Foreign Business Excursion: ROME!

Before I could complete my MBA I had to go on a trip. Apparently, they don't let you graduate unless you abandon your family for two weeks and leave the country. At least the try and make it sound boring by calling it the "Foreign Business Excursion". The options for the trip were: Europe, Asia, or the Middle East.  I chose Europe and have no regrets. While my other classmates got to ride on elephants and enjoy the odd masochism of a Turkish bath I got to see Vatican City, Roman ruins, the Mona Lisa, and the Tower of London.  Our first stop on the trip was ROME and it was better then I could have imagined. 

On our first day we went to the Vatican museum. It was gallery upon gallery of ancient Roman sculptures, Renaissance art and Medieval tapestries.           

Above is the Parthenon.  It was a Roman temple to all the Gods. I learned that any Roman buildings that survived only survived if they had been converted into Christian churches. That's the case with the Parthenon.  On the outside it is an ancient Pagan temple.  On the inside its a Roman Catholic chapel.

The day after I got back from the trip "Angels and Demons" was on tv.  It was pretty cool to recognize the scenes in the Parthenon and throughout Rome.

The Colosseum was far bigger than I imagined.  I knew it was big but it rivals most college football stadiums today.  It could seat 60,000 and had a retractable awning to create shade.

BYU stadium seats 67,000 but has no awning - if you're in the east stands you're blinded for 1/2 the game.

Another thing I didn't know before visiting the Colosseum - it's oval.  For gladiator matches they would fill the field with sand. The Latin word for sand is ARENA which is why we call the center of sports stadium the arena.  Gladiator matches are very expensive so when Rome fell, nobody could pay to maintain the Colosseum.  During the middle ages it was stripped down for building supplies.  During the Renaissance a pope dedicated as a memorial to all the Christian martyrs who did in the arena which really saved it from total destruction.

To commemorate their victories the Romans built huge arches throughout the city. Only 3 are left. This one commemorates the victory of Emperor Titus over the Jerusalem.  In the close up picture you can see a depiction of the Jews being forced to carry the Menorah from the temple through Rome.

To commemorate their victories the Romans built huge arches throughout the city. Only 3 are left. This one commemorates the victory of Emperor Titus over the Jerusalem.  In the close up picture you can see a depiction of the Jews being forced to carry the Menorah from the temple through Rome.

1.  After seeing the sites of Rome we were able to go back to Vatican City and see St. Peter's Basilica.  We opted to take the stairs to the top of the dome and it was an adventure. As you get higher and higher in the Dome the hallway gets narrower and narrower.  The picture on the left is of a rope in a spiral staircase. The staircase was too narrow and steep for a handrail so they hung a rope.

This is on the top of St Peter's below the dome. This isn't even the top - we went back in and went even higher.  The view from the top of the dome was unbelievable.  You could see all across Rome.  

Hiking to the top of the dome took awhile.  And of course I had to make my way back down too. I hurried out of the church to catch up with my group when I realized I hadn't seen the "Pieta".  You can't go to Vatican City and miss Michelangelo's greatest sculpture!  I rushed back in and snapped a couple of pictures. If I ever get back to Rome I definitely want to take my time and enjoy the Pieta.  

Summer of Fun-Week 6

This summer needs to slow down! Except for the whole being pregnant thing...that can end soon. But I hate that summer is half way over. We still have so much we want to do!
Last Monday, Mommy needed to catch up on some serious housework and do the laundry. The kids declared it a pajama day and spent the day watching movies and getting creative with their toys. 

Adam got some target practice in.

 More tower building.

 Lots of board games were played. 

 Tessa was really good at target practice!

 And poor little Gwennie Pooh was feeling a bit under the weather. She contently watched several episodes of Care Bears. 

 Tuesday we went to one of our favorite places, Salem Pond. We had fun feeding the ducks and geese, until they started to get a bit aggressive and we literally had to run away from them. I'm sure that was quiet the site to see!

