Big May Happenings

May was a big month for our family. We had just sent off two missionaries, Daniel to Taiwan and Weston to Florida, then Jake came home from Ohio. (Don't be confused by the Happy Birthday balloon, Jake had just had a birthday.)

I imagine there can't be any much better experience as a mother than moments like this.

Jake left on his mission while Erik was on a mission in Indonesia, so they hadn't seen each other since Erik left in early 2011.

We are always glad when Mom and Dad can come out to Utah for big family events.

My niece Elizabeth graduated from Timpanogos High and will be attending BYU in the fall. She is one of the sweetest and most loving girls. I have lots of funny memories of her as a little girl, she has grown up way too fast.

This is the epitome of true and lasting love. At the graduation, my dad was carrying my mom's purse for her. He needed to make a pit stop, and we all started to chuckle when we realized that he was in the men's bathroom with her purse on his arm. I couldn't resist capturing the moment as he walked out!

First Grade is a Wrap!

I'm so grateful that Alex had such a great year in the 1st grade. His teacher, Mrs. Beecher was great, his class size was superb, and he learned so much. Since Alex has a summer birthday, he was able to celebrate it in class in May. He did a spotlight of himself and brought treats for the class. The kids formed a circle around him and sang Happy Birthday, it was super cute.

You know your child had a happy school year when they shed tears at the end of the year and say that they are going to miss their teacher. Wonderful teachers are such a blessing. I hope that we will be just as blessed in the 2nd grade!

My Easter Beauties

I think my favorite thing about Easter is getting new outfits for Easter Sunday. I thought both Steph and Alex looked really cute.

One of my all time favorite pictures of these two!!

First Little League Game

Alex was sooo excited for baseball season to start. He enjoyed tee ball last year, but has moved on to bigger and better things... coach pitch. Even better when that coach is your dad! Considering that Steve has been coaching for all these years, you'd think coaching these little kids would be a piece of cake, but he says he has a hard time because he's used to the teenagers who listen and do what you tell them to do. With these little cuties, that's not always the case!

Last weekend was our first game, and things actually went quite smooth for the first game. Forgive the overload of pictures, but they were all so cute I couldn't narrow it down to just a few!

Alex got out on first base, but I think he was so excited that he hit it, he didn't mind at all!

I love the look of intensity on his face. Truth be told, he was probably playing in the dirt just moments before. I'm looking forward to the rest of the season and seeing how much Alex improves.

First Grade Field Trip

I was able to go on Alex's field trip with him to the zoo and the Planetarium. I only had Alex and two other boys in my group, but one of those boys took as much energy as looking after 5 boys. I guess I should be flattered that the teacher picked me to have this particular pupil in my group....?

This bear came right up to the glass and was nose to nose with the kids. It was the coolest thing!

I love Alex's kissy face, what a clown. Life is never dull with a gaggle of 1st grade boys in tow!

Most Improved

At the end of his Jr. Jazz season, Alex was awarded the "Most Improved" award. We were really proud of him and think he worked really hard.

And this is when you know you are getting old... This guy with Steve was the coach of the team that Alex played. Don was on Steve's basketball team for Joel P. Jensen Middle School back in 1995. It was Steve's first ever coaching gig. Don now is married with 4 kids. Yes, we are getting old.

This is Alex's latest craze. He likes to watch Michael Jackson videos on YouTube and mimic them. He did a performance to Beat It at our family get together yesterday and was not the least bit shy. He's been practicing this pose a lot where Michael goes up on his toes. Notice the black church shoes... an essential part of Alex's M.J. costume.

We had a family dinner yesterday since it had been quite a while since we'd all been together. It worked out quite nicely that it just happened to be my birthday and my sister, knowing it's my absolute favorite, made me the most scrumptious cheesecake. The cousins have a great time whenever they are together, Alex was in seventh heaven.

Junior Jazz

When you have young children, it's kind of fun to have them try out new things and see where their talents and interests lie. This is Alex's first time playing basketball, and it's been quite the learning experience for him, but he's having a good time.

Alex is very polite when everyone is practicing their shooting. When there are nine balls all flying through the air at one time, he patiently stands aside and waits for that brief nano-second when there is a break just long enough for him to try and shoot. Unfortunately, that doesn't happen very often so he doesn't get much shooting practice. We're trying to teach him that he doesn't have to wait, he can just go ahead and shoot.

The thing I love about Alex is that he is just out to have a good time, he definitely doesn't have that killer instinct that some of these kids have at a surprisingly young age. As many of the kids are practically running each other over to try to get their hands on the ball, Alex runs up and down the court with a little hop, skip and a jump in his stride, content to observe all the action from the outer perimeters. If he is following in his sissy's footsteps, I anticipate that this is how he'll play for the next few years, until he gets a little older and more aggressive and before you know it he'll be making fouls and doing a little trash talking. Now that I think about it, Steph has gotten a little too feisty as she's gotten older. Maybe I'd rather that Alex stay his sweet, passive self for a while!