Enjoying the Journey

Ty's first hair cut

2010-11-15T23:24:00.001-08:00

It was time for Ty to get his hair cut! I watched as all his little fuzz fell into the sink as Lance gave him a buzz. He wasn't quite sure what to think about it all, but he was pretty good!

"Look, there's my hair mom!"

Finished product:
A big boy now, all grown up!

Emma's Birthday!

2010-11-15T22:48:00.000-08:00

My Little Emma is now four years old!

She wanted to have a Masquerade Ball like
Barbie and the Three Musketeers.
It turned out really fun!

The party girls in our masks

Emma couldn't wait for the cake, it was her favorite part of the party!

So, of course she wanted to help cut the cake!

Balloons for my birthday girl!

The birthday girl on her present from Grandma Beers. Emma loves horses and named her Rose. It was a fun day and the theme was perfect, being a week before Halloween.

I love my Emma Beth! She is my little spunky gal and keeps us all on our toes. She is full of life and never-ending energy! She's got the most contagious smile and sparkling eyes and also the loudest voice! She's a fireball, but also my most affectionate and loving child. She has such a sweet little spirit and tender heart. She loves to snuggle so much and no one can resist her big hugs and smoochy kisses.
I love you Emma ~ "you and me."

Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-24T22:40:00.000-07:00

We just went on Emma's first field trip to the pumpkin patch on Friday! It was a perfect day to get lost in the corn maze and play on the playground!

Pumpkin Land with my little pumpkins!

Pumpkin head Emma

Ty and Emma had so much fun getting lost in the corn maze, on the other hand I was getting worried that we would never find our way out. It seemed like we were in there forever, just as I was starting to panic we found someone that helped us out.

Emma in the cornstalks

Ty exploring

He loved to just run up and down the rows

Where are we mom?

good question!

Emma

Fun stuff at pumpkin land- it was decorated really cute

The weather was so nice, it really was a perfect day for the pumpkin patch! Afterward, we went to the mall and I let Emma pick out one thing from the Disney store for her birthday, happy day!

Emma Preschool

2010-10-24T21:37:00.001-07:00

Emma is loving preschool and is doing great. The night before her first day Abby was prepping her, telling her all about it and not to worry and how preschool is so fun. It was really cute to hear them talking together about school.

Emma's first day of preschool

Kissy face pose, oh yeah!

so excited!

After I picked her up from preschool, she loved it!
I love my Emma girl! she's so fun!

Kindergarten

2010-09-02T00:07:00.000-07:00

So, I just took Abby to kindergarten. This is the first day. I feel mixed emotions: is she really old enough! I totally remember my first day of kindergarten, it really can't be that long ago... On the other hand, she is smart and I think she is really ready for kindergarten, she's been looking forward to it all summer. I knew it was coming, it's just crazy that I have a kindergartner :) But Abby has always seemed ready for the world. She was overdue 10 days and since the day she was born I never really thought of her as a baby, nor a toddler or preschooler. Just Abby. But now my little Abby is a big kindergartner. This means school everyday, not just three times a week like preschool, but everyday. It is not just the first day of kindergarten, it is the first day of never-ending carpools, homework, projects, and set schedules. No more lounging around in our pj's :) It means our life is just a little more busy. Emma will be starting preschool next week, luckily they will be in school at the same time - afternoons! I'm just not a morning person and if we can have just one more year of sleeping in, then we'll take it! So, I didn't think I would cry, but as I drove away from the school, I thought of my little Abby all grown up and yes, I did cry - just a little.

She did great and loved every minute of it!

Trip to Austria and Prague

2010-09-01T23:06:00.000-07:00

So, I wasn't going to post this many picture, but we took so many, it was hard to just pick a few. Vienna was a cool city, Melk with it's Abby was really neat, the Danube river cruise had the most beautiful views, but I really loved Prague. Plus, we were there over our anniversary! It was a really fun trip and I am so grateful for the opportunity to go. It was a magical experience with amazing architecture on every corner, new foods, cathedrals, castles, bridges, palaces and cobblestone streets. But what I loved best was just being in another world with Lance.

Charles Bridge in Prague

Lance is a great travel guide!

Shronbun Palace in Vienna

The Belvadere in Vienna

Church in Prague

Linz

Fortress in Salzburg

Mathausen Concentration Camp

our Anniversary dinner

The Abby in Melk

Danube river cruise view

What a wonderful trip, thanks to Lance and his hard work! We also wouldn't have been able to go if we didn't have help with the munchkins. They were in good hands. Amberly, mom, dad, Tasha, Anna, Grandma Lybbert, everyone was so good with them. I am grateful for family that took care of them while we were gone. We are so lucky and blessed! We have the best family!

Catching up

2010-09-01T10:06:00.000-07:00

My little guy!

Ty Stephen

I need to do a little catching up, since the last post was over a year ago! Ty is now 13 months and has been walking for a few months now, he's actually running every chance he gets. He is so cute! I am so in love with my little boy.

He has been the sweetest baby. Even though he was sick a lot, he was still fairly pleasant. Last October we all got the swine flu :( The girls didn't even go trick or treating cause we were all so sick. Ty got it too and I think it weakened his immune system. He had six ear infections and finally got tubes, he had a couple of yucky viruses, a sinus infections, thrush and croup about five different times. Finally, after several steroid shots and medications, we got a chest x-ray (not fun) in July and the x-ray was clear, so they put him on a nebulizer which he used for a couple of weeks. He seems to be doing great now and is such a joy to us, as always. We celebrated his 1st birthday in July!

My girls are such good friends, it fun to watch them play together. It seems like this past year they have both really grown up, especially over the summer months!

Emma will be four in October. Last year she had the funnest birthday party ever, it was a pony party with real ponies, all the kids loved it! She is getting ready for preschool and loves gymnastics.

We had a fun Christmas and New Years was spent with our girls. Our biggest thing for 2010 was Lance moving his office from Orem to Spanish Fork. It has been so nice having him so close, plus not to worry about commuting, traffic and construction.

Abby turned five in January and wanted to have a "work out" themed party, it turned out to be really fun!

For Valentines Day, I gave Lance a quilt that I had been working on made of all his old t-shirts. It turned out really cute!

In April we took our family on a cruise to Mexico, we went to Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Cabo San Lucas. On the last day of our trip we surprised the girls and took them to Disneyland!

In May, Emma had her tonsils out (ouch!!!) but she was so very brave! We bought lots of ice-cream and popsicle, none of which she really wanted after the surgery :( She was a tough cookie and got through those rough few weeks though.

In June, Lance and I went to San Francisco for business, Ty came too and is such a good little traveler.

The girls have gone to the farm a lot with Lance and love riding the horses.

Abby had her year end dance recital in June. We also had swim lessons the end of this month. The girls loved it, cause aunt Tasha comes to help. Ty did pretty good too!

July was one of our busiest months, We had our exchange student Ainhoa, from Spain, stay with us, we had lots of family reunions, and Ty's birthday. We also went to Europe for eleven days! It was wonderful. We went to Vienna, Salzburg, Melk, Linz, we had a dinner cruise on the Danube River. We visited a concentration camp on our last day in Austria then the next day caught the train to Prague and spent three days there. It was really magical.

