Dan and I went to the Top of the Rock (Rockefeller Building) and it was awesome! We loved it and we could see downtown NYC on one side and Central Park on the other. I don’t think it’s quite as high as the Empire State Building, but we didn’t have to wait at all and the views were amazing. I highly recommend it.
Central Park behind us.
After Top of the Rock, we got on the train and went back to Shelley and Brian’s. We got back in time for a yummy dinner, ice cream and a movie.
On our second day in the city (Saturday), we were going to go with Shelley, Brian and Thad. But we woke up Saturday and Shelley had been really sick all night and was still sick! It was awful and I was selfishly sad because I wanted to hang out with her! But luckily she got better during the day and no one else got sick either. So Dan and I took the train again into the city and it wasn’t cold, but it was pouring rain!
We took the subway to Chinatown and did some browsing along Canal Street. There wasn’t a lot of people because of the rain but we didn’t mind it. We didn’t buy anything until later so we wouldn’t have to carry it around with us all day. We ate lunch at a tiny restaurant in Chinatown because Dan wanted to eat duck. Weird but he did and later regretted it…my lunch was good though and we ventured back into the rain and walked down to Battery Park, Ground Zero, and saw Wall Street.
We checked out the Statue of Liberty from the benches in Battery Park, but the weather wasn’t so great so we decided against taking the boat to see it. Dan talked to some shady characters selling fake Rolex watches, but they weren’t cheap enough for him so we didn’t buy any.
We walked back to Canal Street and it was packed because the rain cleared up and it was Easter weekend. I loaded up on cute purses (for myself and a few others), scarves, etc. All Dan got was a shot glass, poor kid. He just doesn’t like to spend money so I spent it for him! Woo hoo! We were going to try to get tickets to a Broadway show, but it just didn’t work out this time (I’m sure I’ll go back to visit soon), so we didn’t see a show. There were TONS of people in Times Square and everywhere while we walked back to the train.
We ate a yummy dinner at a restaurant in Grand Central station and caught the train back to Shelley’s house. We got on the train really early, so we had a little fun with the camera.
We also got some cupcakes from Magnolia’s Bakery in Grand Central and they were delish!
We are back from our awesome trip to Connecticut and New York. We had a great time visiting the Monsen’s and enjoying New York City. I’m breaking this post up into a few posts since I have a lot of pictures and if you don’t like reading what we did each day, then skip to the pictures!
We took a red eye flight and got to JFK at 6am and Brian picked us up and we went to their house and visited for awhile then we took a nap for a few hours. We picked up Brian from work and went to lunch at Stew Leonard’s. It was a really neat store that was huge and had tons of different food and groceries (I bought some shrimp and scallops!)
Thad was terrified of this big fake cow that kept mooing and it was pretty funny. We ate fish and chips and burgers then went back to their house to hang out and play with Thad. Brian got home and we went to eat at a place called Jordan’s where we had Greek pizza and a delicious salad!
The next day we took the train into NYC (it was about 1 hour). Of course I slept the entire way there! As we started walking, we came across H&M! I love this place and we had to walk around even though I didn’t buy anything. I shopped here when I lived in Holland and they had H&M all over Europe. They are building one at Fashion Place Mall soon yay!
We walked a TON and even though it was sunny, it was freezing! The wind was blowing and we were all bundled up but we still enjoyed the city. We walked through Times Square and took a few pics.
We walked all the way to the Met and Dan agreed to come even though museums are definitely not his thing. We only spent a few hours there, but I enjoyed it.
Above: On the steps of the Met. Below; A sweet piece of art which totally distorted our vision and seriously made me sick to look at!
After the Met, we walked through Central Park and enjoyed the gorgeous Spring blossoms (even though it didn’t feel like Spring). Below: The Plaza Hotel with tulips outside.
We stopped at the Dakota Building where John Lennon was shot. Last time I was here in high school, we saw Yoko Ohno outside here!
