Sunday, April 21, 2013

Conference Weekend Part 2

{part two}

After the Saturday morning session we drove to Fruit Heights to have our annual Tew family Easter egg hunt, and to celebrate Rick and Kristy's birthdays.  

Sharing is Caring.

M & M hugs!

 The feast:

Mabel helped Grandma Georgia eat her food. :)

Lots of kissing and hugging on sweet baby Jones...


Cute little Mabel face and I am growing out my curly hair.
(heaven help me, please)

Mabel had a blast jumping on the BIG trampoline!

Nate's cousin Sam came from Colorado to visit:

All the kids ready for the hunt!
We kept saying it just doesn't feel the same without 
Brady and Becky and their kids. :(

Rick kept the grass extra long so they could hide lots of 
treasures in it. 

Once she realized there was CANDY 
in the eggs she got down to business.

She wanted me to open each one and get the goodies out.

I put all the jelly beans in her little shirt pocket...

It was a sad day in her life when that pocket was empty!
More jumping on the trampoline:

The guys looking spiffy as they head out the
Priesthood meeting of General Conference.

Nate and I decided to spend the night so we could watch conference with Nate's parents on Sunday and so we could sneak away after Mabel was in bed Saturday night and head to a friend's 40th birthday bash.

Happy 40th Nicole! 
I hope I look this great at forty.
Nicole and I met when we worked together at Abode - 
she is one of the coolest, most creative people I know!

Friday night a bunch of friends went up to Park City to begin Nic's 
weekend celebration. Love all these gals!

This is the only picture I got from Saturday night because we were dancing for hours!
I can't remember the last time I went to a party, with a DJ 
and made a total fool out of myself on the dance floor! 
Nate on the other hand - he has moves.
People kept coming up to me saying, "Your husband can dance!"
Just one of the many reasons I married him. :)

Sunday morning Mabel helped Grandpa Tew make french toast...

and she watched conference on her mini trampoline. 

She wanted to take notes just like Grandpa.

 Nothing like some post-it notes to keep a toddler busy!

Thursday, April 18, 2013

Conference Weekend Part 1

{part one}

The first weekend in April we don't attend church, instead we watch General Conference.  It is held twice a year (first weekend in October too) at the beautiful conference center in downtown Salt Lake City.  The conference is broadcast by satellite to 96 countries around the world.  It's free to get tickets to attend but I think a lot of people prefer staying in their jammies and watching at home.  The speakers all come from the leadership of our church and the topics all vary.  One talked that really touched me was this one by Rosemary M. Wixon entitled,
"The Words We Speak":



Some of my notes:
children find joy in life's little pleasures - I want to journal more about Mabel's daily adventures, children come to this earth ready to listen, it's time for me to spend more time technologically disconnected, what would I say to Mabel in 25 words?, what distractions can I eliminate?
"To speak to a child's heart, we must know a child's needs.  If we pray to know those needs the very words we may say have the power to reach into their hearts."
"Precious moments of opportunity to interact and converse with our children dissolve when we are occupied with distractions."
"SIMPLY TURN EVERYTHING OFF."

I picked up a few prints at the Bijou Market in Provo last weekend to
help me remember some goals I set.
My talented friend Aubry has beautiful handwriting and was selling these lovely prints:


I also enjoyed Elder Jeffrey R. Holland's talk:

Will do. 

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Nana's House


We took advantage of some cheap flights and spent Easter 
out in Colorado this year.  
This was probably Mabel's last free flight since she turns the big TWO next month.
She has been on a plane 12 times in her short little life so I think 
we got our money's worth! 
Mabel and I flew out on a Monday and Nate flew in late Wednesday night.
(and he was SOOOOO sick. it was awful and we barely saw him for three days)

We usually have the best of luck on flights and ALWAYS 
end up having an empty seat next to us for Mabel.  
Not this time.  
Mabel kept bringing her finger to her mouth saying, "Sssshhh!"

She is such a great little travel companion on the plane.
(Stickers, books, and we always share some ginger ale.)
However, you can guarantee this girl is going to poop 
once we reach cruising altitude.
Never fails.
She is in the 95th percentile for her height and the poor thing 
barely fits on the changing table.
Nothing like changing a diaper in the smallest space known to man.  

Nana's house has all sorts of treasures and trinkets to look at.  Mabel especially loved this little music box that has a picture of 
my mom and her two sisters on the top.    
I think somebody might need a little music box for their birthday. 

Mabel loved Nana's magnets!
 

My mom got Mabel this little Easter bonnet from the $1 section at Target.
Mabel wanted to wear it every. single. day.
Hat! She would say. Purple!
Her little voice is pretty much the best thing ever.

Of course the first grandchild gets extra special treatment!
Turtle sandwiches and bunny-mobiles.

 


My mom put the plate in front of her and she didn't even hesitate
before biting the ears off!
Then she looked back at it and starting making a "Whooooo" sound.
I looked at the ear-less bunny and realized it now looked like an OWL!!
I love seeing the world through Mabel's eyes.

My mom had our "Fun Schedule" all typed up and ready! We have found that unless we write down all the things/projects we want to do we end up forgetting.  We got a lot accomplished this trip AND had a lot of fun despite Nate being quarantined downstairs.  Poor guy.
(and mom, we WILL visit that zoo someday, i promise!)

Good times, in no particular order:

Slides and Swings at Paintbrush Park
 
Aunt Kelsey came to play too!

The last time I was out visiting we drove by this Pho (pronounced "fuh") place and I asked my mom if she had ever been.  She hadn't, but since that trip she got brave and tried it with some friends and loved it!  I have always wanted to try Pho so we knew we had to include a Pho lunch into our plans.
We all snuck away while Nate and Mabel were napping.

Soooooo tasty and full of flavor! I loved it.
 

Jacob and I got Boba smoothies too. 
Weird little slimy chewy things those bobas are.
Like big tapioca pearls.

Playing outside in the back of "Ampa's" truck...


We went to Target to get Pedialyte and saltines for Nate and when we were checking out the cashier was wearing these bunny ears. Mabel thought it was so great and of course, even better since they were PURPLE! The lady took them off and said Mabel could have them.  
Our own little bunny foo foo. :)

Dying Easter eggs:

Easter basket treasures:

Best bubbles ever created.
NO SPILL, easy for her to hold, stick doesn't fall in, 
bottom unscrews and you can refill it.
Thank you Target, you changed my bubble life.

You get some serious sweet hook-ups when your Uncle works at Coldstone.
Mabel wanted to go visit Uncle Jacob every day. 


My mom's washing machine died so we had a laundromat adventure. 
(NOT planned in the fun schedule!)
Nate lovingly pointed out that I say laundrymat when the correct word is laundromat.
What kind of weird word is laundromat?
Do you do laundry or laundro? That's what I thought.
Also, I lost my hearing after 30 seconds of listening to Jacob's new subwoofers.
And he told me that wasn't even as loud as they could go. 
Youngsters these days, geesh.
 


Swimming at the Rec center.
This summer is going to be really fun with this little fish.

This was Monday, the day before we left to come home, and Nate was finally able to venture out of the house.  Sunday morning he woke up, after 72 hours of practically living in the bathroom, and he was healed! And starving! He had leftover steak for breakfast.  He was able to go to church with us Sunday afternoon 
and play games Sunday night.
I was glad I didn't have to sleep with Clorox wipes between us anymore. 

Before we left town we had to stop for another ice cream cone!

Mabel loves spending time with Nana, Ampa, Uncle Jacob, 
Aunt Kelsey...and so do I.
It's hard living far away.