Travelogue: Gettysburg

After DC we headed to Gettysburg. Many years ago I read Killer Angels which brought this battle to life for me. I had never been interested in stories of war but I absolutely fell in love with Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain and his 20th Maine regiment. "Fix bayonets" became my personal motto and I began to learn more about the characters that played a role in the Civil War. On a trip to DC I naively thought I'd drop by and quickly visit the site on my way back to Boston. Little did I know how huge it is and how much there is to see. I picked up a cd-guided tour book and headed home vowing to make it back to actually follow the tour. Well, several years later I made it back! I urged Brent to read the book and we put the movie on our Netflix queue so we'd be ready.

This morning Brent and I drove around the site of this famous conflict. We saw Little Round Top, Devil's Den, The Wheatfield (not a misspelling, it's a proper name), the High Water Mark and the gated clump of trees that was to be the focal point for the Confederate Army, Cemetery Ridge and Culp's Hill. Even after 3 hours Brent and I wanted to take more in but we had to get home and there's only so long you can strap your children in a car. Our camera battery was completely dead and we hardly left the car so we didn't get any pictures. On the way home we did have a momentous event which warranted a picture with my bb however:

I can't wait to see where our next 100,000 miles will lead us! For the time being though, it feels SO good to be home!!!

Travelogue: Washington DC

For Memorial Day weekend we decided to take a trip to Washington DC because Brent had never been. I've gone a handful of times and chipped away at the mountain of things to see and do but I'm always happy to go back for more. With two little girls it took the better part of a day to get there although we took a detour to Irving's in NJ for some melt-in-your-mouth pastrami. YUM! Totally worth the stop.

I remember as a little girl when we'd travel it was mostly to see relatives. We didn't vacation very much so staying in a hotel was rather rare but I remember thinking it was the coolest thing ever. My father had done his fair share of business travel and he was always unimpressed with the room and the hotel in general. I couldn't wait to explore. This basically consisted of locating the pool and filling the ice bucket which doesn't sound like much but when you don't stay in hotels often, it was an adventure! Well, now I'm the unimpressed parent and Liesel is the eager child. When we finally reached our room she ran around everywhere with her little golden curls bouncing. She picked up the phone and said, "I call grandpa? Yeah!" as if she just couldn't wait to tell him we'd made it to DC. She searched every corner of that room as if it was an Easter egg hunt. She love, love, LOVED the pool and even more so, the hot tub. Just watching her reminded me of when I was a little girl. Perhaps Brent and I have passed on our wanderlust to her?

Saturday we took the Metro to the National Mall and explored the Museum of American History where we saw ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz and Apolo Ohno's skates. The First Lady's exhibit was insane but I managed to see Michelle Obama's inauguration ball gown and her Jimmy Choos. Her feet are huge! Just sayin'. We went to the Air and Space Museum but only made it through the first floor of exhibits. Then we hiked up to the Capitol for our scheduled tour. Once we got to the top we were ushered to the side. Apparently an "unintended package" was left behind so they had to call in security and evacuate the place. By the time they called the all clear they decided to cancel all tours. We strolled by the Library of Congress and headed to the National Archives but the wait was 45 minutes. Completely soaked in sweat, we headed back to the hotel to relax for the evening.

Sunday we took the car into town. We hit the National Archives first hoping to miss the crowds. For some strange reason, they have decided making people line up to see the documents doesn't work. Once it was our turn in the rotunda, we were told to "fan out" to see the Declaration of Independence, Constitution and Bill of Rights among other things. I was able to see a peek of all of those but only a peek because of the inanely unaware people who camped out right in front of them and refused to move. Why we would resort to the rule of will over the rule of law in the heart of our nation's capitol is beyond me. Personally I think they should have a conveyor belt that moves you along and if you want to see more of the documents then you can jolly well get in line again. Yeah, we're still frustrated with that.

