Franklin Institue 2012

We took a great trip to the Franklin Institute this September to see the Dead Sea Scrolls.  I was completely enamored with the display.  There were all new pieces never before seen.  We saw relics from biblical days, pottery and jewels completely intact, and of course scrolls that did not disintegrate over the last 2000 years.  We learned that by their unique location in a cave near the Dead Sea the salt and temperature of the sea is what kept them from completely falling apart.  

We were able to touch a piece of the wailing wall from Israel as well which was moving for me.  

We saw an amazing science show in the entrance right in front of the Ben Franklin statue.

And we got to play in all of the airplanes, trains, and walk through the human heart!!!  We had a wonderful day at the Franklin Institute!

Afi and Amma's Visit

Paul's Dad and his wife Sandra visited the states from July 28 to August 25th and we had a wonderful time.

Shortly after their arrival we hosted the Ashford family and friends at our house for a party.  It was a wonderful event with lots of laughter and foodl

Aunt Mildred (in her mid 90s!!!! and Sandra)

Sandra and the kids had a wonderful time together.  They found fun ways to climb in her lap and snuggle with her.  It was very touching!

Len and Sandra spent many nights with friends in Philly and New Jersey but most of the time we were able to just be together enjoying every day life.  Len and Sandra went with Paul and the kids to the pool one night and Len got to go down the slides with Noah.  Another night Len and Sandra took Paul and I out to a great meal at a local restaurant and we got to catch up. We spent great time with Paul's sister and her family as well.  Overall it was a very easy going, wonderful trip!!!!

Bon Voyage pics!  See you soon!!!!

Biblical Errors

We have gotten into a lovely routine of singing before school in the morning. I am having fun teaching the kids the silly camp songs I grew up with. However, just as adults hear different words than the real ones, my kids are doing the same. Noah is singing "Father Abraham has many nuns" and Maeve is singing "I'm gonna sing when the parrot says sing...I'm gonna sing when the parrot says sing..." Oh dear.

Random Thoughts Fall 2012

I always like to write down the random things the kids say, but I forget!

During prayers --

Maeve asked where God lives and I said everywhere, especially in our hearts and I pointed to her heart.  She giggled and asked if Jesus lived in her belly and I said "Of course!"  She the proceeded to ask if she could have a pair of scissors.  I asked why and she said she would like to cut her belly open to get Jesus out!

Maeve is always having babies and they are all named Bella.

One afternoon Maeve was playing quietly while I took a shower and when I came out I sat down with her.  She told me that her bedroom was church and her baby was in church.  I asked why she wasn't with her baby in church and she said that she left her there so she could go shoe shopping.  She opened her bag and pulled out four pair of my high heels that she had pilfered from my closet.  She said her baby was fine in church while she shopped.  (Does she think this is what we do while she is in nursery?!)

I asked Noah if he had a student teacher this year and he said "Yes.  Her name is Miss N. and she is a foreigner. "  I asked more about what this meant and he said she came from another continent or an island.  He couldn't remember where.  I continued to ask questions to see if maybe he had an exchange student there.  I asked if she spoke English and he said yes, but Mrs. Morris (his teacher) just taught her before school today.  At Parent Teacher night Miss N. introduced herself fine and was a senior at West Chester.  Who knows where that came from!!!!

Colorado 2012

One of my oldest and closest friends, Jenn, became engaged this year and the wedding was slated for August.  She and her new husband are taking a year off this year from life and traveling through SE Asia, New Zealand and South America for their honeymoon! 

We headed out on Wednesday and it was awesome to spend some quality time with Jenn and Philip before anyone else arrived.  Wednesday night Jenn and I stayed up late and just caught up and shared stories in her amazing backyard.  Thursday morning Jenn and Paul, along with another friend from high school Russ went for a morning mountain bike ride.  Paul was in his glory!  I took the kids for a walk in the Crystal River to skip stones.  

We had the best pizza ever for lunch and then we headed to Jenn's house to "harvest" her garden.  The kids and I picked tons of carrots, beets, beans, tomatoes, peppers, and other items.  All of these vegetables would be used at the rehearsal dinner and reception!

Thursday evening we all packed in the car and headed to the Carbondale Rodeo.  The kids were entranced.  I don't recall ever being at a rodeo and I was a little concerned about the animals.  But it was very fun to watch.

On Friday morning we had a brunch for Jenn at a local park.  After brunch Jaime and I tried to get our nails done which meant driving all over creation to find a place because apparently no one gets their nails done in Colorado!!!

While I was out, Paul took the kids on an 8 mile bike ride and Noah rode all by himself! Maeve's job was to "babysit" baby Liam in the trailer.  She was very proud of her responsibilities!