The rest of August I wanted to spend with my munchkins before school started so we had picnics at the park, went swimming, went to ballgames, library, had backyard BBQ's and just played. The girls love to sing and dance to "Taylor Swift," they practically know all the words to her songs, it's cute. The girls also love being read to, especially by daddy :)

Ty Stephen Wilson

2009-08-07T11:57:00.000-07:00

Baby Ty was born on July 22nd, 2009. He was a scheduled C-section and good thing because he was breech, the cord was around his neck and he was 8lbs, 12oz and 20 1/2inches long. It was a lot of work getting him out of that little incision. This C-section was harder than the last. But he is here, healthy and perfect and I'm recovering, getting better each day. It's easier to walk now and even though I'm still a little sore... it's all worth it! Ty is such a good baby, he is so sweet and hardly ever cries. We are so blessed to have him apart of our family! Ty Stephen Wilson

Ready to pop!
At the hospital Wednesday morning before the surgery,
we would meet Ty in about a hour from now.

(before) (after)

Abby and Emma absolutely adore him, they are so cute and gentle with him! It's sweet to watch Abby and Emma absolutely adore him! It's so cute sto see them hold him and fuss over him. They love him so much and have waited so long to have him here.

They are wonderful big sisters!

Can you tell how excited they are to take him home?

Having a new baby is so fun but soooo much work, you forget how much they want to eat, how sore it is to nurse, how many times you have to change thier diapers, wake up in the night, and really devote everything to them because they are so helpless and depend on you so much. BUT it is so worth it! The love for my little ones balances out all the chaos. AND I'm so grateful for all the help we've had, the dinners from friends, family and neighbors, and the help with the girls. We've been so blessed to have such wonderful family and friends!

Happy Day!

Lance and Ty

Our healthy baby BOY!

2009-07-16T11:28:00.000-07:00

Long time, no blog... I guess I just fell off the face of blogging, but thought it was finally time to update since I haven't added a post for almost a year! Plus, we are expecting a new little one in about a week! It's been a long pregnancy but he's almost here. Yes, I said, "he!" We are having a BOY! It will be a change, that's for sure but we are so excited and I just can't wait to see his cute little face. I've been busy nesting this last month, which drives Lance crazy, but I think we are ready for baby. Well, as ready as you could be for the THIRD! I get a little nervous thinking about how I am going to handle three kids, they say it's the most challenging but hopefully the girls will be helpful :)

I don't think my belly can stretch anymore. Yesterday I was out and about and I think I got the "basketball" comment a few times, someone asked if I was having twins (yikes) and finally a guy walked up to me at Wal-Mart and said, "they might not let you smuggle that watermelon out of the store!" HA,HA... very funny. The best is when total stranger's hands are suddenly on your tummy, it's like a giant free for all magnet or something. When I was prego with Abby it was really wierd, you think I'd be used to it by now but it's still wierd.

So the girls are growing up soooo fast. They are getting really big, and with more attitude. They are still super cute and sweet but sometimes I wonder if Abby is four or fourteen! Abby and Emma are both so excited to have a little brother, they can't wait. They've asked the entire pregnancy, "when is he coming!" I kept telling them after swim lessons are over. Well, I made it through swim, camping, softball, family reunions, and Lance on the trek. Now it's time! His due date is July 23rd and we have the C-section scheduled for the 22nd. But he is wanting to bust out, he won't stop kicking, punching, moving all over the place. Whatever he's doing it's making me a little queezy. It will be nice to have him out. So wish me luck! I hope that all goes well and the C-section will go just as smoothly as Emma's did. As long as it's not a repeat of Abby's emergency C-section it will be fine.

Well, to accomadate out growing family, Lance got me a Honda Odyssey. I love it! I can't believe I was able to live without it. We found a used one in great condition and I feel really spoiled. Thanks, babe! Lance has put up with my obsessive behavior with nesting. I am a Nester, big time. I think every pregnant woman is but I take it to the extreme. I dream about it, write up plans, print them neatly, make lists, it is all I can think about. Once I have my plan in place... nothing will stop me from making the room how I invision it. I then do the leg work, buy the necessary items, or better yet get creative and do the projects myself, unless it's painting then I hire my sisters. But the nursery is done! . And I have to brag, it is soooo cute. All the hard work paid off! We did a "sports" theme and of course incorporated BYU. Now we are down to scrubbing, sanitizing and cleaning every corner of the house. It's like I can't have peace until everything is done on my list. We are almost there. My bag is packed, freezer is stocked, toenails painted, baby clothes washed & hung and diapers stacked.

Well, I thought about going through the year and catching up, but it's just too much to think about right now, so I'll just put up some pics and you'll get the "picture."

Fall 2008 - after Abby got home from her first day of preschool, Emma cried almost the entire time she was gone. She missed her so much!

Lake Powell - September 2008
Fun on the tube!

Grandpa Tanner's funeral

Abby's first day of pre-school - fall 2008Halloween - 2008... We were all "Tinkerbell" :)

Going to the pumpkin patch - Fall 2008

fall day at Grandma Lybberts house

Emma's 2nd b-day party - October 2008. It was a Dora theme and she still talks about today.

Abby's 4th B-day party - January 2009. A unicorn theme.

Building a snow-woman

Christmas dresses from Grandma Beers

Easter Sunday 2009

Hawaii - April 2009

We brought these back from Hawaii for the girls

Mother's Day 2009

Family reunion

Swimming lessons

The next time I blog we'll have our little one, and hopefully it will be before he's a year old :)

Mediterranean Cruise

2008-08-13T23:04:00.000-07:00

Our cruise was so fun! This was our very first cruise and it was wonderful. Lance worked really hard and earned the State Farm trip, they have one every year but this one was the best! We flew into Rome and were transported to the port Civitavecchia from there we headed to Sicily, then Malta, Croatia, Naples and then Livorno. We had one whole day at sea but the rest of the time we packed in everything we could to take advantage of seeing three different countries in Europe.

On our way to SicilySicily

Leaving Sicily with a beautiful sunset
So romantic!

Thanks for earning the trip LanceWe got to dress up evey night for dinnerI loved it, Lance just wanted to stay in his shorts and sandles :) But how often do we get have a fancy dinner- and free!
Naples The port in Naples was really busy
lots of buildings
This was the day at Sea
The Strait of Messina
The sunsets were so beautiful!
It was like we were in another world!Our delicious dinners
Livorno
On the bus ride from Tuscany

It was hard to leave every little city we visited but the cruise was so relaxing, we had a great time.
Our last night on the cruise ship After dinner we went to the game room, played some air hockey (I won:) and found one of my dad's machines!
our little cabinheaded back to the airport
Goodbye Italy!

Sicily

2008-08-13T12:23:00.000-07:00

Taoramina, Sicily was just how I imagined Italy - little streets, the shops, the outdoor cafes and gelato! Taoramina is set on a hill, you have to drive up to the city, then take an elevator to get up the the city center.

The view was beautiful! Sicily
The main piazza
drinking fountain Me and Lance - in Italy!
I loved the narrow streets with the flowering balconies check out this one!

These flowers were everywhere, they were so beautiful!
Doesn't this little piazza look like a movie backdrop? So cute!
The view of the Meditteranean Sea
The Greek theater was built in 500 BC, was finished by the Romans and is still in use today. In fact Sting had a concert there a few years ago.
The view was absolutely stunning!

