Tennessee

David and I are having a great time living out here in Maryland, but we find it hard to be so far
away from our families. Last week we decided to make a little visit down to Tennessee to see David's brother Jared and his family. It was about an 11 hr drive but we were able to spend three whole days with them. They took us to a historic plantation from the Civil War days and to a nature reserve where we had a lot of fun playing with the kiddies. They have four adorable children and we were able to help Jared and Emily out for a couple of nights by taking care of the kids and putting them to bed. I even got to experience changing a diaper, which I truthfully admit I had never done before. It was not, thankfully, as scary as it seemed (Although David and I are still uncertain whether or not we put the diaper on right!). I'm sure everyone is laughing, but I'm the youngest in my family and it just never came up! We had a wonderful time visiting with them, but we decided we will be happy to ease in to parenthood one baby at a time, not four at once! We've got picture of all the kids except Madeleine because she always came out as a blur, I guess that is what you get with a four year old!

The Netherlands!

We have some exciting news - Julia and I are going to the Netherlands!! Georgetown has a study abroad program with the University of Leiden (Leiden is a small college city in-between the Hague and Amsterdam, and close to both). I applied a month ago and was given an 'alternate' slot. They only send a few students, so we figured the chances of us going were slim. Then this week I received an e-mail saying another student had dropped out and I could have the position. Julia and I decided it was just too great of an opportunity to pass up. The timing works out well since Julia is graduating next month and we don't have kids yet. I'll be taking law courses in Leiden that count toward my degree, so my own graduation isn't delayed. I'm especially excited to be able to go back to the Netherlands, a country I love, and share the experience with Julia. We'll be there from September to December. Anyone that wants to come visit, we'd love to have you - make your reservations now and have your own private Dutch speaking tour guide!

Tree coring expedition

In case any of you don't know, I (Julia) am currently working on my master's degree. To get my degree I have to complete a master's project of my choice. Before I came to Maryland I was working with a prof. from BYU doing tree-ring studies. I decided I wanted to continue the subject so I did a tree-ring study in Montezuma Canyon, UT. I am on the verge of finishing my project and so I thought I would share some of our photos from the field work we did last summer. I have to give my parents and David a lot of credit for the work we accomplished last summer. I could not have done it without them!
David spent several hours in this tree we lovingly named "Fergus." It only takes a few minutes to get the boring tool (tool used to extract a tiny core from the tree) into the center of the tree, but if the tree is very big and rotten in the middle it can take hours to pull it out. If David hadn't been there to help me, the boring tool would still be stuck in that tree! Thanks for hanging in there so long David! It must be love!
There are hundred of Anasazi ruins in the canyon (my parents have excavated a number of them!). This is a kiva in the canyon that David is coming out of. My parents and other members of their field school reconstructed this kiva.

Cherry Blossom Festival!

David and I haven't gotten out much lately because I've been working hard on my Master's paper! We did manage to get out for a little bit this weekend though to go to the Cherry Blossom Festival. This is quite a big deal in D.C. and well worth a visit. Cherry trees surround the lake in front of the Jefferson Memorial spreading tiny pink leaves everywhere. The trees are gorgeous, we'll definitely be going back next year!

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.