EASTER MORN

I was really excited for Easter this year because I wanted to start some new traditions.

Ryan didn't have many Easter traditions as a child (although he does remember coloring eggs) so playing the Easter Bunny has become even more of a thrill for me! We also started the tradition of doing an Easter French Toast Brunch. It was a big hit! Ryan caught on pretty quick to it all as I was very surprised when there were 3 baskets in our family room! We have been sharing one iPod and it really belongs to him, so I suppose the gift was as much of a gift to him as it is to me. Now he can take his iPod with him when we works out at his on site gym at work.

I really want our kids to have fun memories as they grow up. I can still remember the 8 easter baskets lined up in the family room every Easter. I remember always getting lots of treats, a surprise of some sort, and a chocolate bunny. At some point, we always watched the Easter Dream as a family. Hopefully I can help create memories and teach my children why we celebrate these days in a way that will bring happiness for years to come!

EASTER ROCK HUNT

Max participated in his first Easter Egg Hunt in Tooele on Saturday. Every year, Grandma J. puts on an Easter party complete with delicious assortment of food (in which we always overindulge) and an egg hunt for all the great grand kids. He had no idea what to do. Still not quite sure what it's all about...I think I'll try to eat it.

Forget this...the rocks are much more interesting. I think I'll hang out in this rock bed for the remainder of the hunt.After the hunt, all the great grand kids gather inside and we discover who found the "special empty egg", symbolic of the empty tomb.

This year Camilla found the special egg.After the hunt, all the kids had fun playing with their bouncy balls Grandma J. got for each one. Max wanted to be right in their with all the kids. We had a great time, despite the lack of enthusiasm on Max's part for egg hunting...as long as there are rocks and dirt, I think we will be fine.

Wreaths & Cherry Chocolate Cupcakes

Last night my good friend Michelle invited myself and two of my favorite other gal pals, Jolea & Emily, to make some these awesome wreaths. She taught all 3 of us the proper plucking of greenery, bunching technique, and how to successfully operate the wreath binder. The results were just amazing! In true Michelle fashion, these chocolate cherry cupcakes were awaiting us, the presentation as sweet as the cupcakes...and honestly, I don't know which I enjoyed more...the cupcake or the wreath making. The finished product
What happens when three moms get away for a night without their children
Thank you Michelle...my kitchen door has never looked so great!

Aunt Michelle and Uncle Dean

Before Max was even born, he had already become the adopted nephew of two of our favorite people...Aunt Michelle who lives in Provo and Uncle Dean, who hails from Boston. This past week Max had the fortunate opportunity of hanging out with both of them. Max took his Aunt Michelle for a belated birthday lunch on Wednesday and caught up with her on all of life's adventures since we last saw her...we heard about her travels, her new friends, her marathon training, and her busy job! She in turn heard all about Max's new teeth, his new found vocabulary and mobility, and how much he loves his daddy and uncles. As Max and Mommy were perusing the new merchandise in Aunt Mickey's store, who should drop in but Uncle Dean, who had just flown in from Boston! What a party in was at the CC&F!

Then on Sunday Uncle Dean came to our house for Sunday dinner. Max was just a few months old the last time Uncle Dean was in town so he had to show off all his new skills. Uncle Dean was so nice and brought him a new pair of PJ's and a BYU basketball. The PJ's were of course sporting the baseballs and bats as Uncle Dean has high hopes of Max being a "lefty" and making it big in the MLB.

Even though Max has 12 biological Aunts and Uncles, we couldn't be happier that these two are a part of our son's life. How lucky he is and how fortunate we are to have such great friends!

PLAY DATE

Last week Max and Mommy had a play date with a few of their favorite people. Our good friend Amy was up visiting from Arizona, so Sharon, Emily and I loaded up the kids for a lunch play date at Amy's parents home in Orem. It was so fun to catch up, especially with Amy since I had not seen her in so long.

Max and Andrew are only a few weeks apart so it was fun for them to finally meet. We compared mommy notes and got Sharon's take on what life is like as you add to the family. We discussed sleeping schedules, allergies, staying at home, our childrens' weird habits, and husbands...my how our lives have evolved!

I told all the kids to look at the camera on the count of three, and Livy took it a step further. 1..2..3...FLASH!Max was excited to finally have some boys around to play with, although I don't know how Sammy felt about it.

What a fun time we had!

Mighty Mischevious Max

Max has been tagged by his cousin Avery, who lives in Idaho Falls.

Max came to us on Christmas Eve and we like to say he is very punctual because he was born on his due date. We thought we would make it through Christmas as there were no signs of an impending arrival, but as we now know, Max loves to keep us on our toes.

