Master S' New Space

 Master S got his room painted for his birthday ... he picked the colors and we discussed the stripes.

I think it turned out great - but the best part is that he loves it.

 Now, to get him to keep it this clean all the time ...

Easter

We tried something new this Easter and took a ride out to McCloud Park on Saturday afternoon.  They had a little Easter themed presentation, with an 'Easter Bunny' to take pictures with and a little presentation on rabbits and their place in the Indiana habitat, plus some baby ducks - so cute!  Then an egg hunt and some bunny crafts/games.  The kids loved it and learned a little bit too.  It is quickly becoming one of my favorite spots - there are some great activities for kids and they are almost all free!  Plus, because it is out of town, there wasn't nearly the crowd of people that there usually is at things like this in town.  I'm finding the older I get the more anti-crowd I'm becoming.  Going to the zoo on Good Friday in Louisville was almost too much for me this year - too many people in small spaces makes the Flora Momma crazy ... literally!

 The kids had a great time on a hike after and found lots of maple tree helicopters to throw off the bridge and watch hit the water or the wind take them into the woods.  Even Master S was brave enough to throw a few.

 There were violets blooming all over the forest floor and the grassy areas of the park -- I thought of you, Mom, and the violets you grow in your landspace around the house.

 There were also dogwoods blooming in the middle of the forest - love it!

 Master S holding the 'Easter Bunny'.

 Miss Lilly and the 'Easter Bunny'.  Yes, and you probably guessed it, amazingly she wants a bunny for her birthday ... we heard about it ALL. THE. WAY. HOME.

 And Easter morning at our house.

 The kids I get to live with!

Spring Break 2012

Spring Break 2012 was spent mostly at home.  The weather was mostly gorgeous, which made for lots of time outside with friends in the neighborhood.  It was almost like summer ... Popsicles, bike rides, sand box castles, water balloons, football, soccer and nerf guns in the common area, the only thing missing was the pool!  On Friday, J.D. had the day off and we went to Louisville, where we met the KY cousins!!!  We took everyone to the zoo - it was fabulous!

 The kids loved every minute ... well, until the very end, everyone got tired and hungry!

 I of course, had the camera, but no memory stick!  AGGGHHH!  So these lovely pics are courtesy of J.D.'s camera.  There were some amazing orangutans, an up close experience with a polar bear and a lion that was roaring at the cement wall - I don't think I've ever heard a lion roar before. 

 And, if I thought Indiana's spring was amazing ... just going a few hours south proved to be even more so.  The azalea's in the park were incredible and there were dogwoods blooming everywhere.

And thanks to J.D.'s amazing sister, J.D. and I got to end the day with a session at the temple, while the kids played at the park together.  It was a wonderful way to start the Easter weekend and reflect on the many blessings that our Savior has blessed us with through the Atonement and Resurrection.

10

10 is a big number.

Especially when referring to your oldest child.

He wanted a party with all the guys.

Between church and the neighborhood there is a herd of them.

They played:

capture the flag (in the field and the woods),

ultimate Frisbee,

water balloon toss.

They had tons of fun!

And everyone got a t-shirt ...

And I keep looking at my boy wondering where the time has gone.

Pretty soon his feet will be too big for his legs,

he'll grow taller than his mom,

and teenage drama will reign ...

as will his appetite for food in any size, shape or form. 

But right now I love his curiosity,

his open heart,

his desire to play hard,

his talent for music, reading and math,

his Big Brother helpfulness,

and his desire to choose the right!

You are an awesome 10 year old!

Happy Birthday Master S!

Spring? Summer?!

Spring?!  Who decided to skip from Winter to Summer?  Temps have been in the 80's and gorgeous!  But, it is only March and I'm worried we'll have a freak snow storm in April which will kill all the beauty that has erupted around us this week.  As a result we also have an allergy fiesta at our house, as all children have had itchy eyes, runny noses and scratchy throats.  Zyrtec in bulk please ...

 This is the tulip tree I planted (well, more like a bush right now), but I'm loving the huge gorgeous blooms on it!  I can just imagine it as a tree.  Aparently this is the tree that I saw everywhere that first spring in Indiana that I couldn't get enough of.  Well, now I have my own to watch in the backyard.

 Big D enjoying a spring rain - love the daffodils!

 When it's 80 degrees you just have to get the hose out.  Nothing like a boy with a hose - water everywhere!

 Recently I've been sewing a bit - Big D found the camera and got me, as he tried to make time go faster, waiting the afternoon away for the kids to come home and play.  I found a great way to make drapes from a flat $5 sheet from Walmart!  Yea!  You cannot find fabric that cheap anywhere!  Plus there was this great horizontal stripe that works great at the bottom of the drape, was perfect for Master S' room AND I had cut off enough when making the panels, to make pillowcases for the bed to match!  YEAH!  All for $10!