 We had some fun on the playground. Even Mommy did some swinging and totally amazed the kids. Who knew a Mommy could swing?!

 Adam and Tessa loved spinning on the swings. This doesn't make Tessa sick, but riding in a car does. 

Go figure.

Tuesday afternoon we had a paper airplane contest. Getting the planes through the targets was harder than it looked. 

 Wednesday the kids played with Ma in the afternoon while Mommy had a check-up with the doctor. Caleb's heartbeat is still sounding great and I am measuring about an inch smaller than I should be. But, everything is looking good. 

It was National Sugar Cookie Day, so we stopped by Swig on the way home to get a yummy cookie and drink. 

 Wednesday afternoon we had an awesome summer rainstorm. The kids ran outside to play in the rain and got good and wet. It was glorious! Nothing like playing in some summer rain!

Thursday we headed to the Library for Story Time and to turn in our reading sheets. Adam and Tessa have almost finished all the requirements for the summer reading program. 

 This week was all about colors and the kids made rainbows for their craft. 

 Thursday night was a special night for Adam! Ma and Pa came out to watch the girls and Adam got to have a special night out with Mommy and Daddy. We went and saw the play, "Wicked" up in Salt Lake. Adam said he had been counting down the days for this! We picked Daddy up from work and grabbed some dinner. Adam chose to eat at In-n-Out because he wanted to try everything on their secret menu. He was not disappointed!

 He was amazed at how big the theater was. He kept calling it the Opera House. 

 We loved the show! Adam was on the edge of his seat most of the night and Eric and I agreed that this was probably the best production of Wicked that we have seen. It never gets old and we were excited to share something we love with Adam. 

Friday we finished our first big book for the summer, "Little House in the Big Woods". Tessa has loved learning about Laura and Mary and has even been working on making her own scenery for a pioneer play she wants to put on for us. 

 Adam finished the Harry Potter series about 2 weeks ago. He loved each book and is proud of himself for accomplishing one of his goals for the year!

 Friday we got the carpets cleaned, which meant we were banished upstairs until the early afternoon. After lunch, we loaded everyone up and headed to Kangaroo Zoo so the kids could play and burn off some energy and Mommy could be somewhere with air conditioning. 

 They had a ball!

 Saturday we loaded everyone up early and headed to Park City to see a Freestyle Show at the Olympic Park. I couldn't get any really good pictures, but the show was amazing! The athletes get on the ski jumps, fly down the ski jumps, do crazy tricks high in the air before landing in a huge swimming pool! It was awesome to watch and the kids loved it! After every jump, Gwen would say, "Again!!"

 After the show, we walked around the Olympic Museum and had fun looking at all the wonderful memories from the Salt Lake Olympics. 

 Adam with Bode Miller's suit

 Tessa loved that their were dinosaurs in our shows. 

 Checking out all the medals. 

 Jimmy Shea's helmet. 

 That's the bobsled track behind the boys and Gwen. Adam can't wait to turn 13 now and go back for a ride down the bobsled track!

 We had a fun lunch in Heber at Dairy Keen and then the kiddos spent the afternoon and evening swimming in the backyard. 

 Sunday evening, Michael, Kathleen and Kelsey stopped by for a fun visit. As soon as they walked in the door, Tessa had a Tea Party set up for her and Kathleen. They had to wear crowns and jewelry from Tessa's dress up box and Tessa served water and M&M's. Kathleen was visiting with the adults and not moving fast enough for Tess, so Tessa put a sticky note on Kathleen's hand that said, "Come on". They were upstairs for about 25 minutes having a royal time!

In Primary on Sunday, Adam was asked to share his feelings about being baptized. He said that he told everyone that he felt so happy the whole day. He said when he went down in the water he felt happy and when he came out of the water, he was so happy, he felt like crying. He was excited to get to talk about his baptism again. It was a special day for him!