layin' low

ways i can tell that madeleine doesn't feel well:

1. lies on my bed all day.
2. doesn't beg to go outside once.
3. the thin layer of snot and drool all over me at the end of the day.

three years

three years ago, i married this wonderful man. it's flown by, and three years later, i still feel like i am learning new things about him all the time. he is my perfect match... so different in so many ways, but alike in all of the ways that matter. he keeps me laughing often, which is what attracted me to him so much in the first place. and his dashing good looks.

i love you, randy.

photo by jonathan canlas

trip to boise

we just got back from a wonderful weekend in boise and i took lots of pictures. we enjoyed...

baking with grammy:

(she really did enjoy it)

carsten's soccer game:

this brought back a lot of memories for me of going to watch ray and beth's games when we were younger.

time at the park with cousins:

playing with grammy's toys:

and hanging out with cousins:

photo clean up

some random pictures from the last couple weeks.

signs that spring is here...

and summer is on its way:

the smell of sunscreen on madeleine's face.
freshly cut grass.
hearing birds in the morning.
the feeling of sun on my pasty white legs.
waking up to light creeping through the windows.
longer days and comfortable evenings on the porch.

boxes and baskets

madeleine loves climbing into things right now.

southern books

i just finished these two books. i selected "to kill a mockingbird," as my choice for bookclub. i've read it before and absolutely love it. it's such a classic novel and speaks to me even more now than when i read it as a kid. i can't say enough about it. if you haven't read it, you must. i want to be atticus finch.

cold sassy tree was also a bookclub book that i've actually been intending to read for quite some time. i enjoyed it, but it didn't do as much for me. it was interesting to read two books in a row that were stories about southern towns told through the eyes of a child, both dealing with themes of overcoming prejudices. but in the end, harper lee just did it better. had i realized some of the similarities beforehand, i may have waited a while to read cold sassy tree so that it had more of a fighting chance. don't get me wrong, it's a well written story, it just wasn't as moving for me and i couldn't help but compare the books the whole time.

well, on to something new. and different. you know it's time to stop reading southern novels when you tell your daughter you reckon it's time we go inside.

when will it end?

yes, these pictures were taken today. if i had a newspaper, i would take a picture of me holding it to prove it.

madeleine was fascinated by the falling snow and kept begging to go outside, so i figured that i would take her out there, she wouldn't like the snow falling on her or the cold, and we'd turn around and come back inside.

apparently she likes the snow.

her hands got cold and she's outgrown her gloves from this season, so i put socks on her hands. finally, she tripped and went down in the snow. she may like falling snow and may not even mind the cold, but she does NOT like wet pants. so, we came in.

fun in the hot tub

madeleine and audrey's boys love going in my parents hot tub and joseph and randy were good enough to take them all out to swim. here are some pictures. hopefully this bodes well for summer swimming!

my easter

despite my failures on the secular side of easter (see previous post), i actually had a wonderful easter. after elder jeffrey r. holland's talk at conference last week, i decided that i wanted to spend this week preparing spiritually for the easter by reading about the last week of the savior's life, culminating in scripture study about the resurrection this morning. it was the perfect way to get my mind focused on the savior before easter. i loved the experience of reading about his suffering and atonement throughout the week and then ending on easter by reading about his glorious resurrection. i think that this is a tradition that i will continue throughout the years.

today in church, a woman recited "the living christ" from memory. it was very powerful and i was especially touched by this section:

"We solemnly testify that His life, which is central to all human history, neither began in Bethlehem nor concluded on Calvary. He was the Firstborn of the Father, the Only Begotten Son in the flesh, the Redeemer of the world.

He rose from the grave to "become the firstfruits of them that slept" (1 Corinthians 15:20). As Risen Lord, He visited among those He had loved in life. He also ministered among His "other sheep" (John 10:16) in ancient America. In the modern world, He and His Father appeared to the boy Joseph Smith, ushering in the long-promised "dispensation of the fulness of times" (Ephesians 1:10)."

i am grateful for easter and the chance to focus on the savior. i know that he lives and because he lives again, we can all return to live with him again.

madeleine's easter

another reason i am not mother of the year: i am bad at holidays (as you no doubt have already noticed). fortunately, madeleine has some good grandparents that came through for her. her easter experience consisted of a chocolate easter bunny from her grammy and grandpa bob and a basket from g'ma and pa'a. she loved both:

i was hoping that she would just enjoy it wrapped up, kind of like a toy. but she figured out that it unwrapped. so, i had to strip her down and put her in the highchair with it.









she only got the ears. i wasn't about to sit through three hours of church with her all hopped up on chocolate.



madeleine loves baskets of any kind.

she seemed to still enjoy her easter, despite the lack of fanfare. heaven help us when she knows better.