July 2007

June was a crazy month! Most of it was on vacation, and even though we were sad to come home, it's nice to have some familiar routine for Crystal. Like most toddlers, she depends a lot on her routine to stay in a good mood. Scott's parents do the long beach island thing every year, and because we had so much fun this year, we're already making plans to be out there next year too. Anyway there's not much to update reguarding June because of the many slideshow instalments provided in this blog. We celebrated the 4th of July at Lisa's grandparents cabin, where we ate burgers, steak and ribs, along with some fantastic salads and the usual barbecue chips. A lot of Aunts, uncles and cousins on Lisa's side of the family were there, and Crystal had a great time playing the children who were closer to her age. We made a point to sit on a blanket at the temple to watch the fireworks with Crystal to see how she would react. Crystal doesn't scare easily, so we didn't think there would be a problem. It wasn't. In fact she could care less about the fireworks, and all her attention was focused on her glowsticks that her uncle Matt provided. She ran around twirling them around in circles like a little she-ninja and completely ignored the fireworks. We left early to avoid the crazy traffic, and we were way ahead of everybody and thought we were home free untill we got rear-ended by a group of 18-21 year old boys and we had to pull over and exchange insurance info. Luckily nobody was hurt, and we didn't have much damage to our car at all. Crystal was asleep through the whole thing, clutching her glowsticks in each hand. The Officer on the scene said that we were not at fault and that was that. We felt bad for the kid driving though, he was nice and the traffic was pretty crazy, and his poor car had a lot more damage than ours did. Hopefully things work out for him. It was actually a pretty good day up untill the fender bender. We got home at midnight and crashed. So that was how we spent our independance day.
Crystal sleeping in the car with glowsticks in each hand

Just some fun photos...

Lisa was getting ready to go out, so she had to put Crystal in the playpen to keep her out of any trouble. The bigger crystal gets, the closer she is to Escaping. Soon the playpen won't be an option!
It's amazing how flexable toddlers can be!



All Dressed up to go to Grandma's house.


I'm not very ladylike though.

Winnie the Pooh

Thanks to Lisa's sister, Crystal is now a fan of Winnie the Pooh. We usually allow Crystal to watch some television as long as it's an educational program, however after Denise showed her Winnie the Pooh, she's hooked. We actually use it as a reward for her, or just to spoil her if she had a bad day. In this particular video clip she had fallen down earlier and hurt her face, so before bedtime we were going to let her watch a little of it, and she was so excited about it she couldn't contain herself.

New York

This was when we spent the day in New York. We took the ferry into Manhattan, then went by Subway into the Bronx to see Yankee Stadium since it was the furthest away. We traveled by Subway most of the time. After Yankee Stadium we went to visit ground Zero where the twin towers once stood. The atmosphere is still pretty gloomy at that spot, and it's just basically a construction site now, but we thought it would be good to go and pay our respects. After that we went to the shops on Seventh Avenue where the outdoor markets were open and Lisa was really happy shopping on the street just like life in Bolivia. Lisa lives for outdoor markets wherever they may be. We had tickets to Spamalot on Broadway and had to be there by 1:30, so we just walked from Seventh onto Broadway to find the Shubert Theatre. We were on the front row which isn't too bad for broadway...though like the movie theatres, the front row can be a little too close sometimes. It was a great show though, we laughed a lot, and it was really impressive. In Lisa's opinion, the play was ten times better than the movie, "Monty Python and the Holy Grail." After the show we did some more shopping and went to the Letterman Show to find Ruperts shop (frequently featured on the show) but for some dumb reason we couldn't find it. We shopped a little more and then went to hang out in Central Park on a quest to find "Strawberry Fields...the John Lennon memorial" which was lovingly decorated with flowers from fans which you will see in the slideshow below. All in all it was a pretty fun day. There was so much more we wanted to do there, but no time with only one day to do it. It was a fun experience and we're glad we went.

Just a few more Long Beach Island fotos.

This was basically our last couple of days on the beach, we bummed around on the beach and then went out to an expensive buffet for our last meal on the island. After this we took off to New York for a day and then went back to Philly. Being lazy on the beach was exactly what we needed this summer...we're already making plans to go back next year.

Happy Birthday America!!

I know this is a few days early, but we wanted to post it now so I wouldn't forget. So we hope everybody has a happy Independence Day!!!

Star Spangled Banner
|Funny Jokes at JibJab

Washington D.C.

