Wilkerson cousins will be in Idaho late July

Hello Everyone! The Wilkersons have finally made plans and it looks like we will all (except Shawn, unfortunately) be in Idaho Falls the last week of July and into the first few days of August. Will anyone else be close by? Dare we plan a get-together?

I was thinking about my cousins this morning when I got up early to do my daily "Biggest Loser" workout (I bought the dvd from the TV show - I like it because the people doing the workout aren't professional athletes and whine and complain and moan through the whole thing - just like I do). ANYWAY, this morning I decided I needed some music to work out with and chose the cd we got at Nikki's wedding. I've always liked it but probably never let Nikki know!

So I was just reading the blog and am so impressed that you guys did Jenny Lake! I keep telling Reed that would be a really fun outing but that Izzy and Olivia would be too small for it. How did Evan and Anja handle things? I suppose Little Sara really is too small for it - but maybe we could take turns carrying her. Anyway, let me know how it went. I love that hike and would really like to do it soon if we can!

Getting back to July plans, if anyone will be around let us know and we can plan something.

Happy June - almost July everyone!
Andrea

Jackson, Wyoming

Our family just got back from a really great trip to Jackson. It brought back memories of the family trip we took many years ago with Grandma. We even stayed at the Jackson Lake Lodge. It brought back a funny memory of David running around outside with underwear on his head.

We had a lot of fun. We hiked Jenny Lake and got to see some bears on the trail. Amazing!

Anja decided on this trip that Mommy isn't best. She had so much fun with her Gran and Pops. She wanted to be with them constantly. It was great for her to get a chance to spend some time with them.

Denver will be finished this week with Sharp. He has been gone for almost three straight weeks. It has been hard, but good knowing he will be staying here for the next 6 months or so. He has a local contract and will be able to come home every night. We are all so excited we just can't wait!

I hope everyone is doing well. I hope to hear about more fun adventures from others!

Exciting news to share!

Hello Everyone!
Just thought I would drop a note and share our exciting news!Evan is going to be a big brother! Steve and I are having a baby in November. We are excited, yet nervous. I hope everybody is doing well. Love, Jess

Hello from Massachusetts

Hi everyone. Happy Friday :)

My mom was on the East Coast for two weeks and left yesterday (Thursday). She spent a week with Uncle Dick in DC and saw Ryan and Lauren. All are doing well, though Ryan and Lauren should be even better because I think they finish exams this week!

Enjoy the weekend!
Cindy

Fun With Cousins

Hi Everyone!

I thought I would post a couple pictures of Anja and Evan playing together a couple weekends ago. Jessica came down for some scrapbooking classes (we took a couple together). While she was at her last class, Evan stayed at our house. Anja loves playing with Evan. They had a lot of fun together. It is good that she has good cousins. Hopefully she will be as close to her cousins as we all are!

Viva Las Vegas

Hi Everyone!!

Brendan and I went to Las Vegas for a few days to celebrate our 1 Year Anniversary and also to go to the Wedding of a very close friend of mine. We got tickets to see The Phantom of the Opera at the Venetian. It came highly recommended by my parents. It was so good and very entertaining, Vegas always does everything big and bold. I would highly recommend it to anyone that is ever in the Vegas area.

This week in Utah it went from mid-80s on Sunday, Monday, & Tuesday . . .to low 50s today and is suppose to be that way through out the entire weekend. Utah Weather . ..you got to love it!!

I hope this finds everyone happy and heathly!!

I'm Back!!!

Hey everyone. Just wanted to drop a note to tell you how my trip to Haiti was. It was amazing! I enjoyed very much getting to know the group of people I went with. All of us were adopting from the orphanage, so instead of working, we got to just play and bond with our little ones.

I also met some very fascinating people who are doing some incredible things for the people of Haiti. If you want to know more about this, corner me sometime, and I'd love to tell.

Now to our little girl. Her name is now Layla. The first night I met her was magical. She came to me right away and snuggled and loved me. It was an answer to many prayers, I can tell you. She got to stay with me the whole week, and every other minute, I was saying, "that's exactly what Malac does," or "that's exactly how my kids are." I know she was meant to be part of our family. I had many wonderful experiences with her and I miss her deeply.

As far as a timetable is concerned, it now might take longer than we thought because of some new procedures Haiti is doing. These have caused some backlog, but we've heard its getting faster. We are still hoping and praying for a quick process, but I know it will happen when the Lord wants it to. I am very comforted by the fact that she is in a wonderful place with people who love her dearly. It was a magnificent experience that I will not soon forget. If we don't get to pick her up before August, Morgan and I are going to go back to spend another week with her. I can't wait!

(p.s. the picture was taken when I first met her -- please remember I had been traveling for a day and a half, i.e. I look awful!)

From one of the Frozen Chosen!!

Hello to everyone from the Minnesotans! Just yesterday I was telling Reed that Minnesota has been my permanent home longer than Idaho Falls was. Idaho, however, will always feel like HOME to me.
I'm sorry I missed all the exchanges from earlier this month at the one-year anniversary of Grandma's death. (Frankly, I was surprised that no one e-mailed anything. . . then realized that you were all communicating with each other on the cousin blog and I was out of the loop!) Anyway, to commemorate Grandma's passing I went to the temple on April 10 and took names with me that Grandma submitted three years ago. All the women in the session ended up doing names from Hettie A Hunter of Ririe. I thought Grandma would be pleased. . . her legacy is continuing in so many ways!
So what plans do people have for summer travel? It looks like the Wilkersons will all be in Idaho at the end of July/early August. I believe some families have other plans so we may not be able to see many of our cousins this year. Could we start talking about a family get-together next summer? Should we meet up in the Idaho Falls/Ririe area or go somewhere else? What dates do and don't work for people?
I'll stop writing now - but let's do think about a bigger family reunion next year. Please write in with any ideas anyone has!

Love to you all,
Andrea

A Fun Game

Here is a fun game I found. I thought some of you might like to try it. It is a bit addicting, but good to do if you are bored and trying to kill time.

Hope you all are doing well!
Kasey

http://www.k2xl.com/games/boomshine/

Hello!
It is great to hear from so many of you! Last week our family remembered grandma by going to Sizzler. I shared lots of fond memories with Steve and Evan about grandma. I can't believe it has been a year, time flies. Nice weather has finally arrived in Idaho, which means we are getting busier. I hope all is well with everybody! Love you all.
Jess