Salt Lake City

Chris had a 2-day torture, I mean, test in Salt Lake City a couple of weeks ago (more on that to come) so the kids and I went with him.  It was a mini-vacation...at least for me and the kids.  We swam in the pool and went to see lots of free things.  Come to think of it...I don't think Chris has even seen these pictures yet. He was so stressed about the test...I don't think he remembers what I told him we were doing. ;)

We will start with Blinkenstaffs.
Blinkenstaffs is a Toy and Candy store in the Provo area (soon to be in SLC as well)  They have a lot of cool Novelty and Nostalgic candy and toys.  They also let you play with toys and games while you are in the store.   I thought it would be a fun little stop on our drive up.  Since we went in April, near Easter, they hid a golden egg in the store everyday and gave a little prize to whomever found it.  I told Uncle John that he had to find it and give it to the kids.  He did.  So obedient.  We love Uncle John!  The girls got to pick a treat.  It was fun.  Especially since it was free.  We did end up purchasing a game as well as some candy.  But I think the total still amounted to less than $25.  I thought they might be a little pricey but I think they were really reasonable especially since they mostly offer toys that aren't found anywhere else.

For some reason every time I look at this picture I can't help but look at my cute girls and think how quickly they are growing into young woman.  Allison, looks so old to me.  OK, OK!   I know she is only seven but those seven years have flown by. 

Next up...we went to the new City Creek Center Mall.  It was quite amazing! And huge!  And beautiful!  I didn't get a picture of this but I thought it was so cool that we could walk out of it right into Temple Square (which we didn't because we went there the last time we were in SLC and didn't have time this time around, but we could have).  Plus we were trying to make this a free stop which means we were limited to only an hour before we had to pay for parking.  :)

I took a picture of this door because I thought it was cool and wanted Chris to be able to see it (he was still taking his test). They are working on it.  I have a feeling that might be happening a lot.  This is a huge door that shuts to make the out door mall an indoor mall.  

Swimming
Honestly, Chris and I have thought on several occasions that we should just stay in a hotel and do nothing but swim because that is our kids favorite part.  They always ask to go swimming and if we are out doing something fun, they ask when they can go back to the hotel to go swimming.  Honestly, one day we may do just that.

The next day we went to the Clarke Planetarium.  This is a "mostly free" hands on science museum.  The kids enjoyed it.  I debated paying for a IMAX or Laser Show but decided that the kids were having enough fun without the extra cost so I decided against it.  Plus I didn't know if Asher would sit through the entire show anyway.  

 This is the kids on Mars.

This is the kids on the Moon.

 Chuck E Cheese was the last stop on our trip. This time Chris could be there. It wasn't free but it was fun.  And it's were a kid can be a kid, right?  And the adults too!

Poor Allison was soooo sick the last day of our trip.  She ended up getting a fever of 104 and it wouldn't ever drop below a 101.  She spent most of the night actually sleeping on the benches at the restaurant.  She was sick for the next 2 weeks...missing 5 days of school and being weak the others.  We found out it was the flu and then turned into an ear infection.  Poor girl.  But even being super sick she is always trying to be happy!

The kids deciding on which toys they can get with their tickets...my favorite part of the night. ;) 

  

Eating!!!

Now, I couldn't call myself a real foodie if I wasn't obsessed with the places we ate while in SLC.  I found several restaurants that had been featured on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives and decided that we would start our search there.  I was looking for "kid-friendly" as well as "pocket-book-friendly"  and decided on Moochies Meatballs & More and Ruth's Diner.  Both their menu's are located online as well which is a bonus!  I kick myself because I didn't get any pictures of any of the food.  Oh well.

Moochies Meatballs & More:  We got a 12in. Philly and a 12in. Meatball sub to share between all of us which was plenty of food.  Although 99% of the time, I would always choose a Philly over a meatball sub, they are supposed to be known for their meatballs so we decided to try it.  I thought it tasted fantastic.  They use a blend of meats plus lots of seasonings and I think there is even a little bit of chocolate in there. A recipe  for awesomeness.  Even though their Philly was superb as well, the meatball sub was quite amazing.  

