True Colors

I have learned a lot about people these last 6 months. I have found people who truly do care about me and my family. Sadly, I have learned that some people I thought I could count on during some of my roughest times are really just liars. I knew all about fair weathered friends. Unfortunately the ones that are FWF, I didn't see coming. Kinda shocking really. I am so grateful for those who stuck by me, like true people who really love me should. I can honestly say I wish I had never met these people. But life isn't like that. God gives us those, in order to appreciate the ones that really matter. 

I am not bitter, or sad, or upset. Just pondering life. And realizing how eternally grateful I am for the true people in my life. I also hope that anyone reading this will realize how important words are. If you ever tell someone you love them and will always be there for them. Remember that it also includes the bad times. Mean what you say. :)

On another note, I took a ride out to Lund the other day. It is an old ghost town along the railroad. It was at one time a stop for people to hitch a ride into Cedar. It was interesting. Kinda creepy cause all that is left are some old abandoned buildings. Like 3 of them. I did get this pic of my kids:

Aren't they cute? Fast forward about 20 minutes later. I am heading back and blew a tire. We are talking an old  pretty much abandoned road in the freakin' desert! Thank you Lord for the fact that I was taught a few things and was able to change it. My kids were in awe that I could do it. LOL. 

Un-coolest Mom!

Well it has happened. I am no longer the young hip Mom. I am now crossing over to the "un with it" Mom. I knew it would happen. Just wish I could have prevented it from happening. I don't think I am old or that I have let my appearance go to hell. I am now among the ranks of your average Mama. Where I should be. What has brought this on? A lot of things. The latest is WWE. I remember the days of Hulk Hogan, Andre the Giant, the Ultimate Warrior, Macho Man, Bret the Hitman Hart, Rowdy Roddy Piper.... My brother, my Dad and I used to watch these guys obsessively when it was the WWF. One of the highlights of my childhood was getting second row seats to watching Andre the Giant take on the Ultimate Warrior. WOW! That man was HUMONGOUS!! My Mom was a poor victim. She gave the sigh/eye roll and accepted the fact that now her Saturday nights would be monopolized to a scripted "sport". Fast forward to now. I am learning terms like the "five knuckle shuffle" and John Cena. My kids run in to tell me that someone is hurt, knocked out or possibly died. I give them a "that's nice dear". When I could care less because I think it is ridiculous. And go about my business. Then there is video games. I remember the days of Nintendo. Bryce and I played for hours. My Mom would come in and give us a "really?" look. She could never understand and I couldn't understand how she didn't enjoy em. I now give Dylan the same look at the games he plays now. The look is a cross between confusion, disgust and "what's the point?" Followed by an eye roll.

I get ditched by Dylan all the time. At the store, at the park, at the swimming pool. I see little or none of my oldest until the moment right before it is time to leave. I mean the SECOND before it is time to leave. Then the quick, "Let's go!" and hurried off since he doesn't want to be seen by the MOM thing. We went to a movie today. I invited my Mom, you know...Grandma..to join. Dylan sat in the row in front of us.

I find myself looking for more comfortable clothing rather than cute things. I would rather be able to breath, bend over or walk without pain than look all hot and sexy. If I can get those qualities AND be stylish I feel like I hit the jackpot. What's going on here?!?! I am only 35!! In my mind I feel like I am 20. UGH.

Divorce

Yes you read that right. Tom and I are getting divorced. It was never an easy decision but it is for the best. Now if you think I am going to get into bashing and telling you how horrible he was to me, you are in the wrong place. I may be immature, but I am not THAT immature. I share the blame. It is too easy for me to sit here and air all my grievances. I have a captive audience here. That isn't fair to Tom. Or my kids.

It is really hard to pinpoint exactly when things started to unravel. It has been a few years I imagine. Brought on so slowly that by the time we got to the point of, "I QUIT!" there is really nothing to be done to fix it. It comes down to, we were both miserable and life is too short to be unhappy all the time. Don't get me wrong, we both tried in our own ways to make it work. But eventually you fall out of love and the fighting becomes too much. It was affecting our children. Chloe even wrote me a note that told us that we needed to get it together.

