harrisons on holiday: sl,ut 2.0 & girlcation 2013

*warning: picture overload*

my new niece was sealed and blessed the weekend of the 4th in the salt lake area. bree has some  medical issues that flared up again a few days before her sealing but we were all optimistic that things would clear up in time. unfortunately she didn't get better in time for her original date on friday but the following day i was able to see my sister's little girl become a forever part of her family. it was so special to see. she is such a beautiful little girl; she already melts my heart!

he just LOVES his emmy!

sleeping on the ride up for maybe 30 min. my patriotic nails. handing with his cousins

bfast with the fam and flying with dad. using our cool new app for our thermostat at home

provo canyon. ben & nate hard at work on homework

we stayed with my brother in orem. landon adored his two cousins and especially adored the attention he got. the morning of the 4th we drove up provo canyon and went on a nice walk near some creek [vivian something?]. justin met his brofriend for some golf that afternoon and landon and i hung out with his cousins. we particularly loved playing with water on the porch. later we BBQed with nate's neighbors and landon thoroughly enjoyed their playset. after the baby was in bed we watched the cul-de-sac of fire aka my brother's very expensive fireworks display. it was so much fun to see him so excited.

the next day we went to visit thanksgiving point. i have been dreaming about visiting that place for YEARS and let me tell you, major disappointment. i guess i expected too much? we took landon to visit the farm there which makes complete sense. he loves animals and had talked about going all morning. once we got there he was incredibly cranky! granted, he had not been sleeping well in utah but still, come on! we forced him to look at the animals and see everything. it took his second trip around the farm [and a fun horse ride] to actually start to enjoy things. justin and his brofriend went golfing again that afternoon [i really am a great wife] so emily and i went to visit my sister's other child ayden. we had loads of fun but the fun ended too soon due to a thunderstorm [which my husband somehow played through].

finding anna's slurpee flavor. playing on the porch. aunt shannon sucking up to landon

4th of july BBQ and fireworks. landon falling asleep mid-cinnamon roll bite. 

landon hiding from the animals then being forced to face them.

our horse ride and the cool toys

saturday we met my college friends up in taylorsville for a mini-reunion. i just love seeing those girls! we had so much fun laughing and catching up. that night was the sealing. sunday we took a trip up to temple square to see the sights. this was particularly special for me. i know being pregnant makes you hormonal but holy moly. we walked around pointing out pictures of jesus and explaining them to landon in terms he could understand and i kept getting chocked up. i feel so privileged to be apart of his life and help him learn about the gospel. after a non-existent nap we went to devin's ward to be apart of bree's baby blessing. landon finally napped after a long drive home then we spent a great last night with our family.

sharing a popsicle - landon did not enjoy

landon and his cousin ayden [the small blonde one]

 

the kids playing hide and seek - baby and mommy quails. landon and abby playing hide and seek

peek a boo!

monday we drove down to st george. we dined in cedar and tried out a new fancy pizza place [oh so not good] then did some outlet shopping in st george [really? i know i'm spoiled in vegas but it was incredibly pathetic]. justin and landon dropped me off at our hotel and thus started our girls weekend! we started the tradition last summer. this year we stayed two days and saw "mary poppins" and "thoroughly modern millie". i am extremely tied these days and staying up past midnight was rough but so worth it. mary poppins is one of my least favorite disney films and the play was nothing sort of creepy. we had had olive garden for dinner which left me extremely bloated. that plus the heat which made me feet swell to watermelons was not fun.

landon not missing me at all. scoring nice parking at old navy.

oops! photo duplicate

the next day i slept a whole 8 uninterrupted hours [heaven!] then spent the day shopping/movie-ing/pedicuring/resting- it was so fabulous! we dined at red robin this time and somehow i was less bloated/puffy. that plus modern millie being an excellent play made for a great ending! the next morning we got up and enjoyed chocolate chip pancakes and bacon at ihop then hit the road! landon was awake when i got home. i opened the door, he stared at me, then said "shannon!" who was behind me. way to make a gal feel special. i know he missed me though. he was extra cuddly and lovey which was special. it was so hard to leave him for 48 hours - i don't know how i'm going to do it for big bear in two weeks [i think i'll manage]. i had such a fun week and it's been hard to get back into our routine and schedule. but i think there are worse problems in the world....