When Pigs Fly

 Well, they say when pigs fly...they were flying at the park this day! ;) This is the year of the pig, so people have gone a little crazy with the pigs, including glue/nailing them to the tree! The kids thought it was funny and a few wanted a picture in the tree with the flying pig.

 Papaw and Regan were helping Katherine into the tree.

 Hudson just wanted his picture taken with the pretty flowers in the background.

 I'm not quite sure what these two got tickled about, but they were laughing so hard that they both started crying while they were trying to smile for the picture :)

 I think it's official that I'm going to be the short one around here. Benjamin and I got photo bombed by his big sister :)

 Mamaw and Papaw with all the grandkids

 This flying pig hasn't made it off the ground yet.

 Mamaw and Papaw were about to head back to the States to visit with Emily for a bit.  The kids each sent something back for Emily.  The stress in the house was a little comical because the kids realized that time had gone by fast and they only had 2 days to get there gifts together...and no simple handwritten note would do the trick. It had to be perfect...it was for EMILY! Oh the tears and the panic that followed...they love Auntie Em! I wish I had a picture of each one, but in all the panic and drama, I forgot to get a photo, but I know what they each did. Lauren made this elephant pillow, Katherine made some flowers with quilling paper, Hudson made a card and a bead craft, Regan drew and elephant picture, and Benjamin drew Emily and her dog Linus. They all did great and each gift was full of more love than she will ever know :)

 Poor Scout. The kids are always adding bows to HIS hair because they think it's cute and funny. It's a good thing he doesn't mind.

 Hudson and Lauren working on some more bead crafts. This is actually the first time that he's been patient enough and had the right fine motor skills to complete one of these by himself. I hadn't pulled it out in awhile, so the kids had fun making them again.

 Well, we went out to eat with Mamaw and Papaw. We were crossing the road to catch the bus back home when Regan's foot got caught between the sidewalk and the concrete pillar that is to keep cars from driving on the sidewalk (big foot problems) and she completely went flying through the air and landed on the ground. She was holding her new water bottle in one hand and her new phone in the other. She never let go of either. Her arm and elbow got really cut up on her right arm, and her phone took the brunt of the fall for her left arm. Needless to say, the phone was shattered, but she was OK. I took her phone in to see if there was any hope. They replaced everything while I waited!! Hudson came with me and was fascinated by the whole thing.I'm so glad they were able to fix it (and for cheap, too!)

 So, with all the craziness that went on over the holidays, we never made our gingerbread houses! So four of the kids wanted to make them anyways...so in late February, we made the houses! :)

 We had not made them here before, and the kids had a lot of fun.

 Regan needed snow on the plate for hers.

 And Lauren needed a sidewalk.

 This is just to remind me one day when she all grown up...this is the face I see every night :)  She gets her shower and then comes to our room, sits on the bed, and just talks. Sometimes it's just for a few minutes and sometimes it's for a few hours...but I enjoy these days/nights.

 Shut apparently thought Katherine needed a bath. He insisted on cleaning her face, ears, whatever he could get to! Lauren was afraid that she was next and was hiding behind her shirt. :)

 Shadow styling with Katherine's glasses

 This girl...she's been saving for an American Girl doll, but when she saw "the most gorgeous beautiful slime" she has ever seen, she "just had to buy it" :)

 She wanted me to take a picture of it before she mixed it all together.

 It's time for another haircut!

 Looking good as always!

 Dance class

Feb. 26....I still got flowers for my birthday!!

Surprise Birthday Gift

 Well, Jonathan managed to really surprise me! He arranged for his parents to come and stay with the kids, and he took me to New York City for my 40th birthday!!!  I've always wanted to go...and it was a much needed break.

 This food truck was out in front of our hotel every morning selling bagels.

 We were a little jet lagged, but enjoyed just walking around seeing everything.

 Majestic Theater...

 Times Square

 The M&M store in Times Square

 I thought this mug looked like Jonathan ;)

 I just had to get a souvenir. Each of the white M&M's say I love NY.

 Pizza Pizza

 My heart is happy...Chic-fil-A

 One last picture in NY before catching the connection to SC.

 NBS News

 They were getting ready for the State of the Union.

 Ice Skating at Rockefeller Center....no we didn't skate...we didn't want to chance a fall and then spending the rest of the trip in the ER, so we just took a picture :)

 pretty cool Lego set

 St. Patrick's Cathedral

 It really was beautiful inside.

 Radio City Music Hall

 An art project on display...the students were given a sleigh and told to represent NYC with it. I though it was pretty creative.

 Also on display...a little strange, but I thought my kids would love it! :)

 We were walking around trying to see everything that we could!

