Hey, I'm Back...

I've decided that I miss blogging and the record that it provides for our family, so I'm going to attempt a little comeback here.  I doubt I'll ever get as into it as I was a few years ago, but here's hoping I can stay consistent enough to get at least some of our highlights down.  

So, it's been a week!   On Saturday, it was this sweet missionary's 20th birthday!   I was so excited to hear that she'd actually received her packages on time and it was fun to watch her open them over the phone.   I LOVE LOVE LOVE that particular missionary rule change that allows us to communicate with Emma on a regular basis.   BEST. THING. EVER.

I also loved that she sent us this picture from later in the day.   All the sisters in her apartment dressed up for Halloween.    Emma was Arthur--the kids' storybook/tv show character. 😁

We spent quite a while talking with Emma, then went out on one of our favorite hikes to Ridley Creek State Park!   The loop we do is about 5-1/2 miles long and involves passing by a small dam, so of course it's our favorite. 😆  The weather was a little chilly that day, but the leaves were PERFECTION!  I love autumn.

Here's a random picture I found on my phone of Cami and Garrett--both students in Texas.  

Tuesday was Election Day and Adam, at 18 years and 18 days old, got the privilege of being one of the youngest people to vote!   It's been a crazy election and it took us forever to figure out who we wanted to vote for.   We honestly felt like it was choosing between the lesser of two evils and I didn't make my official decision until the morning of.  With all that indecision though, we definitely did not want to miss voting. 😑  We very much recognize it as a privilege to be able to vote and I am grateful to live in the USA. 

We waited 2 hours, 15 minutes in line in the freezing cold to vote, so it's a darn good thing we felt so strongly about it, or it would have been really easy to walk away and go home.  

Here's a closer look at the cool stickers we received after voting.    

After voting we took an almost 3-hour trek to Northern Virginia for Ellie to visit her pediatric neurologist.   We tried to find her one in Pennsylvania, but, alas, searching for a new specialist in a pandemic is not the easiest thing in the world and ultimately we decided that it would be easier to drive her to VA than to wait whoever knows how long before she could get an appointment here.   So we drove her there, took her to the doctor, then turned around and came home.   We literally saw no one and did nothing else than take her to the doctor.  But it's done and we got to see this sunset on the way home.   This particular picture was actually taken by Adam as he left work in PA, but we were very much admiring it as well on the way home.  

On Wednesday we headed downtown for Adam's boat building class.  Glen's job just ended last week, so it was fun to have him join us for that.   We went to the Nation Constitution Center, a place we really enjoy and we think the whole world should visit.   The "Freedom Rising" show is normally live and is worth the price of admission by itself, but even just watching the film version (due to COVID) was still cool.    We also love the Signers Hall with lifesize statues of all the signers of the Constitution and the exhibits about the amendments.    

We also maintained our Wednesday tradition of eating Philly Cheesesteaks for lunch.  WE've been on a quest to find the best cheesesteak restaurant in Philly and have been to over 15 as part of that quest. 

 We decided that instead of trying a new one this week, that we'd introduce Dad to one of our top 3....so we took him to Gooey Louie's.  And after try #2, it's definitely still staying in our top 3.  One day we're going to buy one from each of the top 3 at once and try them side by side and figure out which one is the best of the best.  

Here is a cool shot Adam took down by the river.  

And lastly, what would a blogpost be without a picture of food?  I try hard to make my first meal after fasting as wholesome as I can, and this one hit the spot bigtime for me!   A vegetable saute, with fresh avocado, and a big bowl of frozen blueberries with a small splash of almond milk.  

This is not normally the type of thing I eat for breakfast, but after fasting, it was delicious and ultra-satisfying!  

And that is all for now.   

A Pretty Unpleasant Commute

Glen got a new job this past year and now has a 145-mile commute to work. 

No, I'm not missing any decimal points there and, yeah, that's about as pleasant as it sounds. 

He spends all week in a Residence Inn and comes home for the weekends.   In other words, our weeks seem long and lonely and our weekends far too short.   But it's a good job that's giving him good professional experience, decent insurance for our family, and a paycheck...all things we were mostly missing in 2018....so we are grateful!  

Right now he's in an interim position, so it makes no sense to uproot the family to join him yet, but after living 5/7 of the last three months in separate states, moving is definitely on the radar screen if his position becomes permanent.   We've lived here in the DC area for about 20 years, so moving  really is a HUGE deal that makes all of us pretty nervous.   My kids at home have never even lived in another house, yet alone another city or state.  

So this last weekend we decided to switch up the commute and instead of him coming home as he usually does,  he stayed there and the rest of us drove to join him!     What better way to get a feel for an area, than to be there and experience it for ourselves?   

I weirdly took very few pictures while we were there, but this is what the day looked like when we left... 

It was a very small snowstorm in the scheme of things, but it did make for more stressful driving.   And temperatures were pretty frigid, so nothing was melting fast and we had to bring lots of warm clothes!  

