Happy Halloween

School costume parade: 

 The kids had a half day of school, which included a fun parade and party. We went trick-or-treating around our circle and then headed over to Damascus to collect candy with a bunch of friends and cousins. The kids had fun running from one house to the next, after 2.5 hours we took them home with their buckets filled to the brim with sugar. Let the sugar high commence.

Cutest little love bug ever!

Perfect Timing

When my parents called to set up a time to come out for a visit I didn't realize just how perfectly timed their visit would be. We set the date and the next Sunday the Bishop made a visit and asked me to be the Relief Society President.  I had two weeks to ponder on who to call as counselors and wait for Mom and Dad to come. I'll just say it was the easiest fasting I've ever done, my nervous stomach didn't want food! Mom is the current RS president in her ward, for the 4th time, so I was very eager for two weeks with her and my Dad's advice.

They came the day after Dan left for a business trip. Dan left his car at BWI so my parents could drive it home. After a very unfortunate mishap involving my dad running over his new mac notebook in his briefcase and then the breaks going out... they safely made it to Monrovia.
They spent the next day with old army friends in Virginia and then spent the next week and a half with us. We kept them very busy. Between helping watch the kids while I started with meetings and visits for my new calling, going to the temple, enjoying the Fall weather, picking apples and canning 8 jars of apples sauce, yummy pies to eat, going to the pumpkin patch with the kids, a White House tour, and a trip to upstate New York, the time flew by. And I didn't do the dishes once in those 2 weeks!

Picking Apples

The day we originally planned to go to Summer's Farm we showed up with half the state of Maryland already there. We quickly changed our plans and ended up in Middletown to get some ice cream at the South Mountain Creamery. Lucky for us there were having a festival. A FREE festival. There was a blue grass band, a fun playing area, face painting, ice cream and pop corn, and we even got to shake cream to make our very own butter. And to top it off, Grandma and Grandpa treated us to Chic-fi-la!

White House Tour: My good friend, Cara Gilbert, now works for the man whose name shall not be spoken in this home. Okay, not really. She works for Harry Reed. Her connections of working at the White House got us a tour!!! Abby and Clara were too young to go but Jake and Tess loved getting out of school to go to the President's home with Grandma and Grandpa. I laughed when as we pulled out of our driveway Tess reminded Dan to "be nice to the president" if he saw him, something our neighbor Tara had told her to do! We left at 8am and made it just in time for our 10a.m. tour. Surprisingly as we walked through the east wing we were all filled with deep respect for those men who have served there. The decor was elegant and rich with history. Paintings of past presidents and wives, the green room where I could picture a huge Christmas tree in the middle, the china room, ect. The Secret Service agents in each room answered any questions and told us history from each room. My favorite part was seeing the fireplace where John Adams words were engraved. A letter was found that he had written to Abigail, part of which is now referred to as the White House Prayer: "I pray Heaven to bestow the best of Blessings on this House and all that shall hereafter inhabit it. May none but honest and wise Men ever rule under this roof." -John Adams, 1800

After our tour we met up with Cara and a sister missionary from NY, Cristy Meiners who has been working for MPR in D.C., for lunch. It was a really fun and perfect day. I felt well, the weather was beautiful, and I thoroughly enjoyed the company of my family and friends. 

We kept our promise to the kids to go to a pumpkin patch, Gavers Farm is a favorite. We were one of about 3 families there and the kids had a blast!

The second Sunday mom and dad were here was the Primary Sacrament Program. Mom and Dad got up early and picked up Cara from Shady Grove Metro so she could join us for the day. I just have to say that Jacob, Tess, and Abby did such a great job. They had their parts memorized and courageously made me one proud Mama. I enjoyed sitting on the stage with my CTR5 kids, my class hasn't had a new teacher sustained yet, and sang with them.

Pumpkin Carving for FHE

Abby had us laughing...

I love Tess's pumpkin with braces!

Last morning with Grandma and Grandpa.

Thanks for coming out Mom and Dad. 

Returning after 13 years

New York

Mom and Dad have never been back to visit their mission. Since we only live 6 hours from Palmyra, this has been something I've wanted to do with them for years. Mom and Dad planned plenty of time this trip to be able to drive up.

As I thought about the trip, I thought it would be a great opportunity for Jake and Tess to enjoy some one on one time with their Grandparents and see/hear first hand the great experiences of serving the Lord.  Even though some of it was "boring" I think it was a great memory they will always have.

We left early Thursday morning, drove for what felt like forever, spent two nights there and made it back before dark on Saturday. (Unfortunately my new calling and the primary sacrament program prevented us from staying longer.) We stayed both nights at the Palmyra Inn, right next to the sites.

That first night Tess and I got what we think was food poisoning, we shared a rueben sandwich for lunch at a cute Amish market on our trip up. It was a miserable night. For everyone. One bathroom for 5 people, two of which with food poisoning was a bit difficult. Around 3 a.m. I asked Dad to give Tess and I a blessing.  (Tess and I missed out on seeing Rochester since we stayed in the hotel for the morning recoping. )

We spent time at the Hill Cummorah, Smith Farm, Sacred Grove, and the Whitmer Farm. We tried to get into the mission home but the mission president was away at a conference all weekend. Just bad timing. Mom and Dad tried to find the mission office but learned that it had been to the Stake Center. The Golden Pheonix, a chinese restaurant we loved, was still there so we had to eat dinner there.  We also took some time to drive out to lake Ontario and found what use to be the Pickneyville Pickle where Mom, Dad, Liz and I would stop to get ice cream on our way to our lake spot. It was our own little "get away" from the mission. Such great memories! It was a super windy day and cold right on the lake so we only stayed long enough to take some pictures, but the sunshine was bright and our hearts were full of fond memories! Mom and Dad were able to go to the temple while I stayed with the kids and they swam at the hotel.

