Spring Break

I was really dreading Spring Break this year. I wanted to do something with the girls that felt like a break from the everyday being at home scene, but I knew Jim had to work. Luckily for us, Dad had meetings in Reno during the girls' Spring Break. This made Spring Break a lot better!

Mom and Dad showed up Monday evening and stayed til Friday! (With Dad going to his meetings in Reno for 1 1/2 days).

We all loved having them here, but the girls were like spring birds. They just kept chattering and talking to Grandma and Grandpa. They wanted to tell Grandma and Grandpa anything and everything. Guess that's a girl thing. Dad now knows why I need a basement :)!

Here are a few pics of our week.

Mom made all of the girls a Raggedy Ann doll. The girls love them. Samantha kept loving hers and giving it kisses. The dolls each have their own look which gives them their own personality. They are so cute and sooo loved.

While Mom was here we tied a quilt. Brindley really got into helping. Grandma has a lot more patients than I do and took the time to teach Brindley how to tie. Grandma even undid all of the knots that were made. This is where the other 3 hung out. Playing dress up and dolls under the quilt.

I love this picture of Dad and Samantha. They are just having their own conversation. Dad is always so concerned about the little ones. He loves to watch them grow and develop. Samantha really took a liking to Grandpa while he was here. She doesn't go to other people very easy. Several times I found her sitting on his lap or him carrying her around. (It couldn't have been the fact that she loves the dog and Grandpa would take her out to see him.)

We Love you Grandma and Grandpa! Can't wait to see you again!

After Mom and Dad left the girls were bored. So, I let them paint birdhouses. The girls love to do crafty things...especially if it involves paint.

And, just for you Mom...Samantha eating a Surprise Cookie. Do you think she liked it?

Easter

So, I'm a little slow posting, but wanted to share about Easter.

We took the girls to the city Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday. The hunt was divided up by age groups. 4 seperate baseball fields...one for each age group. We had a girl on each field. There were probably 1000 people/kids there. Brindley and Karissa went on their own to their field. Jim went with Lexie and I took Samantha to hers. We weren't going to have Samantha do the hunt just because she was so young and really had no idea what was going on, but then I saw the stuffed bunnies on her field. I then decided to let her do it. We waited by the edge of the field for the announcer to let everyone loose. I noticed how crazy some of the parents were, and Samantha wasn't seeming to interested, so I decided to go back and watch Lexie. I started walking away as the announcer yelled "Go". I turned back and watched as people just ran past the stuffed bunnies. I thought, well, I could atleast get Samantha a bunny. We walked out on the field with the 100's of people and got her a bunny. I did grab her a few eggs with candy...but that was more for me. It was a good outing and the kids had fun.

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Lexie with the Easter Bunny

Lexie heading to her side of the field. Parents were not aloud to help with her age group...not even stand by them before the race.
Karissa in the light blue in the middle. Waiting for her hunt to start.

Lexie waiting and making friends.

The bunny Lexie is holding is the one Samantha got.

Coloring Easter eggs. I think Jim and I like to color them as much as the girls do.

April Fools!

I just can't let April 1st go by without doing some kind of prank. This year I wasn't very on the ball. I was feeling "guilty" about not doing any pranks. Halfway through the day I remembered seeing on a blog about doing a "Crazy Cafe". You rename your dinner items and then those that are ordering order the renamed items. Everything we had for dinner I renamed princess names. I made out a menu with the princess names and the girls ordered the princesses. They ordered 2 for an appetizer, 4 for the main dish and 2 for dessert. This way, you don't know if you are getting dessert first or last. It was pretty funny watching the girls eat their dinner. Lexie got the most frustrated. She ordered icecream and a napkin for the appetizer. It is hard to eat icecream when you have no spoon. She kept trying to sneak to the utensil drawer to get a spoon. Brindley too ordered icecream for her appetizer..with a salad. She was a good sport and ate with her fingers. Karissa was feeling jipped at first because she ordered a fork and spoon for her appetizer. She had to just sit and watch the others eat their appetizer. But she was glad when her main dish came around because she already had her utensils.

The girls are showing you their drinks. I got this idea from a friend. (Thanks Sandra!) I made red jello in cups. The girls loved it!

Buns of Steal

I just have to share this...cause it makes me laugh. A lot of times when I have something in the microwave I will do squats or leg lifts or some kind of toning exercise until the microwave stops. Well, I have my baby trained. Whenever the microwave starts she automatically starts doing squats. I tried to catch her on video. When the microwave beeps she goes right to it.

Look what I made!

I'm no professional when it comes to sewing, but I do enjoy doing it. I love to see the finished product when I'm all done. While sewing I could hear Mrs. Anderson's voice telling me..."Don't sew over the pins." "You need to pick that out." "Make sure you iron your seams open."

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I wanted my girls to have matching Easter dresses this year, but couldn't afford buying a new dress for each of them. I luckily went to JoAnne's on a day that their patterns were on sale for $1.49! Usually they are around $15.00. I also found some fabric that was on sale. I made the two dresses and two skirts for about $60. I'm pleased with how they turned out.

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Samantha wouldn't hold still for her picture, so you get her dancing!

I unpicked different parts of Lexie's dress several times. It pays to read the pattern instructions all the way through, then reread as you are sewing.
Brindley and Karissa's skirts were different styles, but they still look quite a bit alike.

The best part....They actually wear them. They have worn them two weeks in a row to church. (OK, so maybe I told them to). But I didn't get much fight from them. Does that mean they like them?

Since we were taking pictures, and we were all still in our Sunday clothes, we did a quick family picture.

And yes, I'm proud to say, I made me a skirt also. I have been looking for a new one for quite some time. I knew I wanted a red skirt, so while at JoAnne's I found some fabric that I loved. I'm excited to make a couple different ones....now that I have the pattern.

School Stuff

This is one of Karissa writings. It was framed and put in the hallway at school along with a few other writings from other students in the school.

This is the first time the girls have done a science project. I'm proud of them and the effort they put into doing their projects. Karissa got an honorable mention and recieved a ribbon.

Karissa's project was titled: The Sounds made out of Water

Karissa filled glasses with different levels of water then tapped them with a spoon to hear the different pitches that were made.

Brindley's project was titled: Here We Grow

Brindley sprouted different sizes of seeds to see if the size of the seed effected when the seed would sprout.

The whole family had fun helping with the projects.

Afternoon at the Park!

I feel really lucky. We made it through the winter with hardly any sickness. So I couldn't complain too much when a cold virus went through our family. It didn't hit Jim, I or the older girls too hard, but Samantha and Lexie weren't so lucky. Samantha had horrible ear infections. I spent one day just holding her all day long while she cried and slept. She did have a trip to the doctor. Then a few days after Samantha's doctor's visit, we took Lexie in. She had pneumonia. Got to love antibiotics! After dealing with the sickness and everyone feeling better, we got out of the house for a few hours. We visited a park we hadn't been to yet. It felt so good to get out and let the kids play and see them laughing.

Samantha loved the park. Yes, she is laughing in this picture.