Lake Placid

As Pat said, since Winter didn't come to us this year, we decided to go to Winter. This last long weekend for Presidents Day, I planned a very last minute get-a-way to Lake Placid, about 5 hours north of Manhattan.

We left on Saturday morning and rented a car from Laguardia Airport. From leaving our apartment, getting our rental car, to getting out of the city took about 2-3 hours. We weren't really intimidated by the long drive since we were just really excited about being in a car. It was a nice drive, but as we got closer the Lake Placid we realized that we probably were very ill prepared for the elements. We weren't expecting any snow, as a few days earlier I called and they said they didn't have any. However, this definitely was not the case. We ended up being fine, but did have a hard time staying out in the cold for long periods of time.

We managed to find a hotel that allowed pets, so believe it or not, we took Montee along! We thought he would enjoy the trip a lot more than he actually did, but for being a cat he did surprisingly well.

While we were there there just happened to be a bobsledding competition, since Lake Placid held the 1980 Olympics. It was really fun to be right up close to the blobsledders, even though we only saw them for a split second as they zoomed passed us at 80 miles per hour. It became a kinda of game for us to try to see if we could capture them in a picture--it only works about a third of the time.

Later on that day we went on a little hike to a 700 foot frozen waterfall that had these wooden walk ways and bridges. It was really nice to be out in nature and just take things slow. 

After our hike they had all the supplies to make s'mores. It was a nice little treat and I will NEVER turn down a s'more.

Lake Placid is a very quaint town. It had your touch of the modern with retail stores on main street, but it also kept its history with all the mom and pop shops. It was fun to see so many people engaging in winter activities, such as ice skating on the frozen lake, skiing, and even dog sledding.

All in all, it was really good to be spontaneous and to get out of the city for a day or two. As is anything when it comes to city living, it was a lot of work and money to actually get out city, but we were glad we did it. I think we need to keep life exciting and splurge every once and while to maintain happiness and sanity. 

V-day Photobooth Crawl {Year Two}

Traditions are good. Traditions make the worry of planning something new and exciting obsolete. I didn't know that last year, when I planned a Photobooth Crawl though the East Village, that I was starting a Valentines Day tradition, but I was! And it is great.

This year Pat and I weren't planning to do anything fun for February 14th, but as the day got closer and I started to feel more and more guilty for becoming that old-boring-married-couple, so I decided that we should go on another Photobooth Crawl to keep in line with my goals of making and keeping traditions.

This year took MUCH less planning than last year since all the hard labor was already don. All I had to do was make reservations for 6, which soon became 4 when our friends Casey and Todd decided to have a baby instead. Don't worry, I forgive them. :)

However, not all was lost since our friends, Klane and Angie, were still game for a night of photobooth crawling. The night was EXTRA special for Angie, who had never been in a photobooth before. Let me repeat. Angie had never been in a photobooth before!!! When she told me this I was so happy that I decided to start this tradition. It's just NOT okay for someone to have never been in a photobooth.

 I know. These picture make it seem like I have serious disabilities. 

The night was so much fun! And I happy to say that Angie has now been in multiple photobooths! 

Fun. We are young.

Have you heard this song? Pat played it for me about a week ago, and has been playing it everyday at least twice ever since, always once right before we go to bed. It has been stuck in my head constantly. I love it.

DIY Scratch-Off Valentine Cards

Visit my etsy shop to buy a pre-designed scratch off card for any occasion you to print
right from your own home.

Print and make as many as you want for only $1.99!

Tonight for our weekly activity for the young women at my church, we made scratch-off Valentines cards. I have seen DIY scratch-off card ideas circulating around pinterest a while back, and thought it was the cutest thing, which is not surprising at all due to my love for the lotto. 

The cards were surprisingly very easy to make and only required a few items:

1. Acrylic Paint (I used silver, but any color can be used)

2. Dish Soap

3. Pen

4. Small paint brush

5. Card printed on cardstock

6. White crayon

After you have all the material, you will be shocked at how simple the process is. 

1. PRINT: Print card design on cardstock (see my designs below which can be downloaded).

2. WRITE MESSAGE: In the hearts that will be scratched off, write sweet things for your Valentine with a pen. In my case I offered small acts of service, but it can be anything...be creative. Warning: Before you move onto the next step make sure the ink is COMPLETELY dry. A thin Sharpie may work best, but not necessary.

3. CRAYON: Cover message, and where ever the scratch-off area will be, completely with a white crayon. 

4. MIX PAINT: Mix two parts acrylic paint with one part liquid dishwashing soap. You don't need a lot a little bit goes a long way!

5. PAINT: Paint mixture over the area that you covered with the crayon. You will need to be very liberal with your your application, as the wax from the crayon will act as a repellent. I applied very thick amounts of paint on in a dapping motion. You can also repeat this process once it has dried.  If the paint appears bumpy or uneven don't worry because when it dries it will be perfectly smooth. 

6. DRY: Due to the thickness of the paint and the fact that the paint can't be absorbed in the paper, the valentine will need to dry for about 1 hour before it is completely dry. 

7. SCRATCH: Provide a penny for your Valentine to scratch off their personalized message that is just for them. 

Click here to download PDF.

Click here to download PDF.

Click here to download PDF.

Pat's at it again...

Pat really is becoming quite the photographer with his new i-phone,

he even came home late because he got distracted with taking pictures on his walk home from work.

Check it: 

Super creepy picture of his new partner, Klane.

The Met

"Portrait for a free $0"

Remember when my best friend, Meghan, and her husband, Matt, came to visit us in December? Well, one evening while were were walking along 5th Avenue, enjoying the Christmas windows, we have a very funny experience. We all walked by an young Asian man squatting behind a small card table that had a very poorly written sign that said "Portrait for a free $0."

