March Birthdays- Hyrum, Mike, Mom

March is full of birthdays in the Alexander family!

While Natalie and Ryan were in town, we celebrated at the Cheesecake Factory the day before Mike's 23rd birthday. Natalie and Ryan had a special announcement...
Mike and his beautiful bride-to-be, Erica.

We are so happy to have Michael in our family. From the days of his infancy, he has always been fun-loving and charismatic. He is often the center of attention in whatever setting he is in. When he was just 5, he was the star of the Skyline Fashion Show as he dazzled the audience with his sweet moves and heartbreaking smiles. As a 10 year old at a high school DECA conference, he again had throngs of teenage students cheering him on as he discoed and breakdanced in a huge crowd at a dance at Sea World. He was Student Body President at Sunnyside Elementary, and then served as Idaho State President of DECA (or Head DECA, as we like to sometimes call it!). He has always been a leader, which will hopefully guide him to a long and successful life. He has triumphed over great difficulties over these last few years, and we are all grateful he has come out conqueror. We love you so much, Michael.

Hyrum is our precious sweetheart. He is starting to repeat anything you say in his sweet, angelic little voice. He has that gorgeous, innocent, dimpled smile that melts your heart in an instant. Following in Nicky's footsteps, Hyrum is all boy, weilding swords and quoting superheroes. Our family wouldn't be the same without his entertaining, creative spirit.

Then there is Mom, the true Angel among us. Everyone who has ever really gotten to know Mom can only adore and admire her. She is both spunky and funky, always eager to entertain with a song, dance or other fun activity. Who else can recite numerous Dr. Seuss books, as well as all the Mary Poppins lyrics, by heart? What a Supermom!

For standing only 5 feet even, she is a spiritual giant. She lives the Gospel of Jesus Christ by example in both word and deed. She is not ashamed of her faith- she shares it openly and willingly with others, and has been instrumental in bringing many into the fold by reminding them that they are children of a loving Heavenly Father. She has a magical way of making you feel like you are the most important person in the world. Selfless and sweet are two words that describe her personality. We all have always felt so blessed to have her as our mother, and now the next generation is just as lucky to have her as a grandmother.

Jumparooing

One of Zach's favorite things lately is to bounce around in his Jumparoo. It's so sweet to see his tiny feet dancing while his toes barely touch the floor! His arms are so little that they sometimes get caught at his side, and he gets kind of mad.

He also like when we sing the ABC song, Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes, and Pat-a-Cake. He is the sweetest thing ever!

I think these "naked" photos I took turned out beter than the ones we waited 4 hours for at Kiddie Kandids! Isn't he gorgeous with his silky skin and smiling eyes?

This weekend, I was asked to give a presentation on women in dentistry at UVU's annual Expanding Your Horizons conference, where young women have the opportunity to explore careers in science and technology. At last year's conference, I had 10-20 enthusiastic girls in each of my three workshops. This year, there were only 2-4 in each session. I think the overall attendance must have been much lower this year. It was still fun, but I hate being away from Zach on my days off!

Corey insisted on taking Zach on his first outing to Home Depot last week for a testosterone boost. Do you love the discerning look on Zach's face as he checks out the hardware?

Corey also proudly toted his "Cub Scout" at the recent Scout banquet. He loves his son!