Christmas Vacation 2011

Of course, another highlight of our trip to Utah was seeing our niece.  It was so much fun to see her and Lennon together.  They love each other!  Lennon just watches Morgan's every move.  Morgan makes sure that Lennon is taken care of at all times.  They are best friends already.

My mom and sister were so nice and threw a little get together for our extended family to meet Lennon.  

We were also lucky enough to have Tannon's aunt do the same thing on their side of the family.  

We did a lot of eating, playing, talking, and eating.  We got pedicures, saw some friends, watched movies, and relaxed.  

Christmas Eve we went to dinner with Tannon's family and my family.  It was fun to get everyone together.  

That night, we stayed up late baking, wrapping presents, and playing Guitar Hero.  We slept at Missy's house and woke up and opened presents.  It was so fun to watch Morgan get so excited about hers.  Kids make holiday's fun.  In the afternoon, we went to my Grandma's house for dinner for the entire extended family.  Then, it was off to Tannon's parents where we were able to spend time with his whole family and open presents.

We couldn't have asked for a better Christmas.

utah - the canyons

I guess it's time to update this old thing.


Tannon, Lennon, and I just got back from an amazing time in utah with family.  It was crazy, went by way too fast, and we had a wonderful time being with our families and seeing some friends.  


First stop off the plane?  Leatherby's, of course.  Both of our families met up there while we had some delicious ice cream.  Then it was time for us to head up to Park City with Tannon's family.  Tannon's 2 brothers work at The Canyon's resort, so they hooked us up big time.  We stayed two nights in a really fancy hotel with a kitchen, a loft, and I think either 3 or 4 rooms?  I don't know, I never even made it upstairs.


Caitlin was the photographer for the weekend, and I'm glad because I was awful at getting any pictures. {Caitlin, I hope it's okay that I'm stealing these}.


I had forgotten how great it feels to feel the snow beneath my board, and the wind in my face.  It was the perfect day.


Also, The Canyons just opened up a zipline tour, which was awesome.  The longest zip was 2500 feet and is about 260 feet above the ground over a canyon.  I loved it.

Our view from our room.

 Brinton & Caitlin

What a doofus.

Getting ready for the zipline.

Brinton & Mowgli are the absolute best for planning one of the best weekends ever.

christmas tree lights

i wonder how many more christmases he'll be more interested in what's on the tree than what's under it.

thanksgiving 2011

this year was our third annual meads/vogel/newland thanksgiving.  i love having "family" within driving distance so that we can enjoy this tradition while we are all living in the east.

it was our turn to host this year.  the menu:

deep fried turkey
stuffing
salad with this dressing
caramelized green beans
dinner rolls
sweet potato casserole
mashed potatoes
gravy
cranberry sauce
nutella pie
apple pie

sunday best

birthday girl

today is this lady's birthday.  lennon calls her nana.  i call her mom.

my mom is the best.  she has the biggest heart and has a lot to give.  i hope to care for my kids as much as she did hers.

we are so lucky to have her.

halloween

i don't know what it is, but this halloween was one of my favorites.  maybe it's because we have a kid.  maybe it's because i'm not working.  either way, it was awesome.

the festivities started on friday with a parade at tannon's school.  it was so much fun!  i love all of the fellow dental students and their wives/families.

we don't really know what lennon's costume is supposed to be.  i found it at a consignment sale for a few bucks.  we went with stink bug.  whatever it is, he sure looked cute in it.

that night we went to our ward trunk-or-treat at our church, where there was a chili cook-off.  i made this.

there were some really awesome costumes there, but the following two were my absolute favorites:

captain jack sparrow and a gorgeous asian.  isn't she the prettiest thing you've ever seen?  if you know her dad, this costume is much funnier.

remember how i thought lennon was a stink bug?  that was until we ran into mario and princess peach.  he is clearly a yoshi egg.

halloween night, we had chili, cornbread, and home-made root beer.  we chased it all down with pumpkin donuts.

caramel apples

autumn would be one big waste without caramel apples.  we had some friends over and made some, which turned out delicious.  i used this recipe, which is actually for caramel syrup, but makes excellent caramel apples.