Our three main goals of being there {besides saving Glen 300 miles of driving} were to 

1. Drive through some neighborhoods....

{It's a cheaper cost of living in the Philadelphia area!}

2. Go to the temple together.... 

One of the best perks about working near Philadelphia is that Glen has been able to go to the temple almost every week.   This is especially nice because the DC temple is currently closed and will be for at least another year.  Me getting to Philadelphia has proved a little more challenging, so this was definitely one of the motivating factors to switch things up last weekend. 

And it was lovely to be there and have a little date in the city with my hunny.

3. Visit a couple of wards (church congregations)

{I didn't take any pictures of us at church, so this picture of me after church  will have to do here}

Let's just say that church-wise, it will be a pretty significant adjustment if we end up moving there.  We've been spoiled.   

All in all, it was a productive weekend.   And next time, I'll take more pictures!  

The Baptism

The main reason for our weekend in Philadelphia (besides seeing the temple open house) was to be a part of my nephew's baptism.    

It was so fun to have so much family in town for the occasion!

Including 10/14 of the Crain cousins.   

I also very much loved the Baby Ben snuggles I got to enjoy. 

Glen couldn't get the time off of work, so he just joined us for the day.   

I loved being able to spend time with my parents.... 

and token British brother, Matt. 

I also enjoyed the opportunity to photobomb my brother, Pete, who was reluctant to have his picture taken.  

Ever since our trip to Europe, in which we each packed all of our belongings into a backpack only, I've been kind of obsessed with packing light.   I loved the freedom of not having a ton of stuff to tote around on our adventures.    I may have taken it a bit too far this time though, as I totally forgot to pack dental floss, mouthwash, toothpaste, hairbrush,  pajamas, and I was short one outfit.  In other words, I slept in my clothes (that I had to double up on wearing anyway), never brushed my hair, and had to brush my teeth with Emma's organic toothpaste.    I did end up going to a store for some dental hygiene stuff, especially since Adam also forgot his toothbrush, which with him having braces was too disgusting an omission  for me to ignore. 

Philadelphia Temple

In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we build temples as special places of worship. They are different than the meetinghouses where we meet and worship together every week and we consider them to be sacred, holy places where special ordinances (such as weddings) are performed. 

When I was growing up in Minnesota, our family drove 24-hours to the nearest temple in Salt Lake or Washington DC. That distance meant that we could only go once a year, at most. When I was a teen, they built a temple in Chicago, which then made it only an 8-hour drive to get to. This was a HUGE blessing for my family and all the people who lived in the midwest. 

When I was in college there were about 50 temples throughout the world, which meant that people in many places still had significant distances to travel to get to a temple. In the mid-90's an announcement was made that they were going to start building smaller temples in more places, to get them closer to the people. Twentyish years later there are now 150 temples throughout the world and these temples continue to bless the people and the communities where they are located. 

We are in Philadelphia right now, where a brand new temple was just built. It's right in the heart of the city and quite a beautiful sight to behold! The architecture resembles that of other historic buildings in the area and THEY ARE GIVING FREE TOURS RIGHT NOW for anyone (church member or not) who is interested in seeing the inside of a temple! Tours are available now through early September. 

We took our tour yesterday and really enjoyed seeing the unique interior of this lovely building. {Pictures were not allowed to be taken in the interior, so the following pictures are from this website} 

This is the baptismal font where vicarious baptismal ordinances are performed for those who died without a knowledge of the gospel. Of course, this isn't a forced baptism, since we also believe that the deceased person has the opportunity to accept or reject the baptism in the afterlife. 

This is the celestial room, where no ordinances are performed, but people go to contemplate and enjoy the quiet and peace found there. 

This is an instruction room where we learn more about God's plan for us. 

This is a "sealing room" where marriages are performed for time AND eternity. Glen and I were married in a very similar looking room in the Denver temple in 1993. 

We also loved all the nods throughout the temple to the history of the area. There are pieces of art depicting the founding of our country and some of the great historical events that took place here in Philadelphia. 

It really was a joy to bring the kids there and answer questions they had about the temple. We've also been enjoying our Jack/Lincoln/Ben time, which is slightly easing my missing-Cami-ache! 

My nephew, visiting from England (on top of the dog pile here) is getting baptized here in Pennsylvania tomorrow, which is why we were lucky enough to get them to come hang out with us for a while! 

"There exists a righteous unity between the temple and the home. Understanding the eternal nature of the temple will draw you to your family; understanding the eternal nature of the family will draw you to the temple." —Gary E. Stevenson

I love my family and am so grateful for the blessings of the temple in our lives! 

How Far Would You Drive for a Good Burger?

Glen has had a lot going on at work lately, which means that we didn't see much of him this Christmas break.     Even his nights and weekends were consumed with work and in the end he was only able to take three days off during the whole two-week break (Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Year's Day).  

So when New Year's Day rolled around and we'd hardly seen Glen, we decided to take a little family trip to Baltimore for the day.   Glen's first job out of college was at an accounting firm there in Baltimore, and we lived there in the summers of 1995 and 1996, and full-time from 1997-1999.    His company had corporate passes to the zoo, science center, and aquarium and as such we visited all three on a very regular basis when we lived there.     

