
Phil's parents in the boys' bedroom
Me standing near the fire place where the golden plates were hid
Phil and Ryder running to toward The Sacred Grove
Penny and I taking a break on a bench in The Sacred Grove. (I meant to be a little serious--but not that serious.)
Ryder using the map and navigating our way through the grove.
Two thumbs up!
The Palmyra Temple
We went back to the hotel for a little nap and pool time and then headed to the pageant! There is something about gathering with a large number of members of our church that puts joy in my heart. The pageant was really fun and the set was amazing. Although it was a quick trip with lots of driving, I'm really glad we did it.
Ryder with Samuel the Lamanite. Now--is he more excited about his celebrity encounter? Or that he gets a 7up all to himself? We shall never know.
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