So here is how it goes:
Early in December we decided to call it quits. Yet, it wasn't the right time. Christmas was coming and I wanted it to be a happy time for my kids. We agreed to try one more time. That didn't last more than two weeks. Something came over me on Christmas day. A feeling of total anxiety and on the verge of a breakdown. Xanax was the only thing the kept me from having a meltdown in front of everyone. That led to arguments in regards to my behavior and then ultimately the decision the next day. We just can't do this anymore. We knew that this was only going to get worse. Eventually we would start resenting and hating each other and all that does is harm us all more. Tom decided to give it a few days. Some space between Christmas and the conversation with our kids that was going to change their lives dramatically. On Friday, December 30th, Tom came home from work and we sat them down and told them. Colton didn't really seem to care one way or another. He is barely 4 at this time so he really didn't know what had happened. Chloe's reaction surprised us, "I knew this was going to happen." She isn't thrilled about it but seems to be OK. Dylan is the hard one. He completely came apart. I knew he would react pretty hard but it still breaks my heart. After that, Tom left. I know it was so hard for him. But I also know deep in my heart that we are doing what is best for us and for our children. So I am adjusting to the "Single Mom" role. I think I am doing quite well actually. I was the primary caregiver before so the adjustment wasn't too bad.

The hard part is the feeling of failure. I have made my kids a statistic. Watching Dylan struggle with his emotions has been rough. I eventually put him in with the school counselor. I just don't know how to help him. He is getting so much better tho. I am hopeful that this will get him through it. I have been to an attorney, it is almost a done deal. We went through the divorce parenting classes, WHAT A JOKE!! ACK!!! Tom and I had a couple of struggles at first but seem to have worked most of it out. It has been better for us both. I am no longer bitching and nagging at him and he is no longer angry and frustrated with me. We are both ready to move on. I truly hope he finds someone to make him happy. This is how I know I am ready for it. I would be sincerely happy if he found a good woman. I would even encourage it. Of course I still care about him. We were married for over 12 years and we have 3 kids together. We just changed so much, and we did it apart rather than together. I am so ready for this new chapter. Scared to death about how I am going to be able be financially secure, what struggles are my kids going to throw at me. But sincerely optimistic about the future. :) I have also found out who is truly my friend. Who out there REALLY cares about me. It has been sad sometimes to find out who means it when they say, "I will always be there for you." I have had a hand full of people turn their back on me. Some make me more sad than others, but it is a life lesson.

So sorry if this isn't a bitter rant about how I was wronged. I guess I am growing up.

4 years later

Chloe and Jeff

I can't believe it has been 4 years since my Uncle, Jeff Herrud passed away. Last year on the anniversary of his death, I went almost the whole day without even thinking about it. When I realized what day it was, I was pleased that maybe I had been able move on. Fast forward to one year later. Today. I woke up feeling on edge. Sad and ready to cry. Then I remembered what day it was. I got up and got going thinking, "If I get my day started and keep busy I will be O.K." Yeah right. I got in the shower and completely had a break down. I miss him so much. I want him back. I got out of the shower and started to get ready. Turned on the news to hopefully get my mind off of it. And it didn't work. Great! I had only been up a half an hour and I have already cried hard twice! This is gonna be a fun day. Especially for someone who isn't much of a crier. It took me longer than usual but I finally made it to work. And THANK YOU to the wonderful students and coworkers who kept me busy and kept me smiling. I was able to get out of the funk.

I believe that when someone passes away so quickly and unexpectedly it makes it harder. His death was so sudden. And the day before Thanksgiving nonetheless. I had to dig deep that holiday, and remind myself of how thankful I truly was. He was a good friend to me, and it hurts that he is gone. When my Mom told me I kept thinking, "No, she is wrong!" My Grandfather was dying, surely she meant him. But she wasn't. I think I will take my kids to the Jubilee of Trees here in Cedar tonight. I am really beginning to dislike the holidays. My Grandpas both died shortly before Christmas and my Grandma and Uncle right before Thanksgiving. I need to work harder at making it a happy time for me. Ok, enough whining. :)

