La La La La Anders' World!

Today, I was having a conversation with my aunt Cherilyn (whom is about to get married) and I asked her, "doesn't it make you sad that you don't get an Anders when you have kids?" I'm sure she will, but I just wish everyone could experience the happiness I have over these past 17 months! I just wanted to take a moment to brag about my adorable Anders...that is what blogs are for, isn't it? At about this time every night, I find myself missing my sleeping baby. I just love the excitement he brings into our lives. Every stage he goes through, I am convinced is the best stage because I enjoy every moment with him. This picture is of him holding his swaddled Jazz Bear. He started loving to wrap up his bear right after he got to hold is new baby cousin, Easton. He adores Easton. Christian okays this pretend play, of course, because it's the Jazz Bear. How much more masculine can you get?? This is one of the heart-melting things Anders is in to right now. Here is a list of the others:
1. Anders has started singing his ABC's. I'm not sure where he learned it, but the song was playing on the Wee Sing CD we listen to in the car and he was singing along. It pretty much sounds like, "Aaa Aaa Aaa Aaa Aaa Aaa G." But at least he gets the idea!

2. When he was younger, we used to play a game with him that we thought was so cute. We'd ask him a questions like, "Who loves mommy?" and Anders would reply, "Ma" and raise his hand. Any question that was asked in the same tone, he'd say, "Ma." I was in Sam's Club last night and he was talking to himself saying, "Mama? Ma (raising his hand)." "Dada? Ma..." and he literally went through everyone (grandma, grandpa, and so on).
3. He always greets me when he sees me with, "Hi!" and a hug. He sometimes does it randomly, even if I'd been with him for the past 3 hours!
4. On a little more humorous of a note, Anders has been really curious about what is located below his pot belly. He can't quite see over his stomach, but he knows something's down there. The other day, I was letting him run around naked while I grabbed a diaper and I suddenly started hearing a splashing on the carpet. I turned to see Anders looking down in amazement with a "what the?.." look on his face. He was staring at the stream that was coming from below his tummy and making a puddle on the floor. He really didn't know what to think about that! Also, before I put him in the bath the other day, I stood him in front of the mirror naked and he would look in the mirror and then try to look down. He obviously could not see over his round tummy and he seemed so confused. Some day, he's in for quite a surprise!
I could seriously go on and on about how fascinating it is watching a 17 month-old discover the world. I am so blessed to have such an amazing person in my family. It is so fun to see the people around him fall in love with his personality like I have.

Larsen Family Easter Egg Hunt

Yes, this is the worst picture we had of all the grand kids with Grandma and Grandpa Larsen, but it was the only one we had that Anders quickly looked up. He was busy eating his candy out of the egg. Sorry guys! I know it doesn't give you justice!

This is our cute little guy enjoying his time outside. This is during our Larsen Family Easter Egg Hunt. Anders was a pro hunter by now! He knew exactly what to do. We had a really scary experience yesterday that I wanted to share. When we got home from our hunt, we brought Anders inside. Christian went upstairs and I thought he was watching Anders. I was watching Enchanted with my sister. All of a sudden, Christian ran in the room and told me Anders must be outside. We ran outside frantically and found him in our neighbor's yard. It was the worst feeling in the world. He must have pushed open our screen door and wandered outside. We will NEVER let that happen again.

Firth Family Easter Egg Hunt

The Firth family has an annual Easter Egg Hunt every year. This was Anders' first REAL experience with it. He had a great time! He actually gathered up all his eggs, shook them for a minute and then put them in the basket. He probably couldn't have cared less what we were doing, he would do anything to be outside! Of course, my favorite memory of the Firth Family Easter Egg Hunt was the hunt of 2002. I innocently brought this hunk that I had been dating with me. I walked around the yard with my cousin Megan who was about 4. I kept looking over at my date, thinking about how awkward it was that he was sitting on the bench all by himself, not mingling with anyone. I thought he was being anti-social. About a second later, my other egg-hunting cousins start yelling my name, saying they found an egg for me. I went over to where they were yelling from, which happened to be sitting right next to my date. There was a really decorated plastic egg that had my name on it. I thought it was another one of my mom's things she does. I picked it up and opened it and the next thing I knew, that hunky date of my was down on his knee...shaking terribly. My ring was hidden inside the egg. I was so excited. We get to relive that memory every year. It's a memory I know nobody in my family will forget. In fact, my cute grandma announced it to everyone this year that "3 years ago, Christian was asking Melissa to marry him." Thanks Grandma! Time has flown by for me too, but it's actually been six years!








Here's Anders and Ryder after the hunt was over, checking out their goods! Sorry, but I've got to mention those ADORABLE easter baskets they have. This is what I've been making for the past few days. I'm not a crafty person, so I'm proud of myself for making something recognizable.

I wanted to post this picture for many reasons:
1. To show this fun tradition we do for the older, unmarried cousins. We duct tape their arms and legs to another person to slow them down and give the little kids a chance. Boy does it slow them down! They're constantly tripping and screaming.
2. To show the "snitch catcher." Jessica found the snitch that Nicole deocrated. It was cute!
3. To advertise my very single cousins and sister. Yes, I did say single! Love ya guys!

Ahoy Matey!