We found this beautiful garden in the back of an upscale hotel

Then we headed to the beach to swim - the Mediterranean was cool but refreshing.
There were tons of little fishing boats in the water and on the shore
Goodbye Sicily!

Malta

2008-08-12T09:05:00.000-07:00

Malta was really cool. I loved it! It's an island in the Mediterranean about 60 miles off the coast of Sicily. It's main rescourse is limestone, in fact that's the only raw material on the island. This view was right outside our balcony.
Malta's history goes back 7000 years! We went to the nation's capital city Valletta.

We also went to the old capital Mdina

Mdina is a medieval town known as the "Silent City" only about 100 families actually live there now. It's an ancient city dating back to 700 BC, first fortified by Phoenicians and later reconstructed by the Arabs. It reminded me a lot of Toledo.
The buildings were really beautiful Malta gained it's independence from the British in 1964, being under it's rule since 1814, we noticed a lot of British influence.A little souvenir shop in Mdina We also went into a glass blowing shop

On the way to downtown Valletta

The streets were packed! There were thousands of people just on this main street. It was really cool. Valletta

St. Paul's Cathedral

St. Pauls Cathedral was really pretty, lots of gold. Paul was shipwrecked on the shores of Malta and stayed there for some time introducing Christianity to the island. The statue outside of the town center

The countries official languages are Maltese and English, they also speak some Italian and a little French.

It was a beautiful day!

The view of the port was so pretty

Where the ships dock - this was an important military base during WWII and still is a major port.
Goodbye Malta!

Dubrovinik, Croatia

2008-08-09T18:42:00.000-07:00

Dubrovinik was one of my favorite places, it was so enchanting! Right out of a fairytale. It used to be a pirates port. It has beautiful buildings, cobblestone streets and the most georgeous views from the city wall!These were the views from the city wall, it went around the entire city.I took a hundred pictures to try to capture every single moment, the rooftops, the sea, the main square, it was all so spectacular!

Dubrovinik is known as the jewel of the Adriatic Sea, now I know why! The sea was beautiful, deep blue, so nice and refreshing! We took a lot of dips to cool off.

The water was perfect!
Lance cliff jumping in the Adriatic Sea
We found the best places to swim
Ok, like I said, it was such a romantic place! There were birds everywhere
the main street
looking down on the main street from the city wall

Dubrovinik from the city wall

I love the arches and details on this building, inside there was a memorial to the soldiers, the entire city was badly bombed about 15 years ago but has been remarkable restored.

We got to stay here till midnight so we saw the sunset And ate dinner at a cute little outdoor cafe
Dubrovinik was so amazingly beautiful, I absolutly fell in love with the quaint little city in Croatia. It was so romantic, so magical, so picturesque!
Goodbye Dubrovinik!

Amalfi

2008-08-08T00:03:00.001-07:00

The Amalfi Coast

The Amalfi Coast, about two hours south of Naples, is absolutely gorgeous! The drive twisted along the edge of the cliffs on little narrow road but the views were spectacular! It was a little misty and hazy that day, but it made it a kind of magical.
This is a rock, shaped by the wind and natural elements but is known as the Virgin Mary. Pretty cool. On the way to Amalfi we stopped at two little villages
Sorento and Positano, just to take pictures. There were really cool buildings in the little towns that we passed through
Every turn was so breathtaking....the sea, the coast, the buildings built on the cliffs, it was all really beautiful. Like out of a storybook.

Can you imagine living here? it would be so pretty.

We spent most of our time in Atrani, a little town right next to Amalfi but not as well known so there were hardly any tourists there.

This is AtraniWe found the main piazza and had lunch at a little outdoor cafe.We ordered milkshakes and of course pizza!
Yum!

The Amalfi Coast

There were beautiful flowers everywhere!

The cathedral or "duomo" of Amalfi
Goodbye Amalfi!

Tuscany

2008-08-07T10:54:00.000-07:00

Tuscany is so beautiful! Just as you would imagine, it was full of vineyards, sunflower fields, soft rolling hills dotted with tuscan villas and castles, slender cyprus trees that stood tall against the clear blue sky and little villages that haven't changed for hundreds of years. Our first stop was the town of Siena. You know the brown crayon in the Crayola box called sienna? It was named after this place. The rooftops, piazza del campo and bell tower are all Seina brown.
Siena is a hilltop province built on three hills during the Roman period. The Golden Age in Siena was from the 11th century to the 14th century. Beautiful view!

The magnificent cathedral "duomo"was build in the 13th century with a Gothic style facade. It is unique because both the interior and exterior were built with black and white marble creating stripes. It was huge!

Lance taking a break and enjoying the view.

Notice the flags, they were everywhere.setting up for the "palio"
A cute narrow street - notice the different flags The narrow streets all lead to the main square or piazza which is said to be the best piazza in all of Italy: Piazza del Campo
Every year on July 2nd the town has a bareback horse race that has been a long time tradition. Each neighborhood is represented (each one has thier own colors and flag) and whichever nieghborhood wins holds the bragging rights for the next 365 days! We missed the race by one day :( But it was fun to see all the flags up and the town getting ready for the eventful day. It is a really big deal! Piazza del CampoThe most impressive thing about the piazza was the giant bell tower, it was built without a foundation and said to be the tallest tower in all Italy!

We loved Siena! ................................................................................................

We also loved San Gimignano, in fact we wished we could've had more time there. It was so very beautiful. San Gimignano was named after the bishop that saved the city and is known for its many towers.

Originally there were 114 throughout the city but now there are only 14 that are still standing. The rich families of San Gimignano built themselves towers - a status thing, the taller the tower, the richer the family.

The towers were really cool, I can't imagine how impressive it would be if a hundred more were still standing. During the black plague, they were thought to be diseased and many were knocked down.

The city is also famous for their white tuscan wine, the best in Italy and known worldwide as one of the best white wines anywhere. We'll take their word for it. We were really in the midst of the beautiful vineyards. San Gimignano is also known for its home-made ice cream, it was really delicious! They brag that they are "world champions" for it. They had tons of little ceramics shops with beautiful hand painted ceramics - very expensive.

Tuscany was so beautiful, it was one of our favorite places in Italy!

Paintings

2008-08-07T10:03:00.000-07:00

Last year for my birthday Lance surprised me with a beautiful painting. We were just going to get the one but couldn't resist and got a few more. They really add so much to our house, I love them! Thanks Lance.

This one of Venice, is in the front room, which fits perfect because it has a high ceiling. The painting really sets the mood for the room - calming.

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This one I love because it reminds me of the countryside in Spain. It is in our family room. It's the smallest one.

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This one is on of Barcelona and is in the entry way at the top of the stairs. It's really pretty too. It feels like you could just walk into the picture.

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Lance loves this one cause he can just picture riding his horse down the pathway. It has pretty autumn colors.

Mexico

2008-08-03T13:02:00.000-07:00

We went (drove) to San Carlos, Mexico- yes, call us crazy! It was crazy, but once we got there it was a blast! The girls loved the beach and had fun spashing in the ocean and making sandcastles. We went kayaking to a little island and found tons of seashells and saw hundredes of baby pelicans. We saw dolphins jumping and explored the beaches. The beach house was nice. It was really right on the beach! Everything was beautiful! The last day the guys went out on the fishing boat, they didn't catch anything but saw lots of whales and dolfins that swam up close to the boat!

My little beach babes

They loved playing on the beach.

