St George Family Vacation!

Jonathan and I had been wanting to go on a family vacation with just our little family for quite awhile to see if we could handle it, so when his grandparents invited us to come stay with them in St. George, we decided it was the perfect time. What made it even more perfect was that both his grandparents live there and that The Little Mermaid was playing at the Tuacahn Theater!

We spent a lot of time sitting on these couches watching movies and just talking with his grandparents. We dont get to see them very often so it was so fun to catch up. We spent every night after the kids went to bad hearing funny stories about Jonathan's parents and learning more about his family that live so far away and that I have never met. They are so sweet and cute! Great-grandma Tanner: the girls LOVED her! Great Grandma and Grandpa TannerGrandpa Tanner has a studio and loves to paint. He gave us a few of his paintings which we love! It was so fun to see him in his element and all of his paintings. I see where Jonathan gets his creative side!We spent a day driving around St. George and went to the temple which was beautiful We went to the Visitors Center and they had some really neat interactive displays. The girls' favorite thing we did was the water park by the St. George Tabernacle. It was perfect for them. It had running streams, waterfalls, rocks to climb, and a big water fountain. Ryan was happy and got a nap in while the girls played so I was happy! Lydia was definitely not scared of getting wet. She would run right down the middle of the huge fountain while Abigale stood on the side and just got her feet a little wet. Love this girl! You can see Lydia in the middle and Abigale on the outside. The day was even more perfect when Dad went and got Happy Meals for the girls and Cafe Rio Salads for us. Yum! They even had a carousel in the park and it was really inexpensive so we rode it a few times. At first Lydia was nervous but by the end she was so proud of herself for riding without crying! Even Ryan loved it. Abigale wanted to take a picture of us. She did pretty good!Ryan getting his feet wet! The reason for the trip (besides visiting family) was The Little Mermaid! The girls were sooo excited and it was such a beautiful outdoor theater- right in the middle of the red rocks. The play was amazing! The had some great special effects that made it look like they were really swimming. They changed the story a little bit from the movie and added a lot more songs. The girls were laughing and giggling the whole time. They even stayed awake and it didnt end until 11! Next year they are doing Aladdin so I think we will be back! Getting ready for the show! Prince Eric and Ariel after the show. We were in line to meet them but the girls got too nervous and were too tired by this point so we just took a picture. They did a great job! On our way out of town we stopped to see Jonathan's other grandparents again. They have a beautiful home, with a beautiful view! They were even nice enough to let us swim in their pool one day. Great grandma and grandpa Taylor! Such a fun vacation! It was so fun to make memories with our kids and hopefully start a new tradition! I think we wore our kids out but it was so worth it!

Birthday/Conference Weekend!

Since Jonathan's birthday is the third of October, it is always around General Conference, which we love! We had such a fun weekend celebrating and listening to our Prophet and other leaders speak. It is really one of my favorite times of the year! This year started a little crazy. At about 12:30 in the morning a family from Jonathan's mission called and said they were in Provo and wanted to sleep at our house. Jonathan was excited to see them but not too excited about waiting up until 2:30 for them to arrive. But they did arrive and it was great to meet them. When they were leaving before the first session, Lydia ran out to say goodbye and missed a step and landed right on her face on the cement. Her mouth started bleeding really bad and her lip immediately started to swell. Poor girl was in so much pain for the rest of the day and couldn't eat anything. But besides the crazy start to the weekend, it ended up being so much fun!
This is at the beginning of Conference- Abigale liked drawing the men on tv and Jonathan is holding Lydia and putting ice on her mouth. We decided to try something new this year and made these treat bowls. Everytime someone from Conference said one of the words that Abigale wrote down, they got to pick a piece of candy, crackers, apple slice, or whatever was in the cup. Abigale loved it and I think this will be a new tradition!

On Sunday after the first session we drove up to Jonathan's cabin in Park City to meet up with some of his family. The drive was GORGEOUS! I told the girls that it looked like Heavenly Father took a paint brush and painted all the trees and Lydia insisted that she was the one that painted the trees and kept reminding us of what a great job she did! :)

One of my favorite places in the world- The Cabin! I didnt get the for sale sign that is in front because it is too sad :( Jonathan's mom made us a delicious lunch when we got there and we spent the rest of the day playing and relaxing while we listened to the last session. Ryan had a fun time! So did Abigale! And Lydia talked Grandma into watching Tangled with her upstairs- so she had a great time too!

Grandpa and the girls playing Princesses! Such a good grandpa! And Grandma was on baby duty which I dont think she minded! Behind their cabin it goes straight up the mountain and almost to the top they put in a big swing. It is scary but so much fun. I thought there was no way the girls would do it but they both tried it and Abigale loved it and did not want to get off. I even tried it! You can see how far you swing out and you get so high above the ground.

We then headed back to the cabin for some birthday cake!

The next day was Jonathan's real birthday and it started with breakfast in bed and getting Abigale off to school. After school the girls had a dentist appointment (I felt bad scheduling it on his birthday but I also wanted him to go with me to help with the kids and he didnt mind) I am so glad he came because Lydia was so scared. I am sure it has to do with the fact that her mouth was still sore but Jonathan talked her into it and she did great. Abigale was such a big girl. While I was trying to talk Lydia into cooperating, I turned around and Abigale was in the back by herself getting x-rays. Good news- No Cavities and Lydia's front tooth looks like it will be okay after the fall! After the dentist we grabbed lunch and Jonathan said he wanted to do something fun as a family for his birthday so we found a cute little pumpkin patch and picked out the perfect pumpkin.

Cute girls in the hay maze.

After the pumpkin patch, Jonathan went golfing with his dad and brother and had a great time. When he came home we had his favorite dinner (chicken wraps with a special sauce) and opened presents. Abigale with the gift she picked out for dad- a little basketball and some silly string. (Which we had fun with that night) We also started another fun tradition called the birthday box. We filled the bottom box with a present, the middle box with some candy and cards and notes from everyone, and the top little box had clues to where all of his other presents were hidden. It was so much fun to watch the girls run around the house with their dad helping him find his presents! I can't wait to do it on their birthdays!

If you cant tell Abigale is about to get sprayed with silly string. So much fun! Happy Birthday Jonathan! We love you so much and hope you had a great birthday because I know I had fun!