Our Christmas letter to you!

Family and Friends...

I am trying to be a bit more frugal and green this year and am opting to post our Christmas letter rather than mailing out a couple hundred copies. So hopefully this post finds you all healthy and happy. We send our love to you all...happy reading!!

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What an amazing year this has been for the Wyke family. I will try to report chronologically the events of 2008 as best as my absent mind can remember!

*January 11: The birth of our second baby boy, Benson Elliot at 3:34 in the morning. Only 45 minutes from the time that we arrived at the hospital until he appeared. I pushed once…ONCE! What a different experience than my 2½ hours of pushing with Sulli! Ben is really close to walking, has 5 teeth with 2 more coming soon. He “talks ” constantly and is such a happy guy. He brings endless joy, laughs and smiles.*February 26: Our first niece was born. Dylan Renee Wyke was born to Evan’s brother Andy and his wife Erin. She is beautiful!

*April 8: I turned 30! Wow. I celebrated a few weeks earlier with some friends by having dinner and going dancing. On my actual birthday I was lucky enough to have one of my childhood lifelong friends, Tabitha Ward (Thompson) come visit. That next weekend I got another visit from a college roommate lifelong friend Jennifer Chalmers (Eliopulos). It was great to see my girls and have them meet Benny.

*April 24: Our first trip with 2 kids…we traveled to California with Evan’s parents to meet our new niece and introduce Ben to his Aunt, Uncle, several cousins and Great-Grandma Lil. The boys did great on the plane and had a wonderful time with the family. The trip included a visit to the LA Zoo and playing in the waves on Manhattan Beach.

*May 6: My Grandpa Alvin passed away exactly one year after his wife. Many friends and family gathered to celebrate his life on the 17^th in Twin Falls. The day before that, we celebrated my dad, Doug’s 60^th birthday.

*June 13: We took a trip to the family cabin with my girlfriends Jen and Tab so that we could all celebrate our 30^th birthdays together. We had a great time getting to know each other’s spouses a bit better and reminiscing about our childhoods, college days and fun times together.*July 19: Sullivan celebrated his 3^rd birthday pirate style! He is an amazing little boy who loves wrestling his daddy, cooking with mom, and cuddling his brother. He started preschool this fall and is loving his time there. I just can’t believe how fast it is all going. He is a bundle of energy with nonstop running, jumping, talking and playing!*July 21: Evan and I celebrated our 7^th wedding anniversary. We continue to enjoy serving in various ways at our church, participating in two different Bible study groups, and going to the Broadway shows that visit Boise. Evan is still with ReBath as part owner and production manager. He continues to keep Wyke Building Company alive by focusing on remodeling projects. He is also doing some property management work. All in all, he is a very busy man. I went back to work “part part time” for a staffing company. I do fill-in work at various hospitals, nursing homes and outpatient therapy offices around the valley. I also am seeing some home health patients. I am able to do this with the help of a dear friend who worked out a kid-sitting swap with me so that we could both get in a little bit of work but also stay home with our kiddos.(Sulli is our budding photographer)

*September 4: Our annual Lake Powell trip with my family was a wonderful success. The kids had a great time and we were able to relax a bit. Sulli was a little fish in the water and Ben enjoyed splashing around too.

*September 18: The boys, my mom and I took a road trip to Missoula, MT to visit my sister Laurie and her boyfriend Carey. The weekend was filled with cooking and canning. It was a great trip and fun to see their "new-to-them" house. We took some fun walks down to the river and Sulli played in Auntie Boo's garden and fished with Uncle Carey.

November 16: Benson was dedicated at our church and we were able to celebrate this occasion with lots of family and friends. We even had family from California here visiting at the time.

We celebrated Thanksgiving with Evan’s grandma Bertie and parents this year. And then we made a quick trip up to McCall because we heard a rumor that Santa would be there. We will be spending Christmas with my family in Twin Falls. We continue to be blessed beyond all measures. Economic slump and all, we are so fortunate to have such wonderful family, friends and good health. We pray that God is a part of each of your lives and that we see you very soon.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Love,

Evan, Nicole, Sullivan and Benson Wyke

Tis the season!

Our Christmas season has begun! And boy have we been busy! We started off by heading up to McCall the day after Thanksgiving to spend some much needed time with the VanMiddendorps. We were in for a treat as Santa was visiting town that very day! Everybody got a chance to sit on Santa's lap and tell him what they wanted...EVERYONE!! Evan and Freddie
Ben wasn't too sure what to think about the jolly fella. Sulli cracked me up. He got up on Santa's lap with no hesitation and told him that he wanted a motorcycle for Christmas. Sulli wants a motorcycle just like his dads. Sulli was so agreeable with Santa...here is how the rest of the dialogue went:

Santa: You wouldn't want to ride on a big motorcycle. So you want a toy motorcycle.

Sulli: Yes
Santa: What else do you want?

Sulli: Ummmmmm (lasts about 15 seconds)

Santa: A rubber chicken?

