Easter, the 2016 edition…

"Easter is meant to be a symbol of hope, renewal, and new life."
-Janine di Giovanni

What does spaghetti have to do with Easter?  Nothing, really.  We had spaghetti this week and Isla enjoyed attempting to eat it.  I use the word “attempted” because from the amount of spaghetti on the table and her face I’m not sure she actually ate any of it.

If you’re wondering where she learned her spaghetti eating skills, look no further than her big brother.

This year there were four Easter Egg hunts, which is 3 more than any kid really needs considering the large amount of candy obtained at each one.  The first of the hunts took place in our neighborhood.  A lot of the kids came out and found eggs all around the pond.  The weather was fantastic and it was a lot of fun.

The second hunt was at our house after the Easter Bunny came.  Ashlyn and James helped their little sister find eggs and there was one confusing moment where Isla was trying to give James an egg while he was giving one to her (they worked it out).  It was a fun family moment, capped off with breakfast with PePa and then it was off to egg hunt #3.

The day had started off grey and dreary but the sun came out in time for Easter at Grandma and Grampa’s.  The kids had color coded eggs so there was no confusion who the eggs belonged to and some even had clues to prizes hidden throughout the house.  The kids really liked that part.  They were tired from two egg hunts so far that day but luckily they had plenty of sugar to fuel them for hunt #4.

The final hunt of the day took place at Nina and Papa’s.  They did their own hunt and then took over the traditional adult one as well.  Once inside they picked out bag prizes and enjoyed a great Easter dinner with the family.

We’re fortunate that we have so much family to spend Easter with.  Now I just need to find a place for all this candy.

Spring Break, 2016…

"Spring won't let me stay in this house any longer! I must get out and breathe the air deeply again."
-Gustav Mahler

This week was Ashlyn’s first Spring Break and we kept James home as well for a few days to have some fun.

The first big thing we did on Spring Break was join Nina out at the Dallas Arboretum.  I had heard good things about it but have never been there before, and it definitely lives up to its hype.  We spent almost 4 hours there and barely made it out of the kids section.  There was never a boring spot.  The kids climbed and jumped over rocks, went through a garden maze, played with water and wind, and rolled down a grassy hill overlooking the lake.  They had an absolute blast there and I know we’ll be back.

The second big thing we did was join Aunt Tracy and Heidi at the Perot Museum.  The kids have been there several times and while it wasn’t new like the Arboretum it was still fun.  Of course the highlight of the visit for them was going up the escalator.

It was also Saint Patrick’s Day this week and Mom thought it would be fun to dress up the kids in green outfits (even though she’s Scottish) for pictures.  We learned a lesson here.  Do not try to take pictures in the morning before the kids have eaten.  Half the pictures we took had James putting cereal in his mouth and a good number of what’s left had Isla trying to make a bolt for it.  We did get a couple of pictures though.

The rest of the week was spent trying to keep the kids from destroying everything while we prepped the garden for planting and spring growth.  Vacation is now over, back to the normal schedule!

Musicals, snakes, and bikes…

"The fact that children can make beautiful music is less significant than the fact that
that music can make beautiful children."
-Cheryl Lavender

This week Ashlyn was in her first school musical called “How Does Your Garden Grow?’.  She was a flower and she sang and danced like a natural on the stage.  If she was nervous before going up there, she didn’t show it and that’s a big improvement over the shy little girl of a few years ago.

The rain of the week finally went away and we took the opportunity to get outside and work in the garden.  We found all sort of critters including snakes and earthworms.  James had a lot of fun with the snakes but they were a little too squirmy for Isla’s tastes.  The worms however were just fine and she enjoyed playing with them so much that she ended up needing to go straight into the sink to get rinsed off.

It was also mountain building time in the sandbox.  This mountain even came with its own moat.

The trampoline was put to good use as well and the kids had a lot of fun being bounced in the air by Mommy.  Isla wasn’t too keen on joining in but she enjoyed running back and forth on it after the kids were finished bouncing.

Ashlyn is getting really close to riding her bike and the training wheels are officially off.  She’s a little nervous but she was the one who asked for them to be removed.  We were able to get a few practice rides in before the kids wanted to go back inside but I think she’ll be riding like a pro in no time.