10 months

i knew my punctuality of posting monthly updates on logan would be short lived. he turned 10 months a couple of weeks ago and i can't believe it. he's growing up so fast, which i know is a very cliche thing to say, but it's so true (which is probably why it is a cliche). while i have loved every stage so far, i think this is my favorite age. logan has more and more personality everyday, "talks" more and more, is more interactive, is learning so much and is just a ton of fun!

these days logan:

• is feeding himself snacks. favorites include veggie straws, gerber puffs, cookies. he will often grab a handful of puffs or veggie straws, drop them all on the table and then eat them one by one. he will also take a bite of one veggie straw, put it down and pick up another and take a bite, put it down and pick up another and take a bite etc. eventually they all get eaten!
  
• loves clapping. he is always clapping for himself and will also clap every time we tell him good job.
• has 2 bottom teeth, 2 top teeth and a 3rd one coming in on top
• flaps his arms around. he will sit on the floor and bounce around while flapping his arms. he gets so excited!
• is babbling nonstop (except he gets quiet in large, loud groups)
  
• is sticking out his tongue. especially if we stick ours out at him
  
• loves books. they calm him down when he's upset, make him smile and he loves to turn the pages
• is imitating whatever we do - he shakes, tilts or nods his head if we do and tries to imitate our sounds
• is grinding his teeth (not our favorite trick)
• makes a duck noise. he copies the sound his duck puppet makes and does it when he sees his rubber ducky
• LOVES his lovey (his blankie)! he gets giddy when he sees it. he sucks the corners and they get pretty dingy. so if you ever see his lovey and it looks a little gross, don't judge me. i promise i wash it, but the corners get dirty in no time.
  
• growls at us sometimes
• loves to hold his hands above his head (touchdown style). his aunt kari has a game where she asks, "how big is logan?" and then she would hold up his arms and say "so big!" we were shocked when we were playing and he held up his arms all by himself!
• scoots backwards on his belly, but hasn't quite figured out how to scoot forward
• gets on his hands and knees and rocks back and forth but doesn't crawl yet
• has figured out how to maneuver around on his bottom. he sits and turns himself around and has recently started moving around on his bum. he's pretty good at getting places (or at least getting to the toys he wants)
• loves to say "da da." most things are da da to logan, but when he says it in reference to dave, he says it very distinctly.
• kicking and banging his legs in bed and in his car seat
• loves to eat! we're always trying to introduce new foods to him. one of his recent favorites are black beans. he's still not sure about mashed potatoes or avocados.
• loves to be sung to. his favorite is the "itsy bitsy spider."
• sometimes sleeps on his stomach and moves himself into corners of his crib. as a result we took off his bumpers. it made me sad because they were so cute :(
• has been weaned, which also makes me sad. but he didn't seem to mind the switch to formula which has made it easier on me (emotionally).
  

i love to see the temple

it was the perfect outing for a beautiful sunday! we are happy to live so close to the temple!

my first mother's day!

dave spoiled me and made me feel so special on my first mother's day. my day included: cuddling in bed with logan, an amazing breakfast and dinner made by dave, a beautiful stargazer lily plant, a book about inspiring women in the scriptures, visits to both of our moms and spending time together as a family. being a mother has brought me more joy than i could have imagined. it is hard to believe i've been a mother for less than a year because it has made every part of my life more meaningful. i am grateful for a husband who values what i am doing and doesn't miss an opportunity to thank me for what i do for our family. i am grateful for my mom and mother-in-law who exemplify all that is beautiful, strong, selfless and loving about motherhood.

"motherhood is near to divinity. it is the highest, holiest service to be assumed by a woman."

-president david o. mckay

cinco de mayo, four years later

4 years ago on cinco de mayo dave and i went on a date. he had planned for us to go on a picnic, but the weather was rainy and so he moved the picnic inside. we sat on a blanket on his living room floor and had chinese food (that's what everyone eats on cinco de mayo, right?!), played the guitar and watched a movie. i decided to surprise dave and recreate the scene.

it was fun to reminisce about all that has happened in 4 years, including the darling addition of a 3rd member at the picnic.

women's conference

2 weeks ago i went to women's conference in utah with my mom and sisters. it was fantastic! here are my thoughts from that weekend:

• i love being with my mom and sisters (we missed you lynda)! they are the most inspiring, incredible women i know. i wish we could all be together more.
• i love BYU! i forgot how much i miss provo and that beautiful campus (seriously, check out all the tulips and mountains in the pictures below).
• i hate pumping, especially with a hand pump. i won't go into detail, but let's just say it was the biggest pain and stressful.
• i have the best husband and sister-in-law who took care of logan. i didn't have to worry for one second about him the whole weekend because i knew he was in great hands!
• i am grateful for picture texts so i could still "see" my boys while i was gone.
• i like running with my sisters, but their pace is much faster than mine!
• individually the todd women have a hard time being on time, but when we're together it is nearly impossible. we were always rushing to our classes, not to mention we were 45 minutes late checking out of our dorm :)
• I-15 is always under construction
• women's conference is an amazing event. even if i look at it from strictly the event planning side (my past life), it is unbelievable.
• it is so empowering to gather with thousands of women, who are striving like i am to follow the savior in an increasingly wicked world (imagine the power and strength gained by looking around a basketball arena of 19,000 women from across the country who have gathered to be taught and lifted by inspired women).
• each class that i went to was so inspiring. the speakers taught with the spirit and provided some incredible insights that made me want to be so much better and a more valiant disciple of christ. the weekend was a "spiritual feast."
• one evening they had a room full of exhibits called "sharing stations" that were created to provide practical application of many of the principles taught at women's conference. holy cow, there are sooo many incredibly talented and creative people! i was overwhelmed and came home with so many ideas. now i just have to put them into practice!
• when the bulk of your time spent together is either walking or sitting in classes, it doesn't lead to very many (or exciting) pictures (as evidenced below).

the same weekend we were in town one of my cousins got married. it was so fun to see so many of my relatives. it has been way too long and it made me realize how much i have missed them.

us and the clarks. i love this family! we even got to meet courtney's fiance! welcome to the family mark! and see pictures of katelin's new little baby. he is a doll!

(left) my cousin megan and her cute little girl chloe

(right) my cute mom and her sister jean (the mother of the groom)

i can't wait for women's conference next year!

clapping and splashing

logan loves bath time! dave and i end most of his baths wet because he loves to splash. a few weeks ago he figured out how to clap and was having a great time showing off his skills while he was in the bathtub. he seemed pretty pleased with himself. we were pretty pleased too!

may the fourth be with you

i just learned yesterday that today is star wars day -

may the fourth be with you!

so cheesy, but it makes me smile!

logan with yoda at target when he was a month-and-a-half old

without realizing that such a day was approaching (or even existed), i mentioned a couple of weeks ago to dave that i wanted to watch all the star wars movies. we watched them all when i was pregnant with logan. i remember because i was a little emotional and even cried at the end of episode 3. dave was ecstatic and i'm pretty sure it convinced him that i am the coolest wife, not that it was actually in question (perhaps the word cool isn't what came to your mind)! so we started last night, on the eve of star wars day. sadly we didn't make it too far because i couldn't keep my eyes open (a combination of being exhausted from a fun weekend and a tiring 15 mile run). so dave sent me off to take a bubble bath. that, along with people magazine and ben and jerry's ice cream made the night complete! i think i like star wars eve! but rest assured that we will be making our way through all 6 movies in the coming months.

may the fourth be with you!

i am fully aware that this is the nerdiest post ever. apparently i have been going through a blogging drought and this is what got me going again.