Happy Birthday Lainey!

Lainey is TWO !!! And it was her party... she could cry if she wanted! Lainey's party was so much fun! Granted, I probably went a little over the top for a 2 year old, but I was so excited to do a princess party and she was too. I was so glad that our friends and family were able to be there. Lainey loved when we sang 'Happy Birthday' and opening the presents. She has been singing "Happy Birthday" to her new doll family ever since! We love you Lainey girl!

Update

So it has been awhile! I can't believe how fast time goes by. We are all doing great, Josh is uber-busy at work, making sure all is well with his groups, both in-house and not. And me, I'm in complete survival mode while we wrap up the last few weeks of school- I'm SO excited for summer so I can feel like a mom again (well a mom of 1 as opposed to a mom of 24!) We are going to be closing on a house in our neighborhood on the 27th and we are very excited about having our own home, and I am excited for the renovations! We are planning on doing most everything on our own, so it should prove to be a busy, yet productive summer break.Lainey is growing like a weed and everyday has learned something new. She can even read (recite) some stories by herself! She goes to bed now like a big girl (much to our dismay... we miss 'rockabye'!) and can speak in sentences. Lainey spends every waking moment outside!

Zion National Park

Since Leslie had a short week, I took some much needed vacation days ( I am so glad ski season is winding down) and headed to Southern Utah to spend a couple of days at Zion National Park. I won a couple of free nights at the Zion Lodge from my company holiday party so we were able to stay there. It was very rustic and quaint- the location couldn't be beat! We arrived in the park at around 10:30 PM on Thursday night, under an amazing starry sky. We didn't realize the splendor of our surroundings until the morning came. We had a blast! This was our first actual vacation as a family (just the three of us). Nothing is better than spending time with those that you love. We took some great pictures. Enjoy.

Lainey was a real trooper. Most of the time she was just on my back in the carrier, but she got out and hiked when she got tired of being strapped to my back.

She isn't as little as she looks either so a break for dad was always nice.

Leslie and Lainey on the balcony of our room. We had great views and a lot of fun!

What a Happy Family!

We had an awesome time. Too bad we have to work for a living- You'd see alot more posts like this if we didn't!

Life Keeps Going...

Today was my Grandma Evans' funeral. She left us just 4 short months after Grandpa passed away. I have many mixed feelings that I wanted to sort out- First of all, there is the obvious sense of sadness and loss. It is hard for me as a grandchild to see them gone, but most of my sadness is directed towards my mom, who has lost both parents now. The aching and homesickness that she must feel is surely overwhelming. Another feeling is 'the stretch of generations' i.e. the fact that life keeps going. I am now where my mother was when life was just beginning- My parents are the next generation to pass on, and that in itself is heartbreaking. The feeling of excitement about Grandma's passing is a little confusing and I do attribute that to my beliefs that families can be and are forever. Grandpa prepared the way and I am sure was there to greet her as she moved from this life to the next, as was her mother that she never knew, her grandparents, who so lovingly raised her as their own, her son, Doug, who died a few years ago, a few grandchildren who were only here a short time, and all those anscestors that paved the way for us. As we stood up as grands/great-grands to sing a medley of primary songs today at the funeral, i was amazed at all the empty seats. What an amazing posterity that Grandpa and Grandma left behind! Well over 100 people are alive and active in the gospel because of these two and no doubt because of their testimonies and their examples. They have impacted so many lives, including many who were not family. Cousin Frankie Lou gave this poem in her talk today that described the way my Grandma lived her life: "A bell is not a bell until you ring it, a song is not a song until you sing it, and love was not meant in our hearts to stay, love is not love until you give it away."
Grandma was such a loving, caring, wonderful woman. She always greeted us with our face in her hands and a kiss. I remember many summer days spent at her home in Parowan, and she made sure we always had anything we needed from ice cream, to freezer pizza, pop, candy bars, to a bag or two of popcorn to keep mom and dad awake on the ride home. She made good use of her aloe vera plant doctoring sunburns, and she gave 2 dollar bills to every grandchild for their birthday. When we needed to stay over, she would pull out the hide-a-beds and make sure we had more than enough pillows and blankets. She was there for every blessing, baptism, ordination, graduation, pageant, and as many sporting events she could make it to. Both her and Grandpa were very involved in their grandchildrens' lives. When Josh got a job at SUU and needed a place to live, there was never a question if it would be okay to live with Grandma and Grandpa. Anyone was welcome, and I know that Josh was loved and appreciated. She told him so when we came down for Grandpa's funeral. After Lainey was born, they came to see the new baby just days after she was born. It was so neat to see the innate mothering instincts that Grandma had, even when her mind was suffering from the effects of dementia. We were able to stop by last Sunday to say 'goodbye'. She had a stroke about 2 weeks ago and was gradually declining and in a lot of pain. As I sat next to her and held her hand, it hit me how quickly this life passes, and how much I loved that special lady. As we went to leave, she wouldn't let go of my hand, and something unspoken passed between us. I knew that she knew who I was and that she was pleased with how I was living my life. I know that she loved me. Life will be different now, but I pray that we (her posterity) can keep her and Grandpa alive in our memories and traditions and that we can pass those valuable things down to our children and grandchildren.

