Coach Lilly

This is a picture of Steve and his softball team at Kearns High that just ran along with an article in the Salt Lake Tribune. It was a very nice article about how he's helped turn the program around this year. He loves coaching and the kids all adore him.

SLC Marathon

Alex ran, or should I say strolled in his first 5K yesterday for the Salt Lake City Marathon. Steph and I first did it 2 years ago and had so much fun we decided to make it a tradition. I had to sit out last year because I was 7 months pregnant, but Steph did it with a friend. This year Little Man joined us and I told Steve next year he'll be out there too, no excuses! Anyways, I was nervous that half way through Alex would be sick of sitting in the stroller and be crying the rest of the race, but he was quite the angel. I think he was so entertained by all the people running, plus he took a little nap during the second mile. Unfortunately, Steve saw me almost cause a 3 stroller pile up about 100 yards short of the finish line and will probably never let me forget it! All in all, it was a lot of fun and hopefully will jump start me into getting in better shape, especially with swimsuit season approaching....SCARY!

Spring Fever

I'm sure everyone else in Utah was as elated as Alex and I today to have such a wonderful, warm, sunny day. He's at a great age because he's not adventurous enough yet to venture off the blanket we had laid out on the lawn, so it was nice and relaxing. He kept the hat on for quite a while, but the sunglasses only stayed on long enough to snap a quick shot.

"Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow..." Matthew 6:28

Cool little story...

The other day I was taking pictures of this flower arrangement Steve's friend sent us. It dawned on me that it was neat that the arrangement had lilies in them (because we're the Lillys), then I realized that there were 5 lilies opened, symbolizing Steve, his dad and 3 living siblings. There were 4 lilies closed, representing Steve's mom, his sister, brother, and nephew who passed away recently.

Yesterday was the funeral, everything was very nice. Steve is flying to Alabama tomorrow where his mother will be buried. The thing that makes it even harder for Steve is that his dad is moving back down South with his sister, so he feels like he's losing both parents at once. We'll just have to make sure he gets the chance to go visit often.

At the viewing, Steve and I reminisced that when she found out I was pregnant, my mother in law told us she had been praying for us to have a baby. Steve finds comfort in the thought that Alex was sent to us to help fill the void that her passing has left.

L'il Tidy Bowl Man

For the past couple weeks, we've been trying to make sure we keep the bathroom door shut because Alex has developed a fascination with trying to get into the bathroom. It's like he just knows there is something "forbidden" in there and is dying to find out what it is. Yesterday, I let my guard down and the sneaky kid took full advantage. As soon as I realized it was too quiet and he was nowhere to be seen, I ran to the bathroom and sure enough, in that short minute, not only did he discover the toilet, he figured out how to unravel the entire roll of toilet paper. But in his defense, at least he left the seat down!

Sad News

Hi, just wanted to share with everyone our sad news that Steve's mother passed away Saturday. She had a massive heart attack and it was really unexpected. Steve's father is quite a bit older than she was, and the poor man never anticipated that she would go before him. Steve is working hard trying to get all the arrangements made, and grieving at the same time. Poor guy is exhausted. We just try to remember how wonderful it is for her to again be with her son and daughter, who passed away several years ago. If anything, this is a reminder to live life to the fullest because tomorrow is never promised. Love you all, Lana

TAYLORSVILLE'S MOST WANTED

Name: Jordan Lilly

Age: 17 in 3 weeks

Description: Very handsome young man if you can see his face under all that hair

Social Status: Grounded

Last Seen: At home, because he's GROUNDED!

Aliases: Lana Lilly

Well, we often like to blog about the cute and wonderful things our kids do, but hey, realistically parenting can be a real *&%$!, can't it? So I thought I'd share with you all Jordan's latest scheme. I received a call yesterday from Cottonwood High to confirm that the excused absence note Jordan turned in was signed by yours truly. I said, "I'm his step mom, maybe his mom signed it". No, it was signed "Lana Lilly". Nice try Jordan! So I share this with you moms who have little ones at home running you ragged as a reminder to cherish your little ones, for one day they will be teenagers!!

I'm a big boy!

Alex says..."Look, I can drink from a sippy cup!"....

"I try to eat big boy food like my Daddy"....

"But darn it, I still only have one tooth!"