We took Anders to the Classic Fun Park. He loved the Pirate's Cove. He especially loved to watch his cousin Ryder run through the maze like a mouse. We could not keep track of him! Anders was mostly entertained with opening and closing the gate for everyone. We had a lot of fun! I always think that it will be so relaxing to take Anders to places like this. I actually leave more exhausted than ever! I spend the whole time chasing him and lifting him up to do the things the other kids are doing. Classic has sure changed since I was a teeny bopper. I remember having my parents drop us off in a really sketchy part of Riverdale pretty much every Friday night. We'd pay like three bucks to skate in a constant circle until our curfew. It totally made our three bucks worth it if a boy asked us to skate with him (which didn't happen that often!). That was the most terrifying three minutes of our lives! We'd hold their hand and skate in silence, praying we didn't biff it. Then, we'd have our friends stalk their friends until we got their phone number (which we never called). I'm so glad I get to take Anders to that same hang-out! A lot has changed there, including the location. It basically moved from one sketchy location to another! They now not only have skating, but they have Lazer Tag, inflatible toys, and this Pirate's Cove maze that we went to. The one thing that hasn't changed, is that awesome black carpet with the florescent squiggles! It just wouldn't be Classic without it!

Homesick

About this time last year we were having the Spring Break of a lifetime! My family went to Disney World in Florida. It was amazing! Anders was only about 5 months old and we still had the best time! Yes, Christian and I were soaking up the rays in our short-sleeved shirts and our pasty white arms. Yet, we were so protective of Anders that we kept him covered from head to toe. Don't worry, we loosened up a little bit later on in the week and took off his socks and long-sleeved undershirt. Anders thought he'd died and gone to heaven having bare arms! I guess it's somewhat of a tradition in my family to go to Disney World right before one of my brothers goes on a mission. We did the same thing right before my older brother went on his mission to Omaha, Nebraska.

While I do miss that fantastic Spring Break, that's not what I'm homesick for. Every now and again I miss my little brother, Kenny who is serving the Lord on his mission in New York.

Today is one of those days. Here's a list of the things I miss most about Kenny:

• His big, cheesy grin that is constantly on his face
• The way he eats chicken strips with his hands wrapped all the way around it and he tears into it as if it were beef jerky
• His appreciation for Christian's sense of humor. He seemed to be the first one to get it.
• His obsession for anything Nascar (I found this picture in his picture folder labeled "Shake and Bake."
• His Simpson's drawings in church (he could turn anyone into a Simpson's character)
• His impersonations of grumpy relatives (if you don't know who I'm talking about, maybe it's better that way)
• The way he'd make people think he could play the piano because he'd sit down and play "Sailing Away" beautifully.
• Torturing my mom by describing exactly what he did in the bathroom
• Even the NASTY smell of sweat and rubber in his car from his Hockey pads!
• His adorable relationship with Ryder.

I'm so proud of my little brother for serving a mission just as he'd always planned. I can't wait for him to come home and be so excited to tell us in detail exactly why he's so amazing (he loves to do that) as humbly as he possibly can. I can't wait to hear him speak Spanish. It makes me miss him so much when I think about how Anders is missing out on enjoying the close relationship he could have with his uncle. We're so proud of you Kenny!

Pearly Whites

My life suddenly feels like it's in utter chaos over these past three and a half months. Christian and I have made some pretty big changes (which also explains my hesitance to become an official "blogger"). Christian and I have lived in Logan since we've been marriend. We went to Utah State and fell in love with Logan. After I graduated I got a really great job at the community abuse prevention center as a caseworker for vicitms of rape and sexual assault. I loved my job and worked there for about 4 1/2 years. Eventually, Christian and I could tell that it was about time to start looking for something new. I was having a very difficult time juggling my family and my work without letting it get to me. At this exact time, my brother came to me and told me about this new business idea he had. He asked me if I knew anyone that would manage it for him. The last thing he expected was for me to tell him I wanted to do it. Needless to say, here we are! I am managing this amazing business for him. We currently have stores open in the University Mall and the Layton Hills Mall. By the end of the month, we should have about at least three more open in other malls! I am so grateful for the risk we took without knowing what to expect. It has been such a blessing to us. The business is called Bleach Bright and we sell teeth whitening procedures. It's so cool because it only takes 15 minutes and whitens 2 to 4 shades brighter immediately, lasting 2 to 4 years! I've never seen any whitener work so successfully! I was a little hesitant at first myself, but my teeth actually whitened 3 shades! Let me know if you want to try it out and I'll give you a discount!

Finally!

So here I am, following the trend that I said I'd never do...doesn't that always seem to happen? It does to me. I remember swearing that I'd never wear capri pants. Now, I'm a shameless victim of capris and I can't give it up! This is totally in my character to think I am being the trend-setter by not following the trend and then I eventually give in by the time it's old news. The reason for my surrendering is that I was an addict before I began. That's the first step, right? I'm admitting I have a problem. I sometimes stay up really late catching up on my friend's blogs. I love ready the funny, interesting things going on in their lives. That's not the reason I am up late though. I am up late because I look at one friend's blog, then see a name I recognize on their friend's lists and so on until eventually I have to convince myself I have to go to bed. It's bad to read other people's blogs before you begin though. That's why it took me so long to start. I am convinced that I couldn't possibly have anything to put on my blog and I am not good at that kind of stuff. Well, here's my attempt! I guess we all have to start somewhere. However, my husband (being fully aware of my pre-existing addiction) has already warned me not to let it take over my life. That's another one of my problems that we won't get into. I am obsess over perfection on stuff like this. This should be fun!