Mount Vernon

On Tuesday, May 11th, Matt and I packed up our little family and drove to Reston, VA. The Keller's had volunteered to take our kids for the week while Matt and I went on a action packed week in California. The trip to California was a real whirlwind. Seeing family, celebrating my Dad's life and taking in the sights made for a fast paced trip that could not be missed. Without the Keller's, we could not have done it. They are destined for the Celestial Kingdom!

After our California adventures, we decided to slow it down and go sight seeing in Virgina for a bit. First on our list was Mount Vernon, the home of our first President, George Washington. Being married to Matt, I have learned to appreciate history more. And being my parents' daughter, I love a good adventure.

We drove about 45 minutes and arrived at the home of George Washington. The grounds were open for visitors to wander the plantation along with a tour of his home. This was the gate to the garden and his Greenhouse. I felt that I had stepped back in time and I felt the peace and tranquility of my surroundings.

The kids loved wandering through the garden. Looking at the beautiful flowers as well as the crops that were being grown and tended by volunteers. The kids were also given a treasure map with clues that helped them to earn a reward at the end. With the help of our maps and the clues, we all learned a lot.

After a tour of the house that held original artifacts, we rested a spell on the porch and took in the view of the Potomac River.


The kids ran, climbed the gate and picked flowers.



Another favorite game was rolling down the hill. Being that close to history was amazing.

These are the "HAHA walls" that we learned about thanks to our treasure map. George needed a way to keep the cattle in the meadow and not close to the house without a tacky wall. So he built these short walls. The house was on top of the wall and the animals below, and we all know that cows can't climb walls. But if you were playing a game of tag on the house lawn and did not know that the walls were there, you would fall off. Then everyone would laugh at you...hence the "HAHA walls"

Some of us got a little carried away with the name...

What an amazing sight! Thinking of George Washington riding his horse up to this same point to return home from the battlefields, then retiring to his small den to run our newly formed Country. Amazing.

This was a great day to make memories. Claire said over and over again, "I wish I was George Washington's Granddaughter so I could live here". Lance and Jack loved seeing statues of Washington as a solider. Each one of them had their favorite part of Mount Vernon. It was a wonderful experience to bring history to life.

Lego Mania

New York has too many fun things going on during the Summer that it is hard to choose what to do. But when I heard that a new Lego store was opening at Rockefeller Center, we had to go. They had tables set up on either side of the ice skating rink with bins full of red Legos so that the kids could build bricks to help to construct a 15 foot Lego apple.

Jack was so excited to get to build with Legos. He was really good at following the directions and making his brick exactly how the Lego experts taught him.

It was SO hot in the little tent. Claire as a trooper and worked diligently to create her part of the apple.

TA DA! Three little bricks made by my three favorite little people.


When they were done they took their bricks to the "Master Builders" to add to the apple. Here is a prototype of what the apple will look like. Each little brick on the prototype represents one of the kids big bricks on the big apple!

We went in the store for awhile to cool off and when went back to work. Closer to 5th Ave they had tables set up with only green Legos. They asked the kids to build plants to add to Rockefeller Center. The one with the red bricks was Jack's. A man from the New York Post was taking his picture and needed contrast in the photo. We stood there for over an hour building and the kids were in Lego heaven.

Lance was so excited about his creation. I was so excited that it did not fall on the way to putting it with the other creations.

The apple took 3 days to build. We missed seeing it finished but at 7:30 that night it killed me that we missed seeing it so we drove downtown and caught a glimpse. This is the view from 5th Ave as we drove by.

We drove around the blocks several times just so that everyone could see it. Here is a view from 50th , the taxis behind me did not appreciate what I was trying to do. Their horns added to the moment.

When we got home we had accomplished 2 goals. 1) See the finished apple. 2) Carry 3 sleeping children up to the 6th floor and tuck them in bed. Mission accomplished!

Our Little Red Lighthouse

There is a wonderful story by Hildegarde H. Swift and Lynd Ward titled "The Little Red Lighthouse and The Great Gray Bridge" It is a fabulous story about a charming little lighthouse that stands on the banks of the Hudson River at the north point of Manhattan.

One day while driving down the Henry Hudson Pkwy towards the city I noticed this little lighthouse tucked under the George Washington Bridge and was taken by surprise. The bridge connects New York to New Jersey. Months later while in a book store I notice the children's book about the lighthouse. I know that this was a perfect excuse for an adventure.

So today, on our second day of summer we hiked down the hill to meet our little red lighthouse. The weather was perfect! We wandered up and over the Henry Hudson Parkway, under over handing trees and along the banks of the Hudson River. A cool breeze was blowing off of the Hudson and we were able to find a spot of shade thanks to our little lighthouse and read the book, just to help the story come to life. Jack had me read it several times and would point out the landmarks around us as we came to them in the storyline.

It was one of those Mommy days when you think..."This is great!" Just as long as the kids did not fall in the Hudson or get hit in the head by the rocks they were throwing we were in great shape.

Lance asked to bring our binoculars to get a better look around. He loved playing I-spy with them. He found the Empire State Building, New Jersey, and a speed boat passing by, just to name a few.