Despite the stomach pain, it was a great trip. The color in the leaves had past its peak but it was still beautiful. I really enjoyed spending the time with my kids and parents. We had the Sacred Grove to ourselves and I thoroughly enjoyed crunching through the leaves and testifying to my two oldest of the sacredness of that spot. It was my escape during the mission. It was a place of peace and refuge for me...just like the temple. It was fun to see how the church has updated the sites and made it more interactive. Even though the surrounding/tours at the sites have changed over the past 13 years the spirit felt the same. It kind of made my heart ache coming back to it with my parents as visitors. It was OURS---13 years ago. Now we were visitors. I will forever be grateful for my amazing parents and the experiences I had in upstate New York that influenced and made me who I am.

Hill Cummorah Visitor Center

On top of the Hill Cummorah, you can see Rochester in the distance. I spent many nights on top this hill. One that has gone down in Breinholt history is sliding down it with my mom and Cara late one night!

Amidst all the apple orchards we found our favorite ice cream stop, the Pickneyville Pickle.
I was glad Tess felt up to having some ice cream. Way to smile into the sun kiddos!

Beautiful Lake Ontario!

The Sacred Grove

With the leaves fallen you could see the temple perfectly!

Swimming while Grandma and Grandpa were in the temple. 

Peter Whitmer Farm

Jake and Tess loved playing at the kids corner. They had interactive games like clearing the land, planting, and harvesting like the pioneers. This visitor center was just redone. There is a video, only shown here, that shows the growth of the church in a very powerful way. It was very touching.

During the drive home we had to stop and enjoy the beautiful scenery... my iphone doesn't do justice!

Even though the timing of this trip conflicted with the Rochester mission presidents conference and we weren't able to see the mission home, it was the perfect timing for me with my new calling. What intimidates me the most with being the Relief Society President is my responsibility as a spiritual leader. A leader period at only 33 years old. I needed to be reminded of the person I was when we lived in Rochester-- always spiritually progressing, bold and confident in my knowledge and love of the gospel. And I was only a teenager! But the environment of the mission home, the experiences with Cara, the refuge of the Sacred Grove and sites-- all experiences that impacted me greatly. Over the last 13 years I've lost some of that spiritual umph, boldness, and leadership skills as I've focused on having a family. I needed to feel the spirit and be reminded that I have it in me to do this. So, thank you Mom and Dad for once again giving me what I needed.

Tess's Stories

I Visitid Kemptown

I am the president of the United States. And I am visiting Kemptown Elemechry School. I'm going to 3rd grade Mrs. Dlugos's class. Wen I walked in the class got silent (teacher inserted comment "I bet they did!:) 

When the said something they said, "We get to see the president of United States, Yay!" They thot it was so funy they all danst and skremd so much. It wus like a motersikel was right next to me. 

I said, "who here wants to know whut I do?" One kid said "we alredy know you just make us pay more then we need to and pay are dads less they you ."

So i told them whut I did. Then I brot a kraft out, they loved it. Sadly nexst I had to go back to D.C. In a sad way I said good by.

My Bus Ride to Kemptown Elementary 

Today I brot my dog with me to the bus. Wen I got on I sat on my seat and I ask Molly, "do youlike my dog?" "She is so qut" said Molly.  "what is her name?" she said I said "her name is Elle." Molly askt a nother qoston it was "wut cand of dog is Elle?" I said, "she is a begol." And then we araved at school. 

Love her!

Abby makes me smile.

Last night Dan and I had just gotten in bed when in ran Abby. She made a very fast dash to the toilet in our bathroom and then came out and just stood at the foot of our bed. As I got up to help her find her way back to her bed I noticed she was completely naked. I asked her where her cloths were but she was still to sleepy to tell me. Dan and I laughed. That girl!

What we say and what they hear:
This morning while making lunches and getting kids ready for school Abby was in a chatty mood. She was telling me something while pointing to parts of her body. It took a minute for me to stop and realize what she was saying and then Dan and I couldn't stop laughing.
Abby was pointing to her body saying "scapical" (scapula), "birdbrain" (vertebra), and "ribcage". She explained that she learned these things from her PE teacher, Mr. Miller. My favorite is "birdbrain"!

Dan and I were in the kitchen after church today working on lunch while the kids played outside. Abby came running in and told us "Did you know this is my toaster?" waving her pinky finger at us. What? She then went on to tell us that her music teacher told her the joke and ask the kids to go home and see if their parents got it. She then corrected herself "No, it's a microwave! Get it?" Waving her pinky. Funny random girl.

Dan at Forty

This year Dan's birthday landed on a Sunday, fast Sunday at that. After 4 hours at church, thanks to choir practice, he came home for a nap. We had a yummy grilled dinner, ate ice cream, and spent the rest of the night enjoying our back yard.

 Daddy's a crack-up!

Tess took this picture with her camera and requested I put it on the blog so that "Dad will know what he looked like the last night he was 39!"

This past week at the beach I was reminded of how lucky I am to have married him. He is kind, helpful, so attentive to our kids, and listens to me.  I'm grateful for him.

Dan has decided that his mid-life crisis will be wood working. He was given a saw that needed some fixing from a friend and Dan did just that, fixed it. Now he needs a new blade and then he gets to make me an entry table!

I asked Dan if he had any wise pearls of wisdom to share? His response, "Marry a Breinholt and eat all the ice cream you can. The end."

Wise indeed.