For our friends, The Shibatas

Konban wa. O hisashiburi desu ne. Ima, kazoku to isshou ni Washington D.C. ni imasu. Gunta no byouin de kunren ga ari mainichi asahayai basu de ikimasu. Muzukashikute mo honto ni suki desu. Boku to mina genki de suzushii tenki de yoku asobimasu. Shibata kazoku wa do desu ka? Mina genki desu ka? Atarashii skype account ga aru node moshi hanashitakattara dozo tsukete kudasai. Boku no namae wa brainmagnet desu.

We Love You, Justin and Katie

Crazy Trip Part 3

During our trip up north, we decided to go up to New England to see what we could see. We ended up just getting to go up and down the coast of Connecticut. There was just to much to see! We figured we would have to go back a time or two to check out the other states in New England.

The tricky part of this trip was deciding when to leave. Traffic is a bear in the major cities and after counting up how many cities we would have to drive through - the number came to 4: DC, Baltimore, Philly, & New York. We decided to leave late around 6:30pm (hopefully this would help us miss most traffic) In the end there wasn't much traffic (except at the toll booths) It cost $30 in tolls one-way up there (and we thought we would have way more than enough with the cash we took - turns out we only had $2 left over. Needless to say, I took more cash with us on the way home - just in case there was an extra toll or two.)

First stop Milford and New Haven.

We got in very late and Maia's sleep schedule was way off. I was up with her until 4 am. We had a slow morning (Justin took the kids down to breakfast and let me sleep in - it was so nice!) Once we headed out, we went to the Yale Peabody science museum and then we toured around Old Campus of Yale - very beautiful architecture.

Kenton in front of the Peabody Science Museum




Old Campus YALE

After all of the touring - we stopped and ate lunch at Claire's Corner Copia - it was delicious food (vegetarian fare). A little plug for the desserts there - they were amazing!

On the way back to the hotel - all of the kids fell asleep. So we thought this would be a great opportunity to relax and check out the beach. Once we got there, you could see a storm rolling in. In a matter of 10 minutes, the winds were picking up fast. Then, Justin declared, "Look, it's a bird, it's a plane. . .it's a tornado!" Of course, I begin to freak out (Justin thinks the tornado is great - nothing new for him being from Oklahoma and all) Somehow I end up driving (or rather trying to drive away from the messy weather). That was a dumb idea. The hail (I swear they were the size of golf balls, but Justin promises me they were only the size of quarters) started shooting down. I was amazed that the windshield didn't break. In the midst of all of the flooded streets the water caused our serpentine belt to come off - no power steering, car starts to over heat, etc. I saw a service center out of the corner of my eye and pulled in there immediately. (At this point I knew that the service center being literally RIGHT THERE next to us meant Heavenly Father was truly looking out for us). I began to calm down quickly (Justin was relieved --- he said I was driving like a crazy woman). The service center let us pull into the garage to keep us safe and we waited out the storm in there. About an hour later we were leaving our car there over night to be fixed and getting a shuttle back to the store ( and then the shuttle took Justin up to New Haven where we ate - we seemed to have left the diaper bag up there with all of the diapers and Kenton's epipens. So here is a plug out to Napoli Nissan in Milford, CT - they were so helpful in our time of need. - especially driving Justin all the way up to New Haven and back to get the diaper bag. - Thank you Mr. Napoli).

Here is the beach where we saw the tornado

Only a day into our vacation - we were considering going home. However, after a good night's sleep we decided to stick it out. We went up to Mystic and toured the historic Mystic Seaport - a beautiful place.

We took a boat ride through the Mystic river

Kaelyn created a scene at the Art Spot for kids in the seaport

Kaelyn and Emma hanging out on a recreation of a sailboat.


After a long day at the Seaport - we were hungry. Mystic Pizza sound famailiar? Because it is - Julia Roberts filmed one of her first films here titled, Mystic Pizza. The pizza was actually really delicious - go for the Grecian if you have a chance to eat there.

We had a great time and decided it was time to go home. Connecticut was beautiful!

Emma turns 3

Emma's special day is here! She is 3 years old. The festivities started off by getting a package from Grandma Lori & Pa-paw - We love getting packages from them. They are always filled with oodles of fun things! Here is Emma opening her box.

Emma has a nursery rhyme party - and Lil' Bo Peep's Lost Sheep Cake

This cake is delcious!

Maia enjoys the party too! She is 6 months old today!

Emma opens presents. She gets a rocking horse from Grandma & Grandpa and blocks from Mom and Dad. (She picked out another babydoll at the store to get - but mom and dad said 12 baby dolls at home is enough to take care of. It's time to get something different)





Bubba and Emma



This was a fun-filled day, but I am pooped! Time to take a nap in my Daddy's arms.

Crazy Trip - Part 2

Day 3 - Drop Daddy off at AFIP Training in DC

On the way home we stopped by the Washington Temple so the kids could see it.

Relearn how to drive in DC traffic - it is amazing how quick it comes back to you.

All four kids in front of the Washington Temple.

Emma prances around the temple grounds. She didn't understand why she couldn't go into the temple. She kept asking," but why?" over and over. It didn't matter what explanation I gave her - "but why?"

Emma touches the Savior's feet and notices the marks.

Kenton looks up to the Savior -

A Crazy Trip - Part 1

Day One - 11th Wedding Anniversary for Justin and Katie

There wasn't much time for romance, when packing has to occur. (I totally stress out when I have to pack my family for a trip - not to mention a 3 week trip) We left in the evening to head north. Along the way we made our first stop in Roanoke to visit our dear friends, Courtney and David. We ate a scrumptious Mexican meal and had some great laughs together. David enjoyed playing with my new camera.

Day 2 - Ethan's Birthday & Baby Kate's Blessing

We spent a day in C'ville to bless Baby Kate and to celebrate Ethan's 3rd Bday. The kids enjoyed full blown pillow wars and taking every single toy Sarah owned out and dumping it on the floor.

(more pics to come when I get some from Sergio)

One of my Favorite Things

I have finally finished the last book in the Twilight series. I loved every minute of it. My family was abandoned once again for a short time - but they survived. They may have not had clean clothes or a decent dinner in a few days - haha. Anyways, The final book was a perfect closure to a great series. I especially liked the last page or two (I don't want to spoil it for any of you who want to read it, so no telling what it is here) However, I thought is was like the cherry on top of a delicious ice cream sundae.