Make Sure You Have Plenty of Money, Can Hold in Your Laughter, and Don't Have to "Go"

...And other things I discovered on our "Christmas in NYC" vacation:

1. As I looked around, practically anywhere we went, but especially on the Subway, I was the only blonde.

Ya, I didn't look out of place, now, did I?  ;)

2.  Ice Skating is HARD!!

It kills your feet, calves, and bum.  When we first got on the rink, we were only able to make it HALFWAY around before we had to rest - seriously!  Then we worked up to one whole time around without stopping, then 1 1/2, and then two times around - if we went on the "inside track."  I figured it out; it had literally been 29 years since I had been ice skating!!!

(But, how can you NOT when you're in NYC at Christmas time?!?)

Matt tried a couple laps on his own to see if he could do it better/it was easier without me holding onto his hand........well, he wiped out!  I, on the other hand, never fell once.  I guess he knows now it'll NEVER be a good idea to ditch me!  haha.  ;)

Watching the zambonie is very relaxing, in comparison.  :)

3.  Their definition of money, is not the same as my definition of money.
As we got closer to Central Park, many bike carriages tried to solicit us.  The guy says, "Do you wanna ride?  It's almost FREE!"  Well....on the carriage was a sign advertising it was $3.00/minute.  So, if it takes a couple minutes to load up, and about 30 minutes to ride around the entire park, and another couple minutes to disembark....all of a sudden, "almost FREE" = $100!!
Also, as I was standing in line for the restroom (see #13 below) at Radio City Music Hall (BTW, it was the MEN'S restroom they'd opened up for all us women), I was chatting with the woman behind me in line.  She disclosed that she had paid $420 a ticket to bring her family to the show.  That was the EACH price, not the total price - and she had a family of 4 - she'd spent $1,800 (w/ taxes/fess) to come!!!   She said it was her anniversary, so she told her husband they WERE going to the city!
OK....#1 - the show IS spectacular (see #14 below), but I'm not sure it's worth that much money, and #2 - WHY are you bringing your little children on your anniversary??? 
(We were given our tickets, very generously, by one of Matt's business partners who's from the area.) 

4.  NYC really knows how to decorate it up for Christmas!

5. Thus, expect crowds this time of year! 

6.  ...And Security/Cops

(cops were all over in those yellow, reflective vests - other cops were guarding the street with big, military weapons)

See that cop (in the peaked cap) just right behind Matt?  

Well, 1.4 seconds AFTER I took this picture, he was right on me telling me to step down off that bench I had stood on to take the photo.  ;)    (otherwise I'm too short in those crowds!) 

 So, I guess you could say that I got in trouble with the law in NYC!?

7.  Apparently, I have a boutique in the city! 

8.  It takes 3 hours to get to church 

We looked on lds.org to find the nearest church (in Brooklyn) with the most convenient meeting times (i.e. NOT 9:00a.m.) and went there via bus, subway, and on foot.  When we got there, the gates were all closed up and not a person was in sight.  Matt called the Branch President who was listed on lds.org and found out that it had been their Stake Conference at a different building that day, and it was already over!
Really?!?
This has happened to us on a few separate occasions, when traveling, also.
What are the chances?!?
Well, I'll tell you, because I actually did the Math!  There's only a 3.8% chance that on any random Sunday, it would be Stake Conference.  (It's held twice a year).

So, then we got back on the Subway for 30+ minutes, then walked the rest of the way to this church building in upper Manhattan.

Aaahhh, being there, though, did help settle some of our frustrations from earlier in the day.

9.  Everyone claims they have "The Best Food in the City"

And they might be right!  :)

 {New York style pizza}

 {Mabo Dofu @ a Japanese restaurant}

 {NYC street food carts}

There's TONS of these around on many street corners, and they all serve similar food, yet each one claims there's "is the best."  
They don't want to lose you to one of their competitors, either.

While we were standing by this cart, he was filling another groups' order and it was taking some time, so we started looking at other carts to see if they had a wait.

This guy saw us "shopping around" and he kept trying to keep us there; since he made such a valiant effort, we ended up staying in line for his cart! :)

10.  There is some unique entertainment in the Subway

I texted my fluted-playing friend, who plays for free at church/community functions, that she should try it in NYC with her bag for people to drop money in instead!  

But, I'm not sure how lucrative that'd be; as you can see, he didn't exactly have a "captive audience."