Way too fast

My friend Stephanie, recently posted about her 1 year old daughter. It brought a smile to my face, because it is her first. I remember how meticulous I was with Dylan. How the magic of it all just blew me away. Not that I didn't enjoy it with my other two just as much, but by then I was used to it. I envy her in some ways. That is such a fun time in my life. Do I wanna go back? uh..no. But now I look at my oldest son who is now 10 and realize how time has flown. He is in fifth grade now. He is learning things from his peers, usually weird things, but boy things. His head reaches my nose. He isn't a little boy! I just picture that sweet little boy who lit up my world with everything. Now he is horrified if I show up at his school. I recently went to join Chloe for lunch at her school. When I asked Dylan if he wanted me to eat with him I got an emphatic, "NO MOM!" and a 'how dare you even ask that question' look. It didn't make me feel bad, or sad. It made me chuckle. Because it made me glad that he is his own person. He has his social group and is thriving. Remember last year when he was having anxiety and barely making it? Well now he is getting straight A's, and is enjoying school. He has a wonderful teacher who supports him and makes him feel special. It makes all the difference. I will forever be grateful to Mrs. Mackleprang. She has quickly turned him around with her enthusiasm and encouragement. I just remember how a year ago, I was so worried about him. Now I only worry a normal Mommy worry. Chloe is growing up too, as a big 7 year old. In second grade. She has a thirst for knowledge and an enthusiasm that carries over to home. She teaches her now 4 year old brother Colton everything she can. That is her baby. Watching them grow and become their own person is the most wonderful thing. I do sometimes miss having a tiny baby around. But I am enjoying this phase a lot too, and am always wondering what will happen next.

My job is going well. I love what I do. I love making a difference in someones life. That is so important to me. I want to make peoples lives better. I have felt so 'unimportant' and 'insignificant' in the world. I love making people smile. I try to make sure that if they don't smile the rest of the day, they got at least one from me. I got into the mindset of, "I am just a Mom." I knew that was important, but it didn't feel that way. My coworkers are great. The students are great and it is an amazing job to have. I do suffer from the guilt of not being here all day. It is hard to do the same thing for 11 years and then change it so suddenly. I feel bad that I send my kid to a babysitter. Even tho it is only for a few hours and he has so much fun that he can't wait to go back. I worry about not being here if one of the other two need me. Even tho they are at school while I am gone. It is an inner struggle with myself. The positives very much so, outweigh the bad. Sometimes I think I should have had a career before starting a family. But I wouldn't have what I have now. And I wouldn't change it for the world.

New Job

I now have 2 weeks under my belt at the new job. I have to say I enjoy it. I am still shocked at how easy it was to get hired, and how badly they wanted me there. These facts make me want to work even harder to make them glad that they hired me and not regret their decision. I saw a waiting room full of people hoping to get this job and only I and one other person got it. I feel a bit guilty about it because there are so many people out there looking for work, and this just fell in my lap. This job is so good for me for so many reasons. 1. It helps me earn a little extra money that we can definitely use right now. 2. It makes me happy to actually be using my degree that has been sitting idle for 11 years. 3. I get out of the house for a few hours a day. Something that helps with my depression and dumb issues. It makes me a happier person. 4. Colton gets to play with his friend for a few hours which is great since his older siblings are now in school. 5. It will look great on a resume. 6. Since it is within the Iron County School District system, I have the same days off as my other kids, so I won't have to worry about what to do with them when they are out of school.

This list could keep going but I will stop there. I should explain what this job is exactly. I work at what is called a POST High School. It is an extension of HS for special ed students, after they are done at their regular HS. They can attend the POST high up until they turn 22 when they age out. What I and my coworkers do is help them develop real world skills so that they can be a bit more functional in society. Dealing with money, work environments, basic math and reading, and how to properly conduct themselves in public. Due to privacy issues I can't be too specific about the students. But I can say that they are a challenge that I love and they make me laugh every day. My only gripe is having to get up early. Not only do I have to get myself ready I have to get 3 kids ready too. Needless to say it is a bit wild here in the mornings. I am happy that it has me on a more steady schedule and I am happy to say that I lost 5 pounds during the month of August. YAY!! So there you have it. I am still crazy, but a happier, working Mom crazy. :o)

