Lyla Rae is Three!

I can't believe my Lou is three! She is getting so big! She loves the book Pinkalicious, so we decided to have a Pinkalicious birthday party! Here she is with her BIG cupcake. She kept telling me she was going to wake up pink the next day, and I would have to take her to the doctor and she wouldn't be able to eat pink bubble gum, pink cupcakes, or pink cotton candy. (Read the book Pinkalicious if that doesn't make any sense to you.)

The pink cupcakes!

Me and Lou before the party

Blowing out the candles

After cake, ice cream, and presents we played Just Dance on the Wii. It was so fun! It is a must have game.

A few of Lyla's favorites

1. Favorite Food-Cheese Tacos and chicken

2. Favorite Toys-dress ups...she loves to be a princess

3. Favorite Game-Cariboo

4. Favorite book-My Best Friend is a Princess and Pinkalicious

5. Favorite Movie-High School Musical 1

6. Favorite thing to do with Dad-Wrestle

7. Favorite to do with Mom-help her make dinner

8. Favorite thing to do with Connor-run and around and be silly

9. Best Friend-Alli

10. Favorite songs-Any song sung in nursery or any song sung by Rachel on Glee.

11. Other Favorites-Going to Nursery, giving hugs, and eating treats.

Our life...

Here are some pictures of what we've been up to....

Chris and Joy turned 30!

Chris and I met some friends in Vegas for a weekend getaway

I turned 31...I love Costco's chocolate cake!

On the way to Idaho we saw this cafe named after Connor...he was so excited to see his name!

We went to Boise to help my grandpa celebrate his 85th birthday. There were 24 of us there. After dinner we all asked my grandpa questions about his life...listening to him share his life experiences was worth the trip! He is a pretty private person and I loved hearing him talk about who he dated, where they hung out, what jobs he did growing up, his time in the military, and describing what is was like to be a dad. Priceless!

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

We spent Christmas in Boise with my grandparents, my parents, and my brother Steve and sister in law Breck. It was good to spend time with everyone. It was very relaxing (except when we were playing Settlers of Catan, blasted 7!). My grandparents really enjoyed Connor and Lyla and the spirit they brought to Christmas. I feel like my kids are the perfect age for Christmas. Excitement radiated from them and everything they did. They were so grateful for everything they opened. They reminded me daily what Christmas is all about.

Grandma and Grandpa Grow

Christmas PJs

The Wilson's on Christmas

Our little Princess.

So Thoughtful!

My Connor is getting more and more thoughtful as he gets older. Everyday he amazes me as he thinks of others and tries to make people happy. We were at a football game and he saw a guy who was sitting by himself. He leaned over to Chris and said, "We should sit by that guy so he isn't alone." Lyla has been sick and the first thing Connor said to me was, "I'm going to pray for her to feel better." Chris left for the Moab guys trip on Thursday and just after he left Connor said to me, "I hope dad has fun." The other night at dinner Connor was saying the prayer and he said, "I'm thankful for the opportunity to come to earth and be with my family." I need to be a lot more like him... ironic that Heavenly Father sends us children so we can learn from them.

One more Connor story. A couple Sundays ago we all went to Sacrament meeting. Connor leaned over to me during the meeting and said, "I don't feel good." He kept saying it so Chris and I decided Chris would take Con and Lyla home and I would get a ride home from chruch. Lyla freaks out because she can't go to nursery and I look at Con and say, "Are you sure you aren't just trying to get out of being at church?" He told me he wasn't. Connor gets home and says to Chris, "Let's play football." Chris says, "I thought you were sick?" To which Connor replies, "I just wanted to come home from church." This leads to a conversation about not lying and what Connor needs to do. I walk in the door and the first thing Con says to me is, "I'm sorry mom, I told you I was sick because I wanted to come home from church." At dinner that night, Connor said the prayer and in his prayer he said, "I'm sorry I didn't stay at church and said I was sick." Chris and I had a good laugh, and it was a good teaching moment...Connor was truly sorry and he is starting to learn about repentance.

Happy Halloween!

Family Pictures

My very talented friend Maegan took some family pictures for us last weekend. I love the way they turned out. Some of them capture Connor and Lyla's personalities so well!

Little Miracles!

I was just looking back on the last six months of our lives and realized we have been part of many tiny miracles...little things that may seem like coincidences to others, but help I know came from a higher power. Chris lost his job 6 months ago. We thought it would be a couple months and he'd be back in business, but it took a little longer than expected. The first miracle was that we were able to return a car we had just bought...hence no car payment. Second, Heavenly Father led me to a job eight months earlier that would pay for our mortgage payment. We were able to pay for everything else with the unemployment money. Third, Chris had an ingrown toenail that just kept getting worse and worse, he tried all the home remedies and still no luck. He called a doctor's office to find out how much it would cost...$170.00. He made the appointment and the day he was going to go his toe seemed to be getting better. He called, canceled the appointment and his toe got better. Finally, the week that our unemployment check stopped coming, Chris got a job with Aramark. Heavenly Father knew what he was doing and knew what we needed to learn. I'm not sure why I doubt that He will take care of us, He always does! Chris started work on Monday and it has been a great week! I'm proud of him and the hard work it was for him to find a job. Unemployment wasn't easy for him, but he handled it well. We went out to dinner with Chris' parents the night we found out he got the job, we were talking about all of the miracles we'd received as a family and Lyla looked at me and said, "Heavenly Father loves us!" That sums it up nicely!