Organization!

Apparently we are supposed to cut these grasses in the fall after they turn golden, and now we already have green growth trying to make its way up and out.  Jon got some awesome new clippers that made short work of the task...they worked SO much better than the weed whacker did last year!  Maybe this fall we will remember to cut them at the appropriate time--at least before the new growth comes in!

Our garage has long been an issue...stuff everywhere, no organization, and nowhere to put anything even if I DID organize.  So today Grandpa G came over to help out and we went to Home Depot and bought several sets of heavy duty shelves, as well as some chairs for our outdoor table.  We spent the rest of the day cleaning and organizing in the garage, trying to get everything off the floor and shelved.

I think we did a pretty dang good job!

Now only to keep things off the floor going forward!

Thanksgiving Point

Grandpa G is in town, and we took him and Aunt Tara down to Thanksgiving Point to see the tulips.

We are at the tail end of the tulip festival, so many varieties had already come and gone.  I realized today that I missed the magnolia blooms at the beginning of this month while we were in Ireland.  There are two of the kind of magnolia I like that I see every day when I take Leiden to school.  One actually on the school grounds, and the other across the street in someone's yard.  Gorgeous pinky purple petals on the flowers.  I'm sad I missed them!

These tulips make up for it, though!

I suppose I shouldn't be surprised with this being my 4th pregnancy and 8 years older than last time, but I already don't fit into my regular clothes very well!

It seems a bit early for baby bump pictures, but here we are!

For as long as we have lived back here in SLC, we have come down here and taken these pictures in this very spot, on that very rock!

Grandpa G loved all the plants and flowers, and we enjoyed spending the evening with him and Tara!

Crazy Hair Day

The girls had crazy hair day at the elementary today.  They always want color, and the spray colors are just terrible.  So I had the idea to use their washable paints to paint their hair.  It worked like a charm, and I knew it would wash out easily!  Mac chose different styles for the front, colored differently.

Mimi wanted a cupcake for her style.  I've seen them on Pinterest before, but had never tried.  Luckily Mimi is very easy going and easily pleased, because this was the best I could come up with!  I love her cheerful gratitude!

Jon is sick AGAIN.  We figure he contracted something on the plane or somewhere else, and he swabbed positive for RSV.  Ugh!!  He feels terrible again, so hopefully we can get him well quickly and then stay that way!

Leiden's musical performance is coming up next month, and it was quite suddenly brought to my attention that she needed to have her costume ready to be checked off in a couple days.  Cue me frantically sewing up what she needed, and searching far and wide in clothing stores to find a shirt that fit the requirements!  I'm glad peasant tops are currently in style!  She looks pretty cute, and her costume passed the check off, so she's ready to go.

Inaugural Mowing

We are back home, and it's time to mow the lawn already!  

Yesterday was travel home from DC day, and it was a bit rough.  We stopped for lunch at Cheesecake Factory before we left, and while there, I suddenly felt very sick.  I think it was a combination of the Tamiflu nausea and being 9 weeks pregnant.  It was touch and go for a bit, and I worried about getting on a plane, but it finally passed and we were able to get home safely and without incident.  Now about that lawn...

Washington DC Day 5

   4/21/18:  Our last full day in DC!  We went to the Natural History Museum, which is enormous, and spent some time there.  We thought this animal was crazy funny with it's cat like body and head and HUGE ears.

We got to see what we would have looked like as Neanderthals...this was very amusing.

They have a huge whale hanging from the ceiling, which we were trying to take our selfie with.

After the Natural History museum we did all the other tourist things...the Lincoln Memorial, the Mall, the Jefferson Memorial, and just generally enjoyed each other’s company.    

 

We walked all along the river to the Jefferson Memorial, through all the other memorials.  Still just a few trees in bloom. 

We head home tomorrow, and I'll be glad to be home for the duration after all this travel!

Washington DC Day 4

 It would seem that I have contracted Jon’s influenza!  I woke this morning not feeling well at all, and worried because I’m not at home, and what if it gets worse?  One of the benefits of the Tamiflu, however, is that it mitigates the infection if you do get it.  So hopefully this will be short lived and there won’t be any complications! 

    This of course made it even more difficult to want to get up and wander around today, but Jon’s conference was over at midday, so we have sight seeing time.  I rested until he came back from the conference, then we took the subway in.  That was fun because I could show Jon how it worked,

 being such an expert myself!  

We went first to the Botanic Gardens, where we admired all the plants.  We found some pitcher plants, and the giant plants I’m standing by smelled like death.  Both beautiful and strange.

We worked our way down the Mall after that, first stopping for some shaved ice that ended up being ridiculously expensive.  The prices weren’t listed at the truck, which I’ve never liked, but cotton candy shaved ice was irresistible!  Next stop was the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum.  It’s absolutely fascinating to see how far we’ve come, and to see the evidence of man’s creativity and ambition. 

  

Lastly we headed to Arlington, which Jon hasn’t been to, either, and we were able to witness another changing of the guard.  

Washington DC Day 3

   Today was another day on my own.  And another slow start!  I suppose part of the point of a vacation is resting, so I’m justifying it that way!

   Today I headed to Arlington, which I’ve never been to.  I got there with just enough time to make it to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier for the changing of the guard.  It was really fantastic to watch.  I enjoy celebrating our military, and it’s touching to see the care taken for these fallen men.

   The soldiers standing sentinel are members of the Old Guard, one of the most elite groups of soldiers in the Army.  It’s an extremely exclusive group whose members take great pride in their charge.

Arlington is home to many state funerals, and they have this enormous outdoor amphitheater where the funerals take place.  The inside was blocked off, but it was pretty impressive.

We are here in DC (regrettably!)  just a bit past cherry blossom season, by honestly only about a week, and I didn’t see any yesterday, but there at Arlington, there were still pink blooms.  I don’t even know if they were cherry, but they were beautiful!

So many fallen!

Washington DC Day 2

   Slow start this morning.  The Tamiflu unfortunately makes my stomach pretty upset, and add that to

 whatever pregnancy is doing, and I’m awfully tired.  It took me a while to get the motivation to get up and go.  I also have the unfortunate tendency to procrastinate things I’m nervous about, instead of just attacking them head on!  

    I figured out how to obtain and use the subway cards, and finally headed out.  DC isn’t the safest of places in parts, so I was hopeful I wasn’t in any of the unsafe parts!  But I did it!  I rode the subway by myself, and got out at the correct stops.  My parents were particularly worried about me, so I took this picture while on the subway to send to them.

I walked all around the main attractions this afternoon, and took many selfies.  The Capitol, the Mall, Washington Monument (which you can’t go up into anymore!), the Lincoln Memorial, and the White House.  I will say, though, that I don't know how people got around before smart phones with Google Maps!  I was very clearly a tourist as I had to keep referring to it to find my way!

  

The day was beautiful and sunny, but chilly enough my jacket stayed on almost the whole time.  I used my sunglasses, but didn't for one second think about the sun on my skin.  

This was a mistake, as I found later that I was pretty comprehensively sunburned.  I HATE sunburns.

My favorite is the Lincoln Memorial.  I have always loved President Lincoln.  He always looks so endearing to me, with his enormous height and thin frame, and the work that he did as president changed the course of history in our country.

All in all, it was a very successful day, and this evening after I made my way back to our hotel on the subway, Jon and I walked to a Middle Eastern restaurant and grabbed dinner while I nursed my day’s sunburn and told Jon about my adventures.