Maddie's Daddy

"Let me tell you a secret about a father's love,

A secret that my daddy said was just between us."

He said, "Daddies don't just love their children every now and then.

It's a love without end, amen, it's a love without end, amen."

-George Strait

The day JD became a father

Father's Day 2010

There's nothing better to me than watching these two love on each other.

Happy Father's Day to all you Dads out there.

Talk went well. Thanks to those who left comments.

Expect some mail in the near future!

Daddy's Day

A Few Reasons Why I Love My Dad:

He is genuinely kind and loving to everyone

His knees are blown but he still rips it up on the tennis and bball courts

He cares about his family and always calls to get the scoop on our lives

Simple things give him great pleasure- shaved ice, diving into his pool, Pellegrino

Growing up, no matter how busy he was, he was never too busy for us

He makes his kids want to be better just by being himself

He is the ultimate creator of fun

He's dedicated to serving the Lord in whatever way he's called

He makes a mean bowl of guacamole

He's wise, generous, and trustworthy, and always seems to know just what to say to make it all better

He has a special spot for Maddie in his heart and loves to talk to me about how brilliant she is

He doesn't care if she steals his Cheetos then wipes her fingers all over his white shirt (see Miss Cheeto face below)

There's no reason not to love him!

I'm speaking in church this Sunday and need some input from all my blogging friends. I want to know what you love or respect most about your father (be it quirky or mushy). Leave me a comment with your email address and I'll put everyone's name in a hat and send the winner a little surprise in the mail. (Giveaways seem to motivate comments, and frankly I've procrastinated too long and I need them in a hurry!)

p.s. Watch Glenn Beck on Fox News Channel weekdays at 2pm, or DVR it like we do. If you are concerned with the moral decay of our country, biased mainstream media, corrupt polititians, etc., etc., I think you'll like his approach to restoring America by learning from our Founding Fathers and restoring the Constitution.

Dillon Beach

Yesterday we went to the beach after church with some friends. The weather was hot and beautiful, compared to last time when it was so windy and we froze to death!

Except the water was still freezing!!

Maddie got pretty upset that her daddy would take pictures of her getting splashed by a wave instead of come save her.

We love living near the beach, even if it isn't Newport Beach!

Remember Memorial Day?

How is it already the middle of June? I've been meaning to blog about our Ramsay family reunion over Memorial Day for weeks. Where has the time gone? Anyways, I was not very good at taking pictures that weekend so this is only the first part of our trip. We had a layover in LB on our way to St. George so the Barrus' came and took us to lunch. These two are best buds.

This family reunion was extra fun because it was just my Grandpa and Grandma Ramsay's family. Every one of their kids, grandkids, their spouses, and great grandkids (minus 3) were there.

There were so many little ones. This was our attempt to get a picture of the 3 and unders.

A few of my cousins...February birthdays!

Too bad my hand ruined this pictures. Still love it.

Do you have shaved ice at your family reunions. Didn't think so. This was bomb.
Maddie figured out a way to mooch from just about every person in the family.
Sadly this is the best picture I have of these two from the weekend. They were actually really cute together.
Grammy and baby D.

So I'm in need of some pictures from the water park. And pictures of the whole group. (Obviously my family's been slacking on the blogging like me). Sad that we didn't get a cute picture of the 4 kiddos together. Oh well, next time (like we always say). We had a blast at this amazing community center. It had pools, splash pads, a lazy river, water slides, BBQ area, basketball courts, and a rock climbing wall. You better believe we took advantage of it all! I love being with my family.

Friends

Last weekend we made a trip out to Utah for Shalice's wedding. It was such a special day, and seeing my friend so happy and in love made me happy. She was a gorgeous bride and everything was perfect. That's just how she rolls. I can't even tell you how great it was to hang out with so many people that I love all day long. Just when I was starting to feel I was lacking in the friend department, being so far away, I went back to our old home and got my fill! I just keep thinking how grateful I am for my friends. Besides the wedding day bliss, I got to finally meet baby Jane, who is almost one, give Grandma Sara a kiss, visit my buddies in the M/SICU, give my preceptor who just lost her husband a hug, and catch up with dear friends in our amazing PG ward. I'm not gonna lie, it was kinda painful to visit our old ward and condo. We really loved it there and have so many fond memories. I think if you asked us that day if we'd give it all up and move back, we'd have said yes. But I realize that life moves on, and that you can love whatever situation you find yourself in.

