Dancing on the Beach

Max and I went over to the beach at Corona del Mar for the second time in a week. Although we've been there several times since we moved out here, Friday was the first time I noticed this little hidden cove, we usually go to the main beach but this little part was hidden on the other side of some big rocks.
I only had the stroller that day, so today I brought the Bjorn and we went on a little exploration. I hiked around the rocks and got over to it, no one was there! It felt like a private beach! One day when Max can walk we will have fun splashing around and playing in the little coves. In the Bjorn, I can't really tell when Max spits up, so I had to take pictures to see if there was anything wipe-able.
Actually, two people pointed out that he had spit up on him just in passing, it was pretty bad. Before making the trek back to the car I stopped at a grassy area with some shade near the main beach. There was a group of kids there at what looked like a little play group/preschool. The teacher, Miss Jody, was passing out T-shirts that said this;
I intially thought it said Earthroos Field School but when I Googled it I discovered it was actually Earthroots Field School. But I thought Earthroos sounded cute, you know the kids could say "I'm an Earthroo!" haha. Most of the parents looked very "Earthy" dreadlocks, cargos, sandals, you know. It was such a cute little gathering. This is what their website said about them.

"Earthroots offers creative learning environments that nurture the whole person and their connection with the natural world.

We offer classes year round for toddlers, homeschoolers, teens, adults, private and public schools and summer camps. Outdoor “classrooms” include local organic farms, gardens, wilderness areas, kitchens, national parks, beaches, creeks and more. This school is an exploration of our natural world and extends into our connection with all things"

I really enjoyed watching them and so did Max! After class was over, the kids put on their shirts and just started running and dancing around. Max watched them go back and forth on the grass. One girl was pretending to be a bird running and flapping her wings, another boy was skipping. It was such sweet, innocent, natural movement of children. Reminded me of my creative dance classes as a child and the methods of teaching children dance course in college. When I was teaching, I spent so many lessons trying to teach my Jr. high kids to move in the natural way that they used to as kids. Isn't it interesting how our bodies naturally run, jump, skip and leap as children and then suddenly Jr. high hits with puberty and insecurities and we forget? I really had to re-teach these tweens to do the natural things they did as kids. It really brought me such joy to see my students re-discover their bodies and the pure joy of movement, even through their awkwardness. I recently saw this quote on a friends facebook:

"You don't have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body."
-C.S. Lewis.

I hope all souls, young and old can feel this kind of joyful movement and some time in their life, even if they never take a dance class.

Blessing

Maxwell David White was blessed on May 3rd by his daddy. It was such a great day, one that I've been looking forward to for some time. He did great during the blessing, just didn't want to have his picture taken! A nice lady in our ward took more pictures with her nice camera but I don't have those back yet so I thought I'd just put these up. Our church building shares the same plot of land as the beautiful Newport Beach temple.
We had family back at our apartment afterwards. My mom was smart enough to snap a picture of Max with his his two Grandpas who he is named after (both of them are named David).
Max was blessed in the same outfit that Jared was blessed in! Do you think they look alike?THANK YOU everyone who could make the trip to be there for Max, it was a great day.

Earthquake!

My whole life I've had earthquake drills, growing up in Utah, but it wasn't until I moved to CA that I was actually in one! Sunday night we were having dinner and I was talking to Jared's bro Chase. I thought I felt a little shake but honestly I always think I feel little shakes, so I just kept listening to Chase but suddenly the little shake turned into a big shake! Max slept through the whole thing. The news said it was 5.0 at the epicenter. It really wasn't THAT scary. But Jared's been in stronger ones, hopefully we'll just have little ones like that and not a huge big one. just a reminder to BE PREPARED!

P.S. I've been wanting to post about Max's blessing. I will get that up soon.

May Babies

the month of May
is a big one in my family! Many many birthdays to celebrate - 7 to be exact! Since I won't be able to attend any of these amazing people's birthday parties this year, I thought I'd give them a shout out:

Grandma, LaRae Savage - May 5th
My Grandma turned 80 this year! She is the most amazing grandmother you'll ever meet. She works at the temple every week and travels to another country probably about every other month. I believe she is getting ready to go to Portugal and Spain right now! She is such a wonderful Grandmother and has always done so much for her Grandchildren and Great-Grandchildren. Her family has always been her top priority. We love you Grandma!