Max was 8 lbs. 10 oz. and just kept getting bigger and bigger. He was such a good baby, not fussy unless he really needed something. We held him, and held him...which has since led to his very poor bedtime habits which we are still trying to break him of.

Many of you know that Max has a very interesting "soothing technique" for going to sleep. He has to pick...mostly eyelashes, but the occasional Adam's apple or eyelid skin will do. We have no idea how to break him of this.

Like his cousin Avery, Max is mischievous. He is into everything. His favorite things to destroy are mom's cupboards, books, and anything and everything in the bathroom. Daily restoration of a once well organized and clean home is imperative.

Since having Max, I firmly believe that gender specific behaviors are God given and specific. Nature will take over most children if you just let it be. No one taught this child how to crash, fly, dump, hit, or drive almost every toy, but ever since he could make the sounds to resemble the aforementioned verbs, he turns every item into a plane or sword or what have you. This little boy is truly all boy. The only use he has for dolls is for picking their eyelashes. He has recently discovered how yummy rocks and dirt tastes and loves being outside.

Max mastered the walking thing at about 13 mos old and since then he thinks he owns the place. His current vocabulary consists of "Hi, Daddy, dog, ball", quite the masculine vocabulary.

Some of Max's favorite things are playing with kids, especially his cousin Easton, and playing with his uncles Mark and Jeff and his Daddy. You can tell what his mommy does all day because as of lately, Max's new interests are the broom, vacuum wand, and disinfecting wipes. He also loves the bath, so while he loves getting dirty, at least he knows how to clean up. Max also loves music and to dance...he has quite the little booty bump.

Our life hasn't been the same since he came. He is developing quite the personality and figuring out how to test Mom and Dad. We love him so much and can't imagine life without our MAX!
MAX TAGS GRACE MOORE, BELLE BLAIR, AND JHETT HAMBLIN!

GILMORE GIRLS

I just happened to stumble upon this little gem of a show when I was folding laundry a few months ago and I've since developed a slight addiction. Why am I so pulled in by dry sarcasm and wit? Ryan doesn't get it but it's my guilty pleasure when I'm folding laundry or doing some other mundane domesticity. I don't pretend to understand his fascination with Fight Quest or Gangland so I don't see why he should understand my fascination with the Gilmore Girls. Fair enough. Oh, and if Stars Hollow really exists, I want to live there. That will tell you something about me. I love small towns...the kind you see in the middle of snow globes at Christmas and wonder if they really still exist. That's where I want to live. Again, another manifestation of my slightly skewed version of reality.

I AM EMMA and ELINOR

Take the Quiz here!

I stole this from Em's blog(brilliant post). I was actually surprised as well. I took it twice with the other answers that could fit as well for me and I was Elinor. Interesting. Makes me want to have an Austen Extravagana party with the girls!

TRADITION

I've been thinking a lot about traditions lately. It all spurred from an episode of Jon & Kate plus Eight (which I am fascinated with; it's on the DVR list) that I watched recently. It was a Christmas episode and Kate said something that really made me think. She said that it was very important to her that she start their own family traditions as soon as possible with their children so that as far back as their kids can remember, they will remember Christmas a certain way. One thing their family does is Christmas morning all the kids open their stocking gifts first, then they go and have breakfast, which is sticky buns every year, and then they go and open the rest of their gifts. It got me thinking about starting some of our very own traditions.
Incidentally, today Ryan had the day off and we partook in an annual Loveless family tradition...attending some of the state high school basketball playoff games in Ogden. I'm not entirely sure why or how this became tradition since there is no one in the family that has or has had any children participating in the games in at least a decade or so, but nonetheless, most of Ryan's family as well as his Uncle Boyd's family all meets up at Weber State each year to watch some high school hoops. This was our first year to to take Max. He endured 4 1/2 hours very well. Concessions and Grandma's snacks were mostly to thank for that. Ryan looks forward to it every year and even though I didn't grow up here and don't know much about the high schools, I look forward to it too. I suppose it's because, well, it's tradition.

Homecoming

Yeah, my husband has returned! Ryan was in the Phillippines for another week and this time it seemed like forever, much longer than a week. While he was gone I:
1. hurt my back holding in a sneeze; i couldn't run for the entire week. never hold your sneezes in. it can damage some serious lower back muscles.
2. made several trips to Home Depot and finally found the perfect shade of mocha green for my painting project
3. sucessfully painted a select portion of my home including the upper hallway; it turned out better than i anticipated and i love it.
4. young womens, young womens, young womens...with a 14 month old. enough said.
5. watched a Celine Dion concert from the comforts of my living room.
6. Oh, and Max decided that walking is better than crawling in the week Ryan was gone. He is about 90% walk, 10% crawl these days and 100% into everything and climb on everything.
All of the above denote both pros and cons of Ryan's travel. Never do I take on major home projects when he's home. No, for some reason, I feel the need to wait until I'm all alone with a toddler who is very very mobile to bust out painting undertakings.
I realize it makes no sense at all. I also realize that many more things in my life these days make no sense. Children I suppose create a different kind of reality for you. So be it. At least my walls look good.