Sulli: Yes

So when rehashing the Santa conversation in the car on the way home, Sulli said that he told Santa that he wanted a real motorcycle and a rubber ducky. Oh my he makes me laugh!

Hudson and Sailor

Last Saturday, I had to sing at church and the boys stayed home with Evan. Evan captured some loving moments between the boys. Sulli is trying to convince Ben that he really wants a hug.
Sulli still having fun and Ben not having anything to do with the hugs, pictures or playtime!

Still no Benny smiles but having a much better time with Daddy. Sulli practicing his photography skills again.

Earlier in the day on Saturday, we decided to go exploring as a family. On my way to see one of my patients in Emmett, I drive by a sign that points to a town called "Pearl". We decided to go and see Pearl. We drove on a dirt road for about an hour that took us from Hwy 16 to Hwy 55. We never did see anything that looked like it might be a town, but there was some pretty area that we came across. This was a car sticking out of the side of the hill. Under the car was what looked like an old mine shaft. There was a hot spring coming out of the shaft. After about a half hour on the dirt road with not another car in sight, the boys migrated up to the front seat for better viewing. Sulli "helped" Evan with the navigation.

Sunday night, Evan and I attended our church Christmas party. It was a great time of laughter, fellowship and fun. Not to mention the bazillion desserts that we loaded our plates with. Evan and I volunteered to be a couple in the present wrapping contest. Ev stood behind me blindfolded and wrapped a present. The winner was the couple with the prettiest package. We didn't win but we had a great time. We were both sweating by the end of it!

We sat at a table with our home team. We love these people and have so much fun with them. We are so thankful to have them in our lives.

On Friday night, Evan and I had a Sulli date. We took him to see Sesame Street Live at the Idaho Center. Elmo and all of his friends were there singing and dancing. Sulli had a great time and so did we.

And last night, we attended our first "Christmas program". Sulli's preschool put on an adorable little show. They sang Jingle Bells, Away in a Manger and a couple others. They were so cute and Sulli did great. Mimi and Bumpa were able to come and see as well. Afterwards they had a cookie social. Again...yummy!

So we are in full swing around here. The decorations are up, lights are hung and presents bought. We are choosing to skip the tree this year as I am not up to the challenge of trying to keep Ben away from it 24/7. Kinda sad but next year. We are loving teaching the true meaning of Christmas to our kids and have adopted Fred and Jamie's tradition of reading Luke 2:1-20 every night to the kids so that they learn the story. What a wonderful time of year. Hope that you all are enjoying the time with your families and friends as well. Take care!

Giving Thanks!

Sullivan likes to get his hands on the camera whenever he can. Here are some of his finest shots from our Thanksgiving lunch with Evan's grandma Bertie.

Oh Bumpa...we are so thankful for you! We are thankful for your excellent culinary skills which allowed us to have a delicious scallop dinner!! We are thankful for your collection of Looney Tunes which we watch whenever we come over. And we are thankful for your patience and loving kindness that you shower our boys with. We love you! Daddy...we are thankful for you! We are so thankful for how hard you work each and every day to give us the things that we need. We are thankful that you love to wrestle and play all the fun games that mommy doesn't really like to play. We are thankful that you read bedtime stories and rock and sing us to sleep. We love you daddy!

Mimi...we are thankful for you! We are so thankful for the wonderful activities that you are constantly doing with the boys to better their skills and minds. We are so thankful for the cuddling that you do while our precious boys sleep on your lap. We are so thankful that we have a Mimi who gives our boys so much undivided attention and love. We love you!

Great-Grandma Bertie...we are thankful for you and your generosity. We are so blessed to have you in our lives and be able to see you so often. How amazing that the boys are able to know and love not just grandparents, but GREAT grandparents!

Our Thanksgiving day included a turkey lunch at Emerson House where Evan's grandmother lives. We then went back to our house and Ev's parents came over. We had a delicious scallop dinner and relaxed at home. It was a wonderful day.

Ben was showing off his walking skills which he is still working on. Getting a little bit better every day. He takes a few steps and then decides that he can get where he wants to go quicker by crawling. And then off he goes!

Bertie and Ben were sharing a special moment. She adores seeing the boys and they like going to visit her too. It was a fun day. As for the rest of our family...we are so thankful for you as well. We wish that we could have been with you all during this day, but know that you were definately on our minds and in our hearts. We have so much to be thankful for...starting with the simplest of things like clothing and comfort, food and clean water, cars and jobs. Above and beyond these things we are just spoiled. And to God we give all the gratitude for giving us these amazing lives. Evan and I are so blessed with love, beautiful healthy children and amazing family and friends. We love you all and hope that your Thanksgiving was wonderful as well.

Train up a child...