 While we were checking out the above location, we were asked if we would be willing to be in the audience to the rehearsal of the Late Night Show. So we said yes, and went to go get some dinner before getting back to the studio.

 Everything was so pretty.

 Here we are waiting to go into the studio.  It was actually quite fun to see the entire process of making the show.

 A BEAUTIFUL police horse!!

 Finally getting to see the Statue of Liberty :)

 It was a beautifully clear day!

 Inside the Statue....it's a long way up!

 NYC Skyline

 Mandatory Selfie :)

 After the Sttue of Liberty, the boat to you to Ellis Island.

 We were waiting on Ellis Island for the next boat back to the city. The nice clear day was gone and cloudy, windy, and cold had arrived!

 Freedom Tower

 We went to the 9-11 Memorial Museum.

 Most places in the museum you were not allowed to take pictures. It was done really well. I'm so glad we went.

 The reflecting pools where the buildings once stood.

 Yes, welcome to Chic-fil-A...and breathe in the fresh air ;)

 Yum!

 It was kinda fun to see the iconic Macy's store. It was much bigger than I realized and looked different than I was expecting.

The entrance to the store. We went in, but it's almost too big.  It's eight stories and literally takes up an entire block. If you are just wanting to browse, you really don't know where to go. I still enjoyed it though.

 I had no idea that escalators used to be entirely made out of wood. It was probably my favorite part of the store :)

 I know. You've seen Panera before, but I'll take a taste of America for my b-day. :)

 Street Art

 The kids said we really needed to visit Christina Tosi's bakery, Milk Bar.

 She has many different desserts. I ordered the cereal milk shake...and it was REALLY GOOD!

 I found this gem walking down a random street exploring the city...NY Cake. I was having fun.

 They made this city skyline in the store using different cake pans...pretty cool idea.

 The Flatiron Building

 Ok, So, I had to stop by the Manhattan JCPenney store...it's a requirement ;)

 One morning we went to the Brooklyn Bridge and walked across to Brooklyn.

 We ate at Julianna's Pizza. These pizzas were HUGE!

 I'm glad we beat the rush because the line stayed out the door.

 Walking back across the Brooklyn Bridge

 The sun had come out and everything looked so different from the morning.

 I like that the guys were playing chess in the past and having a good time!

 While we were in NY, the kids were back at home with Mamaw and Papaw and our friends.  They sent us these pictures to show us that they were having fun without us ;)

 They really enjoyed the new trampoline park.

 Hudson kept challenging Hua Quan to push up challenges.

 I think both the guys enjoyed the challenge ;)

 Benjamin didn't really feel like jumping so scored a Starbucks with Xiao Jun and Mamaw :)

 I think this is one of Katherine's favorite spots

 They all got ice cream afterward.

 There's just something about this selfie. It makes me smile every time.

 So, back to New York...I got a Starbuck's also...but no seats! It was standing only. Apparently, not all of them are this way, but it would be the one that we chose.

 Welcome to the Empire State Building

 It was sooooo cold and soooooooooo windy! I'm surprised we didn't blow off the roof. Great views! Didn't disappoint at all.

 I even managed to get the helicopter in the picture. It flew right up to the building, hovered for a minute and then left. I'm sure those are some expensive tours!

 The public library

 Grand Central Station

 The United Nations

 The lobby of our hotel room...notice the game on tv. This made my hubby very happy.  Vols Basketball

 I think out of all the food we had in NY, this Japanese place was my favorite.

 It was so good!

 Waiting in line to see Phantom of the Opera!

 We picked another little pizza joint for lunch on Sunday. We knew we had picked a good place after we saw a group arrive that we had met that morning. Always order what the chef says is the best ;)

 The Guggenheim

 A really cool tree at Central Park

 Central Park is huge by the way...much bigger than I realized. We enjoyed walking through it.

 Poor little geese must be cold.

 Yes, so many people run in Central Park...this guy not only ran but juggled at the same time. Hmmm. I'll stick to walking ;)

 Ice Skating in Central Park

 Interesting. I guess it keeps the wind from being so cold when you are selling stuff on the streets all day.

 This was some of Regan's homework for science class. She had to build something using only the things at home and show tons of transfers of energy, and it had to really work. It was quite the project.

 It took a little longer than they thought it would, but the cheers at the end of the video when all the steps worked as planned...cute.

 The Westminster Dog Show was at Madison Square Gardens!! I really wanted to see it just because, but we had a plane to catch. I did get to watch from the lobby and enjoyed it just the same. But this dog, really?! Poor Chinese Crested Thing

As we were flying out of the airport....I think it's my knew favorite saying :)