Blake's Blessing

On October 24th Blake Sean Malouf was blessed by his daddy, Sean! We got to go to Sean and Brittany's cute house to watch the blessing and also eat some yummy food. Blake is the sweetest baby ever. We are so glad he is part of our family.

Michael wore these boots almost 30 years ago!

Ryan, his DS, Kate and Lily. Kate and Lily have matching skirts!

The Proud Father

The Happy Malouf Family

Las Vegas!

Michael and I got to go on a little getaway this weekend with our friends Brad and Amber! We stayed at the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas! It was so nice! We all rode together in our little Elantra and kept each other entertained for the long ride. Lily stayed with my sister Judy and had so much fun there! We almost didn't go and tried to get out of it since my mom had a health scare this week, however Expedia wouldn't let us do so since it was one of those deals where you just say the price and the number of stars you want and where and Expedia assigns you to a place and doesn't let you refund or cancel. My mom had a seizure in the middle of the night caused by low sodium and potassium. She had to stay at the hospital for a couple days :( She is doing much better now though so we are glad we made the trip and had fun AND that my mom is getting better every day and home safe and sound!

We left for Vegas on Friday morning. Our car was so full of stuff for Lily that we had to drop her off in Springville first (my sister met us at the exit so that was nice) and then go pick up Brad and Amber. Lily was pretty upset when I put her in the carseat into Judy's van but was fine a couple minutes later (phew!). It was hard for me to leave her for so long. After picking up Brad and Amber we started our long journey!

We stopped in St. George for some gas and some lunch at Freddy's Diner. It was a yummy burger place and they gave us some free fries and a free shake! Then we headed to Vegas. We listened to a Ray Bradbury book part of the way called "The Ravine" It cut out right at the most intense part as we were going through the canyon! But we eventually got to finish it.

When we got to the hotel we were awed by the complimentary valet and the floral smelling lobby with lemon water to drink. The elevators were so fast taking us upstairs we all felt dizzy everytime. Our rooms were on the same floor (the 21st). The rooms were set back from the hallway by another set of locked doors so you couldn't hear any hallway noise. It is a 5 star hotel and it deserves its rating because the rooms were fabulous. My favorite part was the huge jetted tub. You could watch the T.V. that was inlaid in the mirror while you soaked your aching muscles in the hot, roiling water.

Michael informing his parents we arrived safely :)

I want one of these T.V.s in my bathroom mirror someday.

We didn't stay in our rooms long, we were ready to see some of Vegas! Brad hadn't ever explored the strip. We took the hotel shuttle to the strip and looked around Bellagios and Ceaser's Palace. We looked in some of the stores. A lot of the stores and restraunts had their own little personal DJ's. We did a little Black Jack and Poker, but of course didn't make any money. Amber and Brad photobombed at least 20 photos while we were out. They would just slowly walk behind people getting their pictures taken and make the ugliest faces they could! My favorite was when Amber was miming biting a guys butt. I wish I could see how the pictures turned out and the people's reactions. Maybe someday they will show up on a photobombing website :)

The Fashionistas!

Largest Chocolate Fountain in the Word!

The guys and their Ladies

Then we went back to the hotel, got our car and ate at Pink Taco. It was so delicious! Brad ate a really hot pepper on his plate and of course Michael had to try it too so they were both dying.

After dinner we went to the craziest place in Las Vegas! Freemont Street. I had been there before with my friend Shani, but it was insane this night. Tons of people were dressed up as weird characters and singing or beating drums or drawing pictures. There was also a lot of drunks and weirdos! It was very entertaining to walk through, but we were a bit scared :) They have a restraunt on that street that cracked me up. It was called the Heart Attack Grill. If you weighed over 350 lbs. you get to eat free there. They make all the customers wear hospital gowns and the waitresses are slutty nurses. You can get a burger that has almost 10,000 calories! We didn't go in, but it was funny! After that we headed home to our rooms where we could relax our weary walking muscles in our nice jetted tubs and prepare for the next day of fun.

Lots of crazy people and the Vegas Cowboy!

Waiting for our car. So tired!

On Saturday we slept in a bit then went to get crepes at the Paris. I don't think you can go wrong with any crepe you get there. They were amazing! Then we went to the outlet mall and spent way too much money there since they have a Puma store. After spending like 3 hours in the store we went back to the hotel to relax by the pool. They had really nice huge pool beds to lay on and read and soak up the sun! They brought us ice cold water and even some free sunscreen.

Best. Meal. Ever.

