Newport Girls' Trip

These are the Iverson girls (Autumn is not pictured because she was behind the camera - but she is definitely one of them).  They are some of the most incredible women I know.  They are amazing wives and mothers, and they know how to make things happen!  One of the best things they ever made happen was this girls' trip.  We got it in our heads that we should all take a trip to Newport, Rhode Island -- and in spite of the odds (new-ish babies, LOTS of kids, house remodels, PTA involvement, senior mission, health challenges, etc.), we were all able to make it on the trip!

We stayed in this cute little cape just outside of Newport.  It was SO New-Englandy everywhere we drove in this area.  It made my insides ache a lot because I really do feel like I was born to live in New England.  It's like the whole area has an extra glaze of beauty poured over it.  New England just glimmers.

Maybe I was emotional because I also was leaving my baby for the first time.  I weaned him just in time to go.  I definitely cried when Ben texted me this picture of him and Archer. 

One of the most lovely things to do in Newport is to tour all the mansions.  Some of us had done this before, but we always had toddlers in our company, which made the mansion touring considerable less enjoyable.  This is part of why we wanted to come to Newport.  Katie and I were dying to experience it without little ones!  I mean, you can see how child-proof this room is, but still... 

 I believe these pictures were taken at The Breakers (Vanderbilt mansion).  As you can see, we got to enjoy every little detail of our audio tours, uninterrupted.  Hooray!

I liked little details like this butler/maid bell that reminded me so much of Downton Abbey. 

 Likewise with this kitchen.  I mean, isn't it just to die for?

 This is Marble House - another of the Vanderbilt Mansions

 As you can see, it was real marble-y.  Apparently I can't remember any of the historical details.  But it was really interesting and fun to learn about!

 This was inside The Elms (built for the Berwind family).  We all decided we prefer the decorating style of the Elms to that of the other mansions we saw.  It is much more classy and sensible and less gaudy.  We loved this ballroom.

And this standing shelf in the kitchen made me happy because it looks like something people are trying to replicate nowadays with the "farmhouse" style. 

Behind the mansions is one of the most beautiful walks in the country - The Cliff Walk.  Between the two days, we covered most of this 3.5 milk walk and had some great conversation while we did.

Just one of the many gorgeous views from the Cliff Walk

 We debated on what do do on this day, but we ended up taking a ferry to Block Island.  I'm so happy that we did because it was the best day ever!

 The ferry ride was windy and gorgeous...

 ...and then we were greeted with THIS view when we arrived at the island.

 I mean, a land straight out of my dreams.

 Right?

 We rented bikes so we could get around the island.  I was pretty proud of Mom Iverson who was terrified because she hadn't ridden a bike in 30 years!  It took her a few minutes to get used to it, but she was amazing.

 I felt bad making her do it, but this is my happy place.  And I suspected it would be everyone else's too.  I don't think anyone regretted it!

 As you may have noticed, we got really good at posing a bunch of us in front of all sorts of beautiful spots.  This was at Southeast Light.  L-R: Me, Katie, Kara, Autumn, Andrea, Mom.

 Walking down to see the Mohegan Bluffs.

 This was GORGEOUS and so relaxing.  We dipped our toes in the water and took in the ocean breeze.

 Back on the bikes.

 We biked a lot that day.  Our last stretch included a lot of uphill climbing through some beautiful scenery.

 And we were rewarded with Dale's Lemonade and Payne's Donuts!

 We explored the town a little bit and bought salt water taffy and other souvenirs for our families.

Nobody wanted to say goodbye to Block Island or Newport.  It was such a lovely setting for a rejuvenating trip for all of us busy mamas. 

 Autumn and I had a little detour in Boston before flying home because we had both flown into Boston and taken the train down to Rhode Island.  I gave her a whirlwind tour of Boston, and we walked all over the city with our suitcases!  A little taste of Public Garden...

 ... and Beacon Hill... was good for my heart.

And a little taste of Mike's Pastry was just what Ben needed to make him feel that being a single dad for a long weekend was totally worth it.  I'm so grateful to Ben for letting me go on this trip.  It was absolute perfection!

Grandparents to the Rescue!

