Our Birthday Girl!

Yesterday Elizabeth turned 1!!

(More pictures to come...)

Ahoy Mates!

Nathan has a great friend at school named Zinoviy.  This last week we invited Zinoviy and his brother, Maxim (just Joshua's age!) over for a play date.  Sometimes it helps play dates around here if there is one fun "planned" thing to do to help get the imaginations and interacting going.

Playing "pirates" is one of our favorites.  Props include:  eye patches (from dollar store or party store), periscopes (toilet paper tubes covered in tin foil), bandanas (clearance Halloween fabric...cut in triangles), and various weapons as needed. 

Hunting for treasure -- hidden 3 x 5 cards with a picture of a "place" to look next and a few-word hint for the "readers".

Enjoying their "treasure" (snack).

My "Growing Up" Girl

Elizabeth's hair has gotten long enough to get a little crazy lately.  I've tried barrettes and headbands -- nothing stays.  It finally dawned on me we might be on the verge of a whole new level of hair potential. 

Buying piggytail elastics at the store for my own daughter felt like a whole new step of motherhood for me!  I feel torn these days between feeling the excitement of the fun new stages of this girl...and the tenderness that my one-year-old this next week really is growing up! 

We're all excited about Elizabeth's new look...

Joshua thinks it's just hilarious she looks just like a whale!

Easter Morning Favorites

When the Easter Bunny comes to our house...he makes an egg hill to roll the eggs down!

Elizabeth loved her first jelly bean!

Joshua loved his sidewalk chalk!

Nathan loved what the Easter Bunny brought all the boys to play...BATTLESHIP!

Joshua's recent dilemma has been ...

"Mom, I know that Transformers come back to life...but are they resurrected?"

At least you know he's thinking...maybe even 'liken'ing!

We are so grateful to remember and celebrate Christ's life and resurrection!

Easter Eggs

A beautiful spring day to dye easter eggs...

and friends to do it with!

Who needs as easter egg when you've got a nerf dart?

Enjoying General Conference...

We totally loved listening to General Conference this weekend.  We'd planned on trying to make it to the church for a session...but things went well enough gathered around the computer that we just stuck with what was working!

Making a pizza from a "kit" ... a great fundraiser purchase from our friends.

Playing "moon sand" out on the deck while General Conference blared just inside the screen door.

I came in to find Nathan and Joshua had put Elizabeth inside the little car this weekend.  (Just the thought of it makes me nervous!)  But our little adventure-girl soon figured out how to get herself in!  Now she loves to ride and be pushed...and can even walk behind it quite well while someone is inside.

We start our kids loving cars young.  