Carnegie Hall

On Monday night, one of my good friends from Arizona, Nick Villalobos, called me because he was in town on a concert tour with the Sphinx Virtuosi.  They were having a concert in Carnegie Hall on Tuesday (last night), and he had tickets if Marcus and I could attend.  Heck yes, we wanted to go!  So we had our first post-baby date in Manhattan.  And it was fantastic!

Marcus and I met downtown after he got off work and had a fancy dinner.  By that I mean Subway :)  It was one of few options that we had time for since the concert started at six.  But it was still fun to be out.  We ate on some steps across the street from the Hall.

Yum, yum

It was actually pretty cold outside-- you can see my hair blowing in the cold wind.

I picked up the tickets from the box office, and we were really excited about the concert.  If you aren't familiar with the Sphinx organization, definitely look it up.  People like Yo-Yo Ma and Isaac Stern have been involved, and it is really a fun concert-- focusing on music by African American and Latino composers.  Marcus was really enjoying the fun rhythms and not-quite-so-classical feel.  :)

 Carnegie Hall

There's Nick in the program :)

If you haven't been to Carnegie Hall, you have to check it out.  It's beautiful.  Marcus said it reminded him of the inside of a temple with the light painting and gold trim.  Neither one of us had been inside before, so obviously we had an incredible first experience!

The stage

We were even more thrilled when we got inside and found our seats... We had tickets to sit in one of the  box seats.  Nick definitely spoiled us, probably without even realizing it.  :)  

See how happy we were!

There's almost the stage behind us.  

(Phone pictures just don't capture what you need them to consistently.)  

 It really was terrific, if you hadn't gotten that gist already :)  We both had a really fun evening and loved the music.  Plus it was a blast to see Nick again.  Such a great experience!!!

Just in case you were wondering about Chase (who spent the evening home with his wonderful Noni), or maybe you are upset that I blogged about something besides him, here's a fun teaser picture...

In the Tub

Chase had been super fussy recently.  Given that he's only two weeks old, I guess I can't really say for sure what he's like, but he usually is so calm and sweet.  Marcus and I think that it was his little umbilical cord stump hurting him because whenever we'd move his diaper or clothes out of the way, he'd quickly relax and become the sweet little baby he is again.  Luckily, last night he shed his little stump, and he's seemed so much happier since.  It did gross out Marcus quite a bit, but we were more than pleased to welcome our sweet boy back :)  

And of course that meant Chase could now go in the tub!

(He cuddled up in the towel while his legs were being washed.)

It was tricky trying to take a picture while bathing him, but I think overall he enjoyed getting all clean.  ...And then of course he fell back asleep.

He's so cute.  :)

Conference Explosion

I'm sure reading that title, most people would assume I was going to discuss the big missionary changes that were announced...  Nope.  Think again.  This is a much, much more literal post.  And no, it's not about Chase.  Though I'll give him a shout out as he slept all through the session and through our explosion and clean up.

Yep, massive explosion right before President Uchtdorf started speaking.  Big mess.

But it did amount to a great fridge cleaning

AHhhhh, cleanliness :)

The culprit.  (The soda, not me.  haha)

And Marcus handled the mess very well.  He did mention that how he wouldn't have had this problem since he doesn't drink soda.  But my mom was here to help me clean it up.  All is well.  :)

Moral of the story:  Don't try to rush cooling your soda by sticking it in the freezer, forgetting about it, and then putting it back in the fridge.  You'll get a loud gun shot noise followed by the biggest, stickiest mess ever, plus in our case, it impaled the milk too.  Haha.

Drums, Frogs, and Prayers

I had a couple pictures that I wanted to blog to make sure I didn't lose them.  It seems like that happens a lot, but what can you do when you think you have the cutest kid ever :)

Holding Hands (fingers)

A contemplative Rock Star
**notice the diaper that matches the theme

He loves his frogs

He had prepared for Conference with a mighty prayer.  Guess he was ready to hear about the new mission age requirements :)

More cute frogs!  

(Enjoying Conference as best he can)

Pampered Boy

Chase had a rough night, probably due to all the excitement yesterday.  But this morning has already seemed to be a lot better.  When he was starting to get antsy again, I decided to bathe him right then.  He really likes to be clean, so I figured it'd help him relax.

He's not crying, even though it looks like it.  He was just eating his clean hands.

My mom and I discovered that he LOVES to have his feet rubbed with lotion.  We tried to record him because it's so funny how it instantly calms him.

Then I got him dressed, and apparently it became nap time.

I think Chicago was confused why he was being so quiet :)

A picture of the outfit Marcus bought months ago

Our Big City Boy

Today I had a doctor's appointment in the city.  Since I was going to have to commute into Manhattan, and conveniently down the street from Marcus' work, I thought it would be the best opportunity to also drop in and visit his work.  So my mom, Chase, and I headed into the city.  

Did I mention this involved the subway???

Chase is usually super mellow, except when you're putting him in the stroller.  But then he calms down and enjoys the ride.  He did get hungry on the way to my appointment-- good thing my mom was there to help.  

Bottle on the train

It was a little cold, so Chase was bundled up

The city boy, ready for the craziness of Manhattan (and some rain)

Walking down Park

He was fantastic the entire time.  Slept through most of my appointment and woke up to meet Marcus' coworkers.  He's a little stud.  The day did wipe him out.

He was back asleep for the ride home.

And he somehow pulled the blanket over his eyes.

Yeah, it was pretty crowded, but we managed.  :)  A really helpful lady helped clear a path when we needed to get off the train.  See, New Yorkers are nice!

I won't lie, it was a huge adventure, and I don't think I'm quite ready for a repeat, but I know we'll get there.  He was amazing, and the noises and crowds didn't even bother him.  What a super city boy!

Oh, the Many Faces

My mom has been in town this week helping with little Chaser.  Of course that means millions of pictures!  So I stole them from her.  So these pictures are some of the many faces of Chase, brought to you by his grandma.  (I'm not going to narrate them, so imagine whatever scenario you want :)  Some are quite entertaining...)

And as a bonus, a little video of Chase trying to wake up but deciding not to :)