Jack was doing everything he could to get into the gate. He got everything in but his head and as he tried to pull it through the bars he would giggle and say "Ow" every time his noggin clunked against the bars. Lucky for me he never got through. I was afraid I was going to have to call the NY fire department if he got stuck.

What a great day to bring a bit of literature alive. As I type Jack is thumbing through the book and talking about what he saw at the little red lighthouse. What a great start to a wonderful summer.

NY Summer

Before we went to California for the summer we made a plan. We started with 2 poster size calendars for June and July and made lists of all the fun city things to do. I was so afraid that I would miss the fun (and the kids too).

One of our favorite places to go is the American Museum of Natural History. Once it gets warm the sprinklers turn on just outside the Rose Center for Earth and Space. The boys loved splashing in the gutter outside of the Planetarium...amazing!

We also visited the Bronx Zoo and took in some of the sights that don't take place year round. The Monorail takes travelers across the Bronx river to see up close and personal animals that you can only see on the Monorail tour.

The kids loved playing "where's waldo" with the tigers, deer and other hidden animals. Some animals like the elephants they have no problem finding.

Our other favorite place in the Bronx Zoo is the butterfly exhibit. In the summer it does get a bit stuff in the green house. But the beautiful classical music, the tiny waterfalls and the flitting butterflies just capture the kids attention and they are at peace.



The boys can spend hours looking at the koi and waterfalls. They name the fish, try to touch them and watch as they play fishy tag.

Two of the "rules" are that you may not pick the flowers and you may not pickup the butterflies. However the kids have learned that there is no rule against the butterflies "happening" to crawl on your finger if it "happens" to be sticking out. Simple joys.

Taking a ride on the bug carousel is a must. The kids love to go around over and over again until I get dizzy and need to get off. With each ride they insist on choosing a different bug. Claire loves the ladybug.

A beetle, caterpillar and praying mantis are some other favorites to ride on.

Another NY city must is testing out the water from a cracked fire hydrant. Lance was so excited about the chance to see up close and personal how this wonderful thing worked.

He was so good (thanks to some coaxing) he did not get to soaked, but the possibility is still in his mind.

I don't know who was more warn out with our short NY summer, me or the kids. I did start a list for next year of some of the things that we missed or loved too much to miss out on next year.

My Daddy

This week, and for the rest of my life, I will honor an amazing man, my father...John David Fraser. What a gift my father in Heaven gave me when he let me come to the Fraser family. My Dad had so much knowledge that he wanted to share with me, sometimes it was a bit overwhelming.

I remember when I was about 9 and I wanted to know how a camera worked. My Dad was an expert on this! He attended BYU, went to Art School in Los Angles and then studies at Cal State Fullerton. He worked with photographer Todd Walker, designed and ran a photography lab at CBS and created his own Advertising Agency out of our home. Just to name few of his accomplishments in photography. However instead of asking my Dad how it worked, I went to my Mom. I remember her laughing at me and asking me, "Why don't you ask your Daddy?" I replied, "I just want the simple answer and I know that he is going to go on forever." I remember her suppressing her laughter as she placed her hand over her mouth. She then walked into the living room and whispered into my Dad's ear. He looked at me through the top half of his glasses and beckoned me over. As I sheepishly walked over and sat on the couch he said to me, "Tell me what you want to know". He lovingly and simply taught me about a camera..I caught the fire.

Being the youngest of 4 I remember being the only kid left at home. My Mom and Dad still insisted on Family Home Evening and Scripture study. With no siblings left at home to distract me, I created my own distractions and spent some of our time together under the coffee table, trying not to be interested. However to this day I can remember the sound of my Mom and Dad reading the scriptures to me and hearing the love they had for these sacred books conveyed in their voices.

I remember seeing his face as I walked out the right side of the room in the MTC and hoping to see his 18 months later. And then the excitement when I stepped of the plane and seeing the joy on his face that I was home.

Dancing at my wedding and him pointing out all the people that came to celebrate with us. Him flying up to Washington to only turn around and drive back to California so that he could be there with me when the boys were born and Matt was serving our Country. The joy I saw as he was one of the first to see the boys come into the world!

This past month he called me often at 8am our time (since the rest of the world was still sleeping). He told me of the books that he was reading and the people that he talked to and made them smile. But his greatest joy was telling me of sharing the gospel and giving copies of the Book of Mormon to even the crankest nurses.

One of my favorite memories is when I was about 7 and not wanting to go to bed. I tried the "water trick" often enough. Finally my Dad took me into his arms and pulled me into his lap. He sat in his chair watching TV cradling me in his arms. I remember placing my ear on his chest and listening to his heart pounding and his steady breathing moving my head gently back and forth. As I listened I tried to pattern my breathing after his. Right then nothing else mattered.

What a great plan our Father in Heaven has given us that he allows us come to families. To know that the knowledge of the older must be passed on to the younger. How grateful I am for the knowledge of the plan and for the knowledge that we are an eternal family.

President Spencer W. Kimball shared that he wanted to wear out his body in the service of the Lord. I have not seen a better example of this than my wonderful Daddy, and I hope to follow his example.

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In memory of John David Fraser May 14, 1933 - May 7, 2010