Dane Is One!

My sweet little boy celebrated his first birthday. The time has gone by so quickly, and he has become such a little man. I am so proud of him, and I can’t imagine life without him.

We had a little birthday party with family and friends. There was lots of food (way too much), lots of laughs, and a little variety show starring Dane.

Here he is doing the handstand:

Here he is clapping:

I didn't get a picture of him playing peekaboo, but I will assure you that it was adorable. I will post the video one of these days.

Then came his piece de resistance: attacking his cake.

He was a little timid at first, not knowing what to make of his sticky hands:

Then, he got a little bored and just decided to walk away. But he stepped right into the cake and kept trying to shake off the frosting:

What a funny boy. We were glad that so many of our friends could come.

Chris, Teresa, and Halle (I grew up with Chris):

I like how Kenji is lurking in the background in that one.

Here's Halle again:

Stephen, Meghan, Lauren, and Molly; Meghan was intently discussing BYU football when I took the picture:

Joel and Ryan (Joel's cousin's husband):

George, Melanee, Sam, and Kevin (George grew up with Joel and Stephen):

Haha, that one was extra candid. Sorry I didn't have you smile for the camera.

Check out Sam's striking blue eyes in this shot:

Then she asked me to take another picture of her:

I think she has a Dorothy on the Yellow Brick Road kind of look there.

And sweet, chubby Kevin:

My mom and Kenji:

My dad with his favorite grandson:

Dane eating his bib:

And the happy birthday family!

Happy Birthday Dane! We love you!

My Own Tag

So...my life hasn't been particularly interesting as of late. But I don't like having the blog sit unupdated for too long, so I came up with a tag. I think many tags are lame/way too long, so here is my attempt at making an interesting one of reasonable length:
Divulging Tag!
1. Briefly describe something stupid that you've done:
When I was 15 or so, I went to a tri-stake dance hoping some cute guy would notice me. Of course, that didn't happen. However, a mentally challenged boy did follow me around and ask me to dance many times and ask me to be his girlfriend. I didn't know what to do, so I gave him a fake name and phone number. I still feel pretty ashamed of that. Later, my kinder friend Kristen gave him her real number and there were funny things that happened after that, but that story is for another time.
2. Name something brilliant that you've done lately:
I haven't been so great about personal scripture study since Dane was born, for obvious reasons. But I wanted to get better, so I started playing the audio of the scriptures on my computer while I clean/eat breakfast/etc. during Dane's morning nap. I'm feeling pretty good about it. Here's a link if you're interested.
3. Write a paragraph out of your journal from five or ten or fifteen years ago, closest to today's date. Feel free to change names to protect your dignity:
September 13, 1998
"I have this awful premonition about my first date. It'll be a double date with me and Hank, and Steve and Sally. By then, Hank and Sally (who were dating at the time) would've broken up, but whn they see each other on the date, they forget abou tht erest of the world and are totally engrossed in each other. Steven leaves, so I am left alone and I end up having a horrible time, and they don't even notice. I'm scarred for life and it hasn't even happened yet."

Haha, such drama. The funny thing is, something like this really did end up happening.
4. What is something you love about yourself (don't worry, no one will think you're bragging):
I like the fact that I am smart. It gives me confidence in many situations, and it obviously comes in handy. Conversely, if I feel stupid about something, it makes me feel really vulnerable. But yeah. I am glad that I am smart.
5. Name a useless talent that you have:
I have an amazing command of the alphabet. It came from working in a filing job at a doctor's office. I can alphabetize things super fast. Yeehaw. I am The Alphabetizer.
6. Tell a short experience that makes you laugh:
While Joel's mom was in law school, she invited us to go to a law school valentine's dance. We (Joel and I, Stephen & Meghan, Jake and LJ, and Mom) got all dressed up in formal attire and went. It was awkward. People were eyeing us funny. Joel's ex-girlfriend was there and that felt awkward. Finally, I feel someone put their hands on my waist and start dancing with me from behind. Since Joel was in front of me, this was disturbing. It was a guy I vaguely knew through work. I was thinking he was really creepy and a dirtbag when someone tells us that this dance was not a law school dance. It was a singles over 25 dance. I had neither qualification. We sheepishly left.
7. Tag whomever, if you want:
I tag Megan, Meghan, Melanee, Melissa, Mristen (that is Kristen, but I had to follow the pattern)