Look at Lou!

Since taking first steps on her birthday three weeks ago, Lou has walked a little more each day - just wanted to share my cute wobbly walker.

Willeitners in Washington

The countdown to go home has started. We leave in 9 days and I have to say that in spite of all the fun things we have seen and done, I am ready to go home. Fortunately we had some visitors last week to distract us from our homesickness. Warren's sister Brianna and husband Ryan decided to celebrate their one year anniversary by visiting us! They visited the typical tourist attractions of the Nation's Capitol and we tagged along to some places not yet visited - Georgetown, Mount Vernon, and the National Archives. We visited the temple together to celebrate their anniversary. Being the outdoorsy type Ryan and Brianna expressed interest in visiting several nearby National Parks. We took a Sunday drive and short walk in Shenandoah National Park and viewed the Potomac waterfalls at Great Falls National Park. Highlights of our week with them -

Mount Vernon
Curly petting a mule at Mt Vernon, Nikki & Lory came too!
Happy Anniversary!
Shenandoah National Park

Brianna, truly young at heart on the Carousel at the National Mall

We visited the monuments at dusk and that is now what I recommend - Less crowded, cooler, and they glow!

Great Falls National Park - This day was super hot!!! Notice Ryan and Brianna carrying the girls - they insisted on being helpful all the time! It is a great talent they have!

I guess this blog post wouldn't be complete without a mini history lesson - so here you go. The colonies were set up to produce goods for the mother land. Many farmers in the colonies were going into debt trying to farm tobacco as it was taxed heavily. George Washington decided to beat the British system. He grew some tobacco that he would sell to Britain, but on the side he grew wheat and developed faster ways of threshing. He sold his wheat all over the world and made quite a profit.

Both he and Jefferson took seriously the management of their households, even while away serving the nation. In detailed letters, they specified how they wanted things run at their homes.

Interestingly, President Washington wasn't home much to enjoy the place. After leading the military in the War for Independence, then retiring as Commander in Chief, he headed the Continental Congress that wrote the Constitution and then was elected President. He served two terms before returning home, where he died two years later. He basically served his country all of this adult life.

My Handy Man-ny!

The sink is fixed!!! It took three trips to Home Depot, two evenings, lots of advice from the experts (my Uncle Paul and Aunt Michele) and some help from our cousin Lory (THANK YOU!) but it is now good as new (and much better than it was before)! Plus, they removed the offending baby washcloth that started this whole mess. It looked very nasty! We saved at least $250 dollars by doing it ourselves. So next time you have a plumbing problem call Fisher... or just do it yourself!

A Very Happy Anniversary!

Lest you think all that we do is lose and break things, I had better report on the fabulous weekend that Fisher and I enjoyed. It is my turn to plan our 6th Anniversary date this year and since we will be driving across the country on August 10th, I decided we should celebrate early, even better, I am so sneaky that Fisher was totally surprised! I arranged for wonderful Jill to watch our girls for the weekend and planned a getaway to the City of Love - aka Philadelphia (it really is called the city of Love). I was so excited that it was very hard for me not to let anything slip that would give my plan away.


On Friday afternoon I dropped Curly and Lou off at the Collings where they could play until Jill got off work. Fisher arrived home while I was gone and found a note that said "I've taken your children and all your money, if you ever want to see them again, meet me in front of the house in 10 minutes!" I picked him up and away we went.

I loved Philadelphia, not just because I got to spend quality time with Fisher. The history there is amazing. Apparently when William Penn requested a Charter for Pennsylvania he designed it to be a place where all religions were tolerated. There were many congregations in Philadelphia that were as old as the city. We toured Independence Hall where the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were signed. We visited the site of Benjamin Franklin's home where there is an underground museum all about him. We also learned about the Liberty Bell and why it is the symbol of Liberty. I think that being in a place that is so old and unchanged is awesome! You wonder what you would learn if the walls could talk.

Independence Hall

Where the Continental Congress met

Liberty Bell

A trip anywhere wouldn't be complete without sampling their famous food. We walked to a huge, indoor farmer's market called "The Reading Terminal" to sample an authentic Philly Cheese Sandwich - complete with Cheese Whiz (which is apparently what makes it authentic). It was good, reminded me of an Arby's Cheddar melt - no offense to Rick.