The sunsets were beautiful
Me and the girls
Emma with uncle Ryan
Splashing in the water. This was the girls first time to the ocean.
Abby The beach house
Kayaking
Abby loved running up and down the beach!
It was so fun to watch her.
Abby
We went in to town to shop and have dinner, we had delicous tacos!
"downtown"
A "native" house made out of soup cans! Yes, people live there - crazy, I guess if you utilize what you have you can do about anything.
Say, "cheese!"
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The baby pelicans - there were hundreds on the little island.
We also found tons of sea shells, Emma carefully picked out her own.
The princess sandcastle made from our found seashellsSay "cheese!"
Abby meditating
Uncle Ryan and Emma

Uncle Ryan and Abby Kayaking notice little Emma in the corner :)
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The last night we went out to eat at a really fun restaurant, there was a live band and the food was great. Abby and Lance danced the night away!

great moves!

It was a fun place.
Goodbye San Carlos!

We had a great time, but then had to get back in the car for the long ride home. It took about 20 hrs.

Exhange Student

2008-08-02T21:02:00.000-07:00

So a neighbor called a few days before we left on our cruise and asked if we would like to have an exchange student from Spain live with us for the month of July. Since we were already doing lots of fun stuff that month and since she was from Spain I thought sure, why not? por que no? So the day we got back from our cruise we met Ainhoa Fernandez. She is from Pamplona, known for the Running of the Bulls. She is 15 and very sweet. She was so laid back and cute with the girls. There were 4 other exchange students also from Northern Spain in our neighborhood, so she didn't get too bored. We took her horseback riding, she went to church with us (even though she's catholic) She even went to girls camp, we took her up to the cabin, to swim lessons, to the Aquarium, all the 24th festitivities in Spanish Fork, of course the mall, and Temple Square. We basically dragged her everywhere we went but she didn't seem to mind. Horseback riding at the farm

With the little cowgirls

Ainhoa, me and Emma

Aihnoa on "Socks"

Ainhoa and Abby
After the Aquarium
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We had a Spanish dinner where the exchange students prepared us a Spanish meal of paella, tortilla de patata and flan.

Abby and Emma wanted to dress up for the dinner in thier flamenco dresses from Spain.

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Mirium and Ainhoa liked to watch Lance's softball games. After the games we'd go to the park.

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My mom and I took Ainhoa and Mirirum to Temple Square the Sunday before the left. They really liked it.

24th of July

2008-08-02T10:20:00.000-07:00

If your from Spanish Fork you know that the 24th is not just any holiday but it's like next to Christmas. I learned quickly that you got to go to all the events to really make it a day! It starts early, Lance woke up at 5:30 to run the Speedy Spaniard. The race starts at 6:30 at Canyon View park by our house and goes all the way to the Library on Main Street. 6 miles. Lance and Ryan did great! Maybe next year I'll run along with them.

Then there's the breakfast and the parade. It was really hot even at nine in the morning. But the girls had fun watching and catching the sparse candy that was thrown.

They even got a picture with Snow White and Cinderella, this was definetily Abby's favorite part of the parade.

Chill'n at the parade.

Of course we had to get cotton candy... yum!

The Rodeo is that evening and afterwards we watch the fireworks

Lance and Abby at the Rodeo

Emma was all over the place but as long as I was holding her she was happy!
Happy 24th of July!

Cabin

2008-08-02T05:19:00.001-07:00

We've spent a few weekends at the cabin. Lance took his preist group and we tagged along and brought Ainhoa, our foreign exchange student. We hiked, played board games and the girls picked lots of wild flowers.

Emma having a great time at the cabin
our resting spot on the hike
Abby enjoying the fresh mountain air
Emma fell in the dirt and then gave me big Emma kisses!
Me and the girls - notice the flower they picked for me :)Lance's priest group (and us)all tuckered out from playing so hard

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The other weekend at the cabin was with family. The girls made crafts projects with thier cousins and little cards to Aunt Amberly.

designing the cards finished product!

The Cowboys and little Cowgirls all the girls love the horses
horseback rides
Me and Emma

Zoo

2008-08-01T18:21:00.000-07:00

We went to the Zoo last month on the hottest day ever! Well, at least it felt that way. But it was so fun and Abby & Emma and thier cousins had a great time. taking a break

Katelyn and Lauren turtles

At the park

Being little spiders on the web

On the Carrousel

Abby and Emma

Katelyn and Lauren

Emma and Abby loves the girafes, in fact Grandma Glenda bought them all a little girafe to take home to remember our day at the zoo.
Katelyn, Grandma Glenda and Lauren

Emma was having a great time banging on the glass and screaming at the top of her lungs with delight at all the little critters. She didn't care about the sign that said, "Please do not tap glass, it may frightened the animals." Besides it was probably the most excitement they had all day.

Don't you just love the Zoo?

Summer Days!

2008-08-01T14:42:00.000-07:00

We met my good friend Jeri and her kids at the Aquarium. We brought the foreign exchange students and had a great time! Our favorite was the Jelly Fish!
Emma loved the yellow fish
Abby
Emma

The Dalmasi's have great parties- lots of Dominican food, friends & music!
Dancing to Salsa music at Rosa's birthday party
good moves!

At the Carnival
They loved the Carrousel and the little train ride
They had a ball.

Tasha trimming Abby's hair

At the Fair
Emma in the jumping thing
Abby wanted to pet the snake

Two Friends!
Swimming Lessons
Abby and Emma loved swimming lessons! They never wanted to get out of the pool when our class was over.

Made the switch

2008-08-01T13:37:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I started doing ARBONNE, I just got the RE9 skincare set and love it! If you want to try it out let me know! I had never heard of Arbonne before a few months ago, but it’s a skincare/baby/wellness/make-up company that creates their products using natural and botanical ingredients. It's really good stuff. I had been using MaryKay for so long that I forgot there was anything else out there. The minute I tried Arbonne I knew it was what my skin needed. I love the way it makes my skin look and feel.

where to start?

2008-07-28T10:04:00.000-07:00

Ok, it's always overwhelming when I think of "updating" the blog because so much has happened and I never know where to start. You know how you always think that summer will be relaxing and you'll have lots of time to do the extra projects? Not so. This summer has been crazy! But fun. We've gone on a few trips, have had a foriegn exchange student and all the other summerness like softball, swim lessons, reunions, horseback rides and weekends at the cabin. Life is busy but life is good, we are happy, healthy and besides needing to catch up on the laudry things are great and were trying to enjoy ever minute.

Sister Wilson

2008-06-16T22:38:00.000-07:00

Amberly is now in the Missionary field, serving in the Tallahassee Florida Mission. She is doing great and we are so proud of her! After the farewell, which was great.

Me and Amberly

At the MTC

Emma was so excited for Amberly!

Lance, Amberly and Ryan

Sister Wilson!

Arizona

2008-06-16T11:03:00.000-07:00

We went to Arizona last month for Kyle's (Lance's brother)

graduation and thier new baby Delaney's blessing.

It was fun to have the family all together!

