MJ!!!

I don't know about you, but I am really sad about the death of MJ. I was SHOCKED when Nate turned on the TV and we heard it announced as breaking news. I know there was some questionable behavior in his past, but boy, does that man have talent... I LOVED his music! I was still hoping that one day I would be able to attend a concert of his old school music. Thanks for all your awesome music MJ, and you will be missed!

and, the rest of the time...

So, I already talked about Sunday. After that, I pretty much forgot to take pictures. My family left early early Monday morning. Nate's parents hit up lots of museums, and the kids and I only joined them for the Museum of Natural History, which was very fun. Asher kept saying he wanted to see the dinosaurs, the whale, and the lions, so we made sure he did. We also went to the planetarium, which I think Asher enjoyed, except for the parts that scared him. Whoops. 

Besides that, we had lots of dinners and lunchs out {and in} and had a great time talking and laughing with Nate's parents.  I feel bad that we don't have any pictures of them, and that we didn't see much of the city with them.  Nate always went with them, but I just didn't think that museums would work well with the kids.  But we loved having them here!

Thanks to both the Busaths and the Olsons for coming to play with us. We love and miss you all!!

Busath's Day 4; Olson's Day 1

On Saturday, my fam and I took the subway over to Brooklyn, while Nate went and met his parents at the train station. Our plan was to go to Brooklyn, eat Grimaldi's pizza, have ice cream on the pier, and then walk across the bridge back into Manhattan. Unfortunately, the line for pizza was over an hour, and we weren't really in the mood to wait in line. So we headed over to the pier to check out the view, eat some delicious chicken and pepper stuffed quesadillas and ice cream. 

Asher had so much fun checking out the view and looking at all the boats and the water, and chasing birds and stuff. After hanging out for an hour or so, we decided to head back and walk across the bridge. Sayer was pooped, so he didn't last too long, and stayed asleep the whole trip over the bridge. Asher gave me a few heart attacks on the bridge, mostly when he decided to wander over into the bike lane, but overall, he was a trooper. 

When we got back to Manhattan, we found the nearest subway and headed back home. Nate and I had a relaxing evening at home with the Olsons and takeout, while my fam went to the Lion King.  

Verdict:  A great day!

Splish splash, my trucks are in the bath

Am I a terrible mother if my child takes 2-3 baths a day, just because he wants to play in there? I'm sure I'm not, but I hope I am not the only one who gives in to this frequent request. My excuse... it's been raining so much here, you'd think it was the beginning of Winter, not Summer. On top of that, Sayer still takes a morning nap, so that time from 9-10:30, pretty much consists of Asher "swimming" in the "ocean" with his trucks. I love baths too, so I can hardly blame the kid. Oh well. He's only this young once, best to live it up while he can! ;) Plus, his imagination is so great, I'm sure his brain is getting plenty of exercise.

Busath's Day 3...

Friday morning, Nate and I went with my parents to do a session at the Manhattan Temple, while Hailey and Lexi so kindly babysat the kids for us. After the temple, Nate went with my family to the Met, while I stayed home with the boys. We met up with them after naps and headed over to Central Park. We stopped at the pond in the Alice in Wonderland part of Central Park, where they sail model boats, which the boys loved. I think it is such a beautiful area of the park.

After we watched the boats for awhile, we headed over to Boathouse and took boat rides on the lake.

Sayer's first time in a lifejacket... not sure what to think

Me and my boys

Nate, looking thrilled as ever. He was a little annoyed with Asher's exuberance and insistence on rowing the boat. It would have been fine if his rowing actually made the boat move...

Cute Sayer Bayer

Mom, dad, and Lexi, looking awesome in their boat. They wouldn't let us all go in one. :(

The fam, towards the end of the trip. Sayer was done and wanted to take his lifejacket off, and Asher just wanted to keep rowin' that boat.

In all his glory...

Then we headed over to the Bethesda Terrace

Sayer, happy to be eating!

Nate's face says exactly how he felt by the end of this day! :)

Later that night, we of course went out to eat at another delicious restaurant a few blocks from us called Deluxe.  They have wonderful fish and chips and hanger steaks!

Family visits...