On Nov. 16th, Benson was dedicated at church. We were so blessed to have lots of people there to support us on our journey of raising our boys according to God's will. We took up a whole row at church with family and friends. Those celebrating this occasion with us were my parents, Evan's parents, Evan's brother and sister in law and our niece, the boys God parents and their 2 children, and our friends the Lindley's. We also had the support of some of our church home team. There were a lot of babies being dedicated that weekend which was neat to see. Evan's parents, Mimi and Bumpa at our house after the dedication. My parents, Nana and Papa. Benny with his God parents, Fred and Jamie VanMiddendorp.

We had a great visit with Evan's brother Andy, his wife Erin and their baby Dylan. We had an early Thanksgiving with them which was oh so yummy!

Sulli and Ben had a great time playing with their cousin. Ben and Dylan are really close in size and skill. they chased eachother around trying to eat eachother. Pretty cute! They all enjoyed playing "drum circle" on the ottoman.

Co-Op Crazy!

My wonderful friend Tracy and I have been trading off watching the kids since the middle of September so that we could both work a bit without sacrificing time with our families in the evening. And more important, we are not sacrificing by having the heartache or financial strain of daycare. She comes out to watch the boys while I go see some home health patients and then I watch her daughter while she meets with her families. It is such a great situation and the kids love playing together. And now, I can sound oh-so-Orange County by saying..."the nanny is with the kids!"

Not only are we helping each other out by watching the kids, but we are also cooking for eachother. Did I mention that I love Tracy? Once a week we are trying to provide dinner for eachother's family. So not only do I have a nanny...I have a cook as well. L-I-V-I-N!!!

This has taken so much stress off of my shoulders. In a situation where I just wasn't sure how to make it possible for me to add a little income, God really pulled through by placing me in Tracy's kitchen one evening and getting the ball rolling on this whole deal. I am so blessed to have Tracy in my life. The kids love her, love eachother, and I don't miss out on but a few hours a couple times a week.

This is Sulli at Tracy's where he told me that he had a baby in his belly. This is an action shot of the baby "coming out". There had been lots of talk of babies in bellies because of my friend Kate who was very pregnant at the time. This is Sulli and his co-op buddy Ainsley (previously blogged as the "betrothed"). They really enjoy playing with eachother but also have their moments. The other week, Ainsley headed for the stairs (Sulli on her heels) and she turned and told him, "I need my space." That is now a favorite phrase of Sulli's. There are lots of issues with sharing, stealing, and space invasion. But they really love eachother. Sulli had come down with a bit of a cold the other week and I was asking him how he felt. I told him that if he was feeling too yucky, we needed to tell Tracy and Ainsley not to come over. He said, "She has to come over. She will touch my heart and I will be ok." Oh my, that melted my heart.

We took a quick trip up to the cabin at the beginning of October and played in the snow. We were driving up there in a blizzard...still can't believe that it snowed in the beginning of October. We got to participate in the Trailing of the Sheep which we had never seen before. They have a fun parade in Ketchum and then run the sheep through town. Sulli and Ainsley loved seeing all of the sheep, dancers, bagpipers, etc. They also had fun making snow balls. Cute kiddos. Fun times!

Boo!

PTA...here I come! This is me getting creative. I made skeleton cupcakes for Sulli's preschool Harvest Party. I think that I had more fun making them than they were appreciated by the kids but that's ok. Sullivan is pictured here with some preschool friends at his party. From the first time that I asked Sulli what he wanted to be, he never strayed from "Cookie Monster". He in fact had an idea for what every member of our family should be. He was to be Cookie and Ben was to be Elmo. He told me that I should be a "bike". What??? Evan was to be Mickey Mouse but this changed to Popeye. The only ones that I followed through with were Elmo and Cookie. He asked what I was on our way to his school and I told him that I was going as a "mom". That's the best costume I wear every day.

Benny's outfit fit perfect on his body but the head was huge. It hung down over his eyes totally hiding his face so it was off of his head most of the time. Little cutie wasn't sure what to think of all of this.Here we are at our church's Trunk or Treat. Sulli is here with his buddy Gus and his little brother Elmo...here you can see what I mean about the huge hood. Sulli was still a bit weary of the whole situation. He wanted to participate in everything but wanted to be right next to/carried by a parent at all times. He loved the cotton candy (thanks Nana) and thought getting candy was pretty cool.

We were excited that Nana and Papa could come over for a quick visit and go Trunk or Treating with us. Sulli took a little rest from pounding the pavement to watch Veggie Tales with Nana.

Benny didn't last long and finally gave in to sleep while watching Mom sing with the praise band. He was Papa's buddy that night.

One of the games was Oscar the Grouch. How this kids parents convinced him to do this I don't know. "So Billy, you are going to sit in a garbage can all night while kids throw bean bags at you...ok? Sounds like fun doesn't it?" Sulli was infatuated with this game and "Oscar". I had to get a picture with him. We picked out some great pumpkins at the pumpkin patch and carved them the other night. Evan's was a really neat owl. Sulli's was so small that 2 eyes and a nose were all that fit. He had a great time scooping out the guts and roasting the seeds. Fun family project.

I love this time of year. So many fun things happening and family events. And they are just beginning! Hope that you all had a fun Halloween. We sure did!