Vacation week

This week has been a full week. Tara and I decided to use her Jet Blue benefits for the first time. We flew to New York to see the sights. We didn't want to stay overnight because of the hotel prices there. We just walked all over the city and sped around on the subway system. It is a colorful city, we were about the only white people we saw with the exception of tourists from Europe.

The Statue of Liberty was pretty cool. We were really cold and tired by the time we got there. The statue of Liberty has made its way into our group of immortal national figures, that artists and directors use regularly in their craft. Ben Franklin, George Washington, Honest Abe, The Bald Eagle, Francis Scott Key, Paul Revere, General Patton... in all these figures the Statue of Liberty embodies all the ideals that they stand for. I felt that most of the people there were just there to get a picture for their collection without realizing the gravity and the important message and purpose Lady Liberty has. Of course it was 30 degrees and everyone wanted to be on their way quickly.

This is a really cool poem about the Statue of Liberty. It is written by Emma Lazarus.

"The New Colossus"
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

That night, Tara had to go directly back to SLC so she could work on Sunday. I took the kids on the flight to San Jose, and we spent a day and a half with my Mom and Dad. We were at the Atlantic ocean one day, and the Pacific the next.

The kids had so much fun climbing the redwood tree. Ali got stuck, and I had to go up to her rescue. Isaiah climbed 2/3 of the way to the top. Tara couldn't have handled it, so it's good she wasn't there. At the beach, I dug a big ol' trench, and all the kids around gravitated to it. We were preparing for the beach invasion. While I was there, I beat Tara's score at Geo Challenge. It's pretty funny how competitive we are with each other. It's only a matter of time before she beats me, and I'll have to up my game again. That's how we keep the romance alive. Geo Challenge love.