Make Way for Ducklings and Swan Boats

Last Tuesday the weather was beautiful so we took the kids down to Boston Public Garden to take a swan boat ride and see the famous "Make Way for Ducklings" statues. Before we moved out here a friend of mine told me her kids LOVED that book and that I absolutely had to read it and then take my kids there. We checked the book out from the library a couple months ago so it was nice to finally be able to take the girls to see where the story took place.

Teya sitting on Mrs. Mallard

Brinley on one of the baby ducklings

Mason, Teya, Maile and Brinley sitting on Jack, Quack, Mack, and Nack.

After they played on the statues and spent some time watching all the real ducks and ducklings in the water, we went over to the bridge where the swan boats were loading. We tried to take a pic with all 5 kids but getting everyone to look proved impossible : )

The kids were mesmerized by the peaceful pond and couldn't wait to get on the boats and in the water.

The boat ride was so peaceful and beautiful. Rachel and I thought it would be the perfect thing to do for a romantic date. I might have to take Taber back there sometime when it's just him and me : )

After the boat ride we tried to hit the frog pond to do a little swimming but sadly it was closed : ( The kids were good sports though and happily played in the Tadpole playground instead.

It was fun to see the girls having such a good time with their cousins. In my perfect world we would just be next door neighbors and then they could play together all the time.

I have to say, it was quite the production herding 5 little kids around Boston. At one point I think someone asked my sister if they were all hers. Haha! That would be quite the spectacle out here. People tell me I have my hands full all the time with just two! They were really great though and if they were all mine I would be proud to have such well behaved kids : )

Our First Out of Town Visitors!!

Last week my sister Rachel and her 3 kids flew into Boston to spend 10 days visiting us. They were our first family visitors and it was so much fun hosting them and showing them around. We stayed VERY busy and took a million pictures so we'll just start with the first weekend and break it up from there.

Teya, Brinley with their cousin Maile eating gogurts on the stairs.

ROCK 'N RIBFEST:

The first weekend they were here we took them to the Rock N Ribfest. It was basically a huge gathering of professionally renowned "ribbers" competing in a BBQ cook off. There was live music, face painting, bounce houses, and TONS of food.

Taber was in heaven with all the grilling going on. He checked out every stand before settling on this one. I think he was happy with his choice.

The kids had a great time too. They might not have been as excited about the ribs as we were, but they loved the apple crisp, homemade ice cream, fried dough, and kiddie rides.

BOSTON MUSEUM OF SCIENCE:

The next day we loaded everyone up and headed into Boston to explore the museum of science.

Our trusty sit and stand stroller was able to hold 4 of the 5 kids. Not too shabby!

The museum was a hit of course. Can't go wrong with Dinosaurs and hands on science exhibits.

The girls touching petrified dinosaur poop which they assured me wasn't gross because it had turned into a rock. : )

The kids raced from one thing to the next. It was awesome because Mason can read now so he got to be the expert on everything and tell the girls what each exhibit was all about.

I love this picture because Teya is soo into the MRI display. Our future med student ; )

Standing by a section of a Giant sequoia from the Redwood Forest. Amazing how massive those things are!

The highlight was the Discovery Zone for kids where they could really run around and go crazy. They had this bee exhibit where they kids could dress up as bees and one of the workers taught them how to gather pollen and nectar to make honey. They kids really got into it.

BOSTON DUCK TOURS:

After the museum closed we decided to tour Boston in style by taking a Duck Tour. The Duck Boats are WWII vehicles that can travel on land and water. The first 40 minutes you drive through the city and see all the sites, then they plunge you into the Charles River to see the sites from a different view.

It was neat seeing such a comprehensive view of Boston and learning about more of the history there. Seriously such a cool city.

The kids loved quacking at the people in the streets but their favorite part was when we got into the water. They were glued to their windows.

At one point they asked if anyone wanted to drive the boat so Teya, Maile and Mason went up and all took a turn at the wheel. Shortly thereafter the steering wheel actually broke and we got stuck in the river! Not sure if it had anything to do with the kids driving but it was kind of funny. Another Duck boat found us and towed us back to land.

Our little crew (minus Taber who was taking the picture) in front of our Duck boat.

We told the kids earlier that day that we weren't leaving Boston until everyone had fun. I think it was easily a mission accomplished : )

Hollis Fast 5K

The day after I got back from Utah, Taber ran the Hollis Fast 5K. I REALLY wanted to run it with him but the girls had been with babysitters for the last 3 days and I hated the thought of getting yet another babysitter when I hadn't seen them in so long. Instead I sat this one out and happily fulfilled my roll as cheerleader which was still a lot of fun. It was a rainy evening for a race (a pattern we seem to be hitting lately!) But that didn't stop us from putting on our rain gear and heading out to cheer on Daddy.

We arrived at the finish line shortly after the runners took off. The great thing about 5K's is that you don't have to wait long to see your runner. Especially because Taber was hauling booty! It seems like we had barely gotten settled in our spectating spot when Taber rounded the corner heading for the finish. The girls screamed, "GO DADDY!! " and I was able to snap this pic of him charging towards the end.

