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Weekend in DC

One of T.J.’s classmates Madalyne from BYU did her Senior BFA show on Dyslexia, called The Dyslexic Advantage (click on the link to learn more about the show).  It got picked up by the Smithsonian and is on display through the end of January. We decided to go see the show with some other students, including Madalyne, and T.J.’s old professor who flew in for the event. It was fun to see everybody and really neat to see her show in the museum!

While we there, we stayed with my sister and her family. It was so fun to spend another weekend with them! I got to go to my sister’s violin studio recital and hear her play and hear my little niece Claire play! I seriously was holding back tears hearing Claire play “Go Tell Aunt Rhody.” She is getting so big and so good at violin!

The drive home was supposed to take us 4 hours, but because of the snow storm it took us about 9 hours. We only stopped once for about ten minutes just to change Eva’s diaper and grab food for the road. It was crazy! But we got back in time so T.J. wouldn’t miss any work.

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Thanksgiving Break-Day 1

For Thanksgiving, my sister who lives in DC came up with her husband, two kids, and parent-in-laws. They all stayed in a hotel in walking distance right next to the train station, so it was very convenient.

They arrived Wednesday morning, we went ahead and took photos with Santa, then headed into the city. My brother-in-law watched Eva and his youngest so we could go see Cinderella, it was so nice of him! I got us off at the Times Square stop because I didn’t realize how far the theater was, so we had about ten blocks of walking to do. But it was fun to show them Times Square and some other cool sights.

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Cinderella was so good. The music was wonderful and brought me back to the old Brandy Cinderella I used to watch as a kid. I’m glad I remembered the music, that always makes it more fun. Claire knew the music so well she oftentimes started singing out loud which was adorable and hilarious.

At that point, T.J. was off work and met us at the theater to take home Claire. We then walked up to the Frick museum on the Upper East Side. Their current exhibit is Vermeer, Rembrandt, and Hals, showcasing the Girl with a Pearl Earring. It was very neat to see, and the museum is beautiful.

We had dinner that night at a little Italian place nearby called Bella Blu. I definitely recommend this place. It’s near the Frick, so make sure to try it out if you visit that museum.

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Kentucky Stills

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Kentucky Recap

This post is purely for journaling purposes only… so feel free to move on.

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We had such a great time in Kentucky. We had incredible weather for the majority of the trip, which really made it nice. Eva couldn’t get enough of going on walks and playing in the yard. Every day, all day, she would ask, “Walk? Walk? Walk?” And considering my Mom loves being outside, she and my Dad were in grandparent heaven.

We got in on Thursday with a direct flight from Newark to Cincinnati. I can’t get over how nice that was… I’m used to flights with layovers going to Louisville or Dayton. So, to fly right into CVG was a dream. We spent the rest of Thursday and Friday going to parks, playing games in the back yard, and enjoying our time together. Ooh, and we had Skyline… great start to the trip!

Saturday we threw a baby shower for a friend in my home ward and then took Eva to another park in Fort Thomas. Saturday night I went to a video shoot with my dad at this night club. It’s always fun to hop along on those shoots with my dad and see him at work. It was also funny to see all of these old people dancing all night long. I’ve never seen anything like it in my life.

Sunday we went to church and to linger longer afterwards. Eva had a ball in nursery and I loved being able to go to Sunday School and Relief Society, since I’m usually in Primary back in Jersey City.

Let’s see… Monday my mom went back to school, but Eva still had a great time playing with all of the toys and exploring. When my mom got back, we headed up to Rookwood for some shopping, but after one store, I left Old Navy in tears because Eva was driving me nuts. We were going to get Chick Fil A for dinner, but the line was so long, I couldn’t handle Eva’s cries any longer so we just went home. It was a major fail, but actually something we all laughed about after because of how annoyed I was. Overreaction, I know. But I love going to Rookwood with my mom and I was so disappointed that it wasn’t like the old days… but new days are good too and I need to learn to like change and come what may.

Tuesday, my Dad, Eva and I went downtown (I first wrote Downton… ha!) and we walked around the square together. It was cute to see Eva with her Papa, I love those two together! We had dinner that night with Mrs. Doran, our good family friend.

Wednesday, Eva and I woke up early to have breakfast with Blair over on UC’s campus. It was fun to catch up with my old friend and to see her cute apartment. She had to go to class, so Eva, my dad, and I went to the Newport Aquarium which was great. Eva ran around so fast and kept yelling, “More! More! More!” She loved those fish and loved running through the halls even better. We finished the afternoon at Hofbrauhaus, mine and my dad’s favorite spot. Wednesday night, I went out with my friend Lelia for some shopping and dinner. Love catching up with that girl!

