ONE!

ONE year ago, my mom took this picture. It isn't a particularly good picture of me or of Lucy, but it makes me happy nonetheless because this was the day that Max was born. I look big and tired, and Lucy looks, well, she looks tired too. Maybe she crying because she can sense that by the end of the day, her world will be rocked by the arrival of her baby brother!

And here he is!

Oh, how I love this boy!

My Lover Boy!

I love how he snorts when he is fussing

I love how he snuggles, giggles and walks

I love that he is such a mommy's boy

I love how he fits perfectly into our family

I can't decide whether I feel like, "Where did the year go?"

or

"Has Max really only been in our lives for one year?"

Happy 1st Birthday Max!

I love you, Bubs :)

Conan O'Brien Live: A Lovefest

Monday night was a lovefest.

First of all, I was on a date with my husband. Love! Love! Love!

Here is our "Excuse me, Stranger, would you mind taking a picture for us?" picture.

And here is our traditional long-arm shot :)

Second, we had tickets (and GREAT seats, I might add!) to see Conan O'Brien's sold-out show, "The Legally Prohibited From Being Funny on TV Tour". We love Conan! Love! Love! Love!

If you don't really have an appreciation for Conan, I'm not offended, but please just pretend like you do, because this is exciting stuff!

When Conan's show was taped in New York, Devon and I always said that someday we would go and see him live. And then when Conan took over "The Tonight Show" in California, again, we said that someday we would go to see him live. We were slightly devastated when Jay Leno was brought back and Conan was sent packing... but on Monday night our "someday" became TONIGHT!

The variety show was full of stand-up comedy, props, and music, and I laughed until my cheeks hurt, and Devon laughed until he had acid reflux :)

Andy Richter was there too! More love :)

And La Bamba came right over to where we were, and Devon took this picture and then got a high-five. Devon turned to me and said, "Yeah, I just got a high-five from La Bamba!" We were a bit star-struck.

The love did not stop there, folks!

Lastly, Conan announced that a surprise guest stopped by, and then introduced Eddie Vedder (lead singer of Pearl Jam)!!! Love! Love! Love!

How shall I put this? How about in standardized testing form: Justin Timberlake is to Annie as Eddie Vedder is to Devon. Get it? My husband might have pooped his pants!

(Okay, Devon did not really poop his pants, but he was super excited!)

We got to watch him play a few songs and rock out with Conan's band. (yeah, I just wrote "rock out"!)

And that was our LOVEFEST!

I'm not sure what kind of show will ever top this for me (although, I'll re-evalute when Mr. Timberlake comes to town!)

God Bless Morgan Freeman

Yesterday, as we were going about our morning routines, Devon did his best to find something on TV that would please all of us, and he settled on the movie Evan Almighty. Some humor for the adults, some animals for the kids- a real crowd pleaser!


After a while, Devon went to the garage to workout, Lucy followed along to watch him (Remember? She is in love with him), Joe went to his room to play with Legos, and it was just me, Max, and my peanut butter and jelly bagel and a tall glass of cold milk.


I've seen this movie 3 or 4 times, and each time I watch it, it stirs up some emotion within me, and I've shed some tears over Evan. When I was younger, my mom would cry during sentimental episodes of Full House, like when Danny, Joey, and Uncle Jesse had to help DJ Tanner get ready for her first date because she didn't have a mommy to help her, or Growing Pains, like when Maggie Seaver gave birth Chrissy... and my brothers and I would just look at our mom, baffled at why she would be crying. She wasn't sad, she wasn't happy, she didn't know these people. But now I GET IT. I cry at crazy Steve Carrell costumed as a modern day Noah, obeying God's command to build an ark, and his family thinks he has lost his mind but they end up supporting him anyway, and then the whole neighborhood is saved from the flood as they ride the ark through Washington DC, and then the happy ending.... such a great movie!


Anyway, before I could change the channel and avoid the tears, it was the diner scene. I used my napkin to wipe my eyes, and later found jelly on the inner-bridge of my nose.


In this scene, Morgan Freeman (God) was Lauren Graham's (Evan's wife) server at a diner, and this is his message for her:

"Let me ask you something. If someone prays for patience, you think God gives them patience? Or does he give them the opportunity to be patient? If he prayed for courage, does God give him courage, or does he give him opportunities to be courageous? If someone prayed for the family to be closer, do you think God zaps them with warm fuzzy feelings, or does he give them opportunities to love each other?"

I love it! OPPORTUNTIES! Morgan Freeman does such a nice job of preaching it! Wanna see?

In other news...
Joseph's baseball team won their game! And Max ate dirt :)
I took this cute pic of Bubs at Devon's softball game-
'

And this goofy picture of Lucy-

And this afternoon we all participated in the Sleep Country USA Pajama Bowl! Go Team Rantz!