The Park was really pretty and it’s so BIG!
After Central Park, we took a cab to Rockefeller Plaza. It was so worth the cab fare because it would have taken forever to get there and my feet were killing me! They had all this cute Easter stuff and flowers at Rockefeller Plaza.
We bought tickets to go to the Top of the Rock and went to get some pizza before we went up. We just ate at a random small place but it was yummy!
I haven’t blogged for awhile and unfortunately I don’t have tons going on, but this might be a long post. I thought I would give some updates on various things I have mentioned I was working on and also just some updates about us.
Digital Scrapbooking:
Remember here, here and here when I was loving digital scrapbooking? I still love it, but I haven’t done it forever and I’m kind of sad about it.
I just don’t have as much time now with my new job and everything else. But we did get a big computer monitor for our laptop that will help me when I start doing it again!
Couponing:
I was really super gung-ho about couponing for awhile (again, when my last job was winding down and I had more time) and I got a ton of great deals and stocked our shelves. But I have backed off a lot and I still coupon (using mostly online coupons), price match, and look for good deals. I’m happy with how I’m doing although I’m not doing it nearly as much as before. I’m also super bugged by the TLC show, “Extreme Couponing” because I hate when couponers clear the shelves and take everything and don’t leave anything for people like me who just want a few things. I feel like the people on the show are demonstrating hoarding and excessive behavior and it’s completely unrealistic and unfair to so many people.
I think it’s very wasteful and one woman on the show is using coupons fraudulently, which is infuriating to those of us who are honest.
Food Storage/Emergency Prep:
This is something I have really been focusing on since the fire in Herriman and everything in Japan and all over the world! Our food storage is coming along really well and I have approximately 3-6 months of basic food storage right now for Dan and I. There are still things I’m working on and want to do, but I’m weirdly excited about it so it’s something I’m constantly thinking about. I’m also about 90% finished with our 72 hour kits. I made them myself instead of buying them and I got some brand new backpacks from D.I . that work great. I also made a kit for me to bring to work since chances are good I won’t be home if there was an emergency. I had a dream about a fire threatening our home and we had to leave really quickly and it reminded me how important this is. I may post some pictures of our food storage and 72 hour kits once I’m finished and more organized.
Running:
Dan and I are training for the Wasatch Back again this year. The race is in June and we did it last year. It’s a team relay race from Logan to Park City and it’s intense. We had a blast last year and can’t wait to do it this year. My sister is going to run with us too so I’m pumped! I’ve noticed a huge change this year compared to last year with my training and how much more I’m already able to do.
I also signed up for the Top of Utah half marathon in August and Dan signed up for the full in September. Running is weirdly addicting and I love feeling strong and proud of myself for doing something hard. Running is not my forte but I’m enjoying it most of the time. I’ve been running a few days a week with some women at my work during our lunch break and it has been awesome to get out of the office and be outside (even if we are sweaty when we get back!).
A piano!
I love to play the piano and have always wanted one. I started watching KSL obsessively and looking for a used piano. Every time I called about a good deal I saw, the piano was already sold! Finally I got a break and we got a great deal on a cute little piano and I love it! I will post some pics soon. We also got a box spring and mattress from the same person we bought the piano from and now we actually have a guest bed. Dan made a log bed in high school so we set that up in the extra bedroom for guests and I will get around to decorating it at some point.
School:
Dan will graduate with his Bachelor’s in Business Administration this summer from Weber! Woo hoo! Then he will start his MBA program through Utah State in the fall. That should take about 1.5-2 years but he will only have class two nights a week, so he will start looking for a full time job in the next month or two. I’m so proud of all his hard work and even though he despises school, he knows how important it is and he keeps plowing through it.