Taber's speedy skills earned him a new PR. He finished in 21:55 minutes which is a 7:04 minute per mile pace. WAY TO GO TABER!!!

After he finished we found him holding a gatorade cup and Teya said, "Is that all you won? a cup?!" It was pretty funny.

We took the time to take a few more shots as more finishers crossed the line. It was a great turn out for a rainy day, 684 finishers in all.

We're very proud of Taber for running an awesome race.

And now I guess I have a new time to chase after.

Nothing like a little healthy competition to keep me motivated ; )

Sealed for Time and all Eternity

Last week I got the wonderful opportunity to fly out to Utah for my baby sister's temple sealing. It was so incredibly beautiful to see Liz and her husband Tony sealed for time and all eternity with all of our family there to support her.

It was also so fun being with my family and seeing all of my siblings grown up and married.

Uda girls from youngest to oldest.

Liz, Sarah and baby (she's 8 months prego) Naomi, me, and Rachel.

Top left is me with my brothers, Josh and Jake, and Jake's new wife Scarlet. Top Right: Josh and Sarah. Bottom left: The whole Gang minus Chris and the spouses who couldn't be there. Bottom right: Rachel, me and Sarah, 4 year gap between all of us.

Another great thing about being in Utah was getting some much needed girl time with my mom and sisters. We spent a whole day together catching up, eating, watching movies, getting pedicures and just being girly.

Lunch at the Olive Garden. So yum.

Mani's and Pedi's. My toes were very grateful, it had been way too long.

We also caught the Chick Flick Killers. Definitely don't waste your hubby's time with this one. (But fun to watch with my sistas : )

I also got the chance to catch up with my girlfriend Angela from Minnesota. She moved to Utah at the same time we moved to Boston. It was so great hearing about all her new adventures and eating the always delicious white chocolate raspberry truffle cheesecake from the Cheesecake factory. : )

The trip was such a nice break, and even though it was hard being away from Taber and the girls, it was actually wonderfully relaxing and therapeutic to have some alone time and have a true vacation from all my responsibilities. I'm glad to be back though and was lucky enough to be followed home by my oldest sister with her three kids who will be staying through next week. More to come on our adventures here in New England.

Weekend in Maine

Over Memorial Day weekend we decided to take advantage of our close proximity to Maine and take a little Rigg family vacation. Being there with just our own little family was awesome. Definitely made me feel all grown up with our family of four.

DAY 1:

Our first day there we went to Perkins Cove in Ogunquit and took the girls on a lobstering boat tour.

On the deck with Daddy getting ready to board The FINESTKIND lobster boat.

The lobster boat was awesome. They took us out to sea and we pulled up big lobster traps and got to touch the lobsters, learn about which ones you can keep or throw back, and see lots of other fun sea creatures that came up in the cages.

Teya found this little starfish that washed aboard and was instantly smitten. We saw giant lobsters, hermit crabs, snapping crabs, and even had a flounder flop into Taber's lap. But when we asked Teya what her favorite part was without hesitation she said, "baby starfish." : )

My favorite part was holding this giant 8 lb lobster daddy. The thing was seriously bigger than our dog!

Here's another pic of the captain holding him so you can really see what a monster he was! (average lobsters that you eat are like 1-2 lbs, so this guy was a beast! You can't keep them when they're over 5 lbs though because they want those big guys out in the sea for breeding. So after we all got to see it they sent him back to the ocean.

After our boat ride we did some exploring around the cove and then we stopped to eat at Barnacle Billy's. After all our hard work lobstering it only seemed natural to go and eat one!

DAY 2:

The next day we decided to hit up the beach. Taber had done a nice 7 mile run on it the night before so he knew just the right spot to take us.

Teya was off like a lightening bolt running in and out of the water. It was COLD!! like, numb my feet cold, but she didn't even care. That girl loves the ocean. Brinley stuck close to me and Taber but definitely had fun splashing around.

We spent several hours there splashing, digging, walking, listening and relaxing.

Splash puddles. They never get old.

Brinley the little Mermaid

Teya in her giant sand pit creation that we built to stop the incoming tide from getting our towels wet. We left before the tide made it in but she sure loved digging it.

After the beach Brinley took a much needed nap while Taber and Teya continued swimming at the hotel. Then it was dinner at the beach fire grill, ice cream at a homemade ice cream shop, and bed for some tired little travelers!

DAY 3:

On our last day there we left Ogunquit and went to check out the beaches down in York, Maine. We found one with a great little park and the girls had a blast playing there.

Then we went to the famous Goldenrod Candy store where you can watch them pull the homemade taffy right there in the window. We loaded up on sugar and then poor Brinley just crashed. I was trying to take a picture of her zonked out on Taber's shoulder when this lady offered to take one of all of us so I said "why not?"

On our way out we did a quick stop at the Nubble light house. Can't go to Maine without visiting a light house right? The kids were both asleep in the car so we jumped out for some quick pics. My hair is a little skiwompous because it was so windy but at least you can see how pretty it was.

Sadly all good things must come to an end. It was hard coming back from vacation but I'm so glad we had the chance to see some lovely parts of Maine, and most importantly, spend some great quality time together as a family.