It's (one of) the Most Wonderful Time(s) of the Year!

I love fall!!

The smell, the weather, the festivals, the fun....I could go on and on. There is so much to do here in Greenville, SC in the fall. Our weekends are pretty much booked with fun activities and birthday parties and Halloween excitement.
It is also that time when my blog gets transformed! YAY!! The fun Halloween backgrounds and that spooky, crazy, and sometimes funny Halloween music.

HAPPY FALL! and ENJOY!!

Where Were You?

I know we all can remember exactly where we were on September 11, 2001, it is engrained on our memories forever. I was still single and living an hour from New York City. My children were still in the arms of a loving Heavenly Father. For that reason, I choose to share my experience here so that in the future they can read and hopefully have some understanding of why when I remember, I am sad.

I moved to New Jersey in May of 2000 to be a nanny, or a glorified babysitter :) I spent many Saturdays in New York City with other nannies and with the family I was working for. I fell in love with the city and the "New York state of mind." I could have lived there forever and been content. On one of those journey's into the city before September 11th I took these pictures. It wasn't until I was married with children that I came upon them and felt the need to treasure them forever.

The morning of September 11th, 2001 I was going about my morning as usual. I took one child I nannied for to school and took the other child with me to the grocery store. I walked in the store and saw many confused and emotional faces. I heard talk of a plane and New York City. I got back in the car and turned the radio on to here extreme emotion in the voices coming from the speakers. It was surreal. I called my family in Utah, knowing that it was 7am, and told them to turn on the TV.
Once I got back home it was impossible to peel my eyes off the television screen. My phone rang.  It was a man who was friends with the family I worked for. He was in the city and was having problems getting in touch with his wife to insure her that he was safe. For some reason he was able to call me. I relayed the messege to his wife and her relief was evident. The parents of the kids I took care of came home early. I spent the rest of my day in my room, watching the horror and despair on the faces of family members looking for loved ones.
The next morning I saw another side of the devestation. I witnessed a woman at the school crying. Crying for the husband who was in the North tower when the plane hit. It was sad and I wished that there was something I could do for her. For her children.
I went to New York shortly after that day. I took friends with me. We walked down to the site and saw the devestation with our own eyes. I will always remember coming out of the train station and seeing all the papers taped to the walls of the station. Papers with faces of loved ones lost. Hundreds of them. The fences around Ground Zero covered in more faces. Sadness filled my heart.
I am a mother now and I want nothing more than for my children to stay innocent and safe. One day they will read this and hopefully understand. One day.

(The new memorial at ground zero)

Vacation 2011

We have kinda been homebodies this year; haven't really been anywhere. We took a quick Labor Day weekend trip to Atlanta and had a great time! We only stayed one night but it was definitely worth it.
We went to the Georgia Aquarium, the World of Coca-Cola, the Atlanta LDS Temple, and the LDS bookstore.

Our trip in pictures:

 Our friend Brian and his son went with us :)

This past month we also had Michael's mom here to visit. We went to a very yummy and kid friendly cafe for lunch..it is called the Runway Cafe and it is at the Greenville downtown airport. The boys had such a great time watching the planes take off and land while they ate:

We are now ready for fall and birthdays and holidays and festivals. Our favorite time of the year!!

1st day of 1st grade!

Well, my sweet Tanner started 1st grade today :) He was so excited and was extremely happy when I made pancakes for breakfast this morning. He was in seventh heaven :) He didn't want me to walk him in to the school, he is a big boy you know?!?!? Well, I did it anyway....I needed pictures for my blog! hahaha! He is not old enough to walk in on his first day all by himself, I had to know that he knew where he was going. Here is his walk:

I hope Tanner has a fantastic day!!

Our Summer in a nutshell

It is tough being a mom, a wife, a student, and more. I guess that is my excuse for being "that blogger" who has not posted since May. Good grief! What is wrong with me? OK, here is our summer in a nutshell.
We went to Table Rock State Park and had a great time. It is so beautiful and reminds me so much of Utah but with more trees :)

Tanner went to summer camp again and had an interesting summer. He was picked on a little and didn't have as much fun as he did last year but he says he wants to go back again.

We have been to parks alot because the boys have a great time and mommy can read her book while enjoying the sunshine.

And we had a great visit from Nana (my mom) in July. She brought the boys Groucho Marks glasses and they had a ball.

Well, that is our summer....we didn't do much but what we did do, we did together and had a great time. School is starting next week and Tanner is very excited to be in first grade. I am Vice President over programs from the PTA so I will be spending alot of time at the school this year. I know, just one more thing to add to my busy life. As school starts and life gets back to normal I should be better at blogging. Plus, my favorite time of year is coming fast. Fall festivals, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and birthdays for everyone but Zach will occur in the next 4 months so thing blog will be a popular place.