Easter

I have been banned to my bedroom. Kathryn is planning some secret surprise out in the living room.

She has come in 20 times to check on me- bringing me healthy snacks, treats, blankets and magazines.

I can't wait to see what she has planned. Not so sure what to expect. 

So in the meantime, I might as well make myself useful while she's hard at work.

Easter came and went so quickly. It was low key, but very nice.

We didn't attempt the community bike parade and Easter egg hunt since Michael worked in the morning.

But luckily, our ward had a brunch and egg hunt. And I knew there would be plenty of helping hands.

We spent Sunday enjoying the Easter baskets, attending church and eating dinner together.

It was a wonderful day to  reflect on our Savior Jesus Christ, and the life he lived and took up again.

Phone pictures

Some of these are a few months old...

Row 1: Kathryn built a fort out of sticks while daddy helped Grandpa; Mr. Crab; Max and Sam waiting for Kathryn during soccer practice

Row 2: Max and Sam during Samuel's six month visit, Best brothers reading books together; Breakfast

Row 3: Park with friends; Visiting daddy at work- I guess Sam and Max are both pharmacists in training  

More of our life lately

Life lately.  

That just might be my very favorite post title when I can't keep up.

1.  Michael spent an afternoon thatching our grass. There was so much, it filled his entire truck bed. The kids had fun playing in it for awhile though. That is, until Maxwell's allergies took over.  He was a runny, sneezy, itchy mess by the time he got inside. Poor little buddy.

2.  We broke down and bought the kids a tool set while we were out running errands one day. Maxwell has been playing with it ever since. He's pretty good with those power tools. He's also a good brother and gives Sam pointers on a regular basis.

4. Speaking of Samuel, he has entered the rocking phase. He is SO close to crawling. This boy can get wherever he wants though by rolling and pulling himself. And he's also building those arms by doing push ups every day. I must say, he is our busiest little baby.

5. We played store one afternoon. Kathryn put out all sorts of things for us to buy and I made some play money that we could all spend. She even set up a little hair salon for us, and Max took a turn at doing hair.

6. I know I've mentioned this before, but shoes are always a necessity with this kid. Even if pants aren't.

7. Sleeping over at the "park" which ended in a pillow fight. It was way past their bedtime, but they were having so much fun playing I just couldn't help but let them stay up.

8. We have double glass doors in the nursery and I have a love-hate relationship with them. I do love them when I can see this sweet and precious boy sleeping peacefully.

Spring Soccer

We signed Kathryn up for spring soccer.

And the first week, the weather behaved exactly how I expected it to.

Freezing cold and windy. Thankfully, this week has been warmer.

I was definitely interested to see how Kathryn would handle a team sport.

She is my daughter after all, and not too competitive. 

  

But she did awesome and kept up with the pack during the entire game.

Their team did great despite only having had two practices. 

They even won their first game. I loved cheering her on. Go Green!

A few little things

Kathryn loves building forts on a regular basis.  And she normally likes to decorate them afterwards.

Oh how I love this little boy.  Poor things has had an ongoing cold for the last two months.  At Michael's insistence, the doctor finally ordered a chest x-ray and found out he had a mild case of pneumonia.  

This little girl doesn't nap any more, but has quiet time instead while the boys sleep.  

Sometimes she helps me with things I need to get done or we read together.  

I'm trying hard to savor this alone time before she rushes off to all-day kindergarten in the fall.  

Doing some laundry with my little helper.  I have a similar picture of Maxwell around this age.

More laundry help from my little buddies.

These two can fight like cats and dogs, so I really treasure the moments when they are best friends.

Art studio

I sent Michael a few pictures and a message one morning.

Jen: The kids are playing art studio, so I don't know if we'll be going anywhere anytime soon.

Michael: Wow, I can tell I am a dad. All I see is a whole lot of potential clean up...:)

Unfortunately, that is the case sometimes. The mess seams too daunting.

But it wasn't this morning. They played until their hearts were creatively content.

This was February

Row 1: It snowed a ton one day, and then rained the next; Kathryn's castle; my sweet baby bug; 

Valentines Day scavenger hunt for the kids

Row 2: Someone (the young women) heart attacked us; Valentines Day scavenger hunt; Kat made four snowmen before the snow melted away; Max patiently waiting for blueberry muffins

Row 3: Another Snowman; Michael teaching Max to fist bump; decorating cookies for Valentines Day

Row 4: Reading Samuel to sleep; Max is "the best big brother"; More snowmen; first try at rice cereal