Easter

Easter has been a fantastic time this year! The kids are old enough to understand that Easter is more than chocolate and marshmellows- but about Jesus giving His life for us and rising again. Anytime Addie would find an empty Easter egg, she would gleefully exclaim, "Look Mommy! It's empty, just like Jesus' tomb!" How sweet it is to hear your children telling you what you have been teaching them!!

We hit the road for NY early Saturday morning. MarMar had eggs all ready to dye- and the kids were totally intrigued but happy to just watch and tell me which egg went in which bowl.

Then my Master Chef and I decorated cupcakes- as you can see, he took this VERY seriously!

After no naps in the car, they were tired- Alden wanted to rest and Addie graciously "told" him the story of Easter- so sweet!!

Sunday morning, the kids put out carrots for The Easter Bunny, in hopes that he would leave them chocolate (Alden's wish) and a baby doll (Addie's wish)

Outside taking pics while waiting for the rest of the adults to finish getting ready. And yes, it's not even 8am at this time- scary! This picture is just too cute to NOT share!!

I asked her to show me how sweet she was- and this is what she did! I just love this girl!

I asked Alden the same question- and this is what I got- I just love how God made boys and girls SO different! I love this guy!

Yay! After church, they came home to bags FULL of Easter Treats- thank you, MarMar & PopPop, I mean, Easter Bunny.....

Checking out Uncle Frank's new iPad- they loved it as did all the other adults! One just might be in our future as the desktop is about to die!!

Addie LOVES her boys- and they are waiting to go find all the eggs we parents hid!

She found one and is already looking for another!

So sweet- Addie is giving Alden the egg that he just fell, attempting to get!

Good eyes, Alden!!

Guess who hid THIS egg? Only fitting that he help her get it!!

We had a fantastic time, despite all the traffic!!

Fun in the Sun

The weather has been warm and we have been doing our best to take full advantage of it!

We headed to the park the other day- and there we saw a friend from Addie's class- Savannah. These two had a blast together!

A favorite- swinging!!

Later on, we went to a friends house and enjoyed his playground!!

Due to the nice weather, we have gone to the outdoor McDonald's playground- and Addie surprised us all by climbing alllllllll the way to the tippy top and then sliding down the slide! This is the child who was too scared to climb on the Chick-fil-A playground that was 1/2 this high!! Way to go, Adddie!

Later on in the week, we drove to visit some friends from Richmond who have since moved to the Boonies. The boys, 1 mo apart in age, had a blast together- and Addie jumped right in and joined them playing in the dirt!

Here Augy is sharing a dandelion with Alden- they loved blowing on it! Addie was freaked out- which is strange considering her last pic- and her fearlessness in climbing!!

This is just the beginning of having fun with friends!! We are so blessed!!

Addie's Budding Singing Career

Today in church, the Children's Worship group sang a song "He Reigns" and recited a verse. We have been singing this song and reciting this verse for over 2 months, and non-stop this week. Chances are, if you drove by our house anytime recently, you would have heard Addie belting this song out! I was skeptical if she would go on the stage and sing- she hasn't been a person who enjoys performing.... I was right- when it was time for the kiddos to go up, she didn't want to- but the lure of a lollypop waiting for her in the car IF she did go up, did the trick. She stood on the stage, but she wouldn't say the verse or sing. Baby steps- baby steps! Maybe by next year, she'll sing, and in a few more years, she'll be the lead in the school play. And if she never likes performing- that's fine with me- but I will ask God why he gave her such a gift for the dramatic....

Not looking very happy or sure of herself....

This is the non-singing portion of the stage- Evelyn, Addie and Braden were all loved on by Miss Dawn- whew- thanks!

The group- are they not oh-so-precious?!?

Monument Avenue Ukops 10K

This weekend was the 11th Annual Monument Avenue 10K- and for the first time in many years, only Al ran it- typically some of our college friends come and all the guys run and all us Moms and kids cheer.

We started off with a carb fest- Mike, Karen (and Baby Avery) and Hannah- came to help us!

Complete with a kiddy table

Our bundled cheering squad- it was cooooold but strangely, it didn't feel like it was in the 30s!

They LOVED watching all the runners- especially the ones in the funky costumes. Addie went nuts when she saw Minnie Mouse, a monkey chasing a banana (crazy guy in a full gurialla costume running with another guy in a full banana costume), and 3 kids running together in a "tub"- rub-a-dub-tub, butcher, baker, candlestick maker, and then to top it off, a PRINCESS ran by!!

Here was their FAVORITE runner- they were squealing and jumping with delight!! This is at mile 5- he looks like he's fresh as a daisy! He ran this with a best time of 52.59!! This is amazing since he hasn't been able to train too much due to the snow and hand surgery!

Ahh- the beauty of the downtown!

More pretty Richmond

After the race- we met at the house, Al showered and then we headed to Maymont Park.

The kids were enamored with the goats.

Checking out the chickens while Daddy gets change so they can feed the goats.

I love her face- she giggled like the little girl she is when the goats ate from her hand!

Her face is just precious!!

Alden LOVED this- he laughed his deep belly laugh!

Picnic on a rock- what fun!!

And now, everyone is passed out during nap time. It has been a fantastic day!!

A Budding Storyteller

Tonight Addie told some stories while we were eating dinner. They are pretty impressive, especially considering she's only 4!

Once upon a time there was a young Easter Bunny. He was going to sleep. Now he loved dinosaurs. He looked out his window and saw a big, huge, dinosaur! The dinosaur looked in the window and ate him. "Yikes!" the Easter Bunny said! That was a crazy dream!

Once upon a time, there was a girl Easter Bunny. She loved Cinderella. She always dreamed of seeing Cinderella. One day her MarMar and PopPop knocked on her door and said that they were taking her to see Cinderella. She loved Cinderella so much that she stayed there forever. She was best friends with Cinderella.

Need a Tutor?

For the last 11 or so years, I've been a teacher. It's how God has gifted me or used my bossiness to glorify Him- either way, the bottom line is I love teaching! The last 3 years I have been teaching for an online school- and due to some "oversights" my load for next year, which I thought would be filled with 4 classes, has been cut down to 1 class. If you know of anyone who needs some English tutoring- or heck, ANY tutoring- please let me know!

"I know the plans I have for you. Plans to proper you, not to harm you. Plans to give you a hope and a future."- Jeremiah 29:11. It's this verse that we will be living- and it helps me keep my sanity- to know that this "bump in the road" is part of His plan- and thus He will provide for us.

Happy Birthday, Hannah!

Our good friend Hannah had her 2nd birthday this weekend- and we were honored to be a part of the celebration!!

First there were some fun games lead by Grandma Wasch- Addie LOVED them!

Hannah was thinking about the games...

Alden preferred to just hold his hula-hoop and watch Addie and Grandma Wasch.

Blowing out her candles- you can't tell, but I'm holding Alden back- he REALLLY wanted to "help" Hannah by blowing them out for her!

Addie was happy to sit with Grandma Wasch- thank you for that!

We had a great time celebrating with Hannah- thank you for letting us come!