Molly the Dolly

While flipping through the channels last week, I happened to stop on the Martha Stewart show. They were making dolls and I felt an irresistible desire to make a doll of my own. My sewing machine is currently in Utah so I had to make the doll by hand. Needless to say, this took a great deal of time, but I gained a new appreciation for people who once made all of their clothes without machines. Work, work, work. Honestly though, I love makings things and I'm already feeling the itch to make something else.

More Pictures from the Art Museum

I had to add this picture. David looks so engrossed in the art.





















This was my favorite statue at the museum. I doubt we will ever have a life size statue in our home, but if we did I wouldn't mind having this one.

New Jersey Aquarium

After our day in Philadelphia, David and I decided to visit the New Jersey aquarium. The wonderful thing about the east coast is that you can travel through several states in only a couple of hours.

It was cold and rainy outside with the penguins, but they were too busy gulping down whole fish to care.

















David made a special penguin friend.








This adorable seal had the cutest puppy dog face. David and I fell in love with him.
















This hippo had little fish all over his body keeping him clean.

Spring Break!

Although Julia and I don't have the same spring break, we try to get away for a day or two for a long weekend. Last year we went to New York and had a great time. This year - Philadelphia! It's less than a three hour drive, so it makes for a good quick trip. We enjoyed seeing all the historical sites - Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, Ben Franklin Museum, Betsy Ross house, etc. Our favorite spot was Independence Hall. It's pretty amazing to think of all the historic events that occurred there like the signing of the Declaration of Independence and creation of the Constitution. One of the pictures is the inside layout, complete with the original chair George Washington sat in. Not even the rain which was pouring down later in the afternoon could spoil our fun. We even had a Philly Cheesesteak for lunch. The one historic site we didn't get to was the steps Rocky ran up! The next day we went to an aquarium across the river in New Jersey. We saw penguins, seals, sharks, hippopotamuses (hippopotami?) and all sorts of fish. We even got to touch rays, sharks, starfish, and jellyfish! We love zoos and aquariums, so we had a great day! We hope you all can see what fun there is to have here on the East Coast. We're trying to entice you to come visit!

Time for some culture

Julia and I have lived in D.C. for about a year and a half now, but still have yet to see lots of the big tourist attractions. Our most recent trip was to the Smithsonian Museum of Art. We felt like we needed to get some culture. There were lots of great works of art; I've posted two pictures to share. Bonus points for anybody who can post a comment and tell us who the painters are! I have to admit, though, it isn't my favorite museum here. My art appreciation is usually limited to 'pretty,' aesthetically pleasing pictures, usually landscapes. Perhaps because I know so little about painting myself it's harder to appreciate some of it. I think we spent about 2 minutes in the modern art section. Maybe we're not as cultured as we thought!

That was unexpected!

David and I recently became the happy parents of 28 baby fish! To our great surprise our new Black Molly fish gave birth on Friday to a hoard of small black specks (see if you can make them out in the picture!). Apparently Molly fish have live births and the females can remain fertilized for up to three pregnancies! Yikes, where will we put them all? All of the babies are doing fine so far, maybe we'll start a fish farm when they grow up.