Longwood Gardens

It has been a great week with Jeremy's mom in town. We have explored new places, done random things, and just had a good time hanging out. There were a lot of pictures and stories to tell, so I thought I'd break it up into different posts. This first post is about Longwood Gardens.

This was our first visit there so it was a good adventure. We missed the prime tulip season but there were still other flowers in bloom. Apparently there is also a fountain celebration coming up that I might have to convince Jeremy to go to with me. Cambrie was a good sport and sat and posed in front of random flowers. The best part however, was the kids garden. It's an area in the conservatory that has been set aside for kids to run wild. There were fountains that they could play in (I think), castles to explore and neat statues. Cambrie had fun playing in the water, she made funny faces when it splashed her face. By the time we left, she was soaking. Here are some of the photos that will possibly incriminate us for playing in the fountains.

Of course she chose the biggest water spout to play with

Don't fall in!

Already writing her name at 10 months! We have a prodigy on our hands.

Nana and Cambrie in front of some of the fountains

Did I say she was a good sport about sitting pretty for the camera?

White Coat Ceremony

Last Friday, Temple University School of Dentistry officially recognized the efforts of the second year students by giving them their coveted white doctor coats. Jeremy, his friends, and fellow students worked so hard to survive their sophomore year in dental school and I am so proud of them. Congratulations! Events like these make me realize that the end is almost in sight. Someday our husbands will be dentists. Someday we won't go to bed alone because our husbands are up all night studying perio, endo, pedo, and restorative back-tests. Someday we won't be living in apartments with chipping paint and crooked walls. Someday we will actually be earning a paycheck. Ah, someday... But today, we are half-way through school and Jeremy is well on his way to earning his license. Good job Jeremy, I am so proud of you!

Jeremy receiving his white coat

Cambrie is so proud of her daddy

Jeremy and friends looking so sharp!

"Dr. Rogers" and family

Surprise,surprise

What an unexpected surprise-moldy carpeting...ugh! Today while Jeremy and I were cleaning the house, he noticed that the floor around our entertainment center felt damp. As we began pulling furniture away from the walls we discovered that it was really damp and had been for awhile. Mold was growing under the entertainment center (as seen by the black lines in our carpet), and was creeping up the wood. We have no idea how long this has been a problem-obviously because we wouldn't let mold intentionally grow in our house-but it was sneaky. The water was very contained, and concealed, and this carpet isn't by a sink. However, our tub is on the other side of that wall, so who knows. All I know is that our cleaning day seemed to have the opposite effect, a fan is blowing underneath soggy carpet in my front room, and our front door is open to the world to help ventilation. I sure hope that when the maintenance guy comes tomorrow that he will be able to solve the problem and prevent it from happening again. In the meantime, if anyone wants to come over to watch a movie, play Halo, or play Dance Dance Revolution, you will have to take a rain check until moldy carpeting is no longer an issue :)

Here is another fun game that I know...

And I call this game...fun in a box!

Big purchases are fun (like new carseats)-but the boxes they come in are often more fun!

Fun memories...

It has been incredibly beautiful weather here in Philadelphia this last week and it has released funny emotions in the Rogers family.

I took Cambrie outside to play in the grass barefoot. She has never felt the grass between her toes and since her mom loves it, I decided to introduce it to her. Her reaction was so funny that I had to document it. She didn't make a face, cry, or want me to pick her up, all she did was pick up one of her feet and stand there like a flamingo. She pulled this trick the whole time we were outside. If one leg became tired, she would switch to the other. What a goof :)

The other night "Wedding Planner" was on TV. I love that movie and insisted on watching it. Jeremy wasn't too keen on that idea so I told him he could go get Cambrie ready for bed instead so he wouldn't have to watch it. He didn't really like that "compromise." He rebelled by bringing Cambrie out of her room dressed like this (understand that the doll's head is through the correct hole):

Need I say more?

Nauvoo the Beautiful

We're back! Yes it's true, Cambrie and I have just recently returned from a week-long trip to Nauvoo to visit my Grandma who is on a mission. My family met us there and it was great to see them-at least I enjoyed it. Cambrie on the other hand...suffice it to say that she cried when she looked at my dad. However, by the end of the week she loved playing with my brother and sister, and my dad did get to hold her.

We stayed in a house right on the Nauvoo main street. The owners rent it out to members and donate the money to their ward missionary fund. Nauvoo wasn't what I expected at all. I always had the image in my mind of a thriving brick-building community, basically Nauvoo in its prime. It took me a couple of days to really understand that it was an abandoned ghost town that the church restored. So considering that, it was in really good shape and absolutely beautiful (which is appropriate since "nauvoo" means "beautiful" in Hebrew).

Each home and shop had missionaries there to tell the stories and give the history of the building. The stories they shared were awe-inspiring and wonderful. I can't write down everything I learned since it was so much, but if you would like to hear recounted stories of Heber C. Kimball, John Taylor, Sarah Granger Kimball, Wilford Woodruff, Emma Smith, Brigham Young, learn how to make a horse shoe, a tin pan, a rifle, a leather shoe, a wagon wheel, a brick, gingerbread men, or rope, just let me know and I can go on and on about the Saints.

Facts about Nauvoo:
It used to be Commerce, Illinois with eight homes
12,000-15,000 Saints lived there
There were 350 brick homes, 450 block homes (square logs), and 1500 log cabins
Each home took approx. 30,000 bricks to build at $.50 per brick
50 brick homes survived
40 school teachers taught there
There was one university
9 dress shops were in operation
Hair dye was for men's beards
They had plays, dances, and concerts in the Cultural Hall (the original floor is still there)
The original drainage ditch is still there
Many of the brethern only lived in their completed homes for less than a year before they moved west

Like I said, I could go on because their history is quite impressive. Like one missionary said, "The Saints might have been poor, but they weren't dumb." They were incredibly industrious and really built something out of nothing in that Mississippi swamp. But enough of my jabering, let the pictures tell the story. (You will also see pictures taken in Independence, Missouri; Springfield, Illinois, and Mark Twain's home town of Hannibal as they were part of our trip too.)

But before the slide show, I just want to say how much my testimony has grown as a result of this trip. The church is true. No other church could have survived what the early LDS church did and stay in tact. Heavenly Father's plan for us is a perfect one that he created for us because he loves us dearly. Joseph Smith was a true prophet who really did received revelation from the Lord. He translated the Book of Mormon with the power of God and only sought His will while he served as Prophet. I love the Lord and I love the Saints who demonstrated how far faith can carry oneself through trials and tribulations. I pray that I can follow their example and be just as stalwart of a member of the true church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Our Green Thumbs

Since we moved in I have been eyeing our little "garden plot" next to our front door. It looks like someone used to use it-rocks outlining the bed and cleared out grass-but we haven't done anything to it yet. Our Friday night date night changed that. I wouldn't call us farmers or hobby gardeners, just a couple on a garden-growing mission. We were afraid that it was getting late to plant things, but in fact it was just the opposite. A lot of the vegetables we want to plant don't go in until May or June. So instead we got started with some strawberries, raspberries, parsley, and beets. It has rained every day since we planted, and so far the leaves are still looking lush and healthy. I sure hope that they continue to grow. Wouldn't it be awesome if it worked? We'll keep you posted.