The girls were sleeping so I stayed in the car with them while Brent went to Arlington National Cemetery to visit the grave of the unknown soldiers and then to the Jefferson Monument. They had woken up in time for us all to go to the Lincoln Monument and Vietnam Memorial. It just so happens a Harley-Davidson bike rally was tying up a heck of a lot of traffic. They apparently do a rally every year since so many of them are veterans. There were some very touching things left at the Vietnam Memorial by riders which was very cool to see. From there we headed out of town. Although a good visit, both Brent and I can't wait to go back and see more.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

Brent snagged some Red Sox tickets from a coworker so we took Ireland to her first game. All day it had been as hot as a steam engine in the middle of the desert so I figured we'd be okay in cooler wear. WRONG! I ended up running to the souvenir shop to get a sweatshirt for Ireland. After we put it on her she immediately fell asleep on my shoulder. The guys behind us were smitten with her which was funny because they looked like bouncers. They kept tickling her cheeks and offering to help out when she fussed. It was really cute.

Unfortunately, the BoSox lost. Brent is starting to think he's a curse to the team because every game he's attended they've lost. Even with the cooler weather I'm glad we could introduce Ireland to Fenway. I'm happy I could lull her fussiness away by singing Sweet Caroline in the middle of the 8th inning. I'm also grateful I had an excuse to pick up one more Red Sox clothing item because you just can't have enough of those!

Reverse Psychology

Being a SAHM with an active toddler and infant is challenging; no two ways about it. Nonetheless I'm grateful to be around for moments like this rather than hearing about it from a daycare teacher or getting a note: "Liesel learned to share today." Actually being there is just priceless! I love how Liesel switches from territorial to compassionate so quickly. A lesson for all of us to learn...

Coming of Age

They say kids grow up so fast. We've honestly tried to internalize that statement and enjoy our girls in the moment but even so, time somehow slips away. Recently it's become clear Liesel has developed a liking for the boys:

No, no, I mean a REAL liking for the boys:

She's also become very fashion conscious... something I think she's hoping to pass along to her little sister:

Where did my little baby Liesel go?

Beachy Keen

When it's 78, sunny, and your toddler has a brand-new swimsuit she hasn't had a chance to wear, there's only one place to be. I slathered both girls in SPF 50 and headed out for some sand and surf today. Not only was the weather fantastic, but school is still in so it wasn't crowded and there wasn't any traffic to contend with. Here in Massachusetts they say you are either a north shore person or south shore (which includes the Cape). I hate to admit in my 8 years living here I have yet to try the south shore... I'm north shore all the way. My sister called just before we prepared to leave so I opted for Crane's Beach near Cape Ann.

Liesel is absolutely made for the beach because she worked those little legs like a Riverdance tapper. She would run around then come back to the towel to tell me, "I'll be right back! I'll be right back!" (see video). Sometimes she'd take her shovel with her so she could stop every few feet, dig in the sand a bit and then run a few feet more to do the same thing. I thought she'd get bored after a bit but we could have stayed there for hours longer than we did. Ireland just chilled the entire time, enjoying the warmth without having to be wrapped up. After a while I thought I'd introduce Liesel to the waves of the ocean so I grabbed Ireland and went down to the shore. When the cool water washed over Liesel's little feet she was so stunned she fell over. Then the water washed over her legs which broke her out of her stupor and she screamed like the little girl she is. She stayed far, far away from the water after that.

aaand CUT!

Today is rainy and miserable but we needed to get out of the house. Because Liesel's hair has some curl on the ends it's hard to tell how shaggy it was getting so I took her for her first haircut. On the way to The Container Store (aka my Nirvana), I had noticed a place called Snip-its which is especially for kids. They had a movie Liesel could watch, suckers, bubbles, and a stylist who worked lightning fast and called her "princess." The stylist made sure to save some hair for me as a keepsake which I appreciated. In the end, Liesel got a complimentary pack of stickers which she played with on the way home. Ireland was a trooper and quietly waited in her carseat the whole time. Liesel's hair looks so much better! Now she's all ready for summer.

For Reggs

This post is intended for an audience of 1. My sister chastized me for not posting enough photos of Ireland. She has a point, we haven't been nearly as diligent as we should be. Tonight I took some video that I hope makes up for my negligence a bit. Enjoy!

