Utah May 2012

I am pretty late in posting this seeing as we have been back for a few weeks. What can I say about Utah. It is beautiful, not as crowded as LA, gas was a dollar cheaper than LA, and the air smells nice. (at least by my parents house) It is also a LONG way from my house. The drive wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Ella is an excellent traveler. She loves to look out the window and see what we are passing by. She sleeps and for the most part entertains herself. Ella and I have made this trek at least four times since we moved here. I like to think that I am really getting good at preparing. I put snacks in individual baggies so I can hand them back as she asks for them. At each stop I refill both our water bottles and re organize her stuff. We have a pretty good system. down. I am assuming that will all change as soon as baby brother arrives. :)
Going to Utah is so refreshing for me. This is the view from my parents front door...

Breath taking!

They have all sorts of hikes that start from their neighborhood and go into the hills. I love walking around and hearing birds, kids, and the wind in the trees. When we walk around our "neighborhood" all we hear are cars and sirens. I couldn't get enough of the fresh air smells. Plus it is spring so everything was in bloom!

Ella had a lot of fun helping Grandma and Grandpa in the garden, especially with watering! :)

One of my favorite outings was to Temple Square. It has been a year since Ella last went. I was amazed at how much she could understand about the pioneers and the Temple. We looked at the statue of the pioneers pulling a handcart. I asked her is she would be able to fit everythign in her room in the handcart. She looked at it, thought for a moment and said..."no". I then told her that the pioneers could only take waht fit in the handcart. I told her they didnt have a lot of toys if any and they had to pull the hand cart for a long time. She understood that would be very difficult.

When we got to the Temple she was SO excited. As soon as she saw the temple she started singing "I Love to see the Temple" She wanted to go inside so I explained she had to wait till she was 12 to be able to go in. She kept sasying how beautiful the brides were and how she was also going to get married in the temple. It was a sweet moment for me to see her reverence e and respect for the temple at her young age.

We also went to the church history museum. She remembered that she could "fish" and couldn't wait to do it again!

I love to see my siblings. Elizabeth has an awesome new job so I went to visit her at work. She is so beautiful!

We also were able to see Jacob but for some reason I don't have any pictures (sorry Jacob) It was a fantastic trip. Cant wait to see my Mom and Elizabeth again in a few weeks!