Why you should get a degree

Any degree. Whatever interests you. As long as it is a legitimate degree it serves you well. I have just realized that. I have been a SAHM now for 10 years. It has been a fun ride, hard and aggravating, yet the best thing I have ever done. Yet, I have this thing inside me that wants to go to work. I have been trying to see if I can help my Mom find a job and in the meantime I have seen a few positions that interested me. I do the, "What the heck, it won't hurt to try!" My thing is, I am a bit picky. It has to be pretty easy to work around my kids' schedule. Because they are my priority. I just figured if I was patient, the right thing will come along. Well it finally happened. In order to be the easiest with my kids' schedule, I knew it would be best to work within the school district. I saw a few positions available at various schools, and 5 minutes before the deadline for the application was due, I turned it in. The following morning, yesterday, I got a call to come in for an interview in the early afternoon. Wow that was quick! I went in and interviewed for the position of "Paraprofessional for students with special needs" position. A part time position, another thing I wanted, working with older high school students with special needs. I had tried for the High School closest to me. They told me if I was selected, they would call that evening, if not then thank you for coming in. I didn't hear anything last night. So I figured it was not meant to be. Oh well, woulda been kind of perfect but oh well. This morning I got up and got my kids ready for the first day of school YAY! Doted on Chloe since it is her 7th birthday, and drove them to school. I went to the gym and worked out, and then went to the store. On the way I called my Mom and she said she hadn't been able to reach me on my phone. It was weird. Oh well, it is fixed now. I chatted with my Mom for a minute and then finished my shopping. My phone then rang. I answered it, and the lady on the other line said, "Jamie! I have been trying to call you since last night!" (seriously? what is wrong with this phone?!?!) It was one of the ladies from the interview. I got the position!! It wasn't at the school I had gone for, but the other one in town, and she was impressed. So tomorrow morning I start working. I have been busy getting everything together and arrangements made. My friend will watch Colton and the other two will just ride the bus to school. I am excited. Not really nervous, but happy that I can contribute to our family more.

Now why did I mention the whole degree thing? Because I couldn't even have applied if I didn't have one. That is becoming the norm. My degree isn't in education. Yes my minor was child development, but my major was Sociology. Proof that it doesn't really matter as long as you have one. I stopped into my step daughters dorm, she is moving here today, and shared with her and her cousin/roomie that, "See? An education does pay off!"

12 week challenge

Recently, I decided to take part in an online weight loss challenge. I figured since I was trying to get my hiney in shape it would be cool to win a prize in the mean time. Well today is the last day of the challenge. I don't know if I won or lost, I will know next week. Win or lose, I will be glad that I have indeed lost a little more. I have been working more on strength training than weight loss. I just don't have the love for Zumba and elliptical machines that so many others have. I had to post pictures up from the beginning, middle and today. I am going to share them here.....still this is kind of humiliating. But it will keep me honest and motivated!

Beginning: Yes, they are the pics from before. I was the same size.





Middle Week:




Final Week: TODAY!

I know, you can't see a real difference. Neither can I. But, let me give you the final official numbers. In 12 weeks I have lost 16 pounds and all over 16.5 inches. So I am pleased. Still not swimsuit ready. But I am getting there!
Oh and if you haven't noticed, I am now in fact, a brunette. I decided the days of bleach blond are over. I am loving this evolvement. I guess I am going for an all over change!

Vacation Day #1 And I am OFF!!!

So to start out the "Vacation" blog I decided to do a day by day. So much happened! Also if you want to see the rest of my pics from this trip you will have to check my facebook page.

My vacation started on March 21st in the afternoon. After Tom got home. I must admit I felt a little sad and a whole lot guilty leaving them all behind. But I needed this. I drove to my parents house to trade vehicles and to tell them goodbye. Things didn't start out so smooth as that night, my Mom had lost her job. She has worked in this same position for 28 years, and they let her go over a ridiculous mistake. But that is a whole story in itself. I finally made it to my Aunt's house and hunkered down for the night. I decided I really wanted to sleep on the plane so I stayed up all night, and I had to leave at about 4 a.m. since my flight was scheduled to leave at 6. My cousin drove me to the airport at the wonderful time and I was off. I flew to Chicago, where it was cold and wet, and then I was off to Philly. I got to Philly, got shuttled to my hotel and then met up with friends that night. I had a few beers, unfortunately I am used to Utah's watered down version so I quickly became "fun". The conversations at the small hotel bar were fun. One gal there said, "I was in Montana once and they have these metal bars in the road to keep cows in!" I said, "Cattle guards?" LOL. I was loving the contrast of our lives there. I hung out and had a good time. But I was also exhausted. I had slept a little but not a lot on the plane and throw a couple of beers in there and I was about to drop! I went to my hotel room and immediately fell asleep. It was about 10 local time, which is 8 here in Utah.

Day #2 Jersey!

I slept good and hard that night. I woke up when my brother texted me asking me when I wanted him to come get me. So I called him, gave him the addy and got ready. I hadn't seen the butthead in 2 years, so I was excited. I met him in the hotel lobby and he gave me the biggest bear hug. We went back to my room and got my bags and then we headed off. I was so hungry cause I had skipped dinner so he drove me into New Jersey and we went to a little cafe for breakfast. My first impressions of the Northeast? Very crowded. It is like people live on top of each other. I am just so used to spacious living I would imagine. There are a lot of trees and one thing people out west don't really understand is rivers. I remember when I was in the Southeast and I thought the same thing. The rivers are huge out there! Everywhere has its good points and bad. Bryce had to do some training since he is being deployed in May. So I sat at his apartment and watched TV and got some rest. He came back and we went to a steakhouse for supper. We then returned to his place and rested up cause the next day we were heading to DC.

Day #3 Washington, DC

We got up and went to the local Dunkin' Donuts for breakfast. Sad to say, that is the first time I ever experienced a DD. Then we went to a storage unit place since Bryce was going to be giving up his apartment and needed a place to put his stuff while he was deployed for 6 months. Afterward, we headed south. Since this was all so very new to me, I stayed glued to the window. Looking at everything. I got my first time in Delaware, and that is another thing. The bridges out there are stunning! Delaware was, interesting. Also a very short drive before we were in Maryland. I got to see Baltimore. Bryce had gotten us a hotel room in a town called Laurel. We got to the hotel and got our stuff in and asked the front desk how the best way to do DC was. This was the one place that he hadn't ever been to. Kinda neat to be a tourist with him! She gave us maps and directions to the nearest Metro station. We got there and got our day passes for the Metro and we were on the subway. We chose the L'Enfant stop. Well, Bryce did. I didn't even attempt to know what I was doing. We ended up in the middle of somewhere lol. After about 5 minutes of doing the, "Where the hell are we?" we figured it out. My first impression of DC was that it was very beautiful. We made our way to the "Mall" area, and decided to head towards the Capitol first. While walking the museums had caught our eye. The first one in particular got Bryce's. The Air and Space Museum. Upon a closer look we realized it was part of the Smithsonian! OMG! I got so excited! Why do you ask? Because that is a "bucket list" item for me. Ever since I knew there was a Smithsonian I wanted to go and swore that one day I would. Tho, this wasn't necessarily my cup o tea I have to admit that it was really cool. I saw the Wright Brothers plane that they used, the Spirit of St. Louis, and of course a ton of memorabilia from the space missions. Afterward we made our way to the US Capitol which was nice and then we went back towards where the Whitehouse was. Along the way my brother needed to duck in to one of the buildings and we realized we were at the US History Smithsonian. AWESOME! This was the one I wanted to go to. I was so impressed, getting to see Washington's uniform, tons of artifacts from our history, Dorothy's ruby red slippers, the counter from the "sit-ins". I coulda spent all day there. But we only had so much time. We left after a few hours and walked along to the White House. Another must see item. Of course I am only skimming through everything we saw, but you should get the idea. After that we were pretty tired from walking what we calculated as almost 4 miles, not including the massive museums we ran through! We found the closest station and made our way back to the truck and found a place for dinner. Got back to the hotel and settled in. Bryce zonked practically immediately after we got there and I had a bath and was soon out. A very busy day.

Day #4 - Solemn

We got up pretty slowly today. LOL. I think our muscles weren't impressed with us. All I can say is I am glad that I work out. There is no way I coulda done all the walking and climbing and standing I did the day before and then get up and do a practical repeat! We weren't sure exactly what we would be doing. I really wanted to go to the Holocaust Museum and Bryce wanted to hit the war Memorials. Other than that we didn't know. We decided to go to Arlington. I do have a love for cemeteries, and this is probably the most well known in the nation. We got on the train and made our way to Virgina. (another state to knock off my list!). We purchased a tour bus ticket. And the first stop was the Kennedy's grave. It was really a neat place. Not only did we see JFK's and Jackie O's along with their two kids buried there, but we also saw Bobby Kennedy and Ted Kennedy's too! After a couple of photos we hopped back on the bus and the next stop was the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. We got there in the middle of the changing of the guard and couldn't really see much through the crowd already there. Bryce really wanted to see it so we waited front and center for the next go around. Didn't really mind tho, watching the soldier walk back and forth and observing the tomb itself wasn't too boring funny enough. We watched the changing of the guard and some laying of wreaths. I am amazed at the precision and perfection. Very neat. We got on the next bus and headed to the Arlington House. I had heard about its beginnings before but never really paid attention to the story, so it was like I was hearing it for the first time. We walked through the house that had no furniture since it was undergoing a renovation. Saw the slaves quarters and then we hopped on the bus again. Of course I can't speak about a trip to Arlington without talking about the moment that you see those infamous white headstones. It seems as if they go on forever. It is so beautiful, and then you think, "Every single one of those represents a soldier who is gone."

After Arlington we headed back to DC and walked over to the Holocaust museum. There were no tickets left for the day, but thankfully since my bro was military, we got right in. That is also a very sobering experience. Seeing actual items from the Holocaust and its victims. All the propaganda, torture, murder and cruelty. It is so sad, yet intensely interesting. We didn't know how huge that museum is. There is so much information and items to go through. I made a mental note that next time I would plan on being there all day. We probably were able to actually read maybe a third of the information available. We would have been longer but wanted to see the war memorials too. So we left and walked over to the Washington monument. We walked up next to it, and boy is that thing tall! after that we headed to the WWII Monument, which was also quite big. We were hoping to see the reflecting pool but all we saw was the bottom of it. It is being "renovated" LOL. We went to the Korean War monument, the Lincoln and then finally the Vietnam Memorial and wall. That one got us both quiet. Needless to say we were very tired and sore. So we headed back home. I totally fell in love with Washington DC.

Day #5 - NYC

A smart person would have taken the day off. But there was so much I wanted to see and I didn't have time to be smart about it. So this day..Saturday.. we headed to NYC. Driving into town we saw the Statue of Liberty and then Bryce drove me by Ground Zero. I knew it was cold out, so I didn't really care to get out and walk. But he insisted. So we stopped and walked about two blocks to where the site where the WTC once stood. It was odd that my first thoughts when I got right up next to the site was flashbacks of where I was and what I was doing that very moment on September 11, 2001. I thought about the terror those people felt it was so sad. We then ducked into a pizza place for my first taste of authentic New York pizza and it was yummy. We then walked back to the car and my brother took me on one hell of a ride. He drove me by Radio City Music Hall, The Empire State Building, Central Park, Madison Square Garden, and then finally he stopped and parked and we were at Time Square. It was very busy, and exciting to see. We got our pic taken on those red stairs they had set up. We got back in the truck and I had enough of NYC so we took the Holland Tunnel and went home. I know I only spent about 3 hours there and it was neat to see, but I wasn't all that impressed. SORRY! I think you get it in your head that it is just the same as you would see on TV. And to an extent it is. But I just thought it was too crowded, noisy, FREEZING, and somewhat dirty and it didn't smell too good. At the same time I am glad I got to see it. And maybe I will plan a trip during the summer season in the future.

Day #6 Lazy Day

We were thinking about going to the shore today but decided with gas prices the way they are and we were kinda tired anyway, it would be cool just to skip it and stay home. We watched TV and then Bryce decided he couldn't stand it any longer and just HAD to do something. So we went and saw the movie, The Adjustment Bureau. It was really pretty good. I enjoyed it. Then we went and had dinner at the Iron Skillet where Bryce decided he had to show the waitress that he could in fact eat a double chicken fried steak meal. HAHA. He felt that later.

*btw, I know the pic I posted had nothing to do with the day, but I wanted to post a pic and couldn't find one that I took that day, so you got another shot of Arlington, I mean, it is cool right?

Day #7 Philly

My last day in the North East. We headed to Philly so I could tour the sites. He took me to Joe's where I got my first genuine Philly Cheese steak. Oh wow, it was so good! Then it was time to be a tourist again. First off we were at the Liberty Bell, then we saw where the original house where George Washington and for a time, John Adams lived while president. We then realized we had a few hours til our tickets would let us see Independence Hall and my brother just had to have his coffee fix. We found the closest Starbucks at a Mall Downtown. I had seen a sign pointing the way to Ben Franklin's grave and..ooh! A Graveyard!! Bryce trudged along with me and we went into this old cemetery and saw his grave. Between that and all the other really old plots, I was in heaven!!! We then headed over to the Constitution center and saw some of the exhibits and the 'show' and then went back to Independence Hall to take the tour. If you could get past the intense lecture that our guide felt inclined to do, it was really awesome to see the place where they signed the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. We then returned to the Constitution Center and I looked at the exhibits, took the oath of the President of the United States and then we saw the special exhibit they had on of "Spies, Traitors and Saboteurs." We then got back in the truck and Bryce drove me past the infamous Art Museum where Rocky ran up the stairs. I love pop culture.