Home Alone

The other night everybody but my sister Elisabeth and I had somewhere to go. Well, we got into some big…… FUN!!!! Here are some pictures.

Thanksgiving As The Years Go By!

Here is what we did for Thanksgiving in 2014, 2015 and, of course, 2016!

Here is 2014.

This is the beautiful table.

We are a very silly Family.

Here is 2015. (You can see this year in full HERE.)

 

Secretly using Dad’s camera.

And finally, this year.

Our cooking. (I hadn’t really been cooking until Dad started taking pictures. 😉 )

Elisabeth giving me a kiss!

In our family, we get a little crazy when we take pictures.

Another example of how weird we get.

Then we went to our friends’ house and played.

Have a great day!

Lydia

When We Were Little

Here are some pictures from when my siblings and I were younger.

Me when I was little trying to hold a backpack that was much too heavy for me.

Elisabeth (the one who is circled) thought that she was pretty awesome.

Hannah holding me.

Josiah helping me put on my boots.

The smiling cowgirl.

Bethany, Elisabeth and Hannah.

My brother Gabriel holding the Valentine’s day cake.

It was a fascinating cake.

Gabriel, Elisabeth and Bethany.

No one can doubt that I was a cute chub.

“What is this?”

Me trying to hold Josiah’s backpack.

Elisabeth, me and Bethany.

Can you see any resemblance to when I was younger?  Comment what you think.

 

Does Johanna look like me when I was little? Comment what you think.

I hope you enjoyed that picture overload of when my siblings and I were younger (and my niece.)

Lydia

Biltmore Estate

On Tuesday, November 15 I had the opportunity to go to Biltmore house on a tour with my close friend Charlotte and Charlotte’s neighbor, Mrs. Wright. It took us three hours to get there so here are some pictures of our drive.

Charlotte

Charlotte and I licking out lolly pops.

Selfie!

When we got there we got on a shuttle and began our tour. The Biltmore house has 35 bedrooms, 43 bathrooms, and 65 fireplaces, so as you already know it is pretty big. The 1^st room we went into was an inside garden. It was called the Winter Garden. It had the room full of poinsettias and it had gifts in it for the Christmas Party later that evening.

The 2^nd room was the formal dining room. It had beautiful chairs and on the table there was huge ginger bread houses or more like play houses. There was an about 20 foot tree with 500 lights on it in the corner.

It also had a pipe organ.

The 3^rd room was the less formal dining room called the breakfast room. Then we went into a room where they kept some valuables during a war. It had a beautiful ceiling and they still keep some other valuable things in it.

Then there was the library. It was a room full of thousands of books! The ceiling was a ceiling that had come from a house in Europe and it had a drawing on it. In the room was Napoleon’s actual chess set!

Napoleon’s chess set.

The next room had a neat tapestry that was 500 years old and is the only one remaining of a set of seven in the world! It had the entire Bible story on it. With Matthew, Mark, Luke and John cymbals on it.

Next we went up the beautiful stairs to Mr. George Vanderbilt’s bedroom. It had a nice bed, daybed and much more fancy things.

His long closet.

Next was where Mr. and Mrs. Vanderbilt and later their daughter Cornelia could eat and rest with privacy.

The small table.

Then Mrs. Vanderbilt’s bedroom. It was much like Mr. Vanderbilt’s room except that it was (in my opinion) much prettier.

The next room was where guests could relax and enjoy the day by reading, writing, playing the piano, or get acquainted with the other guests.

We then went up the stairs to the third floor to see a few of the thirty-three guest bedrooms.

Then we went in a guest bedroom called the chimney room. It’s chimney was decorated with beautiful flowers.

The next guest bedroom was where Cornelia was born along with Cornelia’s child and grandchild.

Now we will go down the basement stairs and into the long stone hallway and into the Halloween room. It has been proven that actually this room had nothing to do with Halloween but actually some Russian’s painted it for a party.

Then the bowling alley. It was also pretty neat.

The swimming pool was not filled and never will be because one night during a party they decided to swim. Well, sadly in the morning it was empty because it had a leak in it. The pool had a diving board and was 12 feet deep in some places.

The next room is the gymnasium. It was used by the guests and by the family.

Then we will walk down a hallway and enter the servants quarters. There was a huge kitchen, a washing room and a dryer along with all the servants bedrooms and dining room.

The dumb-waiter.

This is a kind of long picture of Charlotte and I in front of the lions.

Then we went out to the beautiful gardens and got some really great pictures.

Selfie in the garden.

Left to right- me, Charlotte and Mrs. Wright.

Then we went to some really expensive shops and then headed back home!!!

 

 

Days 6 and 7 of Our CA Trip (Lydia’s Perspective)

On Day 6. we went to the Liang’s house to play with Johanna because she was in an amazing mood. 

1.

Johanna in her “natural habitat” as Cindy calls it because she was always so happy in it.

2.

Mom and Johanna.

3.

Me and Johanna. She is reaching for a toy.

After having great fun with Johanna we set off for a park called Golden Gate Park where we walked around and went to interesting waterfalls (they were man-made fake waterfalls but my mom insists that “it used to all be sand!” so I guess they didn’t do too bad.)

4.

I love this photo. I imagine her saying “I have a secret and I’m not going to tell you!”

5.

Family picture!!!

6.

Johanna holding my hand.

7.

I don’t know what we were looking at but it must have been interesting!

8.

The fake waterfall. It isn’t that bad, is it?

9.

Me holding Johanna.

10.

All three intent on opening the same gift.

11.

The cake Josiah and Cindy gave Mom for her Birthday. It was AMAZING!!!

Day 7. was our traveling home day, and as nothing much happened that day (besides a few airplane scandals, but they were all worked out so I needn’t tell you) we have no pictures. We got home safely, took showers, ate dinner (or supper,) unpacked and went to bed.

Thanks for bearing through all these posts about our trip!

-Lydia

Day 4 of Our CA Trip (Lydia’s Perspective)

Hi! You have read on “Mountaintop Talk” about days 1-3, but you have not heard anything about day 4. Well, here is your missing information.

We got up, did our morning routines, Dad brought Hannah, Gabriel and Priscilla to the airport,  and while Dad was gone Mom, Elisabeth, Bethany and I did laundry. We were going to eat breakfast with Josiah, Cindy and Johanna, but only Josiah made it to the hotel. (Gabriel, Hannah and Priscilla were not able to eat at the hotel with us so Josiah and Cindy could take their place.) Josiah stayed a long time at the hotel and when he left we all did our own thing. (For example, Mom and Dad took naps. 😉 ) We went back to the airport to change cars because of problems!!! I will not go into all that, but anyways we then went to a cool park and then went out to eat with Josiah and Johanna (Cindy wasn’t feeling good. 😦 ) Here are some photos.

Me at the park we went to.

A beautiful bird.

Johanna was very active that night. (She was whiny later)

That is pretty much what happened that day!

-Lydia