Nicknames

We have multiple nicknames for Naomi, but I thought you might get a chuckle out of two of them.

1. Pot Belly Merrell: she's got the funniest pot belly! It was absolutely hilarious to watch her try to open the oven door on the kitchen she got for her birthday (see picture). She got it open partway, but couldn't get it down past her pot belly!

2. Lil' Sticky Fingers: when we flew to Utah for Thanksgiving, Naomi almost pilfered a hat from someone on the plane. And at a recent dinner at a friend's house, she stashed one of Wade's toys in her diaper bag (which I didn't discover until sorting through her bag two days later). Or at least I assume that's where it came from...Gotta watch out for that one!

BYU Basketball vs. Air Force!

When we were in Utah at the end of January, we went to the BYU basketball
game vs. Air Force. We had a great time! Naomi hadn't been surrounded by 
that many people before, so we wondered how she would do. She whimpered 
when the first roar went up, but calmed down after that and was fascinated by
the basketball players, the GameTron, the crowds, the guy a few rows back who
kept yelling idiotic "advice" for the team, and everything else that went on!

And yes, her BYU hair ribbon is upside down. I don't think she noticed.

Utah in January

 
In the end of January, we went for a little drive and ended up in Utah! Kenny
(Matt's brother) and Echo blessed their little boy Nolan, and we were excited
to be there for it. We really had a great time, which was evidenced more than
anything else by us not wanting to leave when the time came. (Come on, admit
it; there are some vacations where you have a great time but are completely 
ready to go home when it's over!!)

Highlights:
  - Nolan's blessing and lunch afterwards
  - CAFE RIO!! (We have yet to find anything comparable in Tucson)
  - Jaunt up to Bridal Veil Falls (lots of snow and ice up there)
  - BYU basketball game vs. Air Force
  - Probably some other things I am forgetting
  - Watching Naomi and Nolan interact
  - And just seeing lots of family!

The pictures above are:
Brittany and Naomi
Matt and Nolan
Naomi reaching to touch fingers with Grandma Merrell

One more picture for good measure

I apologize for not putting up pictures for so long...we finally
upgraded our internet connection, and I completely 
blame the S...L.....O.......W connection we used to have for the
lack of info posted. Anyway, we're up and running again!
I hope you enjoy the pictures.

For good measure, here's another picture of Naomi. It was 
a bit chilly in the house one morning, so Naomi wore 
my socks for a bit, although they look like thigh-high boots 
on her! 

Snow in Tucson?

Yep, it has been confirmed: Tucson received some snow in January! 
Matt dashed outside to take a picture, and I thought you might enjoy
the contrast between the first picture (snow 
in Tucson) and the second picture (snow in Utah).

These pictures tell you why Val loves Utah and why Matt loves Arizona!

At the park

Naomi is a huge fan of the park and enjoys eating grass and dirt. In fact she enjoys it so much that I wonder if I am missing out! We've discovered she loves swinging - it makes her giggle! 

Rocky Point

We were invited to spend a few days in Rocky Point, Mexico 
with some friends, and 
we had a great time there! Naomi hadn't spent much time around other kids, and there was a 5 month old and a 1 year old in the house with us. Pictures attached are of the group at dinner, Matthew and Naomi on the beach, and the two of them feeding the birds. Naomi LOVES
watching birds, so she enjoyed the "bird show" each time it happened.

Grandma and Grandpa Jones

Grandma and Grandpa Jones came to Tucson for a week around New Year's, 
and we had a great time with them! We played cards, visited the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum, 
got some work projects done, etc. We loved having them here and can't wait for them to come again! 
The picture above is us outside the Desert Museum.

1st Birthday!!

Naomi has turned one year old! Her birthday was on Saturday, Feb. 17, but
we had the party on Monday, Feb. 19th. What a big girl she is!! 

It took some convincing to get Naomi to leave her hat on, and in the end that didn't work anyway. As you can see in the group picture, she was not interested in picture-taking; she just wanted that hat off!

She made a lovely mess with the cake and had lots of fun!

Christmas Fun