On Thursday, my mom was off of work so we tried our hand in shopping again, but this time at Kenwood Mall. Eva was much more cheerful and sat in her stroller for a lot longer, so we had a great time walking around together and getting Evabug some new fall clothes! We picked up some books at a book store nearby, and then met my dad for dinner at Outback. Eva was pretty funny that night at dinner and kept waving to the people sitting behind us. We were worried she would throw food into the lady’s hair.

Friday we went to the zoo and it was absolutely perfect. Beautiful day, not too busy, and great company. The Cincinnati Zoo is really incredible. The gardens are gorgeous and there are so many exhibits that you can barely see everything in one trip! But we saw tons of animals and Eva walked around like she owned the place.

Saturday was conference, but beforehand we went to my old elementary school’s Fall Hullabaloo and then to a pumpkin patch and farm. It felt like we had traveled to Central Kentucky, but it was just right off of Route 8, 15 minutes away! The farm was so gorgeous and probably one of the best times of the entire trip. After the Priesthood session of conference, my dad and I saw Gravity together and wow… I’m still recovering from that stressful movie. It was great but I don’t think I’ll see it again since the plot was actually pretty weak.

Sunday was also conference and actually quite rainy, so we were stuck inside all day. But between sessions Blair and another friend from high school stopped by for a couple hours to catch up. It was fun looking through old photo albums and yearbooks. I can’t believe how time has flown by!

Monday was our departure date… and boy, did we cry. Eva kept asking where Nana and Papa were and then started saying “Nana Papa… All gone!” When she said that, it killed me! But we had a great trip with my family and can’t wait to go back, hopefully, sooner rather than later!

Thanks to my parents for a fantastic trip!

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More Visitors!

Two weeks ago, we had T.J.’s cousin and her husband visit for about four days. It was so fun to see some family again.

Since Hannah had been in town just the week before, I didn’t go out and sightsee with them too much, plus they are newlyweds so I knew they would love exploring the city together. But we still had a couple meals together and enjoyed their company. Come back again, Phillip and Kendra!

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My Parents + NYC

After Chincoteague, my parents stayed with us for about three days. I never wanted them to leave. Goodbyes are the worst. But that’s besides the point of this post. The point is… we had a great couple of days together!

Backing up a bit, before Chincoteague, my Dad and I spent an afternoon in the Financial District. Most of the area was new to me, so it was so fun to see some new sites.

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Eva had fun chasing pigeons in the park.

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We got to walk through St. Paul’s chapel-the oldest surviving church building in Manhattan.

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The NY Stock Exchange

A week later, on Saturday night-my parents and I went to the Chelsea Market and walked on the high line.

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On Sunday, we went to church together and then went to Central Park afterwards. We also got to drive through the city at night which was the highlight of the trip for me! It was so cool to see so much of the city when it wasn’t busy, and without walking! We even drove through Times Square which was fun since we hadn’t been there for over a month.

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Monday was our last full day together. We set out into the city around lunch time and walked all day long from the World Trade Center to Little Italy to the Empire State Building to Times Square. It was quite a day, but we saw a lot and had a great time together.

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Lunch in Little Italy and cannolis as dessert!

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Just a couple photos from our walk in the city, including two from the amazing Fishs Eddy shop. The dishes are very similar to what you’d see in Anthropologie but at a fraction of the cost. I came home with new silverware and my mom bought a bunch of those adorable nut bowls.

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All of us in Times Square!

You may not tell from that picture, but Eva only has one shoe on. Eva is really into taking her shoes off lately. Without us noticing, she took her shoe off and threw it out of the stroller without us noticing! It really upset me because they fit her well and were perfect for splash parks. A couple days later, I got a package in the mail from Target with a new pair of shoes! My dad is the best and he sure loves his daughter/granddaughter!

Thanks, Mom and Dad, for coming to visit! It meant a lot and we loved having you guys!

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Instagrams In-Between

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Eva and I on the way to Chincoteague!

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The amazing sunset that welcomed us when we arrived.

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Not the best BBQ we’ve ever had but pretty fun decorations.

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Eva would fall asleep within minutes of leaving the beach each day.Screen Shot 2013-07-10 at 2.16.25 PM

Eva and Amelia eating breakfast together

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Mark, Mary Beth, and Claire enjoying the beach even with the wind.Screen Shot 2013-07-10 at 2.16.50 PM

Taken after I braved the waves for the first time.

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Taken at the NASA center nearby
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On the boat ride

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Shots from our walk around Chincoteague.

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Trip to Chincoteague Island (Part 2)

Thursday was the 4th of July! Surprisingly there wasn’t a parade in the town, so we made other plans. We thought about going to see the rocket launch over at the nearby NASA center, but we had been previously and it was always postponed due to weather conditions. We thought it would be postponed again but of course, the day we didn’t go-we missed the rocket blastoff. That was pretty disappointing.

