First Day of First Grade!

My friend asked if I wanted a picture with Emma for the first day of school. I told her that we took one at home and she said, ''Sure, but now she needs one with her teacher!" It has been great having her in my class. I love being able to see her interact with other children her age, and I just love to look at her. She has the best smile!

Sensitive Ears

Noah has always had a hard time with loud noises. The Fourth of July parade is a challenge with all the sirens, cannons and guns. Brian brings ear plugs for him and then he plugs his ears and we put our hands over his ears. It's quite the system. I have vivid memories of being afraid at the parades when I was little. My mom or dad would take me into one of the stores while the cannons or pirates came by. At least we don't have pirates here. Hey, why were there pirates anyway?

Dressed in the Red, White and Blue!

I love the Fourth of July and the kids are really good at letting me dress them in red, white and blue. Any excuse of a new outfit, right! I made Emma and her friend Hannah matching skirts for the celebration. I thought they looked so cute, I wished I could wear one too!

Summer Of Baseball

The kids have had fun playing baseball this summer. Nic has had fun playing catcher this year. His team has played much better this year, it has been a nice change from losing almost every game last year! Noah is at the height of his glory. He had two home runs and is well on his way to becoming the next Ichiro. Emma played T-ball for the first time this year. Brian and I were her coaches. Brian also coached Noah so. . . I got to coach Emma's team most of the time. Girls are very different than boys! It was a fun season, according to Emma , the Bumblebees were undefeated! I love this picture of Emma. One would think that she is jumping to catch the ball, right? Of course not, there was a fuzzy floating by and she wanted to catch it! Priorities!

Just One More Easter Picture

Easter Sunday

Here Comes Peter Cottontail!

I love EASTER! It is probably my favorite holiday, besides Christmas, Halloween and every other holiday! No really, I love spring! I love finding Easter eggs, the pretty spring colors, pretty Easter dresses and ties, tulips and daffodils etc. I love the renewal Easter brings. We had a wonderful time with Brian's family. Great food, lots of eggs to find and fun cousin time for the kids. The Easter Bunny successfully found our house and all were sufficiently spoiled. We have enough candy for our year supply but it will probably only last for the week! As I reflect on the "fun" of Easter my thoughts turn to Brian's dad. Gary was always so fun and even silly on the holidays. Being with his grandkids always seemed to bring out the kid in him. It was always so apparent the joy he felt when surrounded my those he loved. With his passing Easter has become a tender holiday in our home. We have had the opportunity to share our feelings about the Crucifixion and Resurrection with our children in a way that we may not have before. The doctrine of the Resurrection has taken on such personal meaning in our home. The first Easter Gary was gone the kids took some Easter eggs up to the cemetery for their Grandpa. A few days later we went back and the eggs were gone. Noah and Emma were so excited! They thought that Grandpa came back! They often ask, "When is Jesus coming back? We want to see Grandpa." How we wish we had an answer, how we wish we could see him too! I feel hope, joy and peace in knowing that I will see Gary again. This really is why I love Easter.