The kids were excited to bowl and to wear their pajamas in the middle of the day :)

Lucy's bowling score was better than mine. No lie! She got very tired though, and ended up on the floor.
Over the past 5 years, the Pajama Bowl has raised over $250,000 for local programs that support foster kids! :)


It was a good weekend :)

His Fantasies

When Devon and I were dating, I once asked him to help me build my fantasy baseball team. According to Dev, that was the moment in our relationship that really confirmed that I was the girl for him.

I am sad to report that from that moment forward, my future husband began to ruin fantasy sports for me. It is true that too much of a good thing is a bad thing, and it didn't take long before I was all, "DUDE! ENOUGH WITH YOUR FANTASY TEAMS! I AM A LIVING PERSON, A WARM BODY, SOMEONE WHO WANTS YOUR ATTENTION!"

I suppose that there could be worse things associated with "fantasy" in reference to one's husband's obsessions, but in our household, the "other woman" is fantasy sports.

Once, at a Christmas party, we were one of the couples pulled out of the crowd to play "The Newlywed Game", and we won a set of luggage by correctly answering, "What does your husband do that drives you crazy?" The answer: Fantasy Sports!

The annual climax of my resentment toward my husband's obsession with pretending like he manages pro baseball, basketball, football teams and golf tours (yes, even golf!) is football season when he actually pays upward of $135 to play in a league with his work buddies. That is hard-earned money (yes, that he worked so hard to earn) that he is gambling away- we have bills to pay, buddy!

Football season requires loads of attention on Sundays, and a bit more on Monday nights... but now he is in a new league, and it is baseball season now, and there are professional baseball games every single day of the week! "I've just got to check my team, see if I'm winning, I've got to decide who to start, see who is playing today..."

Again, it could be worse. I'm going to try to be supportive and wish my hubs good luck this season. And I do expect to remind him often that his teams don't love him in return, like I do!

happiness is these faces & a sunny day

F.L.A.S.H.

I have just returned home from an informative meeting about F.L.A.S.H.

I wish that I could tell you that this acronym stands for

Free Latte and Stylish Haircut!

or maybe even

Fabulous Ladies and Sophisticated Housewives!

No, no.

Family Life and Sexual Health

That's right.

Birds and bees!

The 5th grade is about to get interesting!

As a terrified parent, I thought I'd prepare myself with some knowledge regarding the curriculum. I had asked Devon if he would like to attend the meeting (you know, Devon? Joe's flesh and blood?), but his response was somewhere along the lines of haha hell no, followed by, "You should go because you probably want to get out of the house today."

Um, did my husband just suggest that a F.L.A.S.H. meeting somehow qualifies as "me time" or a mommy-break???????

Anyway, I left the meeting with an understanding of what Joe will be learning about puberty, reproductive systems, and pregnancy, and if you happen to notice that I did not include SEX in that list, then perhaps there is hope that Joe will not notice either!

Yes, the lessons skip from reproductive systems to pregnancy with a one-time, sneeze and you'll miss it, clinical definition of intercourse.

Lord, help me now!

So, of course, parents are encouraged to be available and open with conversation regarding the topics at hand. Who better to teach our children than us??

My sister-in-law, Jill, loaned me a book (by Dr. Richard Dobbins) that I have yet to open (maybe I can delay puberty by not reading the book!), but I think that it is time to dust it off and prepare myself for such an important task. I'd hate for my children to seek information- and misinformation- from their peers because their parents are too awkward when it comes to discussing sex. The time has come for me to grow up and say words like "penis" without wincing

Oh dear, wish me luck!

Plaaaaaaaay Ball!

It is now officially the time of year when our party of 5 will spend Saturdays at little league games, Sundays at softball games, and various days of the week cheering for the Mariners, all while I complain that my life is being controlled by a small leather ball.

But, really, I kind of like it :) Only kind of.

Joe's team played their first game yesterday, and we braved the 32 degree morning to cheer them on- GO REDS!!

Here is our lean, mean 1st baseman!

Devon was on his best behavior, remembering to be a fan in the bleachers, not a coach :)

Max was passed back and forth between daddy and mommy, in an attempt to keep him from eating gravel...

But ultimately it all proved to be just a bit too much excitement for him!

And Lucy was very happy to play with dirt and sticks....

until some older girls invited her to play hide and seek.

Can you find Lucy?

I giggled all day when I thought of her special hiding spot!

The day ended with DATE NIGHT!

Devon scored tickets for us to see Ludacris and The Black Eyed Peas-

It was a really fun, high-energy show, and though our seats were in the second to last row at the very top of the Tacoma Dome, we sat with friends from Devon's company, and we danced and sang and had a great time.

