Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

This Holiday Season has been pretty busy for our little family. Between Utah and home, we have been here and there. We had a wonderful Christmas and Maddi got tons of presents, one of her favorites is her rocking horse. She missed her Grandma and Papa while we were in Utah, but had fun playing with cousins and Grandma and Grandpa Bryson. We have been truly blessed this past year and we are looking forward to what is in store for us this next year. Hope all of you are doing well. Happy New Year!

Maddi One Year

Happy Birthday Madelyn!

She was a little excited!

Maddi with Grandpa Wray and her new teddy bearMaddi had a Dora cake


Maddi eating her cake

Opening presents

Yesterday was Madelyn's 1st birthday. We had a little party at our house for our family. It was fun. Maddi got tons of presents!

Steel Head Fishing

Tyler, his brother Dillon, and his father went Steel Head Fishing on the Salmon River the day after Thanksgiving. There was only one fish caught, but they had fun nonetheless.

Fall Pics

3 Years

This is what Tyler looked like the first time I saw him with his father.
He went fishing, and totally caught me! (cheesy I know)

Well today marks the anniversary of the day me and my husband, Tyler, met. It was also our first date. Yes, we were set up, and surprisingly enough, by his father. Tyler picked me up and right away commented on my eye color, he had my heart then. To say the least after a 6 week courtship, and a 2 month engagement we were married, and here we are on our journey to happily ever after. I can honestly say things have not always been easy, but like Tyler says, the good things never are. I never knew that I could love someone so much, and it grows every day. He is the best thing that has ever happened to me, and he is so good to me. Three years has gone by fast, but I treasure every second, every 94,670,777.9 of them. Happy Anniversary sweetheart and may we be together forever!

Happy Veterans Day

So this year Veteran's Day comes with a slightly different meaning for me. I know that Tyler has not fought in war, but he has decided to serve his country. As a wife and mother, I cannot say that I was excited about the idea, for the sake of his safety. But now, I look at it through different eyes. My dear husband, like many others, have decided that our freedoms, our country, and our lives are more important than theirs. I got so heated with the presidential election ordeal, but then I thought to myself, our soldiers are the ones who have made it possible for us to chose our own leaders, even if it is an ordeal. We owe so much to those men and women who have put their lives on hold, and on the line, for us to take our luxuries for granted. I have met many of these people who wear their uniforms with pride for serving their country. They have done so much for us, even died for us, and yet here I am taking my precious time with my husband and child for granted. I think that it is nice to have Veteran's day so close to Thanksgiving. Maybe I can focus more on what I am grateful for. To my husband, and all those who have stood and fought for our rights, freedoms, and our lives, I salute you!

Jilinda Rose Wray

My wife does all the blogging stuff like posting pictures and telling everyone how wonderful her family is. Well I wanted to get on and post a little something about her to show her in a small way just how amazing and wonderful she is. Jilinda does so much for our beautiful little family and words cannot express how grateful I am for her and all she does. I love my wife with all my heart! She is and will forever be my best friend, the most beautiful woman in my life (and the world to me), the greatest wife and mother to our children, and my eternal companion. I have so much love and respect for Jilinda, she has been through so much and yet she never complained while she was sick and going through treatments, while at the same time going to school at BYU-I full time, and working at the eye doctor full time to pay for school and medical bills because her mother was going through surgeries as well in Utah and couldn't be up here for her through her hard times to help even though they both wanted to be there for each other. She is so strong. Her testimony as well is so strong, and she has so much love for everyone. She earned her Bachelor's degree and has an L.S.W. (licence in social work), is a stay at home mom with little Madelyn and is amazing with her and raising her while I am not home, she has to put up with me, and she works full time on top of that to help support us. She is a great example to me, there is no greater call in life than that of a mother. I Love, Honor, Respect, and Cherish you Jules for magnifying your calling and for loving me and Maddi. I Salute You!!! All my love!
Ty

Oops!

So I was in the kitchen and I heard Maddi starting to cry. I walked into the living room and there she was. I know I am probably a bad mom for grabbing a camera instead of grabbing her, but it was too funny to let go.

Called To Serve

Well he is officially sworn in and will report for duty on
May 5, 2009 at Fort Sills, Oklahoma.
I am so proud of Tyler for all he does and what he is doing. He is very dear to my heart, and yes, I will miss him terribly, but I respect and look up to him for the choice he has made to do this.
I love you sweetheart!

