Rain, Rain, Go Away

This Past Friday the Reddington Family ventured into the Big City. As in New York City. Before going though we forgot to check the weather report. Unfortunately it rained the entire time we were there. On the bright side though I did discover that there are nice people in New York (who'd have thought). Just as a huge down pour of rain came and we were out without umbrellas a very nice man gave us his umbrella because he was getting onto the Subway and did not need it. I was about to tell him that umbrellas can just fold up and be reused for another time but I was so grateful for the kind gesture that I thanked him tremendously and kept my mouth shut otherwise. One of the places that was a must stop despite the weather was FAO Swartz. We arrived just in time for their story time and afterwards the kids got to do some crafts and play on the giant piano. They would have played on the piano for forever and the thought crossed my mind of how nice it would be to have one in the house just to occupy the kids at home. Well for $250,000 I quickly dismissed the idea.

Overall it was a fun family trip and this next week we are hoping to make it to Central Park and if it does rain we have one nice umbrella!

The Many Faces of Jack....

Every year around Halloween, Matt loves taking the kids to the halloween sales area. This time in particular Stephen was terrified of the masks and of anyone wearing them, so I had to take him elsewhere while Jack and his Daddy played dress up. It is funny because when I was younger I remember feeling the same as Stephen. The masks made me feel clausterphobic and seeing them was horrifying. Jack is more like his Dad and had fun with all the crazy faces.

A New Favorite Of New Jersey

While trying to find a fun park for the kids, I just happened upon this beach. The great thing about this beach is that right across the street is a playground and swings so it kills a couple of hours and the kids are pretty worn out afterwards. Another bonus is that it is only 5 minutes from our house. When we found this beach I told the kids they could wade their feet and before I know it Jack was up to his waste while fully dressed, but they both had a good time.

First Visitors in our new Home: The Cops

So I am trying very hard to have a positive attitude about our move to New Jersey but it has been difficult considering the unfortunate circumstances that seem never ending since we have arrived...

Upon arrival we had a few quirks with our apartment where I was unable to use our stove for a whole week (this was not neccesarily a bad thing for me but Matt was sure missing it) then our refrigerator broke and we had to ice everything down.

We also have not been recieving our mail and therefore have not been getting our student loans that we need for bills and FOOD!! (Don't worry though crisis averted)

The mail we did recieve though (which led to our visit from the police) was a huge home theatre system. My first thought was sweet we can return it and I can get one nice IPOD. But the more we looked into it the more we realized we had become victims of identity theft. Apparenty one of our kindly neighbors got a hold of our credit card number and ordered a $700 suround sound system. They sent it to their address but the office recognized my name and sent it up to our apartment. A very nice police officer came and took all the information and they are going to put a detective on the case. Kind of exciting that I get to help solve this mystery but unbelievable the things people do.

We are getting to know our ward and the other members in the area. It is a huge change from our large cozy ward in Virginia. The ward is really friendly but is a lot older and there and no other student families. Also the ward building is 30 minutes away and the chapel was only half full. So instead of having to leave home 30 minutes before church to get a seat we now leave 30 minutes early to get there in time.

On the bright side I do like the apartment it has two very huge bathrooms with a huge tub in our master bedroom. It also has a balcony with two storage closets on it and two very nice sized walk in closets. Our veiw from our balcony faces a forest so we have lovely scenery. We also do have a lot of privacy (oh except for people steal our credit cards).

I will have to post pictures.

I also found a very shady running trail not far from our apartment.

Trying not to be a Negative Nelly we are all safe and continually counting our blessings.

A little glimpse of my husband...

Because of my husband's birthday I also wanted to share just a few silly pics that I have found. Not many know that he was a serious runner and ran in college. So I thought I would share...

Happy Birthday Wonderful Husband...

This Saturday was Matt's Birthday and every year around this time I get all nervous. I always have the best of intentions on making his birthday the best day of the year but really fell short this time. What was supppose to happen consisted of breakfast in bed, a trip to NYC and ending the day with his favorite dinner and birthday cake while winding down with a fun movie.

What happened instead:

The aftermath of a hurricane.

With all good intentions aside the day still managed to turn out okay. The Breakfast ended up not being in bed because I realized I was out of eggs and had to do a grocery trip. Needless to say he was out of bed before I could get it to him. We canceled the trip to NYC due to the rain. Instead though the day consisted of the kids and mommy making and decorating Daddy's cake with sprinkles (which included Jack eating the frosting off the top in the process) and while we watched the rain come down we taught Stephen how to play monopoly. (According to him it is the longest game ever) . To conclude the day we did eat one of Matt's favorite dinners (sesame chicken and stir fry rice) and watched "What Happens in Vegas."

Since it is his birthday I thought I would just also mention what a wonderful husband he is. He is very inteligent and so willing to do whatever he needs to in support of his family. He is a wonderful father who loves playing with the boys and teaching them all about sports. He is extremely knowledgeable in the gospel and I always find myself looking to him for answers. He is my constant comfort and love. WE LOVE YOU MATT!!