A Birthday Gift

So I have this really thoughtful brother-in-law.  One day his wife tells him she misses her sisters.  The next thing we know, it’s Valentine’s Day and she receives a ticket to come see me a month later (over my birthday even)!  He is winning points all around.
Becca is the type of person you can’t not be in a good mood when you’re with her.  She has a bright, happy smile and genuine enthusiasm for life that is contagious.  I know she brightened up my life when she came to visit. 



She had told me she just wanted to come hang out and see the kids, but we had to throw in a little fun too!  After I picked her up from the airport, we stopped at Liberty State Park.  We walked along the promenade to take in the views of NYC and the Statue of Liberty.  It was a coooold day, but it was still really cool (no pun intended). 
 

We couldn’t leave without letting Ridge play on the playground.  I thought it was so awesome that we could stare at the Statue of Liberty while he played.  What a great setup! 
During the week we explored the area around where I live a little bit.  We visited the Frelinghuysen Arboretum and the Morris Museum.
 
At the museum: “What does a bear say, Ridge?” His gentle response: “big hug.”  And I didn’t teach him that.  Jade was thrilled to see a picture of her favorite president. 
 
By looking at these pictures, it would appear I only have two kids.  Don’t worry, Tanner received plenty of lovin’ from Becca too.  All my kids adored her. 
One of the highlights of Becca’s visit was our girls’ night on my birthday!  Anyone that knows me, knows I love me a girls’ night.  But especially when it involves shopping and/or food.  Throw in a pedicure and it gets pretty hard to beat! 
 
 
Yep.  Probably one of my favorite birthdays!  Such a fun night.  Thanks to my good husband for being the babysitter!
Another highlight of Becca’s visit was driving to Philadelphia to meet up with our sister, Kristen, and her cute family!  Oh, how glorious to have the three of us together.  If only Charise and Bobby could have been there!
Of course, we had to stop off and try Philly Cheesesteaks at Geno’s Steaks.
Cody thought that Philly was kind of dumpy.  It was probably just the area we were in, but I actually still thought it was quaint and enjoyed the architecture. 
After lunch we headed over to Independence National Historical Park. 
First stop was the Liberty Bell. 
 
I am really loving seeing my own country’s history for a change.  It is helping me to become more patriotic and truly appreciate the sacrifices made for freedom.  I may have even become a little emotional here.
We took a tour of Congress Hall.
 
We walked around what I think was Historic District(?) and enjoyed the architecture.  Or at least I did.  The kids simply liked running around together. 
 
 
I couldn’t get enough of these two pals.  At one point I overheard a little conversation between them:  Lucy, speaking to Jade with a very serious tone: “We are best friends.” Jade, also with a very serious tone:  “We are best cousins and best friends.”
   
Aaaaand then this is the point where we lost Ridge.  You see, if you take your eyes off the kid for two seconds, he will disappear.  We were all walking along just fine, with Ridge having a grand ol’ time being a choo choo train on the rock path. 
 
Then mom—who had charge over Ridge—turns around to take a picture of these cute people.  And just like that.  He’s gone. 
A little searching found him around the corner, at the very end of the rock path, chugging along without a care in the world, oblivious to the panic he caused.  Man, I love that crazy kid.  Would have been a shame to lose him.
 
We kept walking until we hit Penn’s Landing.
 

Then it was time to say goodbye.  I will tell you, moving back to America has already been worth it to me.  Among other perks, we’ve probably already had more visits from family in the past nine months, than we did our whole five years abroad.  It is a wonderful thing.
 
We still had one more full day with Becca before she headed back home.  We spent the afternoon playing beauty salon with Jade while the boys took Sunday naps. 
    
Becca and Jade made a cake to celebrate my birthday as a family.  Don’t ask me why we decided on five candles. I’m getting old, so we probably didn’t want all that wax on our cake. 
 
Jade was excited to give me the card she made for me.  I love it so much, especially because it looks like it says, “I love you more than my toes.”  It actually says, “I love you more than my toys.”  Plus, how cute are those birds she drew?!  I think my favorite is Ridge’s necktie. 
 
It sure was a super fun week having Becca visit.  I think this needs to become a regular thing!