lennon loves his papa

gettysburg

while my dad & chris were in town, we took a quick trip to gettysburg.  it was a gorgeous little town and it was really neat to learn about all of the history that took place there.  sad, sad stuff.

utah utes

my dad and brother-in-law {chris} came out to:

a} meet lennon
b} go to the utah vs. pitt game

we were a little nervous to be sitting in the middle of the Pitt student section {think MUSS} in our crimson red, but luckily we didn't get boo'd right out of there.

nerd newlands

tannon's brothers and their wife/girlfriend came out to meet lennon. he is so lucky that he has so many aunts and uncles that love him! they are all so cute with him and it was so much fun to have them all here! {lennon is the first baby on tannon's side}.

i am incredibly blessed with the family i married in to. tannon and his brothers have always been very close and caitlin has become one of my best friends.

tannon's sister was going to come out with them, but needed to stay home last minute. we missed her.

we were able to squeeze in some fun things in the week that they were here. we ate way too much. would you have guessed? me neither.

we ate at: pamela's, church brew works, joe mama's, lobello's, oakmont bakery, and got some yummy food/treats at the strip district.

caitlin, candice, and i love to bake, so we were able to squeeze some of that in, as well.

we made pumpkin monkey bread and mini's chocoholic cupcakes.

we rode bikes along the monongahela river, drove to ohiopyle to visit falling water, went boating/wakeboarding, and changed a lot of diapers.

 uncle B

 aunt caitlin

 candice & mowgli.  we hope candice is part of our family soon :)

 that's mowgli.... not tannon

uncle mowgli

2 months

i seriously kiss these cheeks all day long. lennon is still rocking his mullet that his dad won't let me touch. he is a lot more interactive and so much fun. he's starting to like to watch t.v. {oh dear}. he's weighing in a little over 12 pounds and is 24 inches long. he is sleeping better at night and is getting more smiley. our favorite part of our day is when we snuggle up on the couch and take a nap together in the afternoon. love this little man!

i miss stars...

and the desert

Landscapes: Volume Two from Dustin Farrell on Vimeo.

besties

some people have wondered how my dog has taken to lennon.  here is the answer.  i love my boys.

arts festival

this weekend we went to the arts festival at mellon park.  it felt like our first official family outing - i think because we brought the stroller for the first time.  for some reason, that made it official.

there are some seriously talented people out there.  they had everything from jewelry to paintings to woodwork.  it made me wish that i had an ounce of artistry in me.

the cooler temperatures, the sun, the smell of fried food, the entertainer singing james taylor .... it got me really excited for fall.

this picture was taken immediately after tannon glanced around to make sure none of his friends were there to witness him getting his picture taken by his embarrassing wife.

random thoughts

if i don't fold my laundry, right then and there as it comes out of the dryer, it will most likely never get folded.

* * * * *

i've recently become obsessed with the kardashians.  it's amazing that i can find a family that entertaining.

* * * * *

i didn't realize how weird it was that i went for a bike ride when lennon was a week and a half.  apparently that's not normal.

* * * * *

i love having things to look forward to.  next up: all of our siblings on tannon's side come to visit!  it's a bonus that they'll be here during our favorite time of the year.  i hope they're ready for fall festivals, pumpkin cookies, & cooler temperatures.

* * * * *

it's sunday evening and i'm not dreading the week.  staying at home rocks.

climb on

we were actually able to spend a little time outside during the labor day weekend.  we went rock climbing at mcconnell's mill while tannon's parents were in town.  even though the rock was pretty wet - and i didn't make it up very far - we still had a great time romping around in the forest.

.

he's gonna be famous

i have never seen tannon so excited as when he got picked to be an extra in the upcoming batman film.  the best part?  he even got paid for it.

when you see the movie, look for a guy at a sporting event, buying beer at a concession stand.

we actually don't know if he will even make it into the movie, but here's to hoping!

1 month

this cute little guy is a month old already.  my oh my.  the best part about him turning 1 month is that he's slept anywhere from 5-7 hour stretches the past 4 nights.  that makes a mama happy.