New York City

Jason and I have been trying to plan a trip for a while, and finally did it! We went to NYC while my parents came to watch the girls. We haven't been on a big trip alone since 2006, and we had a great time.

The first day we were there we went to a highly recommended bakery, Levaine Bakery just a couple blocks from Central Park. Thanks to Ashley! We had chocolate brioche, hot chocolate, and banana chocolate chip bread. Clara kept saying, "No fair!" when we told her what we had for breakfast that day. 

 

 Then we walked through Central Park to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Luckily, the sun was out for the hour that we walked through the park. Central Park was so pleasant. The rest of the time it was cloudy/rainy. We saw the Dakota, where John Lennon was shot, and Strawberry Fields.

I haven't been to a big museum in a long time, and it was wonderful. We took some pictures with Renoir and Monet paintings to show Clara; she knows these paintings.

That night we had a fabulous dinner and saw "Wicked." I know we're about 10 years behind the times, but we finally saw it. It was amazing...the set, music, acting. So fun.

The next day we went to St. Patrick's Cathedral, which was all covered with scaffold, so we couldn't see one inch of the outside. We also stopped by Grand Central Station, which is celebrating 100 years this year. My hip was hurting from all the walking, so we hung out at the hotel in the afternoon. We discovered to our delight that just a block or so from our hotel was a Harry Potter Exhibit! It was awesome. There were tons of props, costumes, and sets from all the movies. For example, we saw:
All the famous wands                                                
Ron's horrible dress robes
Buckbeak                                                                  
Hagrid's huge furniture
Tri-Wizard Cup
Dementor's robes
Harry's glass                                                               
The quidditch uniforms
Harry and Ron's dorm room                                      
The tea cup with the Grim in it
It was awesome. I can't even remember all the things we saw. That night we saw the "Newsies" musical, which was fun. The boys were great dancers, and the music was great. I grew up on the movie, and had all the songs memorized.

It was so great to have a trip together and we're so grateful my parents could come and watch the kids. Clara and Savannah had a great time with them, and they were so happy to see us home.

The last few months

Lots of things have happened since I've last written, so here is a recap. The most exciting news of the fall was that we found out we're expecting another baby girl in the spring! The girls are ecstatic to have another girl in the family.

 Savannah's second birthday. Can't you tell she's excited? She changed outfits several times that day. She was so into the party hats, balloons, cake, ice cream, candles, the works.

The lap quilt I made for Mauri for Christmas, with Jason's and my mother-in-law's help. It turned out to match her living room perfectly!

These girls are becoming good friends. They've recently started calling each other "Best Buddies."

Clara lost her first tooth on our way to my parents' house for Christmas! She was eating a Wheat Thin, and out it came! She was relieved the tooth fairy could find her there.

Matching each other and their dolls in dresses from my mom.

Clara tried this huge trampoline at the mall, and had such a blast. At first she was hesitant, but then she decided to go for it! We were proud that she was so brave and tried something new.

After Christmas we went with my parents, and Ashley and Tom to Massanutten, Va. There was an enormous indoor waterpark, which the girls loved. Clara decided to try a ski class, and really enjoyed it. She seems to be getting so big and trying so many new things.

We're excited for the next few months, too. Jason has finished his last major test, Match day is in March, the baby is due in April, and graduation in May!