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So, we went to the beach again. When the Swainharts vacation at a beach, we soak it up as much as we can… plus we had to go because T.J. hadn’t been yet. We bought a boogie board that day and it made riding the waves soooo much more fun. On previous days, the waves were so intense that my top would… well… let’s just say, I hope no one was looking! With the boogie board, I was able to get on top of them and not worry about any slips.

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After the beach, we got cleaned up, ate a lot of crabs for dinner, then went to the local fair in town. It was cute to look at but didn’t hold our attention for long, plus the mosquitos were biting us like crazy. We watched The Music Man as a family and then saw the fireworks from our porch. It was a low-key yet fun-filled 4th that I’ll always remember.

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Friday was our last full day, so we wanted to make the best of it. We went on a boat ride to a sand bar. It was so serene and beautiful. The little kids loved splashing in the little ponds. After a while, the jelly fish that were all around started to really freak me out, and T.J.’s legs looked like a lobster, so we headed back and visited all the little stores in the town.

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We finished off our vacation by having dinner at the beach and taking a walk together.

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It was such a great vacation and we owe many thanks to my sister and brother-in-law, as well as to my parents. It was so nice of them to let us join them!

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Trip to Chincoteague Island (Part 1)

Well, I’m back. Back from such a relaxing/amazing/fun/beautiful vacation with my family. It was much needed because this past month and a half has really taken a toll on me. As much as I love this adventure we are on out here, change is always hard to get used to. So, it was really nice to spend a week with my family at the beach.

My mom flew to DC a week before the trip to visit with my sister’s family and then my Dad flew out to New Jersey so he could pick me up. We met on the Virginian coast at a little town called Cincoteague Island. As we got farther and farther away from the city, it became more remote. The hour before we arrived to our destination, there were even a couple ghost towns. It felt like the opposite of where we live, which felt like a breath of air.

(Sidenote: We found out it is illegal to pump your own gas in NJ. In 1951 they declared that it was too dangerous and it hasn’t been changed since. A little ridiculous, am I right?)

We arrived in Virginia on Saturday evening and then explored the complex and bay where we were going to stay. It was such a gorgeous sunset that night… probably the best one of the week.

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On Sunday, the LDS church was about an hour away so we decided to be Methodists for the day. We took two cars-Dad, Eva, and I in one car following everyone else in the other. We saw them pull into a parking lot, so we pulled in as well and walked into the church (filled with 100% of people over 80 years old). They were so excited to see my dad and I. But there was one problem-we couldn’t find our family. My dad asked a man if we were in a Methodist church-he said no that’s down the street! We were in the wrong church! I felt so rude getting up to leave, but we told them we were looking for our family and had to go. So, out we went. I guess they took a short cut and drove through the Baptist parking lot to get to the Methodist parking lot. Who knows. But that was kind of funny.

After church, we went to the beach. It was pretty chilly at times but I still ended up getting some sun. But just the site of the beach, listening to the waves, and spending time with my family was such a great time. I convinced Mark to get in with me at the end of the day and it was so worth it. Very cold, but the waves were incredible! When you feel like you might die, that’s when you know they’re good!

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To wrap up the evening, we walked around the town a bit. We saw about a dozen ducks, a bunny, and some really charming houses.

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We went to the beach on Monday and Tuesday, and I got the courage to get into the water! I even got Mary Beth to join me one of the days. I’ve always loved the ocean and never worried about sharks or whatever. I even used to see how far I could get – it was such an adrenaline rush not being able to touch! But guys. I am such a pansy now! I think T.J.’s extreme fear of sharks has rubbed off on me because I kept thinking I saw shark shadows! This time I always stayed in areas that I could touch too. To be fair though, the waves were really intense so I didn’t want to drown.

On Tuesday, the Pocock clan rented bikes which seemed to be a hit-even with Eva (although the below image doesn’t really show it).

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Eva did so well at the beach. She loved playing in the sand and as the days went by, she got more and more adventurous by getting in the water and chasing the waves.

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On Wednesday, my dad and I drove to Philadelphia to pick up T.J. (he took a bus there) so he could join us for the rest of the week. We listened to a lot of The Office and complained about traffic for the majority of the day. It was kind of nice though to have a day away from the sun and to have my mom take care of Eva. She is really clingy with me, but does well if I’m not around. Apparently, she clinged on to my mom all day, so it was a great day for her!

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Quick Trip to DC

It’s been about 15 years since I’ve lived near by sister Mary Beth-so to have her and her family just be a bus ride away from us here in New Jersey-it’s really amazing. That being said, Eva and I had a quick trip to Virginia to visit them. We weren’t there for too long, but we had fun playing with the kids, going to a farm, swimming, and seeing Superman. It was a great couple of days.

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It was really weird to get back to the city and feel like we were home.

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