Monday, March 24, 2008

New York City!!!!!

We didn't get the chance to go to the Statue of Liberty, but we went and looked at it in the famous Battery Park.
Of course, for Ben, we had to see the New York Stock Exchange. We went to go see the bull, you know, the big bull statue near Wall Street. Well, there were about 50 people swarming around it, most of whom were taking a photo grabbing the bull's . . . well, let's just say, it wasn't his horns. ANYWAY, we got a picture (a G rated picture), but there were too many other's in the shot. So, it kind of ruined the mood.
Woo Hoo! We saw a Broadway show! I was so so so excited. We saw the play "Rent." It was really spectacular. Beautiful music, superb performers, it was a real New York experience.
Here is a closing shot of Times Square at night. The lights and spectacle was amazing. I think it's absolutely something you have to see before you die.

Chinatown, Lower Manhatten

Of course, with Ben having gone to Hong Kong on his mission, we had to see one of the most famous Chinatowns. It was so interesting. Here we are at a fish market. See that guy in the upper left corner? He was hacking fish heads off for all to see. It was charming.
Mmmmmm, doesn't it look yummy?

Actually, it was really yummy, really really yummy. We got the chao siu fahn, otherwise known as roasted pig. Oh my gosh, it was heaven on a plate.

A Happening Place

We went to Rockafeller Plaza, you know, the place where people ice skate, and where the Today show is. We got there later in the day, so the Today show had packed up, but we saw something a bit more interesting . . . .
Check it out! Tina Fey!!! Click on the picture, it's her alright. While we were at Rockafeller Plaza, we saw them setting up for some kind of filming. Turns out, they were shooting a scene for the TV show 30 Rock. We watched them film, it was pretty cool. I actually asked the director (who had come up to tell us to back out of the shot) if they needed extras. Alas, he said no. I walked right past the offices for Simon and Schuster, my dream publishing company. I should have run in with a copy of my manuscript a demanded to speak to the editor. . . . I didn't. I just took a picture in fron of it.

Here we are in Central Park. It was here that we spotted yet another celebrity. We walked right past Detective Stabler from Law and Order SVU. He was just out, walking with his daughter. We passed him, almost not even recognizing him, but right as he walked by I slammed to a stop and said "that was Detective Stabler!!!!" We decided not to bug him, seeing as he was with his kid, so no picture. Still, we felt pretty cool.

The Big Apple!

Yes, here we are in the one and only Times Square. There were masses of people and excitement going on everywhere. We took about 2000 pictures. Typical tourists.
We ate lunch at one of the most famous little pizza dives in the city. The pizza was so yummy.
Ben wanted to get dessert at one of the many enticing bakeries. You can just barely see the New York cheesecake in the bottom of the picture.

And this is a picture of an Anti-Scientology march. I only post it to show a bit of the color of the city. Personally, I have no opinion on Scientology. Well, these people certainly did. They were making so much noise.

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

The Igloo

Ben built a nice, cozy igloo for Amber in the backyard.

Sunday, March 9, 2008

The Blizzard of '08




Ah, spring.

Well, as you can see, we had a pretty insane weekend. A blizzard struck Central Ohio, and it all felt a bit like a scene out of a wilderness movie. Our next door neighbor even came over in these big snowshoes, asking if we needed anything. I felt like a prospector in my cabin in Alaska.

Anyway, it made for a fun day in playing in the snow. Ben built Amber an igloo in the backyard. She thought it was pretty neat. Also, don't be alarmed. In the video of the igloo, those are socks on her hands. Apparently, her gloves weren't keeping her hands warm enough so I had to improvise.

Here are some pictures. Check out the scene from our front door. There was about 15 inches of snow and blizzard force winds. And April is supposed to be the cruelest month?

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Renee is a Slacker

Okay, I admit it, when it comes to the blog, I am a big slacker. Sorry.
However, I have made it up to you today by puting up 4 posts to make up for the four weeks that I missed. So, don't miss any of them. Scroll all the way down. And then, we can all pretend that I have, in fact, been keeping up with my blog and posting every week.

The many moods of Amber and Logan





Here is an assortment of pictures of the kids. These show the various moods of two very energetic children.

The first is Amber and Logan: two Binkie Buddies. Here you see them in repose, calm and relaxed.

Then, Amber the chef. She gets it in her mind to create, and voila, a cheese, carrot, and mushroom sandwich.

As you can see in the third picture, the anger of Logan. He does not like to be put in the walker. Not at all.

And finally, Amber and Logan as sweet brother and sister. It truly warms my heart to see how much they love each other.

The Eye Ball




We went to the Eyeball on Febuary 23rd. It was a blast. I loved to watch people around me get drunk and act foolish. :P

Actually, I really did have a great time. One of the things that made it so fun was the group we went with. There were six couples from our ward and we all got out and boogied on the dance floor together. Pay special attention to Ben's sweet dance moves. As you can clearly see, he has SKILLS.

Amber the dramatic Ballerina




Amber is taking a Ballet class and she loves it. As you can see from these pictures, she feels quite dramatic and glamerous about the whole thing. She loves to practise at home before her adoring fans. Note the seriousness in her face.

Logan's on the move!

Here is Logan on Valentines day. He was two days shy of 10 months. What a little busy body!