Ruth's Diner:  This place was packed...their was a huge wait from the time we got there until we left.  But after tasting the food, I can see why.  They were really good.  We started with dinner rolls which were perfect.  I couldn't decide what to order so we got three large dinner plates and shared them between all of us.  We got the macaroni & cheese with chicken.  Nom, Nom, Nom.  So good.  The best macaroni and cheese from a restaurant I have had. The perfect blend of crispy and creamy.  We also got the chicken fried steak with gravy, mashed potatoes and veggies.  Everything was cooked perfectly and I have never had restaurant veggies that I wanted the recipe for.   And the third plate we ordered as a Caprese Sandwich with Chicken....fresh mozzarella, caramelized-balsamic red onions, pesto, oven-roasted tomatoes, and basil...those 5 ingredients are like the best 5 ingredients in the cooking world so how can this sandwich not be perfect!  It was and the only thing that I was disappointed in was the fact that I couldn't eat it all (and that I don't have a camera good enough to capture the amazingness of it!).

We also tried Bear's Country Cookies in the Gateway Mall and tried 7 of their cookies.  No, didn't eat all seven cookies by myself. :)  I cut them up into quarters so everyone got to try them.  We all loved the Orange Chocolate chip.  I also loved the Lemon and the Berry Drizzle Sugar Cookie.  But the snickerdoodle was really good too.  They were all yummy. 

I would definitely recommend all three of these eateries if you happen to find yourself looking for some good-eats in the SLC area!

  

Catching up 4 - Science Fair

Augh, Science Fairs!  I have a love-hate relationship with Science Fairs.  I love that they are a hands-on learning experience for my kids and that they can really delve right into a topic of their choice and learn more about it.  I hate the competitive aspect in it although I can see why there is one.  I don't know why I hate the competitive aspect of it because Austin has won 1st or 2nd place every time he has done it (3x).

Every year Austin impresses me with how much he learns and is willing to do.  Now that he knows he wins money if he places at the Region Science Fair, he has been all in to participate in doing a science project.  This year we were actually not going to do one.  But then his fourth grade teacher required it...ugh!

After looking at topics online and throwing out a lot of the ones Austin wanted to do, we settled on "How music affects blood pressure while exercising."  It was interesting to help Austin do the testing and find out the results.

About 70% of winning the science fair is based on the interview.  Austin gets so nervous.  But he always does well enough to place to we are so proud of him.   He got 2nd at the School Science Fair and 2nd at the Regional Science Fair.  Woohoo!

 This year he learned how to use excel.  He made three of the four charts on his board by himself.  He watched his dad make the first one and then just asked us questions to finish the rest.  He said that was his favorite part.

Catching up 3...Abigail

We signed Abigail up for Kindergarten...I can't believe it.  I am having such a hard time with it.  But she can't wait.  I loved these pictures of her.  She is growing into such a little lady!

Catching up again...

I love catching my children playing happily together.  Their laughs and giggles are probably the best sound on earth.  I went to check on the kids in the backyard and I found them all on the teeter-tater just laughing and having fun.  Music to my ears!  I ran to quickly get my camera before the magic was gone.  I hoped I could steal a few shots of this authentic moment before they saw me.  I got a few.

Notice Allison doesn't have any shoes on.  On this particular day, I was mopping the floors and I told Allison she could only go outside if she stays out of any mud and if she keeps Asher out of the mud!!!!  When she came in later I asked why the bottom of her socks and pants were muddy.  She proudly answered that she took her shoes off and THEN got in the mud and figured since her shoes weren't muddy she was  technically not getting in the mud.  WHAT?!?!  The logic of children!  

Allison caught me!

This is what I found a few minutes later.  Allison and Asher can find mud anywhere, however insignificant of an amount it may seem to be.  Those TWO!  I can't wait to get grass...a few more weeks!

Catching Up...not necessarily in order....

We will start with Easter.  Easter was spent at my parent's house again.  They seems to have the best yard for it  so that is where we usually spend it.  We didn't do anything big or fancy, just the basics, because we were actually running short on time.  The kids each got a modest Easter basket and hunted for eggs.  

Allison was upset because she didn't get any toys...she only got clothes. :(  The Easter bunny thought that putting money in their baskets would help compensate for anything else they wanted but it took Allison a little while to warm up to the idea.  All my kids actually love playing with their toys...even Austin at age 10.  I guess the Easter bunny didn't realize how much until after. ;)

My kids with some of their cousins, posing for the camera.  

Then we realized that Abigail wasn't outside yet so we had to get some more...

This one is my favorite.

We have a tradition in our family that the "littles" get a 30 sec. head start.  Asher was on his way...but we came to soon find out that he didn't need a head-start because he found almost twice as many eggs as the big kids did.  That is OK though because we like to practice socialism at our house and we split the eggs up equally.  ;)