Lila Gracie turns 3

On June 5th, 2013, our Lila Grace turned 3.  She was excited to have a birthday and requested blue frosted cupcakes with sprinkles.  They ended up looking like smurf cupcakes- they were THAT blue, but Lila didn't mind at all.  We just had a birthday party with family and I think Lila's favorite part was the present opening.  She really gets it now.  Although, she's just as happy with a pez dispenser as a bigger toy.  We are so grateful to have this sweet, loving, kind little girl as part of our family!

Little Reader and an Old Photo...

Here are some photos of what Lila does while her siblings are at school and her mom is cleaning the house....so cute!

My sister-in-law recently sent me this photo of our family back when there were just 3 of us...

it is definitely one of our favorites!

Boca Raton

For the Primerus legal conference this year, we were invited to Boca Raton, Florida.  It was a 3 day trip and we left Joanna in charge of the three oldest kids and left Lila with Heather.  The resort where we stayed was lovely and the weather was even better, especially after such a long winter.  Nathan had CLE classes in the morning and then in the afternoons we had activities.  The first day we went deep sea fishing together and the second day we took a Cuban cooking class.  The fishing was more exciting than I thought and we really enjoyed the fresh air and beautiful blue ocean.  I ended up getting sea sick, which was a bummer.  We caught some pretty cool fish though!  The cooking class was fun and we got a yummy lunch out of it.  Each evening we had cocktail parties to attend.  Our favorite one was a dinner cruise.  We boarded a giant yacht and slowly cruised down the intercoastal waterway.  We passed the most incredible mansions along the water!  Then, dinner was served buffet style on the boat.  It was quite romantic and very relaxing.  Coming home was definitely the hardest part of this trip!    Cincinnati was grey and rainy, plus the kids weren't too pleased with us leaving them, even though they  were very well taken care of while we were away.  Our only consolation is that we will be taking the entire family to Hilton Head as soon as school gets out.  Hooray for more beach time!

Broken Bones

Nathan has a secret talent.  He is very good at those pop-a-shot games.  He won one last year at a contest at work, which only made him better since he can now play it at home.  So this year his name was drawn to play in the tournament again.  He was very excited about the prize which was an electric scooter.  Of course, he won the entire tournament and brought home his shiny blue scooter.  The kids were ecstatic!  Then on the evening I was having my Pampered Chef party, Audrey fell off of it onto the sidewalk and broke her collarbone.  It was just as the guests were arriving and Nathan had left to take Tyler to a church activity.  Thankfully my sister Joanna was here because she was so calm and knew just what to do.  As Audrey lay on my neighbor's lawn vomiting, Joanna just told me to go get a rag to wipe her off, helped me move her, told me to get ice, not to call 911 and where to have Nathan take her once he got home.  She has become quite experienced in dealing with trauma and I was so impressed.  Even though I have experienced some as well, I still panic when it is my kids.  Seeing Audrey laying there with her shoulder all swollen and strange looking kind of freaked me out.  To make a long story short, it was a rough couple of days getting through the most painful time, but Audrey was a trooper.  We learned that she vomits and nearly passes out when she is in a lot of pain.  But remarkably, she is already back to doing most things normally, just 2 weeks later.  Unfortunately for her, the doctor said no more gymnastics for at least 3 months and for now she is only playing the piano with her right hand.  It was such a blessing that she fell on her left side, not her right, as she is right handed.  So now we say that his prize of a free scooter wasn't so "free" after all!

Easter 2013

Since the Lindsay and Dan and the kids were still here over Easter, we had a lovely dinner at the Wilson's.  It was a lovely day, except for the fact that Nathan and I had to give talks in Sacrament Meeting.  I was very nervous, but did really learn a lot and strengthen my testimony of the Savior through my preparation.  Nathan gave the best talk I have ever heard from him.  He even shared his testimony of the Resurrection, which was so touching, considering all that he has been through.  Both of us look forward to the day that he will be made whole again!

Cousins

For their Spring Break, the Burnett family came to visit Cincinnati.  It was so much fun to see them!  One day while they were here, we went to Recreations Outlet in Milford so the kids could run and play together.  Spencer and Lila have a little "thing" for each other, which is great to watch.  My girls were in love with baby Claire and fought over holding her the entire time.  The best part about this day was watching Popi play with the grandkids.  He is still just a kid at heart!

Lila Grace

Lila has been a delightful 2 year old.  I really think it's a misnomer to call them the "terrible twos" because for us, the 3's are much harder.  Lila loves to be read to and pretend to read books on her own. She is naturally nurturing and can play alone with her baby dolls for hours.  She loves her older siblings and has been known to cry on Monday when dropping them off at school.  She will say "I miss my kids!"  We have tried some potty training and come the realization that she just isn't ready to let go of being a baby just yet.  If you ask her, she will always refer to herself as a "baby" and so far, has no interest in being a big girl.  Popi took some really cute photos of her for a project of Nana's and I just love how they turned out.  We love you Lila Gracie!