Telluride Re-Cap

Last week it was time to pack up the car with food, snacks, crackers, toys, more snacks, and an audio book and head up to Telluride, CO for a friend's wedding!

It was quite the trip, so here are my favorite photographed moments in an authentically <<Quick>> Seven Quick Takes.

1.
On our way there, I watched the map attentively (also being the navigator and all) and told Joel I was very excited to stop at the 4 Corners and take an epic family photo!!!!!!!

With a sleeping Mia at this very juncture BOTH TIMES through, this is apparently as close to a family photo at the 4 Corners as I am going to get. 

2. 

I read somewhere that one of the best ways to keep little toddlers occupied in a hotel room is to unplug the phone and let them play with it.   

I can strongly attest to this brilliant idea.

3.

On Friday we had all day to hang out before the wedding that evening.  We first went to breakfast in downtown Telluride, and took the gondola to get there!

Who isn't excited for cool weather clothes!!!!???

And who doesn't think this is the scariest decent down a mountain, dangling on a cable, of all time?

4.

While we sat in some grass to eat our breakfast sandwiches, I noticed Mia walking away quite cheerfully from her baby.

And for some reason the carefree expression on her face just cracks me up! 

Me: "Mia, where is your baaabbyy????"

Mia: ".....dumdy-dumdy-dum....."

5.

That afternoon after naptime, Joel took Mia to a little lake by our hotel.  She loved the ducks!

 

...In sort of a creepy way.

6.

Then she tried out her new "peek-a-boo" pose before heading back...

7.

That night, the wedding was beautiful!!  It was near the top of a mountain, and if I hadn't been so distracted by the fact that Mia dropped my phone down the cracks of the huge deck we were on, I would've taken more scenic shots.  

^^My favorite shot of the night. You can tell she is about to be up to no good!

The trip was an awesome break from the still-100-degree heat that is September in Arizona.  But October is around the corner, and hoodies and layers and trips to the park are in our future.  I can't wait!!

PS.

I just released my 4th podcast Episode of This Inspired Life!  I'm talking with Haley from Carrots for Michaelmas about Women and the Church - it was an awesome chat!  You won't want to miss it ;)

Vacation Recap in 7 Quick Takes

Hey y'all!  If you can't tell, I'm back from a 10-day trip to Georgia. I take zero responsibility for any detectable southern accent from here on out.

I'm linking up with Jen over at Conversion Diary for the vacation recap.  I know how much the internet loves those.  Here are some of my favorite parts of the trip:

1.

Cousin Time!!

Sorry about the sun girls

2.

Reading! I read 2 books on vacation (a hUUGE accomplishment for me) -



and



I loved Unplanned - Abby is so courageous and inspiring and I am so glad I finally read this!  I also liked The Lovely Bones, though I was expecting something a little different...it was much more family drama than thriller, which for some reason I expected.  But good nonetheless.


3.

Beach time on Tybee Island.  Mia loved the water and waves, and would have crawled out to sea if we didn't constantly stop her.  She didn't do too bad in the sand either and loved to dig.

 4.

Mia learning to walk!  On July 4th she decided to take more than her usual 1 and a half steps.  Now she won't stop!

5.

An afternoon trip to Savannah with my guy.

6.

Swinging on the porch swing watching everyone on the island (it seemed) walk to and from the beach is one of my absolute favorite things to do.  Here's the decidedly annual porch swing selfie:

And last year's - just for fun!

What a difference a year makes!

7.

And finally, family pics taken by Joel's sister Shelby!!  They are still being edited but here's a sneak peak:

We loved spending some awesome quality time with family and miss them already!

Fabric Travel High Chair

For the past 3 weeks I have been planning on going to a free sewing class at Joann's (2 free classes came with purchasing a sewing machine there).  I had Joel's schedule all synced up to be home with Mia; I had the materials I needed all cut out and ironed; I had my bobbins locked and loaded; I had everything ready until 5 minutes before I was about to leave when I realized I never called to put my name down for the class.  I quickly called the store to see if there was still room in the class.....and there wasn't.

Needless to say I was in the mood to sew.  SO,  I decided to take my novice skillz and dive into something I needed (wanted) for our upcoming trip to Georgia: a fabric travel high chair.  And if you don't look too closely at the stitches, I think I did alright!  It will work perfectly for layovers in airports, visits to relatives, and will pack like a CHAMP.

First of all, I got the awesome tutorial here.  I altered it a bit by adding longer tie straps because I didn't feel like going with the velcro. Maybe I would change my mind if I did it all over again, but it still works great and I think it's even a tiny bit more toddler-proof with the tie in the back.

For the material, I bought 12'' of quilting fabric for $3.60 after a 50% off coupon at Joann's.  I cut the inside and longer ties' material from a sheet set I bought at Goodwill for $5.00, which turned out to be about $.25 worth of that.  There's so much extra I could go The Sound of Music on that ish and make Mia some play clothes.

I followed the tutorial step by step {plus added the longer straps}, and voila!

If anyone has any great toddler travel tips, leave a comment!  And have a great week! :)

{UPDATE}
After putting together the travel chair I realized it irritates one of my pet peeves: carriers / wraps / baby gear that has straps and pullies and arms and legs flying everywhere with no good compact way to store them or throw them in your bag.  Does this make sense? 

Basically, I end up throwing this into my bag:

Which I hate.

So I decided to add a cute little toggle button and leather loop to the seat so I can wrap it up nice and secure.

Um..next time I will work on the tiny detail they call "centering." But nonetheless -- Pet Peeve Solved!

Now go check out the other great posts at the Inspire Me Please linkup at House of Rose!