At Kyle and Denell's house after the baby blessing
Mesa, Arizona Temple
Emma enjoying the hot Arizona sun The beautiful sunset at the park

The girls had fun playing at the parkand being with their cousins
chasing the ducks
the fountain was really cool
our little family
tired after a long hot day
Kyle's graduation
Lauren and Abby
Katelyn and Emma
Swimming with the cousins at the hotel
enjoying the water
Emma dancing to the music, waiting to get seated.
The girls all got balloons at the yummy Mexican restaurant
Me and Emma (the red-eye thing didn't work :)

a day at the farm

2008-04-16T11:54:00.000-07:00

Saturday was a nice spring day, a perfect day to be at the farm. The girls love the horses, playing with the dog and just being at the farm!

My little cowgirls!Captain and Socks Emma loves Max
can you tell? gross!
She also loves riding
She isn't afraid at all
Playing in the fields
Finding budding daffodils
Opening the gate for the horses
playing in the barn
doing a "project"
building a "barn"
working hard
cowgirl Abby
hats off to a beautiful spring day!
two friends
hold on!
It is so fun to see them enjoying the farm!

Daddy's girls

2008-04-16T11:31:00.000-07:00

The girls love thier daddy! Every morning when he leaves for work they stand at the door and wave and blow kisses, then when he comes home they run to him and give him big hugs and slobbery kisses!

Emma is especially snuggly and loved to press her chubby little cheeks next to ours!

two friends

2008-04-16T10:46:00.000-07:00

Abby has refered to her and Emma as "two friends" since the day her sister was born. It's so cute! She gives her a squeeze and says, "two friends!" and they really are, can't you tell?

"two friends" big squeeze!

"two friends" hanging out

"two friends" sleeping "two friends" playing

"two friends" sharing a special day

more "two Friends!"

cougarettes

2008-04-15T22:25:00.000-07:00

We got to watch the National's preview before the Cougarettes left to compete in Florida. Abby and Emma love watching Amberly dance! The Cougarettes are incredible and they did a great job at Nationals!

The dance was awesome

Amberly with her biggest fans

new nieces

2008-04-15T21:51:00.000-07:00

We have two new neices born a week apart! We will get to see baby Delaney next month when we go to Arizona for her blessing but we got to see baby Chelsey over conference weekend, she was just a few days old!

Grandpa and Chelsey

Big sister Katelyn

Abby with the baby

We tried to get a pic with all the girls

It's better when you're not trying!

Sleepy heads

2008-04-15T21:38:00.001-07:00

You'd think I would be getting a lot done if both of the girls were napping at the same time, that's practically a miracle! But I couldn't help take a few pics, then sit down to take a deep breath.

Sundays

2008-04-15T21:19:00.000-07:00

I always try to get a pic of the girls in their Sunday dresses (before the spills and ripping out headbands) sometimes they cooperate and other times I don't have such luck.

good one!

cute

great smile!
if she would just look at me...
one shoe
not so excited
just mad

Me and Anna

2008-04-15T21:01:00.000-07:00

Me and Anna go way back, like way back - she's my closest sister, out of three. We're just two years apart and have always been great friends. There was a while there that she was far away, but she's back! And I am so proud of her, I love you so much Anna. We had a girls night out a few weeks ago and it was so fun!

Lance's hike

2008-04-07T14:19:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics from Lance's hike a few weeks ago. They went to the Arches and it was some pretty intense hiking!

Doesn't it look beautiful!

Easter Sunday

2008-04-07T10:17:00.000-07:00

These are the Easter dresses the girls wore to church, I should have taken the picture before Church instead of after, by that time they were ready for a nap. Hats from the Easter bunny (Lance)
Emma was all smiles after seeing the goodies the easter bunny left!

Easter egg hunt at Nana's and Papa's house (my mom& dad) finding the eggs
Abby on the hunt for eggs
Kaily and EmmaEmma found a lot!
It was too chilly to have the Easter egg hunt outside so we just hid all the eggs in the front room, the girls had just as much fun :)

lost and found

2008-04-07T10:06:00.000-07:00

I had a dream last night that I lost my camera ! All my pics gone forever! We were at some big event with so many people. We looked in the lost and found which was this giant machine that had gathered the items left from the bleachers and dumped then into random piles. I was so excited cause I thought I found my red camera until I looked at the pictures on it.... it was someone elses. Then I found two more red cameras just like mine but the pics on the camera were of other little munchkins, not mine. I was so frantic, I was going to put all my pics from the camera on my blog - the next day, I swear :) Well, I never found it! I woke up and made sure it was were I had left it in my purse, yep. Thank goodness it was just a dream, but I'm going to be extra careful with my camera - just in case.

Easter

2008-04-02T08:49:00.000-07:00

Happy EasterAbby and Emma coloring eggs

Really concentrating!
They liked the orange

This year we had an Easter party at my Aunt Sue's house. The girls painted cute little flower pots, we played Spring Bingo and of course colored eggs! They had a lot of fun and were so cute.

My mom "Nana" and the girls
Easter crafts

Disney on Ice

2008-03-31T13:04:00.000-07:00

Last month I made a sticker chart for the girls, most the jobs were stuff they do anyway like put on pj's and brush teeth but there were a few challening ones like, mind mom & dad and be nice to sister :) If they got the chart filled up they could go to Disney on Ice. They were so excited about it! Everyday was all about the princess stickers getting on the chart. So they finally filled it up and got to go see the Disney Princesses on Ice, I dressed them up as princesses, and they were so cute! Our seats were kinda in the nosebleeds but they didn't care they were just excited to be there!

Dad and EmmaMom and the princesses outside the Delta Center

Abby & Emma

2008-02-19T20:09:00.000-08:00

Life

2008-02-15T09:37:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I really needed to update the blog. Life just gets so crazy! I always make a list of things I want to get done during the day and "update blog" has been at the bottom of the lists since the day after Christmas. Like many other, "crafts, projects, goals and major organizing," it just stayed on the bottom. I guess other stuff, like you know, kids, cleaning, cooking, kids, cleaning up after the kids, and sleep take priority. I keep thinking maybe after they go to bed, yeah right. I don't know the secret to getting the girls to bed quickly, it takes f o r e v e r! by then I'm exhasted. If you know the secret, please let me in on it! Anyway, Emma loves the computer, so during the day if I am ever on it, she will just push the shiny "off" or "re-start" button. So I have to be sneaky and watch her close. Alright, enough about my unintentional procrastination and excuses. By the way, for some a blog may take the place of a journal but I have a good old fashioned one and write in it regularly :)

Okay, so let's re-cap: December, Christmas was great! We spent the day at my mom and dad's. Abby and Emma loved opening all the presents, of course. The next day we spent with the Wilson's. It was fun. Well, I would say more but Christmas seems like a long time ago, and all I remember is that it was a good one. We celebrated the new year at our house with a few friends and games. 2008!

Right before Christams we went to the BYU football game in Vegas. They won and it was so fun but freezing. I know, you'd think Vegas would be far from that, but it was super cold at the game.

January, Emma had to get stitches :( She fell on one of Lance's horse statues that she took off the shelf to carry around, I should have moved it up earlier because she had got it down several times, but I had to learn the hard way. Emma is much more daring and curious than Abby so I need to keep an extra eye on her. We took her to the pediatrition and he stitched her up so fast. I was so glad we went there instead of having to wait at a clinic or the emergency room. Plus when we went to get the stitches out we found out she had an ear infection, so we took care of two things with one visit. But did have to go back the following week because Abby had an ear infection. We had Abby and Emma's actual Dr. appointment with the pediatrician last week, so, thus far this year we have been there five times already! Too bad it wasn't all at the end of the year, before the duductable started over, but that' life. Really our girls are great and so I shouldn't complain about a few ear infections and stitches. I am grateful and feel very blessed that they are healthy.