Besides the history and food, the city is beautiful. We stayed in the historic area right by the river. On Friday night, we ate delicious Afghanistan food and then walked down to the Delaware to watch boats and lights and a few random fireworks.

On our way home we drove through Valley Forge. The History Center was closed for the day, but we enjoyed the beautiful, green country. We love the trees here!

We picked the girls up from Jill's. Curly and Lou had lots of fun swimming and playing at Jill's house, hopefully Jill enjoyed them as much as they enjoyed her. We are so grateful that she would watch them! It was a wonderful anniversary!

If It's Not One Thing ...

Good news - The car is fixed. We took it to a place recommended by some ward members and they had it fixed in a day and a half. The engine control module needed replacing - which is basically the computer for the car. Shocker! A car that old has a computer. Now it is running wonderfully again and I have to admit that after all these miles together we have grown rather fond of the chrysler.



As the title of this post suggests - "Another" thing has been on our "to do" list for several weeks now. True to her habit of putting things down holes they don't belong in, Curly 'watched' a baby washcloth go down the tub drain a few weeks ago before exclaiming "Mom! Lou's washcloth went down the drain!" The tub has been backed up and out of service since then. We have tried many things to get the washcloth out, but have not yet succeeded. Fisher decided to take apart the p-trap on the sink to see if he could get a better angle with the drain snake. But, at the slightest touch the p-trap cracked! So now the tub and sink are unusable (Thankfully this is a two bathroom house). Feeling that he may be losing his MacGyver touch, we decided to call a plumber... until we found out how much that would cost! So, now we are trying to replace the p-trap and remove the washcloth on our own. We will keep you posted.

Monticello and Malfunctioning Motors

Yesterday we took a day trip to Monticello about 2 hours from here in Charlottesville, VA. Monticello is Thomas Jefferson's home that has been preserved and restored. It was interesting to learn more about Jefferson and see his very clever home filled with books, art, and innovations to save time and energy. I learned many things about Jefferson - Here is a brief summary.

He married a woman named Martha who died in childbirth before Monticello was ever finished. We know little about her because Jefferson burned all her letters in his grief after she died. Only two of their six children lived to adulthood and of those two daughters, one died giving birth to her only child. Jefferson invited his remaining daughter to move to Monticello with her 12 children and 1 adopted child (from her sister). So he had lots of grandchildren around!

Jefferson was the father of "Paleontology" in America (though it wasn't called that then). He was the President who purchased "Louisiana" and then sent Lewis and Clark to explore the west. The entrance room to Monticello served as a museum displaying antlers and from the strange animals that Lewis and Clark found out west and ancient bones from the mastodon.

Jefferson wrote more than 20,000 letters in his lifetime and made copies of many using a "polygraph". He also had thousands of books in his first library which he sold to congress after the Capitol was burned and it's library destroyed. These books started "The Library of Congress". His second library also contained thousands of books.

Jefferson seriously opposed slavery and was the first to introduce a bill that would allow masters to free their slaves (which obviously did not pass). After battling slavery for years, he realized that he would never see change in his lifetime and predicted that it would be an issue that would divide the nation. He had several slaves at Monticello and freed two while he was living and six in his will. Jefferson died with no money and many debts. His family sold to Monticello to pay for his debts.

Okay so that wasn't a little summary - but there you go. The house was beautiful, as were the gardens, and the surrounding countryside. Curly thought the tunnel under the house was pretty neat.