As typical New Yorkers, we just walked by because of the constant bombardment of beggars and solicitors encountered on a daily basis, but there seemed to be something different with this guy. We had to go back and see what it was all about.

I approached the man, who was squatting on the sidewalk, and told him I would be interested in a free portrait. He was a very jolly and happy fellow, but didn't speak much English. Although, he didn't speak our language, I quickly found out he was extremely fluent in body language! As he started my portrait he crouched down, squinted his eyes, swayed side to side in a jolted rhythm, and moved his arms with extreme motion. We all couldn't help but laugh, especially as a crowd started to form as passerby's saw the artistic performance.

Now, I can't say that this is the best depiction of Patrick and I, but I think it definitely resembles us and you gotta give credit where credit is due because he did do each under a minute and with such emotion!

Matt

(Mr. Ma-to, how your flesh outlines your body is beautiful, Let's meet again. love your neck! 2011.12.21, Taisuke Yatabe)

Meghan

( "Meigen, Thank you, I could boldly draw you, your smile is too wonderful, please let me draw you again, 2011.12.21, Taisuke Yatabe." )

Lindsay

Translation by my Japanese friend, Sayuri Katayama Lege: The message he wrote on yours says "Linzu-(his way of saying your name) 2011.12.21, Taisuke Yatabe(his name), First time to draw an Ultra beautiful girl, See you! Please let me draw you again." 

Pat

Translation by my Japanese friend, Sayuri Katayama Lege: On Pat, he wrote "Patto(his way of saying the name), your lips are my Ultra favorite, Please let me draw you again! 2011.12.21, Taisuke Yatabe(his name)" New York looks so fun!!

Next time you see a Japanese man squatting on the ground with a sign that reads "Portraits for a free" you gotta stop. Trust me, you will not regret it!

Knowing who you are...

A lesson handout I made for the girls,
Original size HERE, right click and "save image as..."

As I have mentioned before, I volunteer at my church to teach, organize, plan, and maintain a Young Women's organization with girls who are 12 to 18 years old. Every Sunday other volunteers and I rotate on teaching a Sunday school lesson; recently I taught a lesson on the importance of knowing that they are daughters of God. When I first started preparing this lesson I really didn't understand how important that knowledge is, or even what a big responsibility it is. 

The thing that stuck out the most to me was when we listed the characteristics the "ideal father" and the "ideal daughter" on the board. The class came up with some of the following:

-Provides for our physical and emotional needs 

-Comforts

-Loves

-Teaches

-Protects

-Listens

After we listed these qualities, the class discussed the qualities the "ideal daughter" needs to have in order to reciprocate the amazing characteristics of the father. Some of the these qualities were:

-Shows appreciation

-Grateful

-Obedient

-Serves

-Respectful

-Talks to her dad and seeks advice

It was when we were comparing the characteristics of the "ideal father" to the characteristics of our Heavenly Father that I had an epiphany. As I was looking at the long list of characteristics that a father should show his daughter, I realized that fathers have a heavy load. However, I then looked at the equally long list of characteristics that daughters should have towards their fathers, and realized that daughters have a lot of responsibilities as well!

Being a Daughter of God requires a lot of effort on our part. Just as we are always daughters to our fathers, no matter what we do, we will always be daughters to our Heavenly Father. However, in order to honor the title of being a "daughter" we must reciprocate our father's love. Although it does require a lot of work on our part, if we put forth the effort and do our best, the rewards FAR outweigh what we give. As we seek counsel from our Heavenly Father we will be given advice. As we listen and obey our Heavenly Father we will be guided and protected. As we are grateful for all that our Heavenly Father gives us we will be blessed even more. As we serve our Heavenly Father he will comfort us. As we love Him, we will feel of his love. 

Even though seeing the blessings of being a Daughter of God requires us to seek after our Heavenly Father, this knowledge will carry us through the darkest of times as our Heavenly Father understands us perfectly, therefore is able to comfort us perfectly. 

I-phone photo of the week

I have really enjoyed Pat having an i-phone because it means I am not the only one taking pictures. Documenting our lives can be burden sometimes, and often I get so tired and and want to give up (hahha as if someone is making me do it). But the payoff every six months, when I "publish" our blog in book form, motivates me to keep going. It's really quite narcissistic how much I enjoy thumbing through our blog books of the past 5 years.

Anyways, this interesting photo, that Pat took of tons of Mr. Potato Head's, was taken out our local Goodwill. There is a huge box of probably over 100 or so Mr. Potato Heads that was donated. It is really quite a site, and I really want to purchase the whole box. I don't know what I would use them for, but I'm racking my brain for any excuse. If I had the space, I definitely would buy them and keep them for that special moment when I need 100 Mr. Potato Heads...because obviously that moment is bound to happen.

Nerf Gun Fun

Pat got a nerf gun. But of course he is not content with just shooting a few nerf here and there. Since he has had his gun I have been amazed at his creativity in creating new games to keep the whole family (Pat, Me and Montee) entertained. 

For this one particular game, Pat set up some target on our pass-through. He even went as far as pinning up a sheet and placing a box on the floor, so when the can were shot the sheet would stop them and then they would fall into the box for easy retrieval. 

Pat also knows that if he can get me participating in a game, where there is a chance I might beat him, I become very competitive. Unfortunately, Pat has been practicing his nerf gun skills much longer that I have (excuses, excuses) so I failed to beat him. 

Nerf Gun Fun from Lindsay Koelling on Vimeo.

Pat's creativity and fun child-like nature, brings so much joy and excitement into my life. 

I am such a boring person, but Pat is the ying to my yang.