I am a LITTLE bit behind!!!

My mama flew in to town and took us to NYC for a Broadway show (and to celebrate Nicole's bday!)! We saw Phantom and it was AWESOME! I feel an entirely new draw to the city, a new craving that needs to be satisfied!
....Not that I ever wanna give up this new endeavor! We enjoyed a classy Starbuck's breakfast right before we headed to the theatre.


We also went to Alice's Tea Cup. Last time we went to the city with Myra, she took us here and I LOVED it! It seems Nana enjoyed it, too! We had tea, peach for me, I don't remember what Nana had, sandwiches (BLT with Bleu cheese!!! To DIE for! Nana had something curried.), scones, and dessert cookies! It was delicious. Nicole had her own ginger tea, sandwiches, and scones, too. The doc had something great, but mine was better ;)


Our hotel was awesome! We stayed at the W. It was beautiful, pristine, modern, and classy. Their decor theme was 'water' or something like that!!! Down the elevators and into the street, it was awesome!

There was a street fair right in front of us. My favorite sight at that point was the smoothie bar! I just wanted to eat all of the produce!

The day we were leaving the city, we walked through central park and it started pouring! The city was under flood watch! We made it halfway through and found a 'shelter.' Once we finally made it through the park, we decided to take a carriage ride all the way through the park again! We were a little soggy by then ;)
But memories are memories!!!

We also visited the library. It's the scene of one of my favorite movies! But I loved the detailed marble-work and the endless books and the HISTORY inside!

I could have spent all day in the library! (But we were headed out of town!)

P.S. I finally met up with my sweet friend Ange! I haven't seen her since 1993! It was fun, introducing her to family, catching up, discussing dreams and future plans.... And reminiscing about old friends! I think that hanging out with her was the best part

What can I do in a week?

• We found a new church (I love being a part of a church family!)
• we went huka-diving... This evening we're going to try it at the lake! (We practiced in a pool!!!)
• we went sailing on the lake! Doc got a sailing lesson and he 'drove' the whole time! We also BBQ'd while we were on the water, learned some geography and history, and I had the best seat... The one at the back of the boat, watching everything!!!
• I PAID off a student loan 100%. Poor Doc has a long way to go for that! (Come on, a doc, seriously!!!)
• Nicolee had a bday party in the park for fairies and pirates, it was a blast!
• Nana and LJ came and Nana already left.... LJ is here for the rest of the week!
• We saw Mama Mia! It was so much fun! (But how often in life do we realy burst out into song to express our feelings??)
• And this morning we are headed to the local Science Museum.

Wow! This has been one busy week! Not to mention plenty of sewing, cleaning, cooking, laundry-ignorning, and movie watching! Whatta bum, huh???

love.love.love

thedoc.nicole.godandhislove.bestfriends.happiness.ny.sunsets.sunrises.chocolatechipcookiedoughicecream.myfamily.Tink.warmbed.roof.income.creativityinmyjob.food.music.grandparents.laughing.funnystories.hugs.softtshirts.newbabies.juniorhighers.kidslaughing.cooking.sunshine.rainydays.worshipping.hugs.kisses.tacos.peoplewhosmile.hope.longdistancefriends.packagesinthemail.heatanda/c.thesmellofgasoline.skipping.laughter.twirlingpickyouoffthegroundhugs.grace.waterfalls.clouds.hikes.basketball.movies.roadtrips.havingacar.inandout.thebeach.rubberchickens.campfiresmells.brownsugarclumps.penpals.reading.hotshowers.christmas.blanketforts.theabilitytowalkandrun.celebratingwithpeople.cryingwithpeople.listeningtotheocean.funnyemails.fallleaves.howthenortheastsmells.electricity.limegreen.swimming.barefeet.runningwater.fuzzywarmclothes.latenightshopping.goodwine.flipflops.ponytails.art.eatingicecreamstraightfromthecontainer.freshlycutgrass.hammocks.daisies.crafts.flood.flickr.teachers.foggynights.skipping.clearbriskmornings.marbles.redvelvet.waterskiingonglassywater.snowshoeing.snowdays.lazysummerdays.longbikerides.memoriesofPVBC.howmyfriendslovemymom.barefeetinthegrass.homemadebaskets.momanddadscompassion.spanish.books.stories.receivingmail.takingwalks.naps.homemadecake.trials.smellsofoliveoilandrosemaryandbasil.birthdays.findingnewfriends.maps.rememberingoldfriends.wrestling.ingenuity.resourcefulness.brickhouses.cows.eyes.sandiego.midwest.ca.coronado.love.italy.slidingacrosscleanhardwoodfloorsinsocks.rememberinghowfari'vecome.love

Hmmm, a little late

I admit, I forgot. I had other things to do. I wanted to post something... Okay, I just didn't do it. Here's a very late unbirthday post...

But Nicole had a BLAST on her birthday! We invited over Elizabeth, her mommy, and her brother. (Christian is such a cool name!) I'm so glad that we have new friends in our new town! She wanted a ratatouille party... Have you seen ANY of that in the stores? So we made it up..... And didn't tell anyone! First, we created our own pizzas. I bought mini Boboli crusts at the local bakery outlet store and set out lots of cheese and a zillion toppings! I forgot those pics... Then, after consuming half of the pizzas with a mountain of cheese a a tiny piece of sausage on top, we brought out the birthday..... cupcakes! With candles! After blowing them out, we gave the kids their own cupcakes and a glob of frosting... Then we set out:

and they had a blast! After so much time, I couldn't even find the cupcake anymore! Can you find it?

We loved having Nana and Lindsey here! LJ bought Nicole some 'clothes' for Tink. Is it a phase? Do you think Nicole will have to grow out of it??? Tink wasn't so fond of the Minnie Mouse smock (but LJ also got her a cute little jogging jacket! She needs shoes now for when it snows!!!)...

But the next day, we went to Alexandria Bay. I love it there, too. I could own a vacation home there! (It gets WAAAY colder there!)

We took the Thousand Islands tour. (Dressing, anyone?) It's funny how they categorize an island! It has to have a tree on it. So it could be a lump of sand coming out of the water, but if it has a tree, it's an island! We saw awesome vacation hoomes, slides into the water, lots of fishing and crusing boats, and the Boldt castle! (Heart Island means ICE CREAM!) It was beautiful, not too hot, not cold. And Nicole wore MY hat! Look how cute she is!

Also, Nana took Nicole clothes shopping while she was here, for her first days of school! Nicole is going to be the CUTEST girl ever! (No bias, honestly!) Wouldn't you kill for a wardrobe like this?
We finished the pre-K screening yesterday, now it's official. We just have to wait for school to start! (P.S Nicole was very apprehensive about going to school with other kids! But she is SO bright and SO smart, I know she'll do well! At the screening, they tested her base knowledge and Nicole thought it was a bunch of games! She WILL do great! P.S. She can't remember her phone number. The fact that we still have the WV are code throws her off so she doesn't think she knows it at all! Same number.)

So, countdown. 21 days til school starts!!!