A (small) Taste of Spring

It was 50 degrees today, and it felt so good!  So, of course, we spent a lot of the day outside.  Alivia walked around the whole circle with her walker (a first!), and Bowen enjoyed riding his new scooter!  Please Spring, come a little faster!!

Every once in awhile, during her walk, Alivia would get on her belly and look at the little "treaures" (aka rocks) on the ground. 

I have to write down what Bowen said to me today.  He was playing Brickbreaker on my phone.  He handed the phone to me, and told me it was my turn to play.  I handed the phone back to him, and told him I didn't want to play because I wasn't very good at the game.  He then handed the phone back to me and said,

"Come on, Mom.  I believe in you.  You can do it."

Thanks, Buddy!

Her Favorite Spot in the House

Pretty fitting for a girl, right?  Alivia loves to sit up on my bathroom counter while I get ready.  She keeps herself busy playing with my make-up, playing with Justin's cologne, and chewing on her princess toothbrush.  If I walk into the bathroom with her for a second, and then walk out without putting her on the counter to play, she gets so mad!  I guess a girl just needs her primping time...

My Buddies

I lost one of my buddies to first grade this school year.  We miss Jackson so much, but he is loving his independence and even loving school lunch!  But lucky for me, I still have two buddies at home!  I love spending my day with Bowen and Alivia.  We have a nice little schedule.  We run errands after Alivia's morning nap, and then spend the rest of the afternoon after lunch at home.  As Alivia has "grown-up" a little more this winter, she has become quite a fun friend for Bowen.  He is very sweet with her, and it's plain to see Alivia adores her Bo-Bo.  (I just noticed Bowen is doing the "peace" sign!  When Justin leaves for work in the morning, he says "peace out," and "peace in the Middle East.")

Bowen loves to play with cars.  I walked into the room the other day, and he had them looking like this!  He is such a good independent player.  He is creative with his play; it's fun to watch.  But he also loves the second Jackson gets home from school!  He plays non-stop with him the rest of the afternoon.

Our little Alivia is so fun to have around.  I am reminded of how much I love this age!  She is napping well, she is crawling everywhere as she explores the house, and she is pulling herself up to everything. We love to hear her little whispers, and her louder babbling!  She does say "mama" too.  And how could I forget her love for eating!  She's such a fun little girl! 



Two Special Ladies

I want to highlight two very special ladies in our lives. In a sense, they traded places; one going home and one coming to a new home. My sweet Grandma Hanson died on February 12. I feel so blessed to have been able to visit her a few days before she died, and have a really neat experience with her then. Her funeral was on February 20 in Spanish Fork.

Our sweet baby girl, Alivia, was born early on February 21. What an emotional 24 hours for our family. I am certain that our little Alivia had her own special time with my Grandma before coming to our family.

My Grandma was an amazing Matriarch. She was the glue that held her family together--4 children, 22 grandchildren, and 55 great-grandchildren to be exact. And every single person was present at her funeral with many flying in from all parts of the country. If you were to ask any of her grandchildren, they would tell you that they were her favorite. That is how special she made everyone feel. (She really did tell me once that I was her favorite :)).

At her funeral, I shared a quote from Joseph F. Smith that describes my grandma. He said, "I have often said, and will repeat it, that the love of a true mother comes nearer being like the love of God than any other kind of love." I have a wonderful example in her and in my own mom of this kind of love. We miss you Grams!

My greatest blessings! Aren't they awesome! We are so excited to have this little girl in our family. There is certainly something sweet about a little baby girl. Alivia arrived on February 21 at 7:11 in the morning. She weighed 7 pounds 7 ounces and was 19 inches long. She's healthy and beautiful! Here are some pictures of her first day with us!

Lucky for us, my sister Alison and her family were in town for the funeral, so she was able to come to the hospital to see Alivia before flying home. She also took care of my kids while we went to the hospital. We were so glad to have them with us. Joanna and Chris, and my mom and dad were also close by to welcome Alivia.

Our first visitors!

She's already got him wrapped around her little finger. Don't you think she looks like her Daddy?

Fresh from heaven--weighing in at 7 pounds 7 ounces. We feel so blessed to have her here and healthy. These two special ladies are certainly a blessing in our lives.