Mom, Carolyn - May 14th
My mom's birthday and Mother's Day have always been close together so I hope she feels extra loved around this time of year. I have to say I've learned to appreciate my mother a lot more now that I am a mother. She has been SO patient and loving with me. I wasn't the easiest daughter to raise I'm sure. She is remodeling her beautiful house right now and serves on the school board in Provo. If there are two things my mom is passionate about it is education and her seven children!

Sister-in-Law, Jessica - May 16th
Jess lives in New York and just flew across the country 2 weeks ago for Max's blessing. She is such a great Auntie. She has also been such a wonderful friend to me since I joined the White family. Jared and I got engaged while she was a missionary and she immediately started writing me letters! She has such an eye for fashion and photography. For a couple great years I was working in Salt Lake while she lived there, I miss those times! Life is never dull when Jessica is around.

Big Brother, Joel - May 18th
Joel is my oldest brother. I always thought everything he did was so cool growing up, so naturally I still do! He got married when I was twelve to his beautiful wife Marisa, He's been married for over half of my life! They have four adorable kids and Joel is a great dad. He is always smiling and positive. He has been, and still is, a wonderful older brother to his 6 younger siblings. I can still remember him driving around the Tracer jammin' to Paul Simon when he was in high school with his long hair!

Little sister, Annie - May 20th
Anne is the only sibling who I can really remember being born, I was in Kindergarten. She's the youngest in our family and just finished her first year at BYU. I don't think any of us could imagine life without Anne, I mean, if Jonathan was the youngest that would just be weird. Anne is so beautiful, loving, smart and kind. I remember driving home from Salt Lake one day after a really bad dress rehearsal for a dance concert. I just felt like I'd been so hard on all my dancers and that basically they all hated me. I called Anne and I hadn't even told her about what was going on but she was just like "I love you Emily" and it was so good to hear that somebody still loved me and that I wasn't "the mean dance teacher" to everyone in my life. I love you too Annie!

Niece, Scarlett - May 28th
Little Scarlett turns one this year. I stole this pic from my bro's facebook. She is the cutest little blue eyed blondie and looks so much like her mama. From what I can tell she is such a happy girl just like her older sister, Audrey. She has three older siblings who help take care of her. She is Max's cousin closest in age. When Scarlett was blessed I was just a few weeks pregnant and I remember feeling that she had been in Heaven with my baby just a few weeks earlier. I love being her Auntie.

Brother, Brendan - May 29th
Brendan is the third child in our family and the second oldest brother. Growing up, Brendan was always the one who made us laugh. He would sing in the shower, make up silly songs, and always cheered me up. He and his lovely wife Shera have quite the romantic story of how they met. When they were dating and engaged my 15 year old friends and I loved hearing Brendan tell us the details of cute things he did for her and we'd dream of the day we'd meet a boy that nice! He has two adorable kids and he is a great dad! They moved back to Utah just a month before Jared and I left for California but I'm glad we lived close for those few weeks and now we get to see them when we visit.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY EVERYONE!
I LOVE YOU!

The many faces of Max

just some cute photos . . .


from March . . .





From April . . .

Max goes to Utah

We made the trek to Utah a couple weeks ago so Max could meet more of his fam and so Jared could walk for his MA at BYU. It was a fun trip. It was good to be back in Provo. I didn't realize how much I'd missed it, especially my mountains. I'm glad we got to see some of the pink and white blossoms too. I was extremely nervous to take my 7 week old baby on an 11 hour car ride. I didn't want to end up on a dark road in the middle of nowhere nursing him and I didn't know how he'd do in the car seat for that long. On the way there Max was great, I think it was because we split up the trip and drove only to St. George and then the rest of the way the next morning. We stopped at In-N-Out in Vegas to change his diaper real quick and an older couple was standing outside the restaurant and saw me throw the diaper away. I heard the man say "Oh I remember those days, changing the diaper in the back of the car!" it was funny. On the way back we drove the whole thing in one day, and yes, we did end up in the middle of nowhere, Zzyzzx Road to be exact, nursing him. But at least it wasn't dark! Here are some highlights:
Our Fam

My FamJared's parents

Graduation wore Max out! He was proud of his daddy!Max meets Great-Grandma Savage (who turns 80 today!)
My sister's cute kiddos sure love Max!
Cousin Scarlett, Max's cousin closest in age, she turns one this month
9 year old cousin Warren
Charles and Audrey. Charles was so cute and offered Max all of his toys.

Meeting Grandpa Wright!
Courtney, Charles and Audrey

P.S. Family, I will post more pics of the trip on Facebook