Happy Birthday...To Me!!

Well today I turned the big 3-2. I can't believe I'm this old. Aren't I still supposed to be 18?! My birthday this year had a totally different feel to it and I know it's because I'm a mother now. Having Amelia give me her big cheesey smiles this morning at 4:30 was the best birthday present. She was what I wished for last year on my birthday and I still can't believe she is actually here and that she is actually mine. We had a great day celebrating with friends and family. Life can't get much better than this! Thanks to all who made it such a special day!

Two Months...Ouch!

On Sunday Amelia turned 8 weeks, which now I guess I should start counting by months. Two months...holy cow. I've said it a hundred times already, but I can't believe how fast time is going. She had her first round of shots today and I think it was more traumatic for me than for her. She was a champ and only cried for a minute. Then all she wanted to do was eat and go back to sleep. She really is a happy baby. I consider myself pretty lucky after horror stories I've heard! She is growing perfectly and measuring in the 95% in height and weight. She weighs 12 pounds 1 ounce. Her Doctor was teasing me and asked what I was feeding her and I said, "You're lookin at it!" She complimented me on my "high octane" milk. So here is a look back at the last couple weeks.

Sweet Conversations

Amelia has found her voice! She has been quite the chatterbox lately. Mostly when I'm changing her diaper, or when she is just laying down having her alone time, which she is liking more and more these days. And most of our conversations take place in the middle of the night, which is her favorite time to be awake still! Her little voice is so sweet and so tender that I could just listen to her all day!

Happy Easter!

I love it when Easter falls on General Conference weekend. It makes the day feel more sacred and helps me to remember the true meaning of celebrating Easter. I was going through my files on my computer and came across a lesson I taught a few years ago while serving as the Beehive Advisor in my ward. I told the girls the following story that I had just heard in an Institute class I had been attending. "A primary teacher had her class take plastic Easter eggs out onto the grounds of the church and told them to find something that reminded them of Easter and fill the egg with it. So the children went about, picking up different things, and then they all went back to the classroom to talk about them. One little boy had picked some blades of grass, one had picked a pink flower, the other had caught a butterfly. The teacher talked about each of these and how they represented spring. Then she asked the little boy who had Downs Syndrome to show what he put in his egg. When he opened it, all of the other kids began to snicker and laugh, for his egg was empty. The teacher was embarrassed and thought he might not have understood what the assignment had been, and asked him why his egg was empty. He very humbly replied, “My egg is empty because the tomb is empty, and that is what reminds me of Easter.” How true that statement is, that the tomb is empty because He lives again!

I have to say that this Easter has been the best ever. Obviously because our little Amelia is here to share it with us, but all of the other things that happened throughout the day. What a spiritual day it was by being able to listen to General Conference, spend time with loved ones and be reminded of how truly blessed my life is.

The Easter Bunny came to Mark and Amelia this morning and so that was a fun way to start the day. Then my sweet husband let me go back to bed and took Amelia downstairs so I could rest. Later we went to visit Nanny who has just been moved into an assisted living center. After, it was the traditional Easter dinner at my Mom's. There is nothing like tradition to make you feel safe and loved. And, for the second time in less than a month, a got another surprise visit from Natalie! I had been putting the baby to sleep in my Mom's room and heard the doorbell but didn't think anything of it. Well, the bedroom door opened and there she was! What a fun surprise again! A day full of visiting with family and friends is my idea of a perfect day, and that it was!

She must have known it was Easter Sunday because she woke up SO happy!



This is one of the only ways she wanted to be held at that time!






My cute oldest sister Melissa.