Happy Halloween!

Maddi with Grandpa Wray dressed up as RHS baseball coach (retired)

Maddi's first Halloween.
She kinda got scared trick or treating but liked the suckers she got- by the end of the night her face was blue and sticky.

Carving Pumpkins

We carved pumpkins today. We weren't sure how Maddi would take the pumpkin idea, but she did really well and even tried to eat the insides.

Tagged

8 shows I love to watch:
1- Frasier
2-House Hunters
3-Criminal Minds
4-Chuck
5-Gilmore Girls (even if they are reruns)
6-Grey's Anatomy
7-Biggest Loser
8-The Bachelor

8 favorite restaurants:
1-Chin Wah
2-Texas Roadhouse
3-Cafe Rio
4-Wingers
5-Mongolian Grill
6-Chilis
7-Olive Garden
8-Little Bit of Mexico

8 Things that happened yesterday:
1-My baby started walking
2-Did some paperwork
3-Met my husband for lunch
4-Met with some clients
5-Didn't make dinner
6-Did some laundry without my house flooding :)
7-Bought my baby some shoes
8-Waited up late for my husband

8 Things I am looking forward to:
1- Taking Maddi trick or treating
2- Tyler finishing school
3- Seeing my family again
4-Eating lunch
5-Tyler being home from training
6-Having a date with my husband
7- Maddi walking without falling over so much
8-Having a clean house

8 Things on my wish list:
1- A maid
2- A massage
3- A home of our own
4- Living closer to my family
5- Being 15 pounds lighter and 3 inches taller
6-Girlfriends around that I could go have lunch with
7-No debt
8-Tyler doesn't get shipped to war

8 People I tag:
1-Anyone who would like to do this
2-Chelsey Bean
3-Lindsay Bryson
4-McKenzie Hegsted
5-Stephanie G.
6- I don't know who else
7-You
8-Them

Winter is basically here

So yes, it is sad that the snow has fallen and the weather has become less than desirable. But I have to admit my little angel is adorable in her snow gear! Madelyn screams and cries every time I put her winter coat on her and rips her hat off after a few minutes with it on, but she looks adorable in them anyways.

Maddi and Daddy heading outside!

Proposition 8

I don't know if many of you know about Proposition 8. We've been asked to do our part to protect the sanctity of marriage. More information visit http://www.lds.org/ld.

Autumn Lunar Happening

So sometimes I need a laugh.

I've been Husband Tagged!

1. Where did you meet? Tyler's dad set us up on a date. I was in his social work class at the time.

2. How long did you date before you got married? 4 months and 11 days!

3. How long have you been married? 2 years and 6 months.

4. What does he do that surprises you? He brings something fun home when he knows I've had a bad day.

5. What is your favorite feature of his? Everything! If I had to chose just one, it would be his hands. He has strong, steady hands and they make me feel safe.

6. What is your favorite quality of his? Tyler can always make me laugh. He can still put a smile on my face at any given moment. He also can still give me butterflies in my stomach when he looks at me. That is an amazing feeling.

7. Does he have a nickname for you? Yes... he calls me Jules. A name no one else has ever called me or ever will.

8. What is his favorite color? Blue, Red, and Black.

9. What is his favorite food? That is a hard one cuz he eats anything, but he LOVES Mexican food.

10. What is his favorite sport? If any of you know Tyler, you know it's BASEBALL!

11. When and where was your first kiss? It was on our second date, Nov 18th 2005, in the parking lot of Colonial House (my apartment at the time)

12. What is your favorite thing to do as a couple? With Maddi in the picture there isn't much time to spend as a "couple" but we love to go out to eat and watch movies together.

13. Do you have any children? Yes one BEAUTIFUL baby girl.

14. Does he have a hidden talent? Tyler is very good at knowing things that aren't apparent. If that makes sense. He knows right away when something is wrong or not right. He can just feel it.

15. How old is he? 24

16. Who said I love you first? He did.

17. Whats his favorite type of music? Ty likes oldies, and he loves any type of Spanish music.

18. What do you admire most about him? Tyler has been through so much, that I can't even imagine, and he is so strong. He cares about people and wants to help them. He will stop in the middle of a snow storm to help someone change a tire or get out of a snow drift. He puts his life on the line every call that goes out for a fire. He would do anything for me and Madelyn and shows us everyday how much he loves us. He is just plain amazing.

