NYC Days 4-6

More adventures we have partaken of the last couple of days.

We trudged down 5th avenue to explore FAO Schwartz (the toy store), on an errand for my mom. On our way to the Museum of Modern Art (MoMa) we found this famous LOVE  sculpture. 

In the MoMa we encountered some very interesting "art" exhibits. Some were very cool, others were just silly. I'm no philosopher on "what is art" but some of those things were plain ridiculous.

The awesome/cool/definitely art:

The not-so-cool/ridiculous "art":

string in a trapezoid shape

legos (not in any distinct shape or form) and a slinky

After the MoMa we explored Times Square (which reminds us both of Vegas without the casinos). 

We unsuccessfully tried for the lottery to see Wicked. I was so hopeful, too, but alas. No Wicked this time. After standing in the cold for the lottery, we sipped some Godiva Hot Chocolate (!!).

Rockefeller Center is beautiful at night with all the lights aglow. It was packed with people, so we only stayed long enough for a few photos.

The Manhattan Temple is beautiful inside--it reminds me of some of the beauties of the Nauvoo Temple. 

A friend of mine told me about a restaurant called "s'mac." They make a variety of macaroni and cheeses. Mmm...num...a..num... It was scrumptious.

Oh, we've done so much more. We'll post more when we get home.

NYC Trip Days 1-3

We are here on Manhattan Island, New York. So far, so good! We're having a great time, and there's still lots to do. Here are some highlights thus far. Stay tuned for more.

Brooklyn Bridge and Brooklyn

Pier 17/South Street Market
Statue of Liberty
Wall Street Bull

UN Headquarters General Assembly Hall (with Sam's friend Neibaur)

Macy's on 34th St

View from top of Empire State Building

Whatta Deal!

About a week ago my sister-in-law told me about a spectacular deal at Old Navy. She took me to check it out for myself.

This is what I ended up buying:
- 1 jersey knit skirt
- 1 pair of black slacks
- 3 pairs of capris
- 2 blouses
For a grand total of: $11.40. Yep, just one dollar and forty cents more than $10.

There is ONE catch, though: I purchased these from the MATERNITY section (hint, hint, nudge, nudge)!

The Day Has Come

Congrats to Sam!!

Moments Like These

Moments and beauties of the earth like these renew my faith in The Creator of our world, our bodies, and our spirits. (as seen from the flight from Detroit to Salt Lake City last week)

Atlanta Adventures

Last Friday I flew to Atlanta. I was able to have a little bit of down time during the days, but early mornings and late nights greeted me viciously the rest of the time.

One of the highlights, in addition to a wonderful International Food Extravaganza and an evening at the Atlanta History Center (exhibits of Norman Rockwell and Jim Henson were there), was a formal dinner (you know, the kind where you aren't quite sure what you are eating, all the youth around you ask 20 times which utensil they should use, and the majority of the people are wearing fancy dresses I only wished covered more of their bodies...).

I decided to get a little dolled up for the occasion. I wore a new pink blouse (I know, a shocker for all of you--I never wear pink) (Target special while I was in California), with some sparkly hair pieces, AND I curled my hair. AND it stayed curly. The trick: curling it with a straightener. Who'da thought? Amazing. You can kind of see it here:
The best part of the formal dinner was definitely the guests. Not only did the one and only Miss America 2008 speak and sing Christmas songs to us, we had the unmatched presence of these fine fellows: assorted varieties of fish,
a few ominous looking sharks,three humongo whale sharks--gentle giants that look harmless,and, the best guests of all, three beautiful glowing beluga whales, who danced to the music and greeted us warmly behind the glass. Such are the treasures of a formal dinner in the ballroom at the Atlanta Georgia Aquarium. It is simply so hard to be away from home and travel...(sigh). :)

Motivational Speaker

Last Wednesday evening I attended a motivational presentation at the AFCPE Conference in Garden Grove, CA. The speaker was John Hope Bryant, who is the vice-chairman of the U.S. President's Council on Financial Literacy (among other things).

He was indeed a motivational speaker. Knowing that notes will not do the presentation justice, I feel it might still be worth something.

Here are a few of my notes from his presentation:

- Fear is bringing down our country. Fear's 1st cousin is greed. Greed's roommate is laziness. Laziness' best friend is "me" not "we."

- You don't need to be conceded, just convinced. Don't be cynical, but skeptical--to be cynical is to not have hope.

- John spoke about how his associates couldn't believe that he agreed to work under Pres. George W. Bush. This is what he had to say about this: It's the stupidest thing to wish your president to fail. If he's doing bad--assume he is being given bad counsel, and go and give him good counsel. If he fails, WE ALL FAIL. (Amen to that!)

- Re-imagine the world you want to live in. Sometimes it takes a re-thinking of things in order to make our world what we want it to be. Re-imagine the world you want to live in.

- 5% of the population as (good, positive) role models is all that's needed to stabilize a community.

- I think this was my favorite part (along with the above comment about a President failing): We're living in a historical moment but it doesn't have to end bad. We are going to make it through.
Barack Obama isn't going to save you.
The Senators aren't going to save you.
The republican party isn't going to save you.
The democrat party isn't going to save you.
Your Mayor won't save you.
Your employer won't save you.
YOU are going to save you!

- You don't get credit for what you are supposed to do...be proud of what you gave and not what you got.

- Even badness is failed goodness.

- My next favorite part: Instead of being an expert on what we're against, be an expert on what we are FOR.

John stated he'd have this speech put online for us to listen to. I haven't been able to find it yet, but when I do, I'll post the link. It was a great presentation, and I am grateful for his optimism and example of how we are to be true citizens of this great, God-given country. The constitution truly is inspired, and our country is about "we the people."