I'd never before witnessed such a thing!  This guy literally pulls a speaker out of his back pack, plugs in his iPod, makes an announcement to our train that no one would get hurt, then the music starts and he proceeds to perform this circus act/break dance routine using all the poles and grab bars on the Subway.  *Notice how everyone is trying to ignore him!*  I just kept squeezing Matt's arm and given him a silent "look" while keeping a straight face.  Then he goes through with his hat out for people to put money into.  At the next stop, he leaves our car, and jumps into the next car....but along the way, gets into an "altercation" with some other young men who are demanding that THAT was their line to work!

11.  I have an instant adoration for missionaries 

And being with them, helped me feel close to my own missionary.

Our SIL's parents are serving a mission in New York, and they have the young missionaries over to dinner every Sunday - and they invited us there, as well.

It was so fun to be among them!

 Our spirits were definitely lifted and you couldn't help but feel GOOD after being in their presence!

12. Rockefeller Center is NOT the only tree in town 

 {Bryant Park}

 {Seaport Village}

see our reflection in the ornament?

 {a Toys-4-Tots tree with presents under it - including real bikes! - 

I've never seen those kind of toys, or that many!}

 {Although, we did go to Rockefeller, too!}

13.  Stay dehydrated, so you never have to go to the bathroom! 

Because there is no such thing as a "public restroom." 

One evening, we stopped at a diner to eat - not because we were starving, but because I HAD to pee, and the restrooms were only for customers!  Then we ordered the smallest thing on the menu that we could find!

Another day, we went into Sax Fifth Avenue to "shop" so that we could use their bathroom.  On my way in search for it, a "perfume lady" caught me to spray me with samples; she was very friendly and then asked for the sale - when I asked her, instead, where the restrooms were, her demeanor immediately changed and she pointed in their direction and "dismissed" me.  ;)

14.  They don't call it the "Radio City Music Hall Christmas SPECTACULAR" for nothing.

There's no better word to describe it: SPECTACULAR! 

Starring the Rockettes!

I was so surprised (because it is a "secular" event), BUT SO GLAD, that they included The Nativity, complete with REAL CAMELS, SHEEP, & a DONKEY on stage, recitation of scripture, and sacred music for the finale of the show.   Matt thought the applause for that number was louder than any other - it was such a SWEET ending that left a wonderful feeling!

15. The TRUE meaning of Christmas can still be found in the middle of NYC's hubbub

 {on taxis}

 {On the Jumbotrons and billboards in Times Square}

THIS is the sight that I acted most like an excited tourist about and snapped pictures galore of!  :)


Now, onto getting Christmas ready at home...... 
(I might be crying a little)  ;)

Favorite Childhood Vacation - Revisited

When I was 8 years old, my family went on the BEST. VACATION. EVER.  It was my favorite vacation of all time!
Including Marriott's Great America (although that's right up there, too.)
Including countless trips to Lake Powell.
Including Yellowstone.
Including rafting the Snake River and Jackson Hole.
Including DISNEYLAND.
Including Lake Mead.
Including camping trips to various places.
Including California.

We went to Aspen Grove Family Camp!

The name of my "kid's club" back then was called the "CUBS" and we had our very own "Cub Den!"  (I felt very special about this because my bros & sisters DID NOT have a "clubhouse" for their age groups!
This is the place where we met before we'd go PLAY, and hike, and create art, and sing, and cheer, and explore, and enjoy the great outdoors, and hang out with other cool 8 yr. olds and fantastic college-student counselors!  I scoured the property and had a talk with the current Camp Director-Elect and found out where my old "cub den" was - it's currently being used as staff housing, but I snuck up and took a picture anyway!  Creepy?  I like to call it "sentimental."

{I look a little different from when I stood by it at 8 yrs. old.  There's a photo of that somewhere in my mom's albums, I believe.  I should find it and compare!  ;)}

WELL, a couple of years ago when I discovered that we only had 3 summers left (ONLY 3 SUMMERS LEFT?!?) before Ryan goes on his LDS mission, I made a "bucket list" of our last three yearly family vacations I wanted to go on with our family before they started to "leave the nest."  (LEAVE THE NEST?!?)

And Aspen Grove was on that list!

We crossed the first one off the list in 2012 when we went on our Disney Cruise.  I can't believe I didn't even do a big blog post about it (I must not have been able to cope with reality at home after being surrounded by people whose only job was to clean up after me and make me happy!) that I can even LINK to right now, but I did include some photos here.

AND THEN, this year, just a couple of weeks ago, we made it Aspen Grove!

