Joy Tears are a Thing

Lately I've been having so many days where I'm on the verge of tears, on and off, all day long.  The great thing is that they aren't sad tears at all; they are joy tears. I don't think this is because I'm super hormonal from having a baby within the last year, either.  I think it's because life is so wonderful right now.  I will admit that these verge-of-tears moments come primarily when I look at Max and he gives me the cutest smile in the world.  He's to blame for making me seem like an emotional wreck but, under these circumstances, I'm fine with it.

Max is about 7.5 months old.  He weighs 18 lbs 10 oz and he's getting mobile!  I thoroughly enjoy my days with him, and occasionally, I am even anxious for him to wake up from his naps so I can play with him some more.  He is without a doubt the biggest blessing in our lives and we thank Heavenly Father for him daily.

For being such a short month, February was full of big changes for the Allreds.  The smaller of the big changes is that I joined a gym!  I've never been consistent about exercising but I feel so much better when I do it, so Johnny and I decided a gym membership was a worthwhile investment for me.  I only go 2-3 times a week, once Max is asleep for the night and Johnny is busy watching one basketball game or another.  It's been great so far, aside from one creepy run in with a middle aged man that ended with me in tears (not the joy tears this time).  It's nice to have some time to do something good for myself.

The bigger change from February is that I got a job!  I work for a company called Zirtual as a virtual assistant.  The best thing about this job is that I get to work from home.  Most days I can just work while Max is sleeping, so it hasn't taken much time from him so far.  I have clients that ask me to do a wide variety of tasks for them (from scheduling to internet research to booking travel - and everything in between).  As of right now I only have two clients but I will eventually work my way up to maybe 8 or 10.  It's been a huge blessing for me to be able to earn a little extra so we can pay off student loans and such.  And it's nice for me to use that part of my brain again.

Laura and Hannah came up for the President's Day weekend.  They watched Max so Johnny and I could go on a Valentine's Day date.  We played racquetball (our new favorite activity) at Surf-n-Swim and then went to dinner and a dollar movie.  It was so much fun and we are so glad Laura and Hannah gave us a night out.  I also made Johnny a nice breakfast for Valentine's Day and he bought me flowers and Chik-fil-A the day before.  He knows the way to my heart!

this is max's "thanks for the cute onsie, aunt emily!" face

Johnny has been hard at work, molding young minds by the day.  He just started the fourth term of his second year of teaching.  Luckily he loves his job and has great students that keep him very busy.  Johnny is also in charge of the Fremont High website AND he teaches an extra class this year.  You could say he's dominating his professional life, if you want to.

Since the weather is finally nice again, we've been spending a lot more time outside.  Sometimes Max likes to help Dad around the yard.

Spring Break is the last week of March and you'd better believe we're planning a trip to Southern California!  More on that to come.