19. Do you think he will read this? Probably not for a while.

I Tag: I tag Lindsay Bryson, Clarise Pedersen, and McKenzie Hegsted! Have fun!

Autumn

I have to admit that I love Autumn. And since today is the Autumn Equinox, I thought that I would pay tribute to my favorite season. Here in Idaho it seams that autumn doesn't last very long, so it makes it so much more important to savor every moment. I looked outside my bedroom window this morning when I woke up and saw the leaves on the trees in my yard are starting to turn colors. It makes me feel so at ease. I just want to curl up in a blanket and drink hot apple cider.

Uncle Tanner Kisses

We've been working on saying goodnight to Uncle Tanner. We have a picture of him holding Maddi and she has been just waving goodnight. But she finally learned to give kisses to Uncle Tanner to say goodnight. Miss you Uncle Tan!

Iron Horsemen

Hey Tanner, here is the logo I drew up for us to put on the back of a jacket for when we ride our motorcycles. So what do you think? Dad, Dillon and I all have road bikes, Yamaha V-Star's to be exact, well Dillon has a XS Special or something. But we love riding them so I thought it would be appropriate to draw up a patch to have in honor of Kody Louis Wray so he can always be with us when we ride, so Tanner when you get home you need to get a bike too and join the club.

Labor Day

For Labor Day weekend Tyler, Madelyn, and I went up to Island Park with Tyler's family. We spent Saturday riding the fourwheelers and sitting by the campfire. It was Maddi's first time up there and outdoors like that. She had a lot of fun. This is her waving. (Thanks Grandpa Wray for the pics)

First Priority Mail

Grandma Bryson sent us a package and Maddi was so excited with the box! We almost packed her up and sent her to Utah! She had tons of fun playing in the box for quite a while.

Some much needed advice

Ok, so I need some help! I look at all these women around me, and I am in awe. They are so strong and independent. Since having my little girl, whom I love by the way, I have begun to struggle. I look at these women who can go days without their husband, balance all their children and still have a successful career, beautiful home, and seem to never stop smiling. I ask myself, did I not get the memo? I watched my neighbor the other day load up her three little boys, jump on the four wheeler, pack up a wheelbarrow on the back along with some tomato cages, and pack it all home by herself! HOW? I cannot mow the lawn, clean the house, bring home a paycheck, do the dishes, and watch my daughter in a day by myself without breaking a sweat or starting to cry. I tell you that I am weak! I can't even take a shower that lasts more than 5 minutes without help from my husband to watch the baby! And to top it all off, women have to take care of our husbands! Please tell me you strong women of the world how do you do it all without going crazy? How do you stay smiling and so kind to others? Is there a class I need to take? Please help.

Family Pictures

Yesterday Grandpa Wray helped us take some family pictures. They turned out really nice, and of course Madelyn is beautiful!

Our Trip

So Tyler had to go out of town for two weeks, and left me and Madelyn alone in lonely Idaho. So I decided to jump ship and go to Utah to be with my family while he was away. While we were there Madelyn decided that she would start sitting by herself, as well as to start crawling. It was fun, but sad that Daddy had to miss it all. It was really nice to see my friends and family again, but as always it was wonderful to see Tyler again and come back home.


Madelyn loved to play with my parents card can while the rest of us played games.

One day Madelyn decided that she would dump her sweet potatoes all over herself and play in them instead of eating them. She thought it was so funny!

Bad Hair Day

Like Father like Daughter! You can see where she gets her hair from!

Thank Heaven for Little Girls

Some days I am in awe of the miracle God gave us. She is the sunshine in my life, and the constant reminder that I am loved by a Father in Heaven. She makes me laugh in so many ways. She has such a sweet personality, and is always filled with fun moments. Her sweet singing in sacrament meeting during the hymns is one of my favorites, and the slobbery kisses on my cheek. Never did I ever imagine that we would be blessed with such an angel. Thank heaven for my little girl.

A Day at the Zoo

Today we went to the Zoo in Idaho Falls. It was Madelyn's first time at the zoo and she loved the animals. She got to see penquins, pet a goat, see monkeys, and she loved the flamingos.
Also, today she turned 7 months old.