"To be or not to be..."

Jennifer was a terrific Hamlet in her school play. She practiced her lines for several weeks so she could concentrate on her acting and not worry about trying to remember what she should be saying.

Cherry Blossoms in Washington, D.C.

This is the time of year the cherry blossom watch and predictions begin. A news report said that this year's most likely peak viewing days would be between March 27 and April 3, and it reminded us of our wonderful visit to Washington, D.C. and New York City with Jaime and Jennifer during spring break last year.
There are several thousand Japanese cherry trees around the tidal basin and Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C. and it is spectacular when they open up. It is like walking in a fairy tale. The cherry blossoms typically reach their peak the first two weeks of April. However, with climate change those dates have been moving forward. Among our trips to D.C. to try to see the cherry blossoms this is the first time we hit them on their peak.

We went to NYC first and finished in D.C. The peak days were Friday, March 30th and Saturday, 31st. We enjoyed a walk around the entire basin on Friday with very few people, but the following day, Saturday, when we made the loop again, it was quite crowded. The link below provides information on the National Cherry Blossom Festival:

http://www.nationalcherryblossomfestival.org/cms/index.php?id=390

The NYC portion of our trip was also fun. Blaine's sister, Marilee and her family, live in NYC and they joined us for The Lion King show on Broadway and some sightseeing.

Snow Day!!!

Ever since Jennifer first saw the movie, "Snow Days" she has wondered if she would ever experience one. We've told her not to count on it since the school district here rarely cancels school because of snow. I think the last time they did was over ten years ago. Well, today Jennifer got her wish. We received about 3 inches of snow overnight which usually isn't a big deal but there was a layer of black ice under the snow which made the conditions treacherous. When she heard Channel 7 announce this morning that all of the Boise Schools would be closed today she let out a great big "Yippee!" She spent most of the day playing in the snow, having snowball fights with her friends, and shoveling our big driveway :). I hope the day was all that she had imagined it would be. She certainly was tired when she crawled into bed tonight. I can remember what it was like to have a snow day. There was always something magical about them.

The picture shown below was taken a few days later when the sun came out. It is not often the creek freezes, but it was cold enough long enough this year to freeze the moving water (at least on the top).

Happy Birthday, Jessica!

Today we celebrate Jessica's birthday. It's hard to believe that she's grown up with a baby of her own. It seems like yesterday that she was a baby herself. Jessica is a beautiful person both inside and out and is turning out to be a wonderful mother, too.

Jessica is also very artistic. She painted this watercolor of the Salt Lake Temple as a wedding gift for her sister, Jaime. She must have inherited the artistic talent from her Grandma Chloe because she didn't get it from her from parents. We love you Jessica. Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday

It's a special day today for two great men in our family.

It would have been my Dad's 87th birthday. He passed away last October and we miss him terribly, especially on a day like today.

The other person celebrating a birthday is our son, Jason. He was born on his grandpa's 60th birthday. Oops, I just gave Jason's age away...sorry! Jason and Grandpa had a special bond, perhaps it was because they shared the same birth date.

I'd Rather Be Skiing?

I don't like winter. It is too gray, especially when there is an inversion in the valley. Today has been one of those days. We received 4 inches of fresh snow last night but it wasn't enough to get rid of the gray skies. We're planning on going skiing tomorrow morning. (I don't particularly like to ski but I do it anyway to please the family.) Curious as to what the conditions are at Bogus Basin I logged onto their website and this is what I found...

...Wouldn't you know it, it's beautiful! Most of the time when we're skiing it is gray, foggy and cold! Why couldn't we be skiing today? I might get to like it if it looked like this all the time. I hope it will be nice in the morning. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

Bug Infestation!

Last week Jessica and Isaac, who they affectionately call "the little bug", came for a visit. It's been fun having them around. They'll be with us until the end of the week. Isaac is a sweet baby and cute. Jessica is pretty sweet and cute, too!

We were never quite sure why Jessica and Bryce called Isaac their "bug" until we saw Jessica swaddle him in his blanket to put him to sleep.

Doesn't he look like a caterpillar? It gives new meaning to the saying, "As snug as a bug in a rug." We definitely like this kind of "bug" infestation!