So now to the less happy part of the day - We drove out here in my grandparents and now parents 1990 Chrysler 5th Avenue because it has a huge trunk and we wanted to save our car from all those miles! It has worked beautifully the whole trip... until last night - da - da - da - duhm - We feel very lucky because we were only a couple of miles from home when the trouble started. We pulled into CVS to pick up some eggs for Lou's cake and then the car wouldn't start. We were having trouble finding someone to help us when our guardian angels pulled into the parking lot driving a red minivan. I saw a couple dressed in their Sunday best and thought, "They just went to the temple." and I was right. A very kind couple gave us a jump for the car and not only that but the man was from Idaho Falls, Idaho - small world. Unfortunately I didn't find out their names, but we feel very grateful that they helped us. We made it within a half a mile of our home when we coasted into the parking lot of some large apartments and died... Fortunately, our friends live in that Apartment - I told you we are lucky! Lia brought her car around to jump ours and then let it charge for a while (Fisher walked the screaming tired children home in the stroller). Alas, the charge didn't work and the car is sitting in that parking lot waiting to be towed to a repair shop in the morning... boo hoo! We think (and really hope) that is just needs a new battery... but we are awaiting the verdict. We feel really grateful for the kind friends that we have made here - I am not sure what we would have done last night without them!

I'm "Free!"

It's been a week of celebrations for us. We celebrated our visit with Jeniel and Elyse. We celebrated Curly's birthday. We celebrated Independence Day! What a fun week!!! Where to begin... Curly's Birthday is a good place. She can now excitedly announce, "I'm free!" I can't believe that it is my third momiversary. Curly woke up early and found her "Birthday Display" (Fisher's fun family tradition).

Princess seemed to be the theme for the party this year. In the morning we had a princess playdate with Julia, Eli, and Lia Collings. Crowns and pink cupcakes included.

After the playdate we took a tour of the capitol (Thanks to Elyse's cousin Gordon) and visited the Library of Congress. Curly slept through pretty much all of it. She requested pizza for dinner and we enjoyed homemade pepperoni with Jeniel, Elyse, Nicole, and Jill. For the past few months, Curly has been asking for a Cinderella cake and a "Barbie" so we combined them all into one.

I had envisioned that Curly would love the cake (which Jeniel and I spent quite a bit of time on) but to my dismay, she cried, "I don't want my dolly in the cake!" So the cake was quickly dismantled.

Curly loved talking to her grandparents and cousins on the phone and describing the "big big big big big big Cinderella" that she received. She has happily played with, read, watched, and used the many nice gifts she received. Thank you all!

Party #2 ~ A Week with Jeniel and Elyse ~

We tried ethiopian food.. the "injera" looked more like elephant ears to us. We toured the National Cathedral and the Kennedy Center, visited the Air and Space Museum and National Art Gallery. Jeniel, Elyse and I were able to attend the temple one morning. Jeniel and Elyse also visited Mount Vernon, more museums, memorials, and monuments, the Pentagon, the White House, Alexandria, Georgetown, and the Bureau of Engraving. I think they saw more in the week they were here, than I have in the whole month I've been here! Besides all that, they also helped me with the girls. I am sad that they are gone!

Party #3 ~ Independence Day! ~

I think this year's Celebration is in my top three most memorable! Here's the run down - We met up with Nicole and Lory at the Renaissance Mayflower where they had invited us to stay after the fourth festivities. We all visited the National Geographic museum before Jeniel and Elyse had to catch their flight. Nicole and Lory came with us to the parade which Curly and Lou both loved! Curly liked the big "Hello Kitty" and "Garfield" Balloons. Lou loved to clap and bop to the marching bands.

After the parade we found a yummy place for lunch and then went back to the hotel where we all crashed for a nap. In the evening we met up with Nicole's cousin Gordon and wife Amber and Jill and Jeremy. We worried that the fickle rain might not ever stop, but it did just in time for "The Capitol Fourth" concert. Below is our fun group!
Curly and Lou entertained us with their dancing to Jerry Lee Lewis - He can still rock!

The evening of course ended with fireworks... and then the rain came back. We feel very grateful that Nikki and Lory shared their hotel with us. They didn't realize they would get a happy screeching alarm clock in the morning in the form of Lou.

We couldn't believe that they weren't sick of us after the day (and night) before, but we all went to the Modern Art Gallery together and had lunch before parting. We found this cute hoodie and hat (of course in pink) at a street vendor- Nikki gave Curly the hat for her B-day. Thanks Nikki!

I guess this is what happens after a week of partying!