I've also been looking for some cheap friend birthday party gifts -- and found a recipe for bubble bath online.  Love it!  With a little color, and in an old, recycled jar, it makes for great 'Green Monster Foaming Slime' OR 'Princess Peach Foaming Bubble Bath (may be dangerous for boys!)'.  Packaged with a scrubby, its a hit with the kids!  And it is super cheap!

We've also started making some personalized pillowcases for gifts - one loves robots, another loves all things army and the last one is just a darling girly girl.  All for less than a 1/4 of what I usually pay for gifts.

 And here is my boy - as he is always with me these days.  I'm trying to soak it all up, because pretty soon the other two will be home for the summer and then he will start preschool when the kids go back in the fall.  I was so anxious for my other two to grow up ... can't stand watching him do the same!  Here he is perfecting his tennis swing - it's his thing right now.

Signs of Spring

It is a little early, but when I walk outside the birds are singing.  It was almost overnight that it happened - they moved in and started singing again!

 Winter hasn't been even close to a typical Indiana winter ...

 but, I think I'm ready!!!

 Last spring/summer I planted a tulip tree (Indiana's state tree), a lilac bush, peonies (Indiana's state flower), tons of iris bulbs, (almost all transplants from various friends and neighbors)

I also started daisies from seed and got a surprise vinca vine from a peony transplant from a friend from Missouri ...

I am so excited to see what the spring will bring!  Plus, we transplanted a red bud, which was a shoot from our neighbors across the street, who had gotten it from her sister's house in Michigan and we had planted it too close to the house last spring.  So, we moved it this fall and thought for sure it would be toast, but it is budding too - and it is probably one of the biggest trees in the yard.  This is one of my FAVORITE things about Indiana, things grow here - very few of the plants in our yard were purchased.  Most of them have a story with a friend attached to it.  This is the way a garden is meant to be!

Oh, and another sign of spring ...

After playing around without training wheels for a few months last fall, Miss Lilly taught herself.  Not for lack of Mom trying to help - the girl has a will of her own and she is amazing when mom doesn't get in the way!  She has taken off since I took this video last week ... literally, full speed.  I think she finally tasted a little bit of that independence she has been looking for since she was a screaming baby and she is not looking back now!  Where Master S was so cautious on his bike, Miss Lilly is not!  Is this a taste of things to come?!?!

Artwork by Miss Lilly ...

inspired by Richard Scarry

 This one is from Primary (kid's Sunday School class at church).  Miss Lilly apparently decided that if there was Three Wisemen, should be Three Wise Women ...

Sunday afternoons aren't as long as they used to be, with church at 1pm, but the kids always find time to do something (usually it involves a gigantic mess of blankets, pillows, and all the cushions in the whole house).  This past Sunday it was a puppet theater from an old computer box ...

On Saturday we escaped as a family for a few hours to a county park about 15 minutes west of our house.  It is so beautiful in the spring/summer/fall - and equally so in the winter.  They were having 'Maple Syrup Days' and were tapping trees for sap to make into syrup.  The kids got to try their hands at tapping ... the old fashioned way ...

 and the modern day, power drill way ...

 It was cold - not as cold as Indiana can get, but cold enough that Big D was bundled up (amazing, since he is our 'hot' boy - always comfortable in short sleeves no matter what the weather).

 They showed us how the Indians and people of the 1800's and 1900's made the syrup.  Amazing how many gallons of sap goes into just a little jar of real maple syrup.

 They also had an Amish built evaporator that uses steam from a wood burning oven to heat the sap into syrup.  That was really cool too.  They had maple sugar candy to taste and of course, syrup to purchase.  We of course bought some and had pancakes for lunch when we got home.  YUM!  I have to say that there is nothing like 'real' maple syrup!

J.D. had a birthday ... he's had so many they are starting to run together in my mind ... it was a group effort to get the candles out.

Goal Update:  I've completed February's!!!  I stuck to the challenge and lost 10 lbs.!  Yeah!  I am caught up in the Sunday School reading (well, until last week - but I'll catch up again!).  And, drum roll please, I painted the living room!  These pics don't do it justice, but at least you get the idea and the proof.  I really love the color in that room now.

Big D also started preschool.  Well, he started going to the free, once a week, for an hour preschool, at the library.  He was so excited.  He has been asking for months to go to school and I found a cheap backpack on clearance, so he had to get all ready and then asked me to take a picture! 

 After it was all over he came out of the room with the other kids and said, 'Mom, that was great - but it was too short!'  I think he'd be ready for kindergarten tomorrow if he could go!  This was his flower that he did in class.  Love it!

After the crazy weather that has been happening here and in other parts of the country, I am grateful for the eternal perspective.  I am aware of how much can change in just seconds and the opportunity to witness courageous and strong men and women who are determined to move on and help out.  May the Lord bless those who have been in harm's way, those who are working to help them and may we all find small ways to help out the neighbors we have in our own circles of life.