New York part II

I just want to start out by saying that I didn't hate NYC, It's just a disgusting chaotic city that has crazy human life forms that are interesting to watch. I had a great time with my little family, I was just trying to help people visualize what it's like if they've never been there. Anyway, we decided to go to Ground Zero at the last minute. I am so glad we did, for B and I it was really awesome. M and K had a really hard time imagining someone flying a plane into buildings on purpose. They both asked if people died and why the people would do that. Seeing the fountains that are now there where the twin towers used to stand left us speechless.

 They are standing in front of one of the fountains. The reflective building behind them in the One World Trade Center that is being built.

I am glad that I had my sunnies on. I would be lying if I said that I didn't cry a little. To be there and to see how big the area was and to be able to remember that day made me really sad. More sad than I thought it would. It also made me feel so patriotic! I felt so proud to be an American and see that as a nation, life has kept going. The bad guys didn't win, they didn't knock us all the way down and keep us there. It truly was so awesome to be there!

What's not to like about this one?!

He had so many questions. He wanted to know why. We tried telling him as best we could, but hearing that there are people that don't like America and that they flew an airplane into a building on purpose just didn't make sense to him. He asked if there were mom's and dad's that died. We said that there were a lot of mom's and dad's that died. We learned that the oldest victim was 85 and the youngest was 2. He wanted to know their names and what they were doing in the building and why they didn't get out in time. He wanted to know if the planes exploded and started the buildings on fire. He truly wanted to know everything. He still talks about how big the holes are and that there were guys that flew airplanes into buildings and that he doesn't get why.

We tried to get a picture with people and the One World Trade Center, but it's so big that we couldn't do it. I wish I could put into words how awesome it was to be there, but I'm no good with words. All I know is that we loved it there and are really happy that we went.

Our hotel had a rooftop terrace. It was really cool to go up there at night and to look around. Little B wanted to climb over the side to get to the lights. 

It's truly a miracle that we got little B to turn around for the picture. I asked M why she had a jacket tied around her neck. She just started laughing and shrugged her shoulders. I love this little group of people so much! I loved being with them non stop for ten days!

Day three in NYC was dedicated to the Statue of Liberty! That was M's pick of something she really wanted to do. It did not disappoint! There is a family in our ward that said we didn't need to go to liberty island to get close to the statue. We could just look at it from across the bay. They were right, we could have, but I am so glad that we didn't listen to them and that we went to liberty island! We thought that it would take longer than it did to get there. We were there about an hour before our boat was going to leave. We took that opportunity to try a slice of real life New York pizza. It didn't look very good, but, it tasted 

a-mazing!

The cheese one wasn't as good as the bbq chicken one was, but it was still good. The slices are huge! B and I shared one and I was full. I can't imagine eating one all by myself. 

This is leaving the harbor on our way to liberty island

Look how awesome that is! Neither of them could look away. I wanted a picture with all three littles looking at her, but I was too nervous that little B would dive out the window, so he's not in the picture.

  This is taken at the pedestal. Her feet were right above our head. They have a height requirement to go to the crown. K was too short and they don't allow babies. It wasn't too crowded here, so that was nice. It was so cool to listen to the audio they had playing in the museum. They had people reading actual accounts of what immigrants thought when they saw her standing in the harbor as they came to America. They said that they were excited and nervous at the same time. They could see New York across the harbor but they had to go through Ellis Island. It was in that building that they were told if they could come to America or not. There were so many that made it across the ocean only to have to turn around and go home again. There were families that were torn apart as some of them could come in and some of them couldn't. There weren't very many that if one couldn't come, they all left again. They all wanted to be in America so bad that they would split up and hope that their other family members would be able to come in someday. Being there made me so thankful that I was born here and that living here is the only thing I've known. What a huge blessing that I take for granted almost every day.

M was so excited to be the Statue of Liberty. I think this picture is so awesome! We loved being there and spent more time than I thought we would. K got lost again here. I know, you're thinking that I'm a horrible mom that I lost the same kid twice on the same trip. We had gone into the gift shop. He had seen a monkey that had the crown on it. He asked if he had enough money for it. He didn't, so I told him to go put it back. We went to look at the Christmas tree ornaments that they have. We like to get one of places we've been. The ornaments were two tables over from the basket of monkey's. I told him to come over there, he didn't hear me or forgot, and walked away. M asked where he was, I panicked because the store was so crowded and it opened to outside. I was worried that he had thought we had left and went outside. I started yelling his name over and over. I went to the doorway and yelled outside. I had just gone back inside when I heard,"Here he is mama, here he is." A lady had him by the hand and was walking towards me. He was in tears. The lady had found him and asked him what color shirt I was wearing. He couldn't remember but said that B had on a brown one. That's when he heard me yelling for him and told the lady it was me. The whole thing lasted about three maybe four minutes. But those few minutes felt so long. I had about a million thoughts go through my mind while I couldn't find him. I was reminding myself of what he was wearing. Thinking of places he could go. Making sure that I had told him more than once that day that I loved him. And praying over and over that we would find him and that he would be ok. After we loved him and made him hold onto the stroller at all times, not that he wanted to let go, B reminded me that at least we were on an island, so if someone had taken him, they wouldn't have anywhere to go. That's true, but I'm glad that he had just gotten to the front of the store. We told him that maybe we should put the leash on him instead of on little B. That made him laugh as he protested that idea!

After the Statue of Liberty we made the five hour drive to Palmyra. All three kiddos slept a good chunk of the way. We wished there was a way to get all of them in one shot, but there wasn't. Just imagine little B in a rear facing car seat with his head to the side sleeping as we left NYC behind and went to Palmyra!