Saying Goodbye

When I was a little girl, I was so bad at saying goodbye. We would leave our cousin's house to travel home and I would cry and cry and cry. Who am I kidding? I am still very bad at it.

This seems to be one of the many traits that I have passed on to my boys. The Woolstenhulme cousins left to fly home from the airport in New Jersey and the Metzger boys were just so very sad. Notice the sad eyes.

Thanks again for coming. It was so great to spend time with you.

Statue Of Liberty

The next day we went to Ellis Island and Liberty Island. These are the only pictures I have. It is when we were waiting to board the ferry in New Jersey to take us over. Again, remember no Joe means no pictures.

New York City

We headed to New York City the day after Holden's baptism. Poor Joe had to stay home and work. Stinks for him, but someone has to pay for all my fun.

We all stayed at Embassy Suites right across the Lincoln Tunnel in New Jersey. The boys and I stayed in Grandma and Grandpa's room. The cousins and Uncle Nathan and Aunt Liesa were right next door.

On Monday we took the bus into Manhattan. The bus stop was right across the street from the hotel.

These are all pictures of the tour bus trip we took of the city. I had never done it before and it was great.

The guy in the corner of the picture with the microphone was our tour guy. He was very informative and tried to be funny. I can't remember his name...

The Brooklyn Bridge

This is a famous jazz club where nearly all the great jazz artists have played. Someday I'm going to visit here, I put it on my bucket list.

These are all drawings done by elementary school kids after September 11th. They are going to put them on tiles and make a memorial out of them.

Apparently, Matthew is upset about me taking his picture.

The bus was really neat, but you can only sit on top. There are no seats inside the bus. This is only a problem when there is a huge rain storm that you are caught on while driving through the city. I don't have any pictures, but it was CRAZY.

I am not good at taking pictures anymore. Joe usually has his camera and takes more pictures than anyone could possibly want, so when he is not around we don't get as much documented.

After the bus ride we hung out in Times Square a little.

Austin was ready to go home.

Here is a close up in case you missed that super cute face!

In spite of the moments of rain, it was a fun day. A special thanks to Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle Nathan, Aunt Liesa, Jacob, Brandon, Tyler, and Austin for going to New York City with us. We LOVE New York.

Baptismal Day

Our Holden was baptized and confirmed today. We would like to thank all of our family and friends who came and added to the joy of the day.

Here are some highlights of the day, in no particular order.

1. Joe only had to say the baptismal prayer two times, as compared with three for Nicholas.

2. After the baptism we served, by request of Holden, Tacos. Yummy Yummy.

3. Melisa made Holden a great CTR cake (that was not from a box) and we all sang Happy Birthday to him.

4. We had beautiful Hydrangeas for centerpieces provided by Gail.

5. In keeping with the unconventional nature of the Metzger family, Bishop Reed sported his flip flops. We love our Bishop!

6. When Noel takes on a project everyone gets put to work. Even little 4 year olds.

7. Whenever large groups of children get together, the instinct is to run wild in packs. They deserved to have some fun though after the great job they did on the special musical number.

8. On these special occasions we are a grateful for the ordinances of the gospel that bind us to our Heavenly Father, to each other, and to all those we love.

Turning Eight is GREAT!

Holden's birthday was extra special this year. Grandma and Grandpa Woolstenhulme and some of his Woolstenhulme cousins were here to help him celebrate.

A birthday won't be a birthday without a special birthday breakfast. Waffles, bacon, fried eggs, and tang were on Holden's menu.

After breakfast we headed off to spend the day at Six Flags. Here are Holden and Grandpa.

The big boys headed off with Aunt Liesa, Uncle Nathan, and Grandpa to go on some rollercoasters. Grandpa was most impressed with his ride on the Flashback.

Matthew, Tyler, Austin, and I headed over to Wiggles World and did some rides there. Look at Austin on the airplanes. How can you not love that face?

Tyler really liked all the characters and wanted to hug all of them. Matthew not so much, but he will go along with anything.

After Six Flags we headed over to Red Rose for some yummy yummy pizza. Family, fun, and food. What more do you need to make a birthday GREAT?

Dear Holden,

Today you are turning 8. What a year of big steps for you. In a few days you will be baptized and make your own covenant with God. And then in a few weeks you will start public school for the first time. While it makes me happy to see you grow and experience life; a little bit of my heart is sad that the time we have together is flying by so very fast.

I love being your mom. Your sweet gentle spirit adds so much to our family. At times I am amazed at the pureness of your heart. I am sure you were sent here to be an example to me and a reminder of what is truly important in life.

Happy Birthday my son! I wish you happiness and excitement as you take these big giant leaps this year.

Love,

Mom

Driving Home

Joe likes to drive. At least that is the excuse for never letting me drive. And I mean never. Matthew even asked him once if Daddies could sit in the front passenger seat. I, however, am not bothered by this at all. And this is the reason. When leaving Virginia at 6 pm and driving all night to get home, Joe drives and I sleep. I guess that is the price Joe has to pay for never letting me behind the wheel.

Here is a really cool tunnel we drove through on the way home. Of course there was a toll. In total we paid nearly $40 in tolls to drive home. The westerner in me HATES tolls.
Joe loves to document the trips home through pictures. But of course he has to take the pictures, because I don't do it right. Apparently, it is worth risking the life of your family for that perfect shot.
And here the boys are upon our arrival at 4 am.
It was a wonderful trip and we are so glad we got to go.

Note: I think that is important to mention that I also don't mind letting Joe drive all the time because he is a terrible back seat driver. I do love that man!

Jamestown

We also visited Jamestown, which is the site of the first permanent English settlement here in the United States of America. You all know the story of Jamestown; Pocahontas, John Smith, and John Rolfe.

This is a picture of the boys in front of the Jamestown Memorial. It is hidden behind the trees. It did surprise me how many memorials are big and tall and obelisk.
Here is a picture Joe took of the monument.

It was another really hot and humid day and we were really feeling it. Nicholas is in a really bad mood here and we are trying to talk him out of it.

Matthew and Holden are looking out over the River. Pretty much just looking for someplace to sit down.

The Colonial Highway is a stretch of road that connects Williamsburg, Yorktown, and Jamestown. It is so beautiful and we drove along it for a while.

At one point I noticed some strange movement on the side of the road, so we pulled over to check it out. There were hundreds of these little tiny crabs on the side of the road. They were really neat (and a little freaky.)

Yorktown

We also headed over to the sight of the Yorktown Battlefield. Which, in case you are not a huge history buff, was the last big battle of the Revolutionary War.

There were lots of cannons, both French and American.

We went on a tour of the battlefields. Our tour guide was a volunteer who was very knowledgeable and captivating. Perhaps more for Joe and I than for the boys.

We took the free trolly ride to see the monument and the City of Yorktown,

Toured the museum inside the Visitor Center.
And visited the gift store.
I think my favorite part was just looking at the River and imagining what it was like in 1781 when George Washington faced Cornwallis.