Carbonite:
Carbonite is online data backup software. I have done some research and this is the option that I want to go with. I highly recommend backing up all your important files/music/pictures on an external hard drive as well as with an online company like Carbonite or Mozy. If your computer crashes, you will easily lose everything, so an external hard drive will save your pictures. But if your house burns down or floods, an external hard drive won’t help. This software backs up your files periodically to a secure offsite facility and you can restore your files any time. It’s only $55 for a year, $100 for 2 years, and $130 for 3 years. I plan on purchasing it in the next few days when I get around to it.
Blog Book:
I have been wanting to print my blog to a book for each year but I haven’t done it yet and I’m going to now! I need some tips for the best software to do this. What have you used? How did you like it? Was it easy/hard to use? Pricing? Thanks!
Vegas:
My sister and I are going to go see this pretty lady in Vegas in June and I can’t wait! We have always loved Celine and she has come back to Vegas and so we’re all over it. We had a sister trip to Vegas last year and loved it so maybe it will become a yearly thing!
Priceline:
As I mentioned before, we’re going to NYC next week and we wanted to stay in the city for one night but hotels are so expensive! Long story short, after doing some research, I decided to try out Priceline’s “name your price” and I scored us a Marriott 5 minutes away from Times Square for $125 a night! Still pricey, but hotels are usually $250 and up in that area so I’m so excited. If people are interested in specifics, let me know and I’ll do a post about the details. I plan using this a lot in the future and for my Vegas trip!
Debt free:
Awhile ago I posted about how we have started listening to Dave Ramsey and reading his books and we are still loving what he teaches. We have gotten really intense about saving money and being completely debt free. I know a lot of people think we’re crazy, but we got rid of our credit card (we only had 1 and usually paid it off) and don’t plan on using credit or borrowing money except to buy a house in the future.
I believe having good credit is a myth because your credit score isn’t even based on your income! It’s based on absurd things and if you pay cash for things, you don’t need a good credit score! A home loan can be manually underwritten (based on your income among other things) if you put 20% down and do a 15 year loan and that’s what we plan to do. No millionaire will tell you he/she got rich from credit card rewards! Plus we use perkstreet and still get awesome rewards! We don’t want debt in our lives at all. It’s not for everyone, but we feel like we’re doing the right thing for us and we’re excited about it.We plan on paying the last of our car loan off by the end of this year and then we will only pay cash to buy cars and keep saving and trading up so we will eventually end up with a nicer car (even if it takes awhile and we have crappy cars for awhile). Being debt free and having a comfortable retirement is really important to us and a goal that we share. Plus, by living frugally, it allows us to do things we love, like go on fun vacations!
We are also working on establishing a good emergency fund and my work has a 401k match that we contribute to as well. So many people don’t even think about retirement right now, but we want to live the good life when we retire so we’re already thinking about it. Luckily Dan is great with money and helps keep me on track, even though it’s hard sometimes. So many people don’t live within their means (including the GOVERNMENT sheesh) and it just makes life harder and brings more stress into your life to live like that. This is a great youtube video called “don’t buy stuff you cannot afford”:
I love it and I encourage you to look at your finances, make and follow a budget, and live within your means. It will bring a lot of peace and happiness to your life.
Let's hear for New Yorkkkkk! (I love that song...especially the Glee version.) Dan and I are headed to New York in a few weeks and we can't wait. We're going to visit the Monsens (who live close by in CT) and enjoy some time sightseeing in the big city. Dan has never been before and I went once in high school, so we are pretty pumped. I can't wait to see Shelley Belly and Thaddy pants (and Brian too I guess...). We have lots of big plans, but almost nothing is set in stone, so we would appreciate any tips or advice. We are probably going to stay in the city on our last night so let me know if you have any advice, places you loved/hated/wish you could see. I know I want to hit up Canal Street, go to Rockefeller Plaza, and see the Statue of Liberty, and maybe a broadway show, but that's about all we've planned so far. This is an idea of how excited we are....pic from the day we found out we got our house.
