Sonya's actual birthday...

For Sonya's real birthday, we celebrated with some cupcakes, friends, and family at OUT OF THIS WORLD. It was just a casual little afternoon get-together. Although we took tons of pictures...these ones of Cam are my most favorite! Cam climbed up three stories , to the tallest tube slide in the kids play area, and slid down with Sonya on his lap. Unfortunately, he got stuck...and a mountain of small children got clogged-up behind him. I was fortunate enough to have a camera waiting. I love how Sonya is COMPLETELY CRACKING UP watching her dad come off the slide!





Here's a video of Sonya enjoying her birthday cupcakes:

Sonya turns four!

This year, Sonya celebrated her birthday three weeks early. We were worried that, with Cole's emminant arrival, Sonya's actual birthday might get overlooked. We had a combined princess party with Sonya's good friend who also has a December birthday.


The festivities began with a rockin' dance party!






The girls replenished their strength with a lunch of mini hotdogs (little smokies in a split roll) and hamburgers (half a meatball in split roll).


After a gift exchange (we had each girl bring a small wrapped present, put them in a pile, and had each girl unwrap and take home a gift), the girls sat down to cake, cookies, milk, and princess costume accessories.

Christmas 2011

"WHAT?! That was Christmas? What's the big deal?"


"Well, Cole, we had a pretty low-key Christmas this year because you were plenty of excitement for our little family. You and Sonya did have fun visitors: A couple of Grandmas and Grandpa's, some aunts and uncles and cousins, a doggie....and even Santa came to visit!


Can you guess what this is a picture of? It is my MOST FAVORITE Sonya creation yet...very Picasso-esk...


Yep! That's right, it is the Christmas Nativity! Sonya was simply in love with the nativity story this year...insisting that we read Luke 2 to her several times, and reinacting the story with little figurines. She was more excited about the baby Jesus than Santa, and rightfully so.


Merry Christmas!

Our newest addition....

Coleridge Doran Wilde was born December 14th 2011 at 8:02 AM. Nice and fat and perfect: 8#4oz, 20"; and very, very loved!

Lots of people have asked about this little man's name. His middle name comes from his grandpa, Cam's dad. While we seem to be using the nickname of "Cole", his full first name was suggested by Sonya (we think it was a mixture of two of her friends' names, Colin and Talmage) but it also happens to be the name of one of my favorite poets- Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Sonya started calling him Coleridge in late July, and it stuck. This is an exerpt from the poem "Frost at Midnight", which articulates some of the thoughts Coleridge had holding his newborn son:

" Dear Babe, that sleepest cradled by my side,
Whose gentle breathings, heard in this deep calm,
Fill up the intersperséd vacancies
And momentary pauses of the thought!
My babe so beautiful! it thrills my heart
With tender gladness, thus to look at thee,
And think that thou shalt learn far other lore,
And in far other scenes! For I was reared
In the great city, pent 'mid cloisters dim,
And saw nought lovely but the sky and stars.
But thou, my babe! shalt wander like a breeze
By lakes and sandy shores, beneath the crags
Of ancient mountain, and beneath the clouds,
Which image in their bulk both lakes and shores
And mountain crags: so shalt thou see and hear
The lovely shapes and sounds intelligible
Of that eternal language, which thy God
Utters, who from eternity doth teach
Himself in all, and all things in himself.
Great universal Teacher! he shall mould
Thy spirit, and by giving make it ask."

Turkey Day

(aren't these little turkeys cute?! It has become a tradition (at Sonya's request). We make them out of chocolates and cardstock.) I cannot take credit for this FANTASTIC apron that fit my prego physique so beautifully; it belongs to cousin Jessica.


Awwww...my cute little family! I'm lovin' the accesorizing! Cam can TOTALLY pull off the nerdy professor look with his bowtie!


YUM! (kudos to the yam-maker...I'm still dreaming about the crunchy gingerstap topping!)


This is Sonya at her preschool Thanksgiving party. She was asked to make a list of all the things she is grateful for.....


...and this is Cam's reaction when he see's only one word on the list: MOMMY!
YAY! this is one of those rare payout moments when super-fun-candy-giving-wrestling daddy gives way to the less-fun-but-steady and loving mommy!

Verboort 2011- A Wilde Family tradition

This year, we were joined by Ned's family (Cam's brother who just moved to Oregon) and our new neighbors: Regan and Krista. The annual sausage festival is a fundraiser for a small private school in Verboort. Although there are exciting attractions like the 'Pot Holder Raffle' (Sonya won a giant stuffed lion this year!) and the 'Pork and Bean Loaf' bake sale, the real draw is the food! Here's Ned and Seth gleefully and energetically beginning to feast.



Little Natalie was VERY proud of her feasting prowess!



This was the damage done by our little group: I'm guessing a quarter pig, 4 heads of cabbage, 10# each potatoes and apples, and two whole pies met their demise at our hand.



The consequences were desastrous, especially for these two very, very pregnant women! Who brought the TUMS?!?!?!?!?