We were here on Wednesday the 20th of June...but as vacations go, I haven't had time to update my blog untill now. Anyway this was pretty fun...we obviously did a lot a walking. We parked in a downtown garage which cost us 19 dollars for the whole day, which wasn't that bad considering it was free to visit all the sites. We especially liked the reflecting pool which was more beautiful in person, and a nice place to relax and be in the shade which was needed. The picture of the constitution came out pretty well considering that the room has to be dark and you can't use your flash on the camera...(it preserves the paper). I was sad that the declaration of independence didn't come out nicely, but oh well. Crystal was really good the whole time too, which I would be to if I got to lay back in the stroller all day.

Not too comforting

We heard that there were several shark sightings on the beach...and then we see this when we go out this morning. Poor little guy. All the same, if we're gonna run into sharks, I'd prefer they be dead ones.

Long Beach Island, Day 2

We had our own spiritual discussion as a group today since we were on vacation and couldn't make it to church...since it was Fathers Day we talked about Fathers in the scriptures such as Lehi, Alma (the elder and younger), Mormon, Joseph Smith Sr, Abraham, etc. and the qualities they posess. Although we didn't have the sacrament, it was a great spiritual discussion and we all felt the spirit. It's great that we as a religion understand the role of fathers in the home. What a blessing! Then of course we spent all day at the beach, came back to the beachouse and ate chicken tacos, and then played the newlywed game (Which We won!) We also played SceneIt, the DVD game, girls against boys...girls won 3 times in a row with Lisa as the MVP! What a great day!

Gambling and Women

Last night after dinner, Scotts little brother Bryan, was challenging all the men in the room to an arm wrestle to show off his strength. (For those of you who don't know, Bryan has down syndrome). He had successfully played and beaten all the men in the room except Scott; so naturally he challenged Scott as his final opponent. Scott who didn't really know if he felt like arm wrestling or not said he would only play if he won something. After trying to decide back and forth Scott teasingly said he'd play only if he got to keep Bryans toys as his prize. (Bryan collects and plays with action figures...he takes them everywhere with him.) This made Brian very hesitant to compete, because although he had beaten everyone...(everyone lets him win), the thought of risking his toys was a little too risky. People started calling out suggestions of things Bryan could win from Scott to even the score and help him be willing to take the risk. After several suggestions, and Bryan saying "no" to each of them, Scott jokingly said..."okay if you win you can have Lisa and Crystal." Brian Enthusiastically yelled out "DEAL!" Everyone laughed and the game was on. The arm wrestle was a long and difficult one with everyone cheering and yelling, and although the suspense was high...Bryan, obviously won the game. Instead of an eight cow wife, Lisa was a "box of action figures wife" (as our friend Jess pointed out)....luckily Bryan was so happy that he won such a close game, he forgot what the stakes were. It was still a lot of fun though, and it made Lisa feel good to know that Bryan thought so highly of her.

East Coast Vacation Day 1: Long Beach Island

Well, the plane ride wasn't too terrible. Crystal decided to fall asleep a half hour before we boarded, then woke up just as we got on the plane. Then she cried because of the pressure in her ears for about a half hour...not our finest memory in life, nor our most dignified. Then the snacks came out, and she was happy again. Happy but restless. It was a bit of a challenge keeping her entertained though. After passing her back and forth, she got bored again, and bit Lisa in the shoulder, but no harm done. She decided to fall asleep again right when we landed...thanks Crystal! Hahaha! We landed in Philly at about 11pm and drove strait to the beach home, which took another 2 hours. We spent all of today at the beach, relaxing, getting a tan, and getting wet. So far, this vacation is a ton of fun. We really need this and it's great. Crystal was afraid of the beach at first, mostly because the water was pretty cold today and it freaked her out because we don't think she was expecting it to be so cold...but she had a great time in the sand, and she looks so cute in her little swimsuit!

Lisa's mission pictures

Okay, so I loved Paula's mission pictures on her blog and I told her about it being a good idea, and she said she'd love to see my mission pictures. There are alot, but this isn't even a third of them, and selecting favorite mission pictures was difficult since I love them like they were my children. You will notice that in some of my mission pictures my face looks chubbier...that's because it was chubbier. It seems that since then my face has sunken into my skull a little more with age; lol, I don't know if that's good or bad, but there it is. Also my hair is kind of red in some of them, and that's because I colored it while I was out there. My mission was diffrent than other missions, and you could get away with wearing "P-day" clothes a lot depending on the situation, and how politcs were in the country. Man, looking at these pictures makes me want to go back SOOO bad...I miss that time in my life sometimes. Anyway, for those who care, here is a beloved glimpse into the best mission in the world! (Bolivia, La Paz)

Things you'll never see Lisa in again

Okay, so Liz wanted me to post some of my old "looks" on here after my "tagged" post when I made a huge list of things I'll never wear again. So far all these pictures are just me at about 19 and 20 years old going through my many phases...I've misplaced my "ugly kid" photos, but when I find them I'll update this post and add them. In this slideshow you'll see wigs, crazy outfits, some outfits I don't wear anymore cause I'm endowed, and blond hair and bright colors. I can't believe I was brave enough to go out in public that way...