Despite the fact that Washington DC is only about 50 miles from Baltimore, in the fifteen years since we've lived here, we've only trekked back to downtown Baltimore a handful of times.  Especially since without those lovely corporate passes to see the sites, the admission prices are astronomical!  

So when  my brother Tim purchased us a family pass to the National Aquarium in Baltimore for Christmas, we were all VERY excited!    It's been a number of years since we've been there, and it was a delight to go back and introduce the Aquarium to the younger kids!   

Because of the holiday, it was pretty crowded, but not so crowded as to hinder our enjoyment of being there together.   We  oohed and ahed  the whole way through, but especially enjoyed the dolphins,  jellyfish, and rainforest exhibit!  

It's not often that we visit places all together as a family anymore and we thoroughly enjoyed our day at the aquarium and look forward to going back a few more times this year! 

After our visit to the Aquarium, we did a crazy thing.   

We drove an additional 80 miles past Baltimore to Pennsylvania so we could  eat here...

It's called Ruby's Diner and Spence and Glen have had a bit of a fascination with it since eating there one time on the way home from a BYU football game.  

The kids and I ate there just this past summer when Cami was up in Philadelphia  at her leadership conference, but it had been a few years since Glen and Spencer had been able to.    We were all quite excited to partake in this very unhealthy, but delicious meal of burgers, sweet potato fries, and milkshakes (with a lactose pill of course).   I'm sure the employees thought we were a little crazy for having come all the way from Virginia for burgers and fries, but everything was pretty darn tasty and what the heck?  New Year's only comes around once a year and it was a fun way to ring in 2015!

    I slept most of the 130-miles back home, which meant I arrived back home well-rested, well-fed, and well-satisfied at being able to spend an entire day together as a family!  

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Adventures in Philly

Visiting a new city is exciting, but I love going back again the next time even better.   There's not as much pressure to see and do everything at once and it feels like you can actually enjoy the city for what it is.   

It took us 14-years of living in the east before we visited Philadelphia as a family for the first time.   That was Spring Break 2011 and we jam-packed as much into that trip as we possibly could.   This trip to Philly felt much more relaxed since we'd already seen and done all the big stuff last time.   We had a little more than 24 hours to spend there and I was not interested in waiting in long lines and feeling stressed, so we just planned for fun instead.    

Instead of touring all  the history sites like we'd done before, we decided to listen to stories!   They have 10 storytelling benches set up around the city near historical sites.  Between 11-4 they have professional storytellers sitting there waiting to tell a story for free to anyone who comes by to sit on their bench.   It was very fun and I enjoyed the stories as much as the kids.  Here is the Once Upon a Nation website if you're interested in trying them out:  http://historicphiladelphia.org/once-upon-a-nation/storytelling-benches/  

The only site that my kids were really excited to see again was the Liberty Bell.   

Luckily we got there before 11:00am and missed the crowds.  When we walked by later that day, the lines were around the building!   I highly recommend going in the morning!   

The storytelling benches got us walking all around the historical part of the city and at one point right by this cute little bakery.   The macarons were pretty amazing and my kids were enchanted by the fun fairy tale decor!  

 

 We ended up with an afternoon to spend, so we opted for the Franklin Institute science museum.  We spent five hours there and could have easily spent even longer!  

They played and played and played some more...

 Most of the activities had educational knowledge they could gain...

but mostly they just had fun running around and being together!  

They fought a little over activities that they could only do one at a time like this one where they attempted to create a building with magnets and metal rods that would withstand a fake earthquake.  When their building fell apart, they all wanted to keep trying to build a better building.  They kept fighting over who took whose piece and finally we had to start taking turns! 

There were a couple of activities that had this warning sign in front of them.  

The first time Ellie noticed it, she was almost in tears that she couldn't participate in the activity because of her seizures.    One of the activities I completely understood why it wouldn't work for her to have a seizure on it, but on another one we decided that there was no danger for her to have a seizure while doing it, so we just never mentioned it to the workers and decided to go for it anyway.  

We waited in line for over half-an-hour to try it out and Ellie must have asked me nervously a dozen times whether I was sure it was okay for her to do it with her seizures, but in the end it was a fun experience she was glad to have tried!  

Here is Adam timidly trying it out.   

 Emma doing flips and tricks on it....

 and Ellie just enjoying being up there.  She had that smile glued to her face the entire time she was up in the air (and she did NOT end up having a seizure)!

Our last stop was Reading Terminal Market where we got fresh juice, Philly Cheesesteaks, and a jar of honey.  The kids (especially Ellie) were completely WORN OUT by the time we left there to pick up Cami from her conference.  

We were excited to see her again and spent another hour or two at Valley Forge with her  to allow rush hour to end before trekking home.  

 It was a fun day and I now like Philly more than ever and look forward to our next visit there!  

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