Happy Birthday to me!!!

I just celebrated another birthday.  Dare I say, this was one of the best??  So many of my friends and family spoiled me.  Flowers, cupcakes, massages, pedicure, cards, love.  It was great! 

We also went to an Indianapolis Indians baseball game the night of my birthday.  It was a playoff game, but they lost.  But they were so nice to put on a fabulous fireworks display just for me! ;-) 

Labor Day Vacation: Part 2

The rest of our vacation was spent driving to some historical landmarks.  We first traveled to Palmyra, New York.  This is where Joseph Smith had his first vision, received the Gold Plates and printed the first Book of Mormon, among others.  Our first stop was the Visitor's Center.  We just love the senior couple missionaries.  They are always so friendly and want to know where you're from.  When we said Indiana, the Elder said he once lived in Bloomington.  Come to find out, he knew many of the same people as Nathan, including his grandmother!  Small world, indeed. 

We toured some of the homes Joseph Smith lived in as a boy.  We walked through the Sacred Grove (which was much bigger than I remember as a little girl), drove by the Temple, and went to the Hill Cumorah. 

We also made at stop at the Book of Mormon publication sight.  We got a brief tour and explanation on how they published the Book of Mormon then.  

 (On a side note, the reason Brooke is not in a lot of pictures is that she was not interested in posing.  She was over it by this point and Charlotte was the only one wanting to be in very many pics)

The next morning, we drove to Niagara Falls.  This was not on our original schedule, but when we realized we were only one hour away, we decided we needed to make a stop!  I'm glad we did, even though we didn't have time for any rides or attractions.  We took some pictures by the falls and then rode the trolley around the park.  It was very crowded!  Next time, we will be sure to plan for most of the day so we can get on the boat.  Although, Brooke was not excited about getting wet....

After leaving Niagara, we headed to Kirtland, Ohio.  It was there that the Latter Day Saints built their first temple and received many revelations in that temple.

 This is the sawmill, that my great-great grandfather, Joel Hills Johnson, built for the purpose of building the Temple. 

After we left Kirtland, we drove to Steak and Shake for dinner and shakes!  Yum!

The next morning, on our way home, we stopped by the Williams cousins.  It was great to catch up with them and our kids really hit it off, even though they only see each other less than once a year!

We had a great time, even though we packed a lot in!  It was a great trip with many memories!

Labor Day Vacation: Part 1

Nathan's brother got married in New Jersey on the Friday before Labor Day.  We decided to make it a family vacation and do as much as we could in a small amount of time.  We picked the kids up at school on Wednesday and drove a few hours to the middle of Pennsylvania.  We drove the rest of the way on Thursday, after stopping for lunch and meeting up with my parents.  It was funny, they were making the same drive to visit my brother and his family.  Unfortunately, it didn't work out this time for me to see my brother and his family because of all the wedding festivities and then they were going to their lake house. 

Thursday night was a rehearsal dinner.  It was a buffet of food!  Shrimp, chicken, ribs, potatoes, pasta, rolls, etc.  So much food!  For dessert there were several kinds of cheesecake and cake.  Yummy! 

Friday morning we decided to get up early and drive out to the ferry to take us to the Statue of Liberty.  We were so glad we did.  I had been before, but Nathan never had or the girls. 

Friday afternoon was the wedding.  David and Christine were so happy. 

 Adam was the ring bearer

Before the reception, there was a cocktail hour with MORE FOOD!!  We felt like we were in food heaven!  Anything and everything.  Pizza, sushi, fruit, veggies, dips, cheeses, pasta, steak, shrimp, lobster, and much, much more!!!  There was something for everyone. 

The kids had a blast dancing the night away at the reception.  Charlotte will tell you that was her favorite part, especially since we don't get Nathan to dance much. ;-)

 The bride and groom put on a special dance for all their guests.  It was fun to watch :-)

I should also mention there was a dessert buffet as we were getting ready to leave...I chose not to go in because I didn't need any more food!  I hear it was amazing though.  They had ice cream, TWO chocolate fountains (one white one), things to dip in the chocolate, popcorn, cotton candy, cannoli's, and more!  Nathan brought me a chocolate covered pretzel.  He knows me well. ;-)