On Janurary 19th Abby turned three years old. I can't believe it! She is growing up so fast, it is just crazy how time flies. All she wanted for her birthday was a "princess party" she didn't even care about presents, she said " we have enough toys, I just was a party." Awesome! So I really made it a great party. And of course if you have a party, you get presents. She invited two of her little friends and then the fam. We sent out "royal invitations" for Princess Abbygail's celebreation and invited everyone to dress up in their favorite princess attire. I decorated the house or should I say, "Abby's castle" and she had a disney princess cake. We played games, colored, ate and danced, everyone had a great time. It was worth all the work just to hear her say, "mama, it all looks so good, thank you so much, it the best princess party ever!" She really is a little princess.

President Hinckley - When I heard the passing of our dear prophet I couldn't believe it, even though he was 97 years old, he was just so young at heart. I guess I thought he would live forever. I know that he is so happy to be reunited with his wonderful wife and that he is in a marvelous place. But I will miss him. He was a true examlple of hard work, faith and optimism and above all was truly a prophet of God. "We Thank Thee Oh God for a Prophet!" I am grateful that the church is organized in a way that, even though President Hinckley passed on, the Church goes on. President Monson will be an amazing prophet.

February, Abby started dance and she loves it! Her aunt Amberly, a Cougarette, is her inspiration. She dances along while at the BYU basketball games and has been taking about "dance class" for a while. So now that she's three she can start her career, just kidding. Who knows maybe next year she'll want to try soccer or gymnastics. It doesn't really matter what it is, whatever she's passionite about we'll be happy for her. I think all little kids like to dance though, when they hear the beat they just move, they're too little to feel self-consious.

Okay, so the other night Lance and I decided we would celebreate Valentienes on Wednesday cause every year there is a wait for a hudred hours at every restaurant. So we thought we were very smart when we made plans with another couple to meet in Sandy for dinner the night before the holiday. WRONG! It was the worst idea ever. We were stuck in that horrible storm and it took three hours to go about four miles! We were dodging all sorts of cars stuck in the snow in the middle of the parking lot, oh, I mean freeway. At least we didn't have the girls with us, and I wasn't pregnant and going into labor like some poor woman who actually had her baby at a gas station that night but I did have to go to the bathroom pretty bad. Well, we didn't eat dinner till about nine and by the time we were done we heard that the freeway was shut down. We had to spend the night at my partents and Abby and Emma and my mom were stuck at Tasha's apartment in Provo. Mom had Kaily too, Anna's baby, so they all just had a sleepover. The next morning, on our way back to saw all the abandoned cars stuck in the snow or that had ran out of gas. We were glad we didn't try to head back the night before, that could have been us! But we did have a great Valentines Day. Abby had her dance class where she got some valentine treats, then the girls and I made heart-shaped cookies with pink frosting and sparkles, we delivered valentines, played in the snow and had leftovers.

Last Saturday was part of my Valentines gift. Lance watched the girls while I went shopping (with Christmas money from Grandma that I had been saving for just a day like this) and an hour and a half massage! It was a great day! Lance had given me a gift certificate for a massage for Christmas so I was glad I got to use it before the year was up! Thanks Lance, Your the best! He was stuck at home cause I forgot to take the girls car seats out of the car, I didn't even think about it. He was a great sport and even had the kitchen clean and made dinner later that night! Happy Valentines Day!

Christmas 2007

2008-01-09T14:02:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!

Christmas was so fun! It was so cute watching the girls come down the stairs to see what Santa brought them. Their little faces were so excited and their eyes just glowing. We spent Christmas at "Nana and Papa's" my parents. It was a great, not because of the gifts but because we were all there - together. Some years Christmas has been bitter-sweet, but not this year... It was all the way sweet .

Emma opening presents!

Abby peacefully sleeping Christmas morning, thank goodness she slept in :)

It was a white Christmas!

Snow

2007-12-07T22:49:00.000-08:00

The girls had fun playing in the fresh powder of winter's first snow fall! Abby was excited to finally get to wear her new snow pants and pink furry snow boots. Emma was just excited to see the snow and be in it, except when it got on her. They both look like little marshmellows, at least that is what Lance calls them when they are all bundled up in thier snow stuff.

Christmas time

2007-12-07T22:30:00.000-08:00

Our little Christmas tree
Emma loves to hold to remote control, I think it helps her feel in control which she likes to be:)
We put up the Christmas tree last week, it was a little challening because Abby and Emma were so eager to help get out all the Christmas ornaments and you know, play with them like they were new found treasures. Emma found the candy canes and got all sticky, Abby liked to pop the bubble wrap that that the fragile stuff was wrapped in. They both love the nativity scene. Luckily nothing was broken that day, since then we've had a few "accidents." They love the train but it is now just scattered about too. If we didn't remember what Christmas was really about we might not even bother. But the tree, the lights and stockings hung help us get into the Christmas spirit.

So exciting!
gotta taste the frosting :)
Abby is trying to show Emma how to do it.
Emma eating the candy off the house

Abby's proud of her work!

The other night we made a ginger bread house, it was one of those pre-made ones that my mom gave us. Abby was very serious about it and placed all the candy all by herself in her own special design. Emma thought she was helping by eating the candy which made Abby mad. She'd say, " no Emma this is not to eat, it's for our ginger bread house!" Lance thought he was helping by watching the basketball game on TV. Well, I don't think we made the frosting thick enough because it was running all over the place. But the final product turned out pretty good, thanks to Abby! Oh, Lance did do some finishing touches after the game was over :)

BYU game

2007-12-07T22:17:00.000-08:00

BYU/UTAH football game.
Well, it was one of those stressful, nail-biting games, even up until the very last minute. But BYU won! When everyone thought the game was over, with a few minutes left and a few Ute fans leaving thinking they had the victory, Lance leaned over to me and said, "I have faith, the game's not over yet!" And sure enough, BYU made a last minute touchdown to win the game. It was fun! Lance is never shy about heckling the Ute fans and players. I just ignore him. Lance's little sister Amberly is a Cougarette and she's an awesome dancer, we always have fun watching her. The best part was that everyone was here for the game, because of Thanksgiving weekend. Go BYU :)

sisters, daughters, friends

2007-12-07T16:17:00.001-08:00

We celebrated Natasha's 21st birthday last month at her favorite restaurant, Spaghetti Mama's. Emma Abby

Me and Amberly (Lance's sister) at the Conference Center for the Christmas devotional.

Me, Denell and Sondra (my sweet sister in law's) at the BYU game.

Me and Anna at the Mannheim Steam Roller concert. (and her boyfriend :)

Tasha and Nessa

Over Thanksgiving break Misti rounded us all up for a girls night, we had dinner and so much fun visiting and catching up! It had been years since some of us had seen each other, so of course it wans't til about one in the morning we decided we better say goodbye and goodnight.

I grew up with these cute girls!

( Sharlene, Misti, Andrea, Aryanne, Jamie and I )

pink and brown

2007-12-07T15:54:00.000-08:00

I apparently was the only one looking at my camera.