Amber is super excited for hers :)

Then we got dressed and headed out for Michael's favorite part of the trip. We saw Gravity in 3D IMAX. It was pretty awesome! Very intense. We were starving after that and ready to try Vegas's best buffet. We went to the one in Ceaser's Palace. We had to wait in line for almost an hour just to get in, but once we did we all ate about a mountain of food! I tried crab legs for the first time and loved them!

Waiting in Line for Forever!

Just one trip to the buffet. Several were made.

After eating we did a tiny more gambling and instantly regretted it since we lost our money in about 2 seconds. We were all pooped so we headed back to Trump.

Sunday was our last day. We simply ate some Einstein's Bagels (where Michael somehow spilled hot chocolate all over himself) and then headed home. I was very homesick for my Lily! The drive home was filled with "Would you rather...?" questions and Brad and Amber wearing mustaches :).

Lily had a great time while we were gone with Judy. They went and fed the Ducks with Bentz and Holly, Lily went to church and a choir concert, and was a great sleeper! She seemed very happy when we picked her up! It was a nice weekend for everyone!

Fall is here!

Fall is the best season! Its so pretty, the weather is perfect, and it has the anticipation of the trio of awesome holidays coming up (Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas!). We did some fun things to celebrate the season :)

Lily and I went to a pumpkin patch called Jaker's Jack-O-Lanterns in Springville with our buddies Shani and Makadie. Lily and Makadie are so cute together. They are so close in age they make a great pair. Makadie calls Lily "La La" and gave her a few sweet hugs. Lily is still a little bit shy around her and lets Makadie take the lead. We can already see how the dynamics of this friendship will go :) Shani and I have been friends for going on 17 years now, so its always fun to get together with her. They had a fun little corn kernal pit that the girls had fun running their fingers through and throwing. I got it all inside my shoes and my pants! When I came home I left a trail of corn kernals going up the stairs! Then we loaded them up in a wagon and looked at some cute farm animals. Then we went through a little maze and also a little pathway with pumpkins lining the sides. We also got to go on a tractor ride! It was a fun and FREE morning!

My parent's Golden Delicious apples are ready to eat! Lily loves them. She keeps stealing them from me! I take a bite and she grabs it and takes care of the rest!

We busted out her heavy winter coat when we went to the park for 2 of my nephews birthdays celebration. Its the same coat she wore last year! Last year it was a little big, now its a little small, but at least it works! Lily enjoyed the cupcakes!

We have watched a little football with Daddy and Grandma and Grandpa Malouf and Bruce of course :)

My niece Holly did our family pictures for us up in American Fork Canyon with the beautiful Fall Leaves! Here are just a couple. I will have to do a whole post with the rest later! She did an amazing job as usual! Hire her!http://www.hallelujahphotography.com/

During conference Lily liked when the Tabernacle Choir sang. She would do some interpretive modern dance. It was adorable. I tried to get video  but she immediately stopped and ran over to me when I started recording. Oh well!

We even got a little snow already!

Bath Time!

3 Little Ducks

Brushing her teeth is serious business:

Our best buds the Stapleys came over for some dinner! We love them to pieces!

Ryker, or as Lily calls him in sign language "Cracker". He is her betrothed.

Brad and the 2 princesses! Lily loves when Brad throws her around.

Cute Little Beckett.

Storytime: Lily and I started going to storytime at the library. She loves books so it is fun!

Ear Infections: Lily had another double ear infection. The doctor said there was pus in them! So he put her on the strong and very expensive antibiotic. He also suggested we go to an E.N.T. to see about getting tubes in her ears. So I took her and she said that there was fluid in her ears and she wants me to bring her back in 2 months to see if there is still fluid. If there is then maybe she will have to have the surgery. Scary!

Coloring!: Lily is obsessed with coloring. She probably spends up to an hour a day coloring pictures or on her cardboard box :) She loves it when we color with her too. It has helped her learn her colors too! She says and recognizes pink, blue (bu), green (geen), red, yellow (orello), and black (ack).

New Halloween Tradition:

Lily gets so excited to move the Jack-o-Lantern each day :)

Lily's Body Parts:

Random Pictures!

Cousins!

Some Bedtime Reading

Good Little Mommy

"Mammma"

"Umpa" 

Sunday was my last day teaching my primary class after about 7 months of being with them. I will miss those cute kids, even though a couple of them rose my blood pressure from time to time :) One of my students brought me some wild flowers a couple weeks ago (and it was a boy too!)