Pics of the cutest baby ever!!! (I'm not biased at all...)

Lainey had her first visit to Kiddie Kandids yesterday. It took her a little while to warm up, but when she did, we got some way cute photos!

Quick Update

Hey! So it has been a long long time since I updated and I thought I'd let you all know what has been happening in our crazy lives lately. We moved out of the basement of my in-laws and into their twin-home rental on the 2nd of January. It has been absolutely crazy getting everything unpacked but I am feeling at home now. It has been a little interesting getting back into the whole 'living on our own' thing again, but Josh is wonderful and really does help out alot. Lainey loves her new room and her new space and Josh and I are loving having a separated kitchen/living room/bedroom, not to mention a finished bathroom... Lainey loves having a bathtub too. Over the last month she has gone from being a baby to a toddler. She is now almost 20 months, and is talking up a storm! Josh and I love every minute that we get to spend with her. She refers to herself as 'Laineybaby' and uses that whenever she wants us to give her something. She has also learned the word 'mine' which is just too cute. She puts her hand on her chest and says "mine... momma, mine... Laineybaby" She is quite the independant soul. She knows exactly what she does and does not want and although she is beginning to throw tantrums, they haven't gotten too bad yet (knock on wood). All I can say is that she is just stinkin cute!!! School is, well, school. I am glad it is on the downhill slope and hopefully I'll survive the rest of my first year! Josh is staying really busy with Sundance Film Festival again this year, but he really enjoys his job- Hope everyone is doing well!

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, to Disneyland We Go! (Well, went...)

For the Porter Family Vacation this year, we went to the 'place of a million dreams' (Which is a little bit exaggerated if you ask me. I only realized 3 dreams: go to Disneyland with my little family, meet the princesses, and look Johnny Depp in the eyes- well a figure of him as Jack Sparrow anyway... and one nightmare: my wedding ring was stolen out of our hotel room by the maid...) We were there for 5 days and loved every minute of it!

Lainey was way excited for her first plane ride:

Here she's reading up on the emergency directions:We met some fun characters (these are just a few):

She loved the princesses, I think we met every one. She would take her autograph book right up to them and practically sit on their lap. It was so cute! We ate breakfast in Goofy's Kitchen- That killed all resolve I had to stick to my weightwatchers plan on our trip...
Lainey loved all the rides that she went on. The teacups and carousels were her favorite I think:


Josh's dream store (second to the Jeep Dealership:)

She got 5 whole days with mom and dad,And we played every minute of it!

But I think she had a good time......don't you?

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!