Did I mention that we stayed with the Chase's and each loved having a best friend to hang out with all weekend. Especially Maddie. Megan and Josh even gave up their bed for us so Maddie could sleep in their closet and sleep in til ten like Savannah. We love them. The girls were so cute together. They are both way into babies and thought it was so funny to walk through the Gateway holding hands. Even toddlers are happier when they're close to their friends!

5.20.05

Today we celebrate our 5th Anniversary. I really can't believe it's been that long! Are we really that old? It's been a lovely adventure so far, and I look forward to spending the next 5, 10, 30, 60...years with this man. I'm so lucky to be married to my best friend. He's such an amazing daddy and just a genuinely good guy. The traditional five year gift is "wood." I gave him a jar full of golf tees with all the reasons I love him curled around them, along with a couple of private golf lessons. He gave me a month of tennis lessons! I'm so excited! Watch out family, we're gonna be ready to beat you this summer :)!

Home Sweet Home

I've had a few people request pictures of our new home, so for those of you who care, come on in.

Here's the living room. If you look close you can see the place I spend lots of time cleaning up each day, along with the cute little mess-maker herself.

The Kitchen. I'm seriously becoming gourmet in here. No really, last night I made homemade pizzas- four of them.

See my pizza stone? I wasn't lying. I also made oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. Yum. I have too much time on my hands! Might explain why my pants fit tighter these days :(.

Downstairs Bathroom. Needs a picture or something.

Master bedroom. Needs more furniture to fill it up.
Master Bath. We have contests who can keep their sink cleaner. He usually wins, so I'm tempted to not clean it next time I make my rounds.
Laundry. Love them with a passion.

Guest Room/ Office. Not used enough. Please come visit. Please!

Maddie's Bathroom.

Place where Maddie spends most of her time. Seriously this girl has to get her 13 hours in. She also still likes two naps a day. I'm not complaining.

Front yard.

We kind of love it here.

I Love

Being a Mother.

And I love my own mother for teaching me all I need to know. I love how she adores my baby. I love my mother-in-law for being the most pleasant person in the world. And I love that my husband can't ever remember a time when he was mad at her. I love my sister-in-laws and friends for the amazing mothers they are. I love and feel for those women that anxiously wait to become mothers. There isn't anything more beautiful than motherhood.

Book Reviews

I have a really bad habit of starting long books, stopping half way through for a quick read, and sometimes finishing the epics. Right now I'm really bad cuz I'm in the middle of two long ones and just finished two quickies. It's a miracle I can keep all the details straight. (I spend alot of time re-reading!)

So, on that note, I'll give you my opinions on these two:

I really liked this one from the beginning. It's about a cooking class, but of course the students learn more about life than how to follow a recipe. I loved how the author used sensory imagery to bring food to life. I still think it lacked some 'essential ingredients'- maybe character development or a more complex plot/ relationships, but if you're looking for a "delicate, meltingly lovely hymn to food and friendship," this will do. I may or may not have put the book down to indulge in some chocolate and pick up some potted fresh basil.

I didn't put this one down once I picked it up. Not because it was such a thrilling page turner, but because I really wanted to make it to book club the next night. Unfortunately, JD had to work late, and a nap-less Maddie would not have been very pleasant, so I stayed home. Oh well, next month is this book, which I love, so hopefully I can make it. Anyways, I'd say this was along the lines of the Twilight series, but not near as good. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the action-packed, death-defying stories of survival, no matter how unrealistic or juvenile they might be.

Sweet Baby

This is my newest nephew Will. He is stinkin cute. We all agree that he's the spitting image of his dad, but there are moments when I see Johnny in him. I can't remember my baby ever being so tiny.

He's so precious. I know he'll change so much from now til the next time I see him. I'm baffled by how much they change in the first year.

This little one is no longer a baby. She's officially a little girl, growing by leaps and bounds every day, and I love her every inch!