Tongue tied no more

It amazes me how much Crystal really soaks in, even though I don't realize it. We were at the pharmacy yesterday and there were several Sesame Street finger puppets on one shelf. She was able to identify every character that was on display. Everytime she was asked "where's Elmo, Grover, Zoe, Bigbird, Ernie," etc. she would easily point out every character. Then we found some stuffed animals on display and she made the animal sounds for every animal we picked up. I didn't know she new how to make the "baa" sound for the sheep or the "moo" for the cow. I would always tell her what they said, but out of nowhere she was saying it like she'd been saying it for weeks. Her tongue is loosening up more and more and as she's able to point to things and say what they are, it amazes me how much she really knows. This morning she asked me to get her ball, and she'd never said the word ball before. I was holding her on my lap this afternoon and she was pointing to the designs on my shirt and babbling while I was watching TV. Then I listened and could hear her saying, "one, two, three..." (she was trying to count the designs on my shirt.) I didn't know she could do that either. Again, I would always count things for her, but didn't know she could ever repeat it back untill lately when out of nowhere, she's just decided to talk. There are a bunch of other things she's started saying too, but I'm tired and I can't name them all off the top of my head. Sorry (: Anyway, up untill lately, she's always been my little "mute", who would make gestures to show you what she wanted, but couldn't say any words. We were told that it was normal, since we speak to her in two different languages, and that it was taking her longer to speak because she had more to learn. It just makes me pretty happy that out of nowhere she's just saying words I never knew she could say, and lots of them. It's nice when I see things that I work on starting to pay off.

Here are some short clips to show you that we're still enjoying her cuteness...

Man Vs. Wild!

Anybody who likes the discovery channel knows what the show "Man Vs. Wild" is, and if you don't, you should.
Scott and Lisa are die hard fans of the show, (which will have ALL NEW episodes starting June 15th). The star of the show, whose name is Bear Grylls, IS the new Steve Irwin. (In Scott's opinion, he's even better than Steve). I know this may sound pretty nerdy to some of you, but please bear with us and hear us out...
Bear Grylls is a modern day Hero. He is like Samson in the bible. He is seriously one of the coolest people on the planet right now. He's a Karate black belt. He was in the British air force for 3 years. He broke his back in 3 places in a parachuting accident during that time, and recovered...(this was before he climbed mt. everest). He is in the Guiness book of world records as the youngest man to climb mount everest at 23 years old. He lead an expedition of a small team across the atlantic ocean in a small inflatable boat. He was the first man to fly a powered paraglider above everest. He is a motivational speaker, and travels all over the world to do so. Basically, this dude is freaking awesome in every way. He is a born surviver, and a classic example of how to overcome opposition.
In Man Vs. Wild, he purposely gets stranded in popular vacation sites where tourists and hikers have been lost and even died simply because they didn't know how to survive. He teaches survival skills in every possible circumstance you can imagine. This is worth watching simply because people really do find themselves in these situations. Every show starts by him getting dropped out of an airplaine. He parachutes out not knowing where he will be dropped off and stranded next, and the only things he takes with him are his pocketknife, and canteen, and SOMEtimes his flint...but no more than those three things. He shows his viewers how to survive, and not only that, but how to find civilization from wherever he's stranded. Each episode ends when he finds his way back to civilization. We're telling you, this is one of the best shows on television! Not only that, but it's useful and helpful. Over and over again people die because they're stranded somewhere and don't have the means to survive, like that poor family last winter where the car broke down and the husband went for help and died..and the family was rescued without him. This show teaches viewers the things they need to know to avoid such tragedy in their own lives if they find themselves in such a situation. He teaches you what to eat, where to sleep, how to build a shelter, and even teaches about the most extreme situations by demonstration including escaping quicksand, what to do if you fall through a frozen lake, navigating dangerous jungle rivers in Costa Rica, crossing ravines, being stranded on a desert island, navigating your way by watching the stars, basically being lost or in trouble in anyway you can imagine. He demonstrates every possible option so that whatever the circumstance, you know your options on how to survive. We've loved this first season so far and are so excited to see the new episodes on June 15th. Anyway we highly reccomend the show to anyone who's never seen it. All the previous episodes are airing again starting tonight all the way untill the fifteenth, and all the new episodes air on friday nights at seven, on the discovery channel. Scott and Lisa use the Tivo to record all the episodes since friday nights can usually be pretty busy. Either way, its worth your time...it's great because what stunt men do in the movies, this guy will do in real life.

Here is a small montage of what he does on his show: