The Last of New York. . . . . . . .

Manhattan New York Temple

Our last day in New York we were able to go and do Baptisms for the Dead at the Manhattan Temple. With Matthew turning twelve this last year it meant we could all go in the temple together as a family. It was a strange feeling to walk from the loud and busy streets of New York City and just a few seconds later be in the temple away from it all. As you may know, the temple was built from an existing building already being used by the church. The inside was totally renovated to have a full, though small, working temple. Ward meetings are still held in the building on the 4th floor. Space is of a premium in New York so it is neat that President Hinckley was inspired to build a temple in this manner. It is one of only two high rise temples in the world; the other one is the Hong Kong Temple. It was also strange to look at the temple from the outside. It is not possible to have the elaborate landscaping that other temples do. In fact, you can't take a picture of the temple without getting road signs and stop lights in the picture. It just goes to show that the work is going forward in all places and in all ways.

'WICKED' on Broadway

All I can say about Wicked is WOW! WOW! and WOW!!! It was absolutely fabulous. I'm so glad we bit the bullet and went for it. We almost didn't get tickets because of the huge expense (about $110 per ticket). But it was so worth it. I would go back to New York just to see another Broadway show if I ever had the opportunity. Everything from the elaborate sets to the music to the incredible talent were just fantastic. Cameron especially enjoyed it. He has been working at Roger's Memorial Theatre in Centerville for the last year on the lights and sound crew so he had some appreciation that the rest of us didn't. But trust me, we all appreciated it. Even the ones who weren't especially thrilled to go in the first place. When all is said and done this is definitely the best thing about New York City.

New York Cheesecake! Oink!!!!

After the show and because it was our last night in New York City we searched out and found some true New York Cheesecake at a deli. The piece in front of Amber is one slice. It was about five inches tall and I swear it weighed two full pounds . . . . . . . . totally insane! It was good and yes we did share.

Let's Go Home!

We had a great trip but we were definitely ready to go home. It took us a full day to get home with lay overs and all so we were pretty exhausted. Good memories!!!!