It's a Bona Fide Family Camp.
Think Cheaper By the Dozen 2
Think The Great Outdoors

There's not many Family Camps around here, in fact, I don't even know where any REAL (non-movie) ones are in the U.S. so Aspen Grove is a real gem of a place!  And we got to be there on a big milestone.

It looks a little different - many of the facilities have been updated, rebuilt, or refurbished - and much more has been added since I was here last, as a child.....BUT the feeling is the same!

WONDERFUL.

We literally took HUNDREDS of photos while we were there, but to make this post somewhat readable, I'll just run a "highlight reel." 

Brookelle's FAVORITE:

Her "Kittens" Club.

{When they went places, they had them all hang on to a rope, 

so no one would get "lost."  It was so cute!}

I happened to see her (I wasn't spying, I just "happened to be in the area!") out with her group one day, swinging high on the swings, and she blurted out, without even being aware I was there, "THIS IS MY BEST. DAY. EVER."

And for as shy and hesitant as Miss B was on the first day she met her counselors, (she didn't want me to leave her side - she didn't want to go) she FELL IN LOVE with them - and cuddled right up to them - in no time at all!  Just look at the pics:

A close 2nd:

These Bear statues.
She HAD to climb on them EVERY. TIME. WE. PASSED. BY.

Katelyn's FAVORITE:

Aspen Follies
{a camp wide family "friendly competition" with various games on the big ball field}

Haylee's FAVORITE:

Performing her Karate "kata" in the Talent Show.

I was so proud of her for being so brave!  (No one else in our family dared!) She didn't even have to be talked into it or "bribed."  It was a decision all on her own.....while she was packing, I just mentioned to her she could bring her Karate "Gi" if she wanted to be in the talent show - that was it!

I think it was her favorite because it feels so good to accomplish something!  Yea!  She's adapted her mom's

mantra, "I Can Do Hard Things!"  

She ALSO liked it because the whole rest of the week, she was somewhat of a "celebrity" amongst the other guests - she got all kinds of compliments & comments from them.....

"Great Job"

"Hey Karate Girl"

"Aaaah  YA" (trying to imitate the Karate sounds)

"Those were some high kicks!"

"Wow, I've never seen a girl do that."

"You were awesome!"

"I could never do that!"

"There's the Karate Girl!"

"Alright Haylee!"

Kyle's FAVORITE:

 Alyse, Emileigh, Kate, Olivia, Lauren, and Rio.

He discovered GIRLS! ;)

Ryan's FAVORITE:

The Sports Tournaments

He entered us into as many tournaments as possible:  ping pong, badminton, walleyball, raquetball (below), basketball, and sand volleyball.  Matt couldn't do much with his lingering knee injury, so Kyle & I got roped into most events!  But, one family we played (& lost to) was so impressed with Ryan, that they asked him to join their team as they moved on in the tournament since they were down one player anyway!  (He enjoyed the fact that THEY had skills AND a chance at winning!  ;))

{"Mixed Doubles" raquetball photo taken through the scratched up window in the door:  Ryan & I vs. some young 20's boyfriend/girlfriend duo.  We lost, of course.}

My FAVORITE:

 Water Frolics

{team races and relays for the whole family that even nonswimmers can win}
NEWS FLASH:  Our team won the overall competition!  Of course, it included more guests than just the Brenchley Brood.

The reason that THIS was my fave MIGHT have had something to do with the fact 

that it was the week we had 100+ degree temps down in the valley - 

we were a little cooler up in the mountains, but still HOT, hot!

We had a few minutes to make up a "synchronized swimming" routine to perform to music.

Then "Paula," "Randy" and "Simon" stood at the top of the water slide and judged us.

Matt's FAVORITE:

 The Family Dance

So, Matt & I got excited when a great 80's tune by [Matt's favorite] JOURNEY came on, "Don't Stop Believin'" - and MUCH to our surprise ALL the teens were singing and jammin' out to it just as much as WE were!  Huh?  I thought teenagers were suppose to despise and make fun of their parents' music!??  I guess we can thank Bedtime Stories for that.

At 9:30 p.m., they "excused" the adults and children - and the teens and young adults got to enjoy their OWN dance the rest of the evening....with the lights dimmed down! :)

It was sad to leave (NO cooking or cleaning up for me!) - all the kids thought it went too fast - they all want to come back AGAIN & again!  Does someone want to give us an "Aspen Grove scholarship?"  ;)

Aspen Grove kept true on their promise:  "Creating Family Memories"

Two down, one to go.....we've only got ONE SUMMER left before Ryan leaves on his mission!  {GASP!}