Baby Shower

Last week my sister, best friend, and mom threw me the most beautiful shower I have ever seen!  It was just perfect.  They had a cute green and brown theme (since I don't know what I'm having), the cutest decorations, and an excellent brunch.  They all put so much time into it and it turned out wonderful. It was so great for me to be able to get together with friends and family that I don't get to see often enough.  It is so great to know that even when I don't see them much, they are always there to support me and my family!  We played fun games, talked, and laughed a lot and stuffed ourselves with amazing food!  I am so grateful to have such great family and friends.  I hope they all know how much I appreciate their kindness and generosity.  I am so blessed to have them all!  Thanks again everyone!

Easter Nostalgia

Nostalgia:  A wistful desire to return in thought or in fact to a former time in one's life, to one's home or homeland, or to one's family and friends; A sentimental yearning for the happiness of a former place or time.

My cousin, Karolyn, has this definition posted in the title of her blog and I absolutely love it! I'm pretty sure that I live in an almost constant state of nostalgia.  Not that I don't enjoy the present and I definately look forward to the future, but there is just something about memories!  My family jokes that I only remember the good things and that I seem to remember things even better in my mind than they were at the time.  I think if I was asked what my favorite emotion is I would have to say 'nostalgia.'  That feeling of listening to a song, or a certain smell, or piece of clothing that takes you back to another time and place is the best feeling in the world! Anyway, I've been thinking about this a lot lately.  

As Easter was approaching I was telling a friend of mine that Easter is by far my favorite holiday and he could not understand how I could choose Easter over Christmas.  That got me thinking, why is it my favorite holiday?  There are so many reasons.  First, and most obvious, it is the celebration of the resurection of my Savior.  Where and what would I be without the important events we celebrate at Easter?  I feel like the entire plan of Salvation and my chance at spending eternity with my family all rest on those events.  Secondly, it is such a time of hope.  Spring is in the air (some years), its the first time we start to see spring colors and flowers,  it seems so fresh and new to me, like a new start.

The third reason I love Easter is much more worldly, and it's a mix of a lot of things so it was hard for me to really put into words, until I realized that it all sort of falls under the umbrella of 'Nostalgia.'  It is all the little things that make Easter really Easter to me:  the food, dying eggs, jelly beans, peeps (my favorite), stupid grass that sticks to everything and shows up everywhere, egg hunts, rolling eggs on the floor to crack them, stuffed animal bunnies, baskets, special programs at church, Easter outfits (has to be the number one reason I love Easter!), and going to church and seeing all the little kids in their brand new spring outfits!  I am in love with the feelings that it all gives me.  It takes me back, it makes me a child again, and brings back thousands of wonderful memories of past years, while creating new memories at the same time. What could be better than that?  I have spent some Easters away from home, creating new memories with new friends and loved ones and creating new traditions.  The last two years I have been lucky enough to get back to Cleveland for Easter with my immediate family.  They have all been wonderful Easters but I thought I would share just a few of my favorite memories and pictures that take me back and bring me that feeling of "nostalgia!"

~The first year that Lexi (my sister) didn't have to wear a coordinating outfit and I was so mad because I was sure she was ruining all of our pictures!

~The funny notes that the Easter Bunny would leave for us.

~Putting on skits and shows with my sister and cousin.  

~Sitting across from my siblings on the kitchen floor and rolling eggs to crack them, while Butterscotch went nuts!

~Going to an egg hunt with my cousins and Gammie driving us home but stopping every few minutes so we could ask people if they "happened to have any grey poupon" or throw eggs out the window! 

~Finding an egg in Gammie's bathroom months after Easter and getting to keep the ten dollar bill inside!

~Gammie hiding an Easter egg in Doc's shirt pocket that took us forever to find.

~Getting a corsage every Easter sunday from my dad and being so proud to wear it to church.

~Our Easter stuffed animals named hip, hop, and dirty socks!

~Ty's excitement when the Easter bunny hid an egg in his bed, he couldn't believe he was so sneaky!

~Realizing this year that while we all talked and ate appetizers, Carter had gone around and found all the plastic eggs Grandma and Grandpa hid and ate all the candy out of them!  We had to refill and rehide them to have an Easter egg hunt with the other kids!