Clear Eye for the Straight Guy

Thursday afternoon Brent put his baby blues under a laser for Lasik surgery. No more glasses falling down his nose, no more contacts irritating his eyes, no more asking me what time it is at o'dark-thirty in the morning because he can't see the clock! I'm almost more excited than he is. The doctor said everything went perfectly. Between the procedure and Ireland's (non)sleep schedule Brent slept for 12 hours Thursday night. It goes without saying that he woke up with a new perspective on the world. Now it's just that much easier to gaze deeply into his eyes and think of the million reasons I love him!

Before

After

Fly Girls

The first time we flew with Liesel was from Boston to SLC. By the time we finally landed we were embarrassed to go to baggage claim because Liesel had been SUCH a beast. Our recent trip to Iowa was markedly better. First of all, the flight was much shorter but this was also the first time Liesel had her own seat. The only glitch was the flight from O'Hare to Cedar Rapids.

The plane was a one seater on the left side of the plane and then a two seater on the right. When we booked the flight, we figured I'd sit with Ireland in the one seater, nurse her through take off and landing and Brent would sit with Liesel on the two seater side of the plane. Per regulations, Liesel's seat had to be next to the window. We then found out the lap child had to be in a two seater side as well because there weren't enough oxygen masks on the one-seater side. So then I figured Brent would sit with Liesel on the two seater side and I'd also move to the two seater side but one row back. But wait! It gets better: only even numbered rows (aside from 16 and the front exit of course) have 3 oxygen masks rather than 2. As luck would have it, the flight was chock full of people with lap children like myself so even the prospect of sitting two rows behind so I could manage just one child rather than two was not going to happen. Brent thought I could just nurse during take off and then he would handle Ireland while I worked with Liesel but that wasn't allowed either because of those dang oxygen masks. The flight attendant sternly advised me to go over the instructions for inflating the toddler life preserver which is also only on those even numbered rows. Confused yet? To make a long story short, I ended up sitting next to Liesel (who was already antsy from being strapped down during the Boston to Chicago flight) with Ireland in my lap while Brent sat across the aisle in his own seat. It was miserable for me personally, but thankfully it was a short flight.

Both girls got a lot of attention on all flights. At one point we had a small crowd of airline attendants around our seat and they kept reminding us they'd be happy to walk Ireland up and down the aisle if we needed a break. Even the one who was insistent about the toddler life preserver came and chatted for quite a while. The people seated around us were incredibly kind as well. Turns out the lady in the video (whose seat Liesel is kicking) was a pediatric nurse and she didn't mind at all. Liesel was fussing after one landing and when I tried to quiet her, a woman in the row behind me said, "Oh she's all right." Really, it was a successful trip!

O Blessed Day!

Last Sunday we blessed Ireland in my home ward in Iowa City. Brent's parents flew in for the occasion and my brother Logan drove down from Cedar Rapids to be there for the event. It couldn't have been more perfect! Ireland was calm throughout the blessing and Bishop Jeppsen noted she had her eyes transfixed on Brent as if she understood the importance of it all. The ward gave us lots of love even though we were just visitors. Dorothy had it right: there's no place like home.

Our little family was able to spend a week in Iowa where my parents absolutely spoiled us. I'd wake up and discover I'd slept in to find my mother with Liesel who was dressed, fed and had an adorable hairdo. They watched the girls while we went to see How to Train Your Dragon and to go to the Nauvoo temple. We ate at all our favorite haunts from HyVee (local grocery store) for a cheap and delicious breakfast to the Lighthouse with Brent's parents. The weather was amazing so Liesel was able to play in their big backyard and we were able to take the Mustang out for a drive along gorgeous country back roads. Iowa was positively neon green and I'd forgotten just how nice everyone is! The girls received loads of attention and compliments. Ten minutes after dropping us off at the airport, my dad called to tell us he was already homesick. We are too. Liesel is still asking for her cousins who she was able to spend some time with at the Children's Museum. When we landed in Boston she asked us repeatedly about Logan and everyone around us was so impressed she knew the name of the airport. It was so cute.

Ahhhhh, back to the grind!