Lance's aunt got married last month so Abby and Emma got to see their cousins, Katelyn and Lauren. They all looked so cute together! We took a ton of pics but this is the closest one of them all "almost" looking at the camera or at least heads were in the right direction. You know how it is. They looked so cute in pink and brown and it wasn't even planned.

Cabin

2007-12-07T15:02:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago we went to the cabin and brought the horses, it is always fun to get away even if it is just for a few days! Both Abby and Emma love the horses.

SPAIN - Madrid

2007-12-06T13:42:00.000-08:00

MADRID

Ok, so I didn't take this picture but it is so beautiful of the Royal Palace (Palaceo Real!) We didn't get a picture of the front of the building cause so much was going on at the other side. They were holding a Royal Commencment for foriegn dignitaries, so we weren't able to go inside. But that's okay, cause it was way cool to see all everything going on outside. Lance caught some of the procession on video, there were horses, guards, carriages and trumpets playing. Everyone was in uniform, so it looked really cool. The Royal Palace in Madrid is quite impressive and it said to even rival Versailles.

The beautiful columns in the Retiro Park. One of the many statues in El Parque Retiro
The Crystal Palace in El Parque Retiro in Madrid

Palacio de Communicaciones- Main Post Office, Plaza Cibeles in Madrid

It is such a cool building, can you believe it was the post office?

The other side of the street.Down the street is the Puerta de Alcala

Our hostal was just down the street right in downtown Madrid

Plaza Mayor
Lance in Plaza Mayor There are so many little cafe's in the plaza, we had brunch on the terraza at one of them.Plaza Mayor at night, it is a happening place! After the bullfight we hung out at Plaza Mayor and then to a little cafe to have churros and chocolate - yum!
El Prado Museum

Metropolis - Gran Via Calle Gran Via

Ventas
Plaza de Toros

We saw three different Matadors They each killed two bulls
Bullfighting in Spain is a big part of the culture.It was packed! It was fun to take Lance to a real bullfight!
Posters on a side street kiosc

We ate dinner at this cute little bar our last night in Madrid. It was delicous!

Besides the very first day we arrived in Spain, when we went to El Parque Retiro and the Temple, we really only had one day to see the sights in Madrid. (there is a ton to see, so we didn't get to do everything) We went to the Palacio Real, Plaza Mayor, El Prado Museum and the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum. Walked down Gran Via and then back to Sol. We also went to a bullfight at the famous Ventas Plaza de Toros in Madrid. The Prado houses some of the oldest paintings in the world by artists like: El Greco, Goya, Valazquez, Rubens, Picasso, etc... The painting you see in your humanities and history text book. We loved the artwork and variety at the the Thyssen -Bornemisza, different than the Prado. I love the city of Madrid and all the beautiful buildings, parks, plazas, statues, round abouts, outdoor cafe's, museums, tapas and water fountains. Everything is so European, so cool, so MADRID!

Thanks to my parents, (who watched the girls while we were gone for 11 days) we were able to go on my dream trip back to Spain. Thanks mom & dad, I love you.

SPAIN - Segovia

2007-12-05T20:27:00.000-08:00

The famous Roman Aquaduct built before Christ. It was still in use up unil the late 19th centruy.

It's cool to stand right underneath it.

The Grand Cathedral.The cathedral

This is the street leading from the cathedral to the castle.

The "Alcazar" castle.
The mote around the Alcazar.

The artilary room in the castle.

Lance with the Knights.
Throne of Isabel and Fernanad (replicas)

Segovia is super cool too, it's another one of my favorite places. It has three unique things: The ancient Roman Aquaduct, The Alcazar and The Grand Cathedral. When you walk into town, you are walking towards the famous Aquaduct. It never ceases to amaze me. It is truly unbelievable. It was built at the end of 1st to early 2nd century BC by the Romans during their occupation of the Iberian Peninsula to bring water from the Río Frío. It is supported by an engineering marvel of 166 arches and 120 pillars in two levels. It is made of 20,400 large, granite blocks, joined without any mortar and is over 100 feet tall. It is so cool to stand underneath the arches, you can't help but be in complete awe! Segovia's Grand Cathedral has a different feel than the others. It is a bright manila color on the exterior and is very ornate. It was constructed in the late 1500's Gothic style and is widely considered Europe's last great Gothic cathedral. The spires are very Gothic yet it has a Renaissance dome. In contrast the interior is very simple, and peaceful. The Alcázar, or castle-palace, was built around the 11 century, it is on a hill and overlooks the countryside below. It has a deep mote around it and lots of beautiful towers. Queen Isabel and King Ferdand resided here, besides housing royalty the castle was also used as a prison and a military school. Ok, so now that you know all about Segovia, you have to go there too if you go to Spain. It is just an hour or so from Madrid.

SPAIN - Toledo

2007-11-30T15:31:00.000-08:00

TOLEDO

The city is surrounded by El Rio Tajo

So beautiful!
The Cathedral and Alcazar in the background.

View from our hotel window.
The amazing Cathedral of Toledo
This is the street that I lived on as a missionary.

This was the building I lived in, it was built in the 14th century by Arabs.
Toledo is full of little cobblestone streets like this one, and yes they do drive down some of them.

This is MariCarmen and David, members in Toledo who we had dinner with after church. Toledo's train station. The fast train

On Saturday we woke up early again to catch the fast train to Madrid from there we caught another high speed train to Toledo. Toledo is my favorite place, partly because I served there for four months but mostly just because it is so magical. I felt like a lived in a postcard! It was so fun to be back and I was so excited to show Lance my favorite places and the people I loved. I just wish we wouldn't had more time there. But it was nice to attend church in an area where I served and so great to see everyone there. Well, when we got Todedo we first went to the amazing cathredral, it is known as one of the most grand and impressive cathredrals in all of Europe. It is huge! We also went to a few museums, had dinner with a member family the Gomez, and my favorite, got lost in the street maze of the city. Toledo was the capital of Spain until 1561 and is know as the city of three cultures, one of the only cities where Arabs, Christians and Jews lived and worked together in harmony. The entire city has been declared a national monument. Toledo was built on a mountain top and is surrounded by the Tajo River, for safety. When in Toledo you really feel like your going back in time. That night we stayed in what used to be the Renaissance building which was the palace of the Empress Eugenia de Montijo, the wife of Napoleon III, it was really nice. Our room was beautiful and the best part was the city roof top view. If you ever go to Spain, you must go to Toledo!

SPAIN - Granada

2007-11-29T20:03:00.000-08:00

Granada

Our little rental car

downtown Granada

Granada's cathedral

view of Granada from the Alhambra

Generalife gardens

The beautiful detail

King Charles the fifth decided to build his palace next to the moors.

Isabela and

Columbus

The Alhambra in Granada, Spain
The Alhambra at night

On Friday we drove to Granada. We left really early so we could make our tour to the famous "Alhambra" we were lucky to get our tickets since over eight thousand people go through the grounds every day. The Alhambra is known as the 8th wonder of the world. It is the most preserved Moorish palace in the world. Granada was the last Moorish stronghold in Europe, it fell to Christandom in 1492 . The Alhambra was unbelievable! The work on the palace walls is so detailed and beautiful. It is really a unique place, it's hard to describe how impressive it is without going there. The palace garden is called "Generalife" and is so beautiful! It is said to be the closest place to heaven on earth, according to the Koran. The garden was huge, peaceful and tranquil. After visiting the Alhambra we dropped down into the city of Granada and went to the Cathedral and saw the actual tombs of Isabel and Ferdanand. One of the coolest things about Granada is we were able to stand in the exact room where Christopher Columbus recieved his comission from Isabel to journey to the new world (well, that's where he ended up.) It was really cool to be in the very place where history was made.