CALL ME CRAZY

call me crazy, but I was actually very happy to look down in our family room tonight and find this...

...my husband playing XBOX. while i know that this little box can be the source of many arguements in some marriages, i was actually very pleased to see Ryan playing tonight because since he got the darn thing 3 years ago, he's maybe sat down and played a total of 10 or so times. of course now he says the thing is nearly obselete since the 360 has come out, but none the less, it still provides an outlet for him every once in a while...and i don't mind. he deserves it. he works so hard at work, and when he's not out serving in his calling, he is home helping me with max or studying for the CPA or spending time with me. so yes, i was happy to see him indulge a little tonight. now as for the 360 that he keeps mentioning...i say wait another year and it will probably be obselete too.

MAP MY RUN

TODAY'S RUN: 7.1 MILES

THIS IS WHAT IS MAPPING THE LOVELESS FAMILY RUNS DURING THESE COLD WINTER MONTHS. I HAVE A LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIP WITH IT. WHILE I HATE THE EYE-SORE THAT IT IS, I LOVE THAT I DON'T HAVE TO GO TO THE GYM. IT WAS MY MOTHER'S DAY PRESENT LAST YEAR AND RYAN THINKS WE'VE PUT BETWEEN 300 AND 400 MILES ON IT. I WOULD AGREE AS IT IS STARTING TO MAKE SQUEAKY NOISES AND PROBABLY NEEDS TO BE SERVICED SOON.

NOTE THE CHILD GATE SURROUNDING THE TREADMILL...MAX HAS A FACINATION WITH CLIMBING IT. THIS WAS OUR REMEDY. DON'T NOTE THE SPLASHES OF SWEAT ON THE RED WALL. I LIKE TO CALL IT "OUR WALL OF PAIN & GAIN". JUST WARN ME BEFORE YOU COME OVER; NOT EVERY ONE NEEDS TO SEE OUR SWEAT AND TEARS, LITERALLY.

A Warm and Welcome 40 Degrees

It is supposed to be in the 40's this weekend...Take a look at this video from last Sunday and you will know why we all have reason to celebrate in Utah!

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY RY!

In my blogging absence, something that comes along only once a year came and went last Tuesday. My darling husband turned 31 and deserves a shout out on the blog...I love you!

Just Be A Little Better

Every so often, you have one of those moments, one of those days, one of those weeks that is just full of reflection, insight, retrospect, and foresight. So was my week. I suppose it was the passing of our dear prophet followed by a week of reflecting on who he was as a person, as a son, as a husband, as a father, as a missionary, as an employee, as a leader and personally, as my prophet, that has just enveloped my thoughts and my emotions this week. Aside from being the leader of our church and the Lord's mouthpiece on the earth today, I was particularly touched with the man that he was and his ability to see the road that lead him to where he was, to acknowledge that road and those that traveled that road with him. It made me reflect on my road and my fellow passengers.
The culmination of all the media attention was the center of our home this Saturday as I sat with my own husband and child and watched the funeral and burial of our beloved President Hinckley. I felt blessed to live so close to the events, as we were able to be a part of the services within our home. Ryan and I were truely touched by the services. I couldn't help the emotions that caught hold of me. I cried tears of joy and sorrow. President Hinckley was the prophet for nearly half of my life, and the prophet of my most formidable years. And I love him and I cried as I realized how I will miss seeing him and hearing him admonish us all to be a little better, a little kinder, a little truer.
On the Monday following his passing, Ryan and I read his message from the last Priesthood session of confrence. He said he could not remember a time in his marriage when he ever had a serious quarrel with his sweet wife. It touched Ryan and I...an angerless marriage. What an awesome relationship and sweet reunion he has experienced. Again, I reflected on my own relationships, on my own habits.
I am still missing my prophet a week later. As I watched his bio today, tears again filled my eyes. I told Ryan yesterday as his funeral concluded that I suppose I felt somewhat like the early saints, when they lost their dear prophet Joseph, for our President Hinckley was certainly a prophet of the poeple as well. And like the early Saints, while we mourn his passing, we take comfort in knowing that the Lord's work will go forward, and that the Church will go forward as well.
I suppose the greatest way in which I can pay tribute, respect and honor to President Hinckley is simpley to Stand a Little Taller and be a little better.