This past week we have had both my family and Nate's parents come in town to visit. We had so much fun with both sides of the fam, and were definitely spoiled by both of them as well. Thanks for all the great food, broadway shows, shoes, thomas trains, and of course GREAT company! Asher and Sayer loved having Grandpa Bill, Grandma Lisa, Aunt Hailey and Lexi, and Nana and Papa in town. Sayer was in love with my dad and wouldn't let anyone else hold him. Which was sad for them, but nice for my dad, who he would cuddle with all the time.

My parents were in town first. On day one we ate at yummy Havana Central and played around in Times Square while my mom waited in the Billy Elliot line. The show was fabulous, as previously noted.

Day two, we went to the Museum of Modern art. The boys lasted about 35 minutes, until Nate took them home to eat and take naps. Oh well, we tried. Fun times were had at the MOMA by all...

After the MOMA we went to lunch at Global Kitchen, which was yummy, and then headed over to Rockefeller Center to check out the NBC store, the shops, St. Patrick's Cathedral, and then ended up at Magnolia Bakery to get cupcakes and other delicious treats...

Later that night we headed to Little Italy for some scrumptious Italian food, and had a very fun time.

Travel Potty

I've had a few people ask me about this, so I just thought I would post the link so everyone can partake of the genius that is the travel potty. It has been so perfect when we are at a park with no restrooms, or if they are too far away. It's also really nice not to have to frantically wonder where the bathrooms are.  It would also be good for road trips I imagine.  Best $10 ever spent!!

Alvin Ailey

On Sunday night, we went with my fam to the 50th Anniversary Alvin Ailey concert in Brooklyn. It was unlike anything I had ever seen before. The first 2 suites were just ok, but the final piece, "Revelations" {which is a pretty famous piece Alvin did back in the 60s} was AMAZING. There were about 10 numbers that comprised the whole suite, and they were all incredible. It was to gospel music, and the dancing was so beautiful and moving. I think the guy dancers were, overall, better than most of the girls, but there were a few girl dancers that were amazing to watch. I couldn't believe their extensions and their control. I have seen lots of modern dance, but this was definitely the coolest modern piece I have ever seen. I definitely recommend it!  It was a perfect ending to my family's visit!

Saturdays in the park

A couple weekends ago we spent the day on the East side. Our stake was having a block party that I had to bring cookies to, so I took a nice 40 minute long walk to the other side of town. They boys had fun, and Asher found 2 big trucks for a total of $2, so that alone made the long trek totally worth it. 

Asher enjoyed a delicious chocolate cupcake

Sayer chil-laxed in his stroller

I checked out the Allison Wonderland area of the park

We had fun at a really nice playground

Then the boys took naps in the stroller, and when they woke up, we were at another playground. Aren't Sayer's curls so adorable?

Mista' Coo'

It was a really fun day spent in Central Park!

Billy Elliot

Well, I have been a huge slacker with the blogging lately. I have no excuses... just that I haven't really had the desire. I always have such great ideas for posts, but then when it actually comes down to blogging about it, it just sounds like way too much effort. But here I am now, ready to {slowly} document what we've been up to. This is totally out of order, but this is by far one of the more exciting things we/I have done, so I will start with it...

My mom and dad and two youngest sisters are in town this week, and on the first night they were here, we saw Billy Elliot. It was SO good. It's not your typical broadway experience, but that was part of what made it so great. The dancing and music are both incredible, but it's also a very moving story, and to top it all off, it was hilarious! I am not easily offended by this type of thing, so this didn't bother me, but there is a lot of swearing, and there is probably someone smoking a cigarette in almost every scene. You kind of just have to realize the time and place that is being represented, and it makes total sense. It takes place in a lower class mining community in England, during 1984, so it didn't really seem out of place or crude to me. Just a warning for those of you that are bothered by that. Anyway, it's definitely a must see. They just won a Tony for Best Musical, and the 3 Billys won for best actor, so it was completely sold out. Luckily my mom is a die hard, and stood in the cancellation line for almost 3 hours to get tickets 10 minutes before the show started. But we sat in the dead center of the 3rd row from the stage, so it was definitely worth it!

How cute is this kid?!? This is the Billy that we saw, and he was ADORABLE, and so talented. There are 3 {actually 4 now} Billys that share the role, as it is so demanding. Here is a clip from Regis and Kelly of the 3 Billys doing one of the songs from the show. Obviously it's different from this in the show, as only one does it, but I think it's fun to see them doing it together. Enjoy!