SPAIN - Ronda

2007-11-28T23:01:00.000-08:00

The city walls of Ronda.

The whitewashed city of Ronda

Lance looking like a total tourist :) I love it!

The oldest bullring in the world.

The beautiful breathtaking view!

On Thursday, we rented a car and drove up into the mountains to a quaint little village called Ronda, known for it's giant gorges, city bridges and the oldest bullring in the world (where bullfighing originated.) It is one of the many whitewashed villages scattering the romantic countryside of Southern Spain. Ronda was beautiful and Lance fell in love with it, it was his favorite place of the entire trip. We spent the whole day there, exploring the city and visiting the bullring, the museums and cathredral. We ate dinner at a little cafe on one of the narrow cobblestone streets at dusk, we had another typical Spanish dish: torilla de patata also known as tortilla espanola and pollo asado. The best part of Ronda was the breathtaking view of the gorges - gorgeous. Everything about Ronda was absolutely charming!

SPAIN - Marbella

2007-11-20T12:25:00.000-08:00

After a day at the beach we took a taxi to downtown Marbella. We walked in the park, strolled through the popular Plaza de los Naranjos, and ate Paella on the terraza with a guitar playing the background. Later we went to an authentic flamenco show, it was really cool!

SPAIN - la costa del sol

2007-11-19T10:57:00.000-08:00

Spain was so fun! It was just Lance and I and it was great! We were there for 11 days, well, actually 9 because of travel time.

We flew in to Madrid, went to "El Parque Retiro" and spend the first night at the temple hostal. The next morning (Tues) we did a session in the Madrid Spain temple, it was awesome.

Then we caught the fast train to "costa del sol" the southern coast.

We stayed at the Marriott in Marbella, Malaga right on the Mediteranean Sea.

(thanks to State Farm :)

It was so gorgeous! Truly picture perfect! And the weather was great.

We took a walk on the beach just as the sun was setting - It was so relaxing to hear the waves splashing and know that we didn't have to be anywhere else accept- be togther, just him and I, in a little piece of paradise.

Our hotel was literally steps away from the beach!

After our walk we had dinner on the beach front cafe ""Cristina's"at twilight, this was our view. The next morning we had brunch on the hotel restaurant patio. I had gazpacho - yum!

Then we hit the beach! It was a beautiful day!

We played in the Sea and soaked up the hot Mediterranean sun rays.

Emma's birthday

2007-11-13T09:04:00.000-08:00

For Emma's birthday (October 24th) we took her and Abby to the Bean Musuem in Provo, it has a lot of stuffed animals (not like a teddy bear:) but they loved it! Then we got some ice cream at the Creamery.
On Saturday we had her big party with all the family. She didn't take a nap that morning because of all the excitement, getting things ready for the party, etc, you know how it is. She was so tired, bless her heart, by the time we ate, opened presents and then had the birthday cake she was practically falling asleep in her high chair. But she was a good sport and was so cute.

I can't believe that she is already one year old. The year went by so fast! She is walking everywhere now and wants to do everything sister Abby does. She loves playing "peek a boo" she will hide around a corner and then pop her little face out with a big smile :)

When we asked Abby what she wanted to give Emma for her birthday, she declared: balloons! She was so excited to give her pink balloons, if you've seen the "Little Einstein" episode of "birthday balloons" you know what I'm talking about.

She loved all her presents, especially the bouncy balls. Abby loved her presents too :)
Emma loves baby dolls, so that is what I got her, she wouldn't let go of it, it was so cute!

HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY EMMA!

Halloween

2007-11-13T00:11:00.000-08:00

Happy Halloween!

We had trick or trunk at the church house on Halloween, Abby ran from trunk to trunk saying in her sweet little voice, "trick or treat, oh I need one for my sister too." It was so cute! The candy is now hidden and being used for bribes. Abby and Emma looked adorable and was told they won the "best costume award" at the ward Halloween party!

Lance decided to be his old cowboy self for Halloween,

he's not much for dressing up but we made him :)

Abby and Grandma Tanner

Halloween morning Abby and Emma were playing dress ups.

Nana had a Halloween dinner the night before Halloween, so we got to dress up twice!

Grandma Lybbert and Emma in thier kimonos (not planned!)

catching up

2007-11-12T23:33:00.000-08:00

Ok, the past few months have been crazy! So much has happened! The 23rd of September Lance and I left for our trip for Spain and had such a blast!!! The 24th of October we celebrated Emma's 1st birthday, the big ONE! I can hardly believe a year has already passed. She is growing up so fast. For Halloween Abby and Emma were Flamenco girls, we brought them back little dresses from Spain, they were the cutest little Spanish dancers!

Then we celebrated Lance's birthday on November 4th (the big 30) shh! After the BYU game I had a little surprise party waiting for him and he was totally surprised! It was so fun just to see the look on his face :)

Emma with her friends

2007-09-20T11:47:00.001-07:00

Abby blowing kisses

2007-09-20T10:40:00.000-07:00

Tomatoes!

2007-09-20T10:08:00.000-07:00

We've made tomatoe juice, spaghetti sauce, and whole tomatoes from all the tomatoes at the farm. It's takes hours to can and it makes a big mess but it's worth it. Now are shelf is full of the red bottles. Lance's mom, Glenda is a trooper, every end of summer when the tomatoes come her kitchen is where it's at. We are blessed to be able to be
apart of it and reap the rewards all year long!

funny faces

2007-09-20T10:04:00.001-07:00

wedding

2007-09-20T09:45:00.000-07:00

My cousins wedding was last week and Grandma Beers bought the girls the cutest dresses, they looked adorable! I love when we have these kind of events and the whole family gets together, that is really what life is all about - FAMILY.

Summer Fun

2007-09-05T10:37:00.000-07:00

This summer has been really fun, we haven't had any really big trips - that one is coming this month! - but lots of little ones. Lake Powell, reunion campouts, Fish Lake, the cabin, and Park City. We also have done lots of day activites like visit the zoo, the aquarium, Children's Discovery Musuem, riding the Heber Creeper, Seven Peaks, softball, lunch at the park, horseback riding, swimming and of course the Spanish Fork fiesta days with the parade and rodeo.

2007-09-05T10:15:00.000-07:00

Abby and Emma

new blog

2007-09-04T14:14:00.000-07:00

Well, we thought we would finally create a blog so here we are: The Lance and Melanie Wilson Family. Lance and I have been married now for 4 years and we have two beautiful daughters Abbygail Grace and Emma Beth, they are our everything. Emma will have her first birthday next month and Abby will be three in January! I always marvel at how time flies and I hear that it just goes by faster the older you grow. So that is why we are "Enjoying the Journey" and no matter how crazy things get try to cherish every moment.

For Labor day, our little family planted some trees at the farm. It was a nice quiet day and while Lance was busy digging, I was keeping Emma from eating rocks and dirt. Abby got all wet from playing in the water and after I picked some ripe red tomatoes, I took a minute to notice how the sun was hitting the west mountain. I thought how truly blessed we are and was remineded that every little moment of life's journey is for us to enjoy.