"He is the Reason for the Season"

Easter has become one of my favorite "holidays" (or should I say, day of remembrance) over the years. Not only do I recognize and feel immense gratitude for the role it continually plays in my own life, but the Atonement and the Savior's Resurrection brings great comfort and peace to me as I think of the family & dear friends that Alex and I anxiously look forward to reuniting with again someday. A friend of mine shared this quote today, and it really expresses what the Atonement, and each Easter Sunday, means to me:

"In our hour of deepest sorrow, we can receive profound peace from the words of the angel that first Easter morning; 'He is not here; for He is risen."

To know that in the sorrow and fear that often comes with the absence of someone we love, there is also great joy and peace in knowing that they will rise again someday, and that as long as we live our lives worthy of our Savior's great sacrifice, we too can see them again! Alex and I have experienced losses in our life-an unborn child, a parent, and a dear friend- but through their passing, we have come to a greater appreciation for life & for our Savior, and feel so blessed this Easter day for the Atonement and Resurrection.

This Easter was such a treat with Lucas because he's at the age now where Easter Egg Hunts and Easter baskets filled with goodies are actually fun! Tradition in my family has always been to set out our baskets the night before & then come down the next morning, one by one, and see what the Easter bunny dropped off. Check out the video below to see Lucas's easter excitement!

Afterwards, we got dressed up for church! I'm so blessed to be surrounded by such handsome men :)

After church, we picked up my sister Lauren, and headed over to Grandpa & Grandma's house! We ate delicious food & spent the time talking and laughing at the table. Afterwards, Alex ran outside and 'hid' the Easter eggs & the egg hunt began!

Alex had to help Lucas along because Lucas has this new dislike for grass & the way it feels on his feet! It's soooo funny!

It was a wonderful day! I miss those we couldn't be with today, but carry their love in my heart.

Happy Easter!

Fish and Fancy Feet

Lucas is about as busy as a little boy gets these days so we decided to walk around the pet store & maybe pick out some fish for him. Come to find out, he didn't quite enjoy the fact that he couldn't hold them and touch them behind the fish tank glass. Take a look!

We knew his walking days were close by, and we're so thrilled to report that he took his first 6-7 steps all on his own tonite! Watch as he gets a kick out of us begging him to walk while he knows perfectly well that he's in control and he'll keep his feet firmly planted until HE'S ready :0 Stubborn little guy!

March Madness

To all of our wonderful & supportive family and friends:

This has been a crazy start to the year for our family- first with Alex's surgery, busy new callings, out-of-town visits from family, and the list goes on! We want to say thank you for all of your patience, love, and constant support. The blog is something I really enjoy doing, but it's amazing how an hour-alone- is scarce to come by! :) The little man is fast asleep, so I am sneaking in the time now and hope to bring all readers up to date on our little family!

The center of our family & the light of our lives, sweet Lucas, continues to grow and gain his independence faster than we can keep up. He crawls at amazing speeds everywhere around the house; can stand up on his own and walk along the walls and cabinets; and even took his first step-without any help or support-just yesterday!!! He is so, so close and we can't wait for him to connect all the dots and start taking more and more steps on his own. Even more developed than his mobility though is his ... motormouth!! LOL! He talks, nonstop, from morning til night! He points his little index fingers up at the sky and the ceiling and will tell us one story after another. (See the video below for a sneak peek!) He LOVES his veggies-green beans, sweet potatoes, creamed corn-you name it! Goldfish and granola bars are his new favorite snacks, and he's just adorable to watch as he chomps away with his 8 tiny baby teeth. Bathtime remains his FAVORITE part of the day! If he hears the shower or tub running, he starts grunting and babbling, and you know he's expecting it to be for him! Haha :) He loves spending time with his cousins & all his extended family. It's neat to see the different ways he responds to each one of them- with some, he's very playful and loves to giggle and talk their ears off. With others, he's very bashful and shy :) He looooves the ladies & they love him! Every time we're at a restaurant somewhere, he just bats his eyes and shows his sweet dimples, and they just adore him! He knows primary songs like, "Popcorn Popping on the Apricot Tree" and he'll even do the popcorn popping motion with us. He loves "Patty Cake" and "Jesus Wants Me For a Sunbeam"; we're trying to begin teaching him to fold his arms, but he's not quite ready for that yet :) All in all, he is an angel and a blessing & our miracle baby and we're so thankful he's in our family!

(Video of Lucas babblin away...)

I mentioned earlier that with some family members he loves to be playful- well his Auntie Lo is one of 'em! He loves to get on her shoulders & wrestle with her hair! He'll wind it up real tights around his wrists and both him & Lo just laugh all day!

Recently my older sister came for a weekend visit & we had a BLAST! Alex watched the babies, and I was able to have a girls night out with my sisters. We went to dinner & then bowling, and laughed until our cheeks hurt. It makes me excited for Lucas to have a sibling someday!

While my sister was in town, my Dad came by for dinner and we played Guitar Hero & Spoons all night. Lucas loves his 'Grandpa Time' and hangin out with his cousin Ethan. Family visits always go by waay to fast, so we make the best out of the time we have :)

We look forward to another year of love, family, and new experiences! Thank you to you all for coming along the ride with us! We love you!

1 Year Old and Growing Fast!

Happy Birthday to our sweet Lucas!
(Family- we are so sorry this is a belated birthday post!!)

