Our Christmas break

Tucson!
Chase, Calen and I were able to take a few days off and just relax with the family in Tucson. My favorite part was being at Reed Park and watching Calen feed the ducks (and goose) with his grandma. He was only scared of the big grey goose when it honked at him.

Snow!

Next it was up to Round Valley for some fun in the snow! Here's Calen hiding behind what was left of the snow fort made by his aunts and uncles.

All of Calens aunts and uncles on my (Heathers) side of the family, showing off their ice skating skills.Calen and his grandma decided to brave the icy river as well.Even Jessica joined in the fun! :) On Christmas Eve Tiffany opened her mission call. She was called to the Donestk Ukraine mission and repots March 14th!

Short Update

Calen in his dinosaur costume for Halloween.

My baby is one year old! I have loved every phase of Calens little life so far. He has been such a blessing in my life. The spirit he brings into our home is amazing and I can't wait to feel that again when Thing 2 comes along! Yes, we are expecting, again! It is a bit early to be announcing but I'm so excited I couldn't wait. Our next little ball of sunshine is due June 28, 2012.

The many adventures of Calen Mckay Wilkins...

Calen has become quite the climber lately and his favorite thing to climb on is his toy box.

                                                 
 This escapee has been caught red handed getting into moms books! He escaped in the middle of getting dressed and headed straight to the book shelf. Just look at that face, GUILTY!

 He loves the window and actually climbed onto the bed and pulled the shades up so he could look out into the world. Although I must say the back of the hotel is not much of a view.

As the adventures continue for all of us Chase and I are ever grateful to be in it together and to have this sweet little spirit to share them with.

Ryan & Kerri

Well, it certainly has been a long time. My excuse; I lost my camera charger. What's a post without a picture? Fortunately my new camera came just in time for my brother's wedding! I'm am so happy for him and his beautiful bride Kerri Crosby (as it were)!
She and he are now Mr. and Mrs. Ryan Quinlan. I think it sounds perfect. They were married last Saturday the 24th of September in the Snowflake temple. And what a lovely day it was to have a wedding. They were going for a white theme with accents of the Young Womens value colors (blue, red, green, orange, yellow, purple, and gold). Well, without further ado....

True love

blooms when we care more about another person than we care about ourselves. That is Christ's great atoning example for us, and it ought to be more evident in the kindness we show, the respect we give, and the selflessness and courtesy we employ in our personal relationships.

Jeffrey R. Holland (Created for Greater Things)

Visiting Springerville

My mothers day gift from my amazing mom-in-law. We made hanging flower baskets together. I've never done one before and I really enjoyed it. Momma Lisa (my mother-in-law) said watering them in the morning is almost therapeutic. So I call them my therapy flowers. Here's a picture of my in-laws back yard in the morning ....

...And, here's the front yard later the same day. There's Springerville weather for you. Calen, enjoying his new walker from grandma and grandpa Wilkins (and showing off those two front teeth).

Aaand, a picture Chase got of Calen eating his squash. Yumm!

Some Family Pictures

Mothers Day!

My first (official) Mothers Day. The past five and a half months I've had the privilege of being a mommy. It has been the most difficult and rewarding experience of my life. I also learned something about motherhood that I had never thought of before. Apparently in our church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) Mothers Day is a pretty big deal. One of the traditions of most wards is to have a small gift for all the mothers in the ward on Mothers Day. Usually it's a flower or a small chocolate bar, in our ward they gave all the mothers a book called Giver of Life -Lessons From Eve.

'What! My first Mothers Day and no chocolate!?' Actually, this was better. As I read through this small but very enlightening book (it's really more of a pamphlet) the following concept stood out to me.
...When Adam and Eve had partaken of the forbidden fruit, God appeared to them. He cursed the serpent but (quoting from the book) "In contrast to His cursing the serpent, God strengthened and empowered Adam and Eve." He was giving them opportunities for growth, not punishments. Adam would have to work by the "sweat of his face" and to Eve He said "in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children" as it says in Genesis Ch.3. This is the short version but, it just gave me a new perspective, these were actually great blessings. I don't know if I'd really understand this if I'd read it before I became a mother myself. But in all honesty, motherhood is such an opportunity for growth although at times, (giving birth especially) there is quite a bit of sorrow. Just another example of how much God loves us. He blesses us with such marvelous (difficult but wonderful) experiences that, if we are faithful, will strengthen us more than we ever thought possible.

Ambria's Senior Pictures

Ambria, one of my very best friends in all the world (not to mention my younger sister) is graduating this month so we thought we'd try our luck at getting some senior pictures. Now, I'm no photographer but it wasn't hard to get a good picture of her. She is a beautiful young lady inside and out.

I can't believe how fast he's growing! He'll be six months old on the 14th of this month! He has been sitting up by himself for a week or two and he's learning to hold his bottle and stick out his tongue (I think that part has something to do with that tooth he's got on his bottom gums). It is amazing to me how he learns all these new things. I can't really teach him to hold things or sit up or eat from a spoon, but somehow he just seems to catch on. If babies aren't a testimony that God lives I don't know what is.

And whoso shall receive one such little child in my name receiveth me.

Matthew 18:5

A first time for everything!

During the past few weeks Calen has had a number of "firsts." I just had to post some of them!

First time eating solids (Organic brown rice), he did very well.

First time going down the slide. This one was actually pretty tall and twisted. It surprised him but he seemed to enjoy it. First time going swimming! Other than in the bath tub of course. We got him cute baby swim trunks (to wear over the little swimmer diaper :) but you can't really see them in the picture. We didn't know how he'd react to the water at first but he didn't cry at all, in fact after he'd had some time to get used to it he seemed right at home. Of course dad and mom got to be his coaches. After trying so many new things he needed a nap and didn't want to be bothered. We love our brave little guy.

Chase and I were finally able to make a trip to Tucson to visit my grandma and grandpa Morgan here is a picture of us just before we left our house. Here is one of Calen "riding" grandpa's tiger. They have had this tiger for as long as I can remember. Calen liked to chew on the ears. (Sorry grandma!). And lets not forget the breadmaker grandma gave us. She has a new one and let Chase and I take this one home with us since she doesn't use it anymore. This was Chase's first attempt at bread in our new breadmaker and it was wonderful! We look foreward to trying out the cheesecake recipe that came with it! Also, a few weeks ago Calen's grandma and grandpa Wilkins were able to come to Thatcher for a visit. They love to love on their little grandbaby. And of course they had to spoil him while they were here. Now he likes his tummy time even more with all the cool new things to play with! In other news, the Clinic I (Heather) have been working at will be closing at the end of this Month. I have mixed feelings about it. I'm glad I'll be getting a break and I'll be able to spend more time with Calen (even though it was only about four or five hours four or five nights a week). But at the same time, it was a good experience for me and I felt as though I've learned a lot in the short time I've been able to work there. I am, however, excited to see what Heavenly Father has in store for our family next.