Connecticut College Arboretum

After church on Sunday we had a picnic at the church and then headed to New London to visit the college's arboretum. The weather was absolutely beautiful - perfect! I LOVE being with my own little family, enjoying nature. I kept telling the girls to take deep breaths and think of what a good time we were having (in hopes that they will have happy family memories whenever they notice these nature scents). It smelled like camping and fall and mountains. I was afraid Connecticut would always smell humid and sea foody to me. But being at the arboretum was like being in Idaho or Utah or Wyoming - it smelled SO good!

 Just look at those posers!

 Our little gymnast

 Isn't it gorgeous?!

fun things we've done around here

 Body surfing at Stonington Beach (just down the street from Daddy's work). Beaches are endless fun for kids - I love it!!

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 Went to Boston for the first time. Aaron and I took turns at the Temple. We had big plans to see more of Boston and go on the "Freedom Trail" (American History sites), but got lost several times and finally just drove home. :( Unfortunately a GPS is only so helpful - especially at intersections where more than 2 streets meet and each street has a couple different names and the streets rarely have name signs on them. grrrrr... so frustrating! But the Boston Temple is our temple so we'll have lots of other chances to find our way around.

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The next city over from us is Mystic (a very touristy, fun place to visit). There is an old drawbridge there that comes up once every hour to let the boats pass. So, we went out there to look around and be tourists and eat ice cream at the famous Drawbridge Ice Cream Shop (we each got one scoop and it cost $20!!!).

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 Clyde's Cider Mill. It is the oldest remaining steam powered Cider Mill in the USA. The Cider is delicious, and the apple cider donuts even better!

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 This is an old dilapidated home on the road to Mystic. Isn't it beautiful?! I wish I knew the story behind it!

Family Pictures in Palmyra, NY

We really wanted to take the pictures outside with the beautiful fall trees, but it was drizzling a little bit that morning, so we took these at the hotel's fireplace. We put on quite the show with so many kids to wrangle.

 Josh and Franci and co.

 This is what wrangling looks like

 Ellise

 Parson Family in front of the Smith's log home.

The Smith's orchard and the Sacred Grove behind us. 

Niagara Falls, CANADA and Palmyra, NY

Franci and Josh are living in Michigan for a few months and when I found out that we would have family living within a day's drive of us I was pretty excited. We didn't waste any time before planning and executing a road trip to see each other. 

We left on Thursday morning for our ten hour drive to up-state New York - we only stopped once and we didn't even watch a movie (because I couldn't figure out how to make it play on our new mac). Our girls are such good road trippers.

 Aubree does this hilarious face while saying, in a deep voice, "Aubree" - pretty funny!

(I just found this photo on my camera.) Carly taking pictures at the hotel - she posed Aubree and everything.

 The best part of the trip for Aaron and I was to surprise our girls - two times! We surprised them the morning we left to tell them we were going to Niagara Falls and staying in a hotel (the hotel was more exciting than Niagara Falls to them). Then, the next morning we surprised them with COUSINS!!! Franci and Josh and co. met us in Niagara Falls and the girls were all surprised Friday morning to see their cousins at the same hotel as them.

 We went to the Canada side to see the falls. I got my first (adult) passport for the occasion. Niagara Falls was beautiful and I'm glad we got to see it, but it was way better to see Franci and Josh (and Kaylie, Anna, Suzie, and new baby Lucy whom we hadn't met yet).

 Kaylie (8) and Carly (8) - They are just the bestest cousin friends!

Me and Franci - bestest sis-in-law friends

With the falls in the background (which you can't see because it's so misty)

A partial view of the falls

 This bird was seriously posing for everyone - he even lifted up his leg one time in a perfect arabesque. You could tell he was just thinking: "They always love it when I do this." (And I'm pretty sure he thinks in a British accent (even though he's in Canada))

 cutie-patootie

 Anna and Carly

 Ellie and Suzie

 Camile and Aaron - just for the fun of it!

A view of some fall colors (with Franci's fancy camera)

 The nature trail just down the river from the falls. The girls played in the leaves and had a blast!

They were having so much fun that Aubree didn't want to leave - surprise, surprise - she rarely wants to do what Mommy wants her to do. 

 Josh served his mission in up-state NY and would often come to this bar restaurant in Buffalo, NY after district or zone  meetings. This very restaurant is where buffalo wings started.

 Here's our girls in order from youngest to oldest (minus Lucy) - Suzy (3), Aubree (3), Anna (4), Ellie (6), Carly (8), Kaylie (8). I can't even count how many times people would stop me (without seeing Franci or Josh), and with a look of amazement (or terror), ask if all of those girls were mine. (You can tell they're all related.)

 Little girls in my car (I want to eat those toes!)

 Big girls in the other car

 Joseph Smith farm in Palmyra (I wish I had a camera like Franci's!)

A man who was on the tour with us made such a great comment. (He wasn't LDS) "As Americans we need to do better at respecting another's beliefs. If this is real to you and sacred to you, then I need to treat it as something sacred." Not word for word, but it really struck me. Especially now that we are out here making more friends of other faiths, I want our family to focus on the good of other people and their faiths.

 The Sacred Grove

 Hubbies taking pictures of wifys  (Don't mind my wrinkles - I am 30 now)

 Cousin Love