When we bought our house, it wasn’t in great shape. It wasn’t anything we couldn’t handle and compared to some places we had seen, it was definitely worth it! We didn't mind putting in some work and we were excited about it. There was a lot of cleaning and painting to be done. This is the family room before we moved in. Christmas colors and stains on the carpet.
Another view of the family room from the kitchen before we moved in.
Here is the family room after we repainted and put in our furniture. We got the carpets cleaned as well. We painted the wall red like before, but we used a prettier color and we liked it for awhile.Here is what it has looked like for almost a year.
We decided we were done with the red and wanted something lighter so we painted the red wall the same lighter color and left the wall with the windows a darker brown (which I still love). We also added the window mirrors and here is what it looks like now!
We really love it and I think it makes the room look much bigger and brighter. The paint looks great and now I’m on the hunt to find some sort of dresser/buffet/hutch to refinish and use as a TV stand so our TV is a little higher.
I have a new nephew! Matthew Calvin Hill is the 13th grandchild and the 7th boy! The oldest grandchild is 9 so it's quite the party when we're all together. He is super precious and so so tiny! He looks just like his brother Ryan and I love cuddling him and holding him.
Dan grew his hair out (again...) and his mom cut this sweet mullet (not on purpose) in process of cutting it off.
We made a small change to our family room and I think it will end up being more of a big change when we're done. But we love it so far! Our TV wall was painted red and we really liked it for awhile, but we decided we wanted to paint it lighter and add more to that wall.
Here is the red wall before...
And here is the lighter wall after we painted it! We got it done in just about 2 hours and it only took 2 coats to completely cover the red! I love Behr paint + primer! I think the room looks a ton brighter now and we really love it.
I also found that cute ottoman/storage bench at Kmart of all places! We have gotten some houseplants and Dan is obsessed with them and I don't mind them either.
We bought the exact mirrors below and we're planning on putting them on either side of the TV like the picture below. We also want to get a new TV stand (that is just our old coffee table). I'm thinking I'll find a cute dresser on KSL or at D.I. and paint it to use as a TV stand.
So we made a few changes and I still have several things to finish it and I'm sure I will constantly be making changes, but we like it so far.
I don't have a lot to say but I wanted to post some things that I have planned for after I finallllly finish the master bedroom and bathroom. Some other plans I have brewing in my head include doing some amazing moulding in our living room and in the office/future nursery. I seriously LOVE moulding/trim and a lot of people are doing amazing things with it.
I'm thinking of doing something similar to the above pics and the one below for the office/future nursery. I want to do something in there that can easily be transformed to a nursery when that time comes around...(peeps: you can keep asking us about that and we'll let you know as soon as we decide..ahem STEPH!)
I love the detail and pop that the moulding gives the room and it's so simple and cheap and easy to install especially now that I have a nail gun! There are so many different things to do and so many great ideas out there for me to copy in blog-world.
I want to do picture frame moulding (above and below) in the living room. We are going to get a piano for that room soon...yayayay! I have wanted a piano forever and we have been keeping an eye out for a great deal on a used piano from ksl. I love to play and can't wait to play at home.
And I'm using some moulding to frame our master bathroom mirror (I also did that in our half bath, but I'm doing it a different way this time. Here is what it will look like when I'm done:
So there are a bunch of awesome moulding ideas. Check out these posts/sites more more awesome inspiration!
I can't wait to see Shelley Belly and Thaddy pants (and Brian too I guess...). We have lots of big plans, but almost nothing is set in stone, so we would appreciate any tips or advice. We are probably going to stay in the city on our last night so let me know if you have any advice, places you loved/hated/wish you could see. I know I want to hit up Canal Street, go to Rockefeller Plaza, and see the Statue of Liberty, and maybe a broadway show, but that's about all we've planned so far. 
This is an idea of how excited we are....pic from the day we found out we got our house.
So we made a few changes and I still have several things to finish it and I'm sure I will constantly be making changes, but we like it so far. 
