I'm back.

Guess who's back in Utah?!? that's right, this gal. I came back for a friend's wedding and a family reunion trip to Lake Powell.  Unfortunately my man couldn't come but he was wonderfully supportive about me coming back and enjoying family and friends, and did I mention for TWO weeks.  Yes I have left my dear hubs for 2 weeks, poor guy.  Anyways I have tried to take a handful of photos to document what I have been doing while I have been here so far- Plus I've been really enjoying the little instagram app that has taken the blogosphere by force- I know I know, it's old news for most of you but I have been having a fun time with it. So here's a little iphone/instagram dump for ya..

I arrived on my sister's 16th birthday.. some kids get cars for their birthday but this gal wanted this darling beach cruisin' bike.. you can't tell but it's got these cute little red flower details on the bike

The next day one of my best friends got married... the beautiful Mandi Winterton to the handsome Quinn Beisinger.  You can't tell in the pic but both these lovelies have AMAZING hair-  their kids are going to have rockin' do's.

the happy couple.. I love seeing them right after they come out of the temple.. so blissful!

It was my first time coming back to the SLC temple after Harold and I got married. It was great to be at my friend's wedding and remember my special day as well.  Such wonderful feelings here.

Got to be reunited with some friends at the wedding festivities and had such a good time being with them.  Harold and I don't exactly have a lot of friends in Florida yet (unless you count the missionaries that live in the same apartment complex as us) so I was especially ecstatic to hang with my pals. 

I also got to meet this handsome little fella for the first time, little Ezra Paul Cook (My newest newphew- more on him later..)

..and of course hanging out with the other little guys.  My nephew Beckham has the chubbiest thighs I've ever seen. He's absolutely adorable and completely squeezable.

I took these cute boys (brothers to the above chubby baby) and the little princess below to the new Winnie the Pooh movie. Precious movie- (although at times the little ones thought it was funner to run up and down the aisles of the movie theater..)

Got to enjoy a nice outdoor sunday dinner with my big family.  Harold and I talk about how it is one of the things we miss most about being away from Utah. 

Also got to meet up with some other friends who are recent, fellow newlyweds. And not to mention indulge in some yummy yogurtland.. havent been to/found any good frozen yogurt shops in P-Cola yet so this was a nice treat.

..And this random picture shows our preparation for Lake Powell this Saturday.  Big family reunion = a lot of food. and soda. 

That's about sums up what I have been up to so far.. wedding festivities, friends, babies and family- couldn't ask for a better combo.  Looking forward to Powell this weekend and then back home to my man that I've missed.

"How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard."

-AA Milne

-[the official] Mrs. Abell (got my license and social security card changes this week- took about a whopping 30 minutes or so to do both- not sure what the fuss is all about..)

Wedding Party in Louisiana

  I know I am late on all these pics but better late than never.. right?  After our honeymoon we had wedding party in Louisiana that my wonderful new in-laws threw at their house. It was such a good time and I was so happy to be able to wear my wedding dress again!  Pics are complimentary of my sisters- Megan and my new one Mary Martha..

happy to be wearing my dress again

I just love the back.

My  new darling nephews- have you ever seen cuter lil boy outfits?! yes their initials are monogrammed on front

Yes, this cake is as good as it looks

Us and part of my family

My wonderful new family

They love uncle Harold

Such a wonderful party.

After the party we left the next day for New Orleans with my family. They had never been but I was more than happy to go back- especially for those beignets..

We started with a really nice dinner.. If you don't know already the food in New Orleans is real good. Famous for its food in fact

Walking around the French Quarter at night

Harold's signature "nantucket red" pants. I think I fell in love with him in these pants..

next day we went to an amazing brunch place, Brennans

Next we went on the carriage ride around the french quarter.. I love architecture and it is indeed french looking 

and of course it wouldn't be a trip without stopping at cafe du monde for some of their deliciosu beignets. They are covered with a lot of powder and it gest everywhere..