And Fergie was as Fergalicious as I'd hoped she would be!

Ravio-sagne

I have a recipe to share, and let me tell you, friends, that this might be the

easiest recipe ever!

Ravio-sagne is a combo of ravioli and lasagna, both of which are super yummy, right?

Here is what you need:

• 1 jar of marinara sauce (approx. 2 cups)
• 25 oz. package of frozen rectangular cheese ravioli (I bought two 9 oz. packages of Trader Joe's chicken and sausage ravioli, and it all worked out fine)
• 2 1/2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/3 cup finely slivered basil leaves (I forgot to buy basil, but the spice rack that we received as a wedding gift came in handy with dried basil! I hope that those spices don't expire, because my dried basil is nearly 5 years old....)

Did you catch that there are only 4 ingredients???!!!

Preheat oven to 400 degrees, and layer the ingredients in a casserole dish in this order:

• approx 1/2 cup sauce
• layer of frozen ravioli noodles
• another 1/2 cup sauce
• a nice layer of cheese
• basil
• ravioli noodles
• sauce
• cheese
• basil
• ravioli noodles
• sauce
• cheese
• basil

Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Take foil off and bake for another 10 minutes. Cheese should be melted and ravioli should be cooked through.

My mother-in-law and my kids and I all loved it, and Devon had two helpings of left-overs the next night :)

*I must give credit where it is due: I found this recipe in a magazine at the pediatrician's office, simply called Mom, and the published chef is Devin Alexander

Double Trouble

My babies are becoming quite chummy with each other.

They are little partners.

I like it!

Bubs is suddenly looking like a big boy (minus hair). My family has not seen him since Christmas, and they just won't believe how much he has changed!

Tonight he was loving Lucy's little kitchen.
I tried to think of a joke to accompany this picture, but nothing witty came to mind.
His little body makes me happy :)

Love Triangle

This morning I came downstairs to find Lucy sitting on the sofa watching Sesame Street. I poured myself some coffee, some chocolate milk for her, and I joined her, sitting close and snugly.

Not before long, our man walked down the stairs and into the living room. He looked very handsome in his work clothes, freshly pressed. And he smelled so good- like toothpaste, soap, and shaving cream.



He kissed us both and then hurried about, preparing to leave us for the day.



Lucy waited just a moment before she sat back on her heels, elevating her face to mine. She brushed my messy hair away and then leaned in close to my ear and whispered,



"Daddy doesn't love you."



I let out a dramatic gasp of disbelief and devastation!



A look of satisfaction filled her little round face, and then she came close again and whispered, this time for the kill,



"I don't love you either. I only love Daddy."



She sat back and waited for my reaction. I could only laugh- what a terrible way to start the day!



But, I get it. He did smell so very nice!

Merry Easter

My husband is a riddle:

Devon is a middle child, a youngest child, and an only child.

He is an only child with 6 siblings.

While you chew on that, here are some pictures of our recent visits to Devon's sister Merry's house, where his youngest sister Julianne was visiting from New York.

Merry, Devon & Julianne (and Mr. T)

Max: "Uh, you are nice, but I want my mommy!"

3 things that you should know:
1) Lucy will only wear her finest dress-up clothes to Aunt Merry's house.
2) Merry can totally relate to Lucy's passion for lovely things.
3) On this visit, Merry had surprised Lucy with some ballet DVDs (you can see the delight on her face!).

So, on our next visit, 6 days later...

Lucy became the luckiest girl in the world when Merry gave her several ballet tutus and costumes, as well as the most beautiful and fancy Easter ensemble complete with hat, coat, and purse (the purse contains a pretty hankerchief that once belonged to Grandma Joyce Rantz, Lucy's great-grandma, who was very special to Devon and his siblings).

Lucy's shifty-eyes are making sure that Merry's dogs don't come in the room!

Max: "Uh, you are nice, but I want my daddy!"

me, Merry & Julianne

From Merry's house, we went to the local fire station for their annual egg hunt. Not only did the kids enjoy the egg hunt and pick up a whole 'lotta loot, but we got a good refresher course on fire safety!

Lucy was the fanciest egg hunter you ever did see!

I love this picture of Joe! He takes his egg hunts very seriously! Look at his intensity!

Back at Merry's, we ate candy until our bellies said, "NO MORE".

Merry and Julianne had put together Easter baskets for the kids, and they hid some eggs inside the house, and the yummy snacks were in abundance, and I even got to spend a little bit of time in Merry's tanning bed. This California girl needs some sun-kisses.

And Max was happy to watch the dogs through the window.

We had a very Merry Easter!