Whenever we would hear parents say, "I can't believe how fast the time goes" or "enjoy every moment of it because it'll pass you by in the blink of an eye", we would always think to ourselves- I wonder if it really does go that fast!? And we're hear to say....it DOES! Even as I'm looking over all of his pictures from birth until now, I really can't believe how much he has changed and grown. His personality has been headstrong and opionated from day 1 and he remains that way to this day! I admire his strong will and confidence so much already at his age, along with his ability to be so friendly and trusting with people! He has such a contagious smile and spirit & the sweetest laugh :) We adopted Lucas a year ago, but he was carried in our hearts long before. We are so thankful for his birth mother and the example of strength and faith that she represents. We are thankful for her trust, and for Heavenly Father's trust in raising this amazing little boy into a faithful and respectable young man and future missionary. We honor and understand the importance of our role as his parents & are so grateful for each and every day.

We love you Lucas and wish you another year of growth, good health, happiness, and all the joy in the world lil man. Your Mom, Dad, Grandpas and Grandmas, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, Birth Family, and Friends all LOVE you dearly!

We sang Lucas "Happy Bday" as he got ready to blow out his first birthday candle. My camera cut off at the very end of the song in the first video, so watch the second video to see the end of the song! The final video shows him chowin down on his Toy Story cupcake! Yum!

Holidays and Family Time

Happy Holidays from all of us to you!

This was a very special Christmas for us this year as it was Lucas's first christmas. Alex and I have spent a lot of time over the past few weeks remembering what we were doing at this same time last year. We had just recieved a phone call from our caseworker that Lucas's birth mom wanted to meet us. We were so excited and very anxious & couldn't wait to meet this special young lady. She was so wonderful and after spending hours talking & getting to know one another, she announced to Alex and I that she knew we were to be his parents. We were overjoyed and couldn't wait for his arrival. Lucas would be born a week after Christmas, and here we are, almost an entire year later, and we feel ever so blessed.

Alex and I have several Christmas traditions, many that we have carried over from our childhood Christmases. Some of these include driving around to look at the lights; reading the story of the Savior's birth from the scriptures; watching the cartoon version of "How the Grinch Stole Christmas"; drinking hot cocoa & delivering goodies to neighbors and family. We also give each other a new pair of pajamas on Christmas Eve- Lucas got his first pair this year & I have to say, they fit him like a glove :) Most importantly, Christmastime is about family time for us. My Mom , sisters, and sweet nephew Ethan spent a week here with us and as always, the time went by waaay too fast! I had a tender moment take place the day after my Mom and nephew arrived; it was snowing pretty steadily outside and it looked so beautiful. My mom was in the kitchen with my son and nephew baking her famous treats, and I found myself holding back happy tears. I had imagined that type of moment, where my mom's baking smells would fill my home & I would hear the laughter of my kids around her. It was my best Christmas gift. We loved having my 4-yr old nephew with us too! He found so much joy in the simple things, like making a snowman in the front yard or looking at the neighbor's lights. My two sisters were here as well, and they spoiled Lucas with so much love!

Thank you, to all of our loved ones near and far, for making this another wonderful Christmas to remember!

Check out some fun family videos below!

A Time for Thanks

We love the holiday season! It's always filled with good food, good friends, and great family company! Each year, Alex and I rotate spending Thanksgiving with one family and Christmas with the other. This year, we were able to spend Thanksgiving with both! Before taking off to visit my family out-of-state, we held a Thanksgiving dinner at our house for Alex's family. I feel extremely proud to say that I took care of the star of the show-the turkey-and I mean from start to finish! My mom was on speakerphone while Lucas looked on from his high chair as I cleaned, both inside and out, the turkey & prepped it for the main course. My mom grew up on a farm & is one tough lady, so she had quite the laughs listening to me (via the phone) prepare the turkey. I can honestly say though that there is nothing more fulfilling then accomplishing something you have never done before or thought you could handle. My mom has always empowered myself, along with my sisters, to embrace the "scary stuff" and confront it head on. She has always taught us that if we want things to get done, she's there always to help, but we've got to do it ourselves in order to recieve the real reward- the feeling of accomplishment. We also made mashed potatoes, candied yams, stuffing, and were blessed with the other great dishes brought by Alex's family. After the meal, we played games & enjoyed some amazing desserts.

The next morning, Lauren met us at our house & we took off on our road trip home. We played "Would You Rather" in the car to pass the time & it turned in to some pretty hilarious conversations! We were greeted by my Mom and older sister Nicole who were anxiously awaiting our safe arrival. My Mom couldn't wait to get her hands on Lucas! He was a little overwhelmed at first by all the hugs & kisses, but he and my mom quickly became inseparable (as always)! During our time home, we enjoyed another wonderful Thanksgiving meal, tried out some new dishes by my Mom such as bacon-wrapped lil' smokies (sooooo good), and enjoyed some Black Friday shopping. It was also my nephews' birthdays, so we were so grateful to be able to share in their Toy Story party, along with seeing Jalen & his family for his birthday. We love you guys! It was such a wonderful trip and as always, goes by wayyy too fast!


(Mom and the boys)


(Alex and I on Thanksgiving morning)

(Just one of the many naps for father & son. Don't you love how Lucas sleeps with his mouth wide open sometimes!)

(Lucas with his cousin Nathan-and his crazy mohawk-!)



(Some funny faces from Lucas!)

Alex and I are greatly anticipating Lucas's first Christmas AND birthday in the upcoming weeks. Judging by his "paper-shredding" abilities in the video below, I don't think he'll have any trouble with his presents :)