One of my favorite things to do here is take the trolley down St. Charles street and see all the amazing houses

a cute little pink number

and how about the violet one.. 

When I was a kid I had always wished my house had 3 floors for some reason.. 

Not only are the houses amazing but so are the big trees..

That's the great Mississippi river behind us- super full, it's not normally that high up to the ground

Between the wedding party in Monroe to the after party in New Orleans, it was another great trip down south.  And speaking of the south, we're doing good down here in Pensacola- an update on our life here soon!

my new motto

Anyone who knows me well knows I LOVE my birthday. Which is why this sign is all too perfect for me because if I lived true to this sign, every day would be the best day ever. Because your birthday is the best day ever.  What a wonderful thought. 

bora bora

So remember that scene in parent trap (the one with lindsay lohan when she was still sweet and innocent) where she tells Jesse that she was on the phone with her friend who was vacationing with her family in bora bora? Maybe not. Well I remember as a kid watching that and thinking, "is bora bora a real place and if so, where is it?" and for whatever reason I have always remembered that scene/thought. So when Harold surprised me for our honeymoon on a trip to Bora Bora, I was ecstatic and past thoughts of "I wonder where that is" came to mind.  Well for those wondering, Bora Bora is part of the French Polynesian islands and right next to Tahiti. And lemme tell ya, the place is a dream.  I've been to many beach places but none come close to this paradise of a place.  I'd like to say I'll let the pictures do the talking but even then they dont do it justice. It was a week of pure bliss and I couldn't have asked for a better honeymoon.

Now onto the part you've been waiting for.. the pictures:

Before heading to Bora Bora we spent a couple nights in Park City after our wedding.  It was a great time but on the day we were leaving it started to SNOW.  We were glad we were heading to warmer climates!

At the airport ready to go

they greeted us with real flower leis at the airport in bora bora 

Our first view of the place

We had to ride a boat to get to our resort

After being on 3 different planes and a boat ride we have finally arrived to paradise. worth every leg of travel. Those are the cabanas we stayed at in the background

We stayed in these little cabanas over the water and that mountain was our view.  Me in front of our Cabana. 

harold on the catwalk

The cabanas are there in the distance over the water and there is a big walkway that connects it to land where the resort is.  Here there is a nice beach, pool, spa, 2 restaurants, and a bunch of other great amenities

We went to this popular restaurant that a bunch of famous people have eaten at.. Not expensive just a fun place where the entire floor is sand and they have a bunch of cubbies at the entrance where you put your shoes.

  Harold makes a friend

Every other night they created a "beach lounge" and set up comfy beach furniture and played live music.  The guy was great and played american cover songs. right behind us is one of the restaurants so you could eat and listen too.

At the other restaurant they had polynesia dance show one night.  They called some people from the crowd and I happened to be one of the "lucky" ones that got called to go up there and dance.  I tried to copy his moves but this tall, lanky body doesnt flow as easy as his...

Taking the classic tourist pic with the dancers

we spent a lot of time by the pool

and lots of time reading.. I read 3 books while on our honeymoon

Harold was actually really good at this.. did jsut as good if not better than the guy teaching him

a peek in our room.. our bed faced this giant window that looked out into the water- I took a diagonal view so you could sort of see our back deck connected to our place

In the other room it had this coffee table that was a big see-through box that you could see down to the water.  At night you could turn on lights to see if you could see any fish.  We saw a few but not a lot

Our cabanas had its own little private dock attached where we could jump off and swim around as well as lounge chairs to lay out

this handsome fella looooves being in the water.  It's nice and warm just like the Louisiana bayous he's used to.

Paradise.

Here's a (big) handful of pics from our honeymoon.  I felt so lucky and appreciative to go to such an amazing place.  It was so romantic and relaxing, (not to mention I couldn't ask for better company.) Just looking at these pics makes me want to go back.. maybe a 10 year anniversary?! (hint hint dearest husband..)


"If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day so i never have to live without you." -AA Milne