We cannot say enough how much we love having our parents come save the day when our babies are born.  We had so much help after Archer was born, it was unbelievable.  Not only did my mom and Jenn's mom come for unscheduled trips when Archer came early, but then Jenn's parents came for nearly two full weeks and basically made Ellis' birthday party happen for us, on top of making dinner, doing the dishes, holding the baby, and getting the boys to school.  (see previous posts for those pictures!)

My parents came to visit again when Archer was about a month old.  They pretty much had to come, because I had to travel to Boston for a conference, and there was just no way that I could feel good about leaving Jenn with a newborn and three rambunctious boys all to herself.  While they were here we:

Made autumn-leaf cookies

Henry managed to pile a full inch of frosting on top of this one.

Had Archer's baby blessing.  Apparently, the even was so boring that Jenn fell asleep...

But she woke up for this family picture.  :)

Here's the man of the hour looking pretty dapper.

Archer also learned to smile while Grandma and Grandpa were here.

Extra hands made it possible for us to get out and enjoy the fall colors, which really can be spectacular here.

Even Archer couldn't stop staring at the leaves!

My dad just went to town on the yard.  This is the pile of weeds and trees that I had neglected that he removed for me.  It took me like 3 weeks to fit them all in to our lawn clippings recycling can!

And my mom?  She did a whole lot of holding this guy when he wasn't at his happiest.  Not to mention packing lunches, making dinner, walking the boys to school, doing the dishes, and on and on.  Aren't grandparents the best?

Iversons Stop In

Not long after my parents game, we got a quick visit from Grandma and Grandpa Iverson!  They stopped at our house as part of a giant road trip to see all of their kids throughout the country.  

We continued our fall celebration with them by visiting the Botanic Garden and seeing how the fall color had progressed over the course of a few weeks.  

We found some gorgeous trees . . . 

and some giant pumpkins!

They had a giant gourd mountain on display.  I loved all the different colors and shapes.

All of us enjoyed the beautiful day.

We had lots of fun grandparent time, especially Grandma reading her fun Halloween books.

Since they drove from Utah, Mom and Dad I. were able to bring eight boxes full of Ben's keepsakes that have been sitting in their house.  Two months later, they are still sitting in a giant pile in our bedroom!  But we did go through several of them and found a few treasures.  This picture, drawn by Robbie Mower in high school, was among them.

San Diego

We spent almost a week in San Diego with Ben's family for the big reunion.  We stayed at a ranch in Escondido, and we drove to several destinations together:

Mormon Battalion Visitor's Center.  This is one of the most entertaining and well-done Church history sites I have seen.  It was way cooler than I expected - it had almost a theme park feel to it (probably all the California influence rubbing off on it).  Anyway, we really enjoyed it, and I was able to find information about a few of my ancestors who were in the Mormon Battalion!

Legoland!  Heaven on earth for the boys in my life.

Sam had no fear of the characters - even of Darth Vader (although Ellis was not so sure of him).

It was fun to be there with cousins.

 And more and more cousins . . . and aunts, uncles, and grandparents!  It was kind of an embarrassing amount of people trying to be together in a theme park, but it was definitely more fun than we could have had on our own!

Disneyland set our standards pretty high for rides, so we weren't blown away by any of them.   But they were cute and fun.

 Mostly, I got a kick out of all of the structures made out of Legos!  Look at New York City!  They had all of the major areas of the United States, all made of Legos!  So inspiring for a young, creative Lego enthusiast.  It would probably cost millions of dollars to buy all those bricks though...

 They had lots of fun things for kids - like this train that the little kids could ride ALL BY THEMSELVES!  They were so proud.

 And this play area where the boy cousins chased each other and locked each other in jail.  They did this for over an hour and didn't want to stop!

Um, we went to Sea World too.  As you can see, we rode on Shamu (just like my family did when I was 14 and wearing super cool overall shorts).  You know, tradition! 

The kids who weren't tall enough for some of the big rides made some rides of their own!  Grandma Iverson had a wheelchair because her back is really killing her.  But she was willing to share her sweet ride.

 U.S.S. Midway - aircraft carrier 

 Henry was thrilled about this.  Ben (Top Gun fanatic of old) was probably the most thrilled.

Luau back at the ranch.

The whole gang in front of the sand castle we made!  We love these people and are so glad we got to spend some dreamy summer days together!