When I got back, Paul headed out for another very long mountain bike ride with a crew of Jenn's Carbondale friends.  He was so happy! When he got home we raced to the rehearsal and then enjoyed the rehearsal dinner at Jenn's house.

Saturday morning we got up and headed to Aspen to see the mountains.  I have been there in the winter before but never in the summer.  It was just as beautiful!  We took the gondola up Aspen mountain and the kids loved it.  Inside our car was a solar powered iPod charger and player so you could put your phone on the dock and listen to music as you rode up the mountain.

When we got to the top the views were breathtaking.  There were lots of things to do for the kids and we had a nice lunch on a terrace overlooking the mountains.

We went for a short hike up the mountain and the kids picked flowers to their hearts content.

This is our Sound of Music picture!!!

After our great day in Aspen we headed to the hotel to get ready for the wedding.  The event was held at a placed called Gianetti Springs Ranch.

Those are the tables and tents at the base of the red mountain.

It was a large grassy area between Mt. Sopris and another big red mountain (I don't know the name!).  To get to the ceremony you had to walk about 1/4 mile past a babbling brook through grassland under the mountains.  White chairs were set up but most people sat on the grass with their parasol or stood around.  Jenn's friends made her a chuppah which is a structure typical in a Jewish wedding.  They took strands of ribbon and wove the canopy and then grabbed some leftover bamboo from the garden to make the stakes.  Jenn's dress had a train which she didnt like, so when her seamstress cut it off they also hung pieces of that from the chuppah.  In Judaism the chuppah is the couples first home... basic and simple and big enough only for them.  It was very beautiful.  (and after the reception, Jenn's friends brought mattresses and blankets and set up a beautiful honeymoon suite under the chuppah complete with music and candles!!!)

As the guests arrived Jenn's band was playing (she is in a garage band called One Hot Mess that plays at local events).  They did all of the music all night long and they were AWESOME.

Philip LOVES orange and so it was fairly prominent (the wedding cake was orange velvet!!!).  It was a very hot and sunny day and so the parasols and umbrellas were perfect.  After everyone found their places, a local Rabbi came and explained the chuppah and the breaking of the glass and gave a blessing.  I did the rest of the ceremony. I knew the theme of the wedding was bicycles and I found some great material about tandem biking.  Little did I know that later they would be riding into the reception on a tandem bicycle.  God works in mysterious and wonderful ways!!!!

Jenn and Philip's dogs followed Philip to the ceremony when he left the house on his bike.  They sat at their feet throughout the ceremony and walked out with them!

When the reception started Jenn hopped on stage and grabbed her bass.  Philip started singing which made everyone laugh.  Jenn didn't play all night, just a song or two.

Noah loved the parasols and the pinwheels.

Philip's vision was a cozy dinner with his friends and as he put it he wanted to eat with all 150 of his friends and so the table was set family style with beef, salmon, chicken, and lamb.  Philip is a caterer and so his staff made sure everything was set up and ready to go.

Jenn is a middle school teacher and so she set up babysitters to be at the reception -- best idea ever.  And she instructed them to get out the best items -- face paint and tattoos as soon as dinner started.  The kids had their own PB and J bar with grapes and goldfish in another area of the park.  They took the kids on go car and wagon rides and had play dough and coloring.  We didn't see the kids most of the night!

We danced and chatted well into the night.  We had such a marvelous time with everyone!!! When Paul took the kids home he noticed that the stars were unbelievable, so he and the kids climbed up on top of the roof of the car and pointed out the stars.  Noah didn't want to tell me the next day because he thought I would be really mad!

It was one of the most beautiful and simple weddings I have been to and truly defined the spirit of the people getting married.

The next morning we got up and headed back to the reception site for brunch with Jenn and Philip before we headed out.  We all helped clean up and gave our last teary hugs goodbye.

We decided to take the long route back to Denver and drove through Rocky Mountain National Park because all of the reviews said that we would see lots of animals.  Not so much!!! We saw two moose and nothing else.  But the mountains were spectacular!

We spent the night in Denver before flying out early Monday morning.  Needless to say we were all exhausted!

Pool Days

She swears they didn't hurt and she could see just fine.

Maeve's 1st Hair Cut

I was holding off on a hair cut for Maeve until it got long, but her hair was so many lengths and thicknesses that it really wasn't growing long!  We finally took her to a little salon called Snip Its to get it cut.  She was pretty hysterical and so Noah went first.  After she got to pick her stylist and chair she was okay.  We just had it evened out and didn't have much cut off.  The good news is that she kept her adorable little curled up ends!