Our New "Neighbors"

The past few days we have had a pair of geese that have taken up residence in the pond behind our house. They have provided a lot of entertainment for us in the mornings and usually stick around until sometime in the early afternoon. We have been getting as close to them as I think we safely can and tossing pieces of bread in their direction -- maybe that's why they keep coming back! 

There are some disadvantages to living farther out than a lot of our friends. But, then there are times like this that I absolutely love where we live! I hope that our new "neighbors" stick around for awhile because they have become such a fun part of our mornings.



Sunshine and Sweets

This afternoon after picking up Madeleine from school we headed over to Wilson Park to play and soak up this gorgeous day. After the stormy weekend we all needed to get out and play for awhile. It was such a beautiful day and the park wasn't too crowded. It's so good for Madeleine to have a chance to run off all that extra energy and we've been hitting the park(s) many afternoons lately -- Wilson Park is by far our favorite. And, yes, it's really a park, not just some slang for our home playground. ;)

Madeleine has become a master at the monkey bars!

I took this picture of Charlotte from behind -- her hair has gotten SO long! And, the curls are still there.

I had been planning on stopping at Orange Leaf on our way home that afternoon for some fro-yo, and as it happened, when Madeleine got in the car this afternoon she said she'd gotten a coupon for a free one that day at school. What luck! Of course, she wanted to go and use it! So, after running and playing hard -- and Harrison sliding down a muddy hill -- we headed for our treat. Both Madeleine and Harrison got their favorite Birthday Cake and Charlotte and I tried the Raspberry Lemonade (yum-o!). The kids picked out an assortment of topping from sour patch kids to chocolate chips and sprinkles with a cherry on top, of course!

It was a great way to kick off our week!

Easter 2*0*1*2

I love Easter! I love that it means that spring and warm weather are just around the corner -- or as was the case this year, they are here. :) I love the flowers that are blooming and watching my kids "practice" hunt eggs in the weeks leading up to Easter.

I know that much of the world celebrates Easter as the resurrection of Christ. And, for me, Easter always makes me thankful for several reasons. First, I'm reminded how thankful I am that I was raised in a home with parents that not only modeled what the Bible teaches, they placed great importance on teaching us why we believe what we believe and therefore why we do what we do when it comes to worship. Easter always makes me thankful that as a Christian trying to do just what the 1st Century church did, I get to celebrate the life, death and resurrection of Christ EVERY WEEK, just a the first church did. The Bible gives us no indication that we are to place a special importance on Easter, in fact it tells us to remember each week and, I guess, I believe that if God had wanted us to have an extra-special Sunday he would have told us. And, as someone that is trying to follow what God has commanded through the Bible, that is what I am going to do. But, it's also what I'm wholeheartedly teaching my children to do. And, this Easter, that's led to some questions from our oldest about why we don't put a special emphasis on Jesus rising from the dead on Easter and what's wrong with that? I can only pray that I have answered her questions in a way that she was able to understand and that I will be able to continue to do so.

So, on to the fun we had getting ready for Easter! I had a blast making their lunches eastery this year -- bunny sandwiches (love my food markers!), bunny gummies, bunny crackers and carrot bags filled with carrots (or cheetos).
Saturday afternoon, after our church egg hunt, we dyed eggs. They had such fun doing this, but the hit of the afternoon were the Color Snaps I'd bought! They were able to color on the eggs and draw on them with these. So much fun! I'll be getting them again next year. :)

The night before Easter. Baskets filled with eggs, ready to be filled and hidden by the Easter bunny!

We left carrots for him; Harrison decided he needed some chocolate as well. I'm sure the Easter bunny appreciated that!

He came! Their baskets were filled to capacity and beyond!

Charlotte's basket.

Madeleine's basket.

Harrison's basket.

And, yes, he ate all the candy and some of the carrots. Guess even the Easter Bunny has a sweet tooth. ;)

Easter morning the kids were so excited! They were up at 6:15 to see what he'd left them!

After checking out their baskets, the hunted for the eggs he'd hidden.

We got dressed and ready for church in our new outfits....and all this by 8:45 that morning! Madeleine and Harrison both had new clothes, but Charlotte was wearing the same dress that Madeleine wore 6 years ago on Easter. I still remember the day I picked it out.

After church, we headed home for Easter lunch. We had some of our good friends, Ryan and Sarah and Mary Mack some eat with us. Sarah is my Ph.D. school friend since Ryan and Matt are in school together. We've supported each other through all of this and it's been wonderful to have someone to talk to that understands the demands of their workload and how tough it is on the wife, too. :) I'm going to miss her so much when they move this summer!

After lunch, the guys hid eggs for the kids. We put Charlotte and Mary Mack in the front yard and the big kids in the back. Charlotte has taken quite a liking to Mary Mack and asks for her every time we go to the park.

It was an absolutely wonderful day, filled with good friends and lots of good memories.

March Wrap Up

We had such a fun March! Here are the pictures that I never got posted...

We had several birthday parties in March. The first was for Harrison's friend Cooper and he had a blast at his Star Wars Party. We also celebrated with Harrison's best bud Drew on his real birthday with cupcakes in the park. Such a fun way for his mom to make his birthday extra-special. It was a perfect day and the kids had a blast filling up on cupcakes and then running off all that energy at the park!

Harrison & his Woody doll -- I think Madeleine actually took this picture. I usually find several pictures on my camera that I'm not exactly sure how they got there and the kids have obviously had a fun time. :) Pictures one Sunday before church.

We've been spending hours at the park this spring. We meet up with our friends Sarah & Mary Mack at least once a week for playtime at the park -- we are going to miss them soooo much when they move this fall!!

We also got to celebrate Drew's birthday at his party at Boingo Bounce. It was a fabulous time for all of us! All of my kids love that Drew and were thrilled to celebrate with him!

Charlotte got some sweet morning snuggles one day. She and Harrison happily played in our bed for almost an hour one morning. They are finally at the point where they can really enjoy playing together.

More morning playtime.

That about wraps up our March! We are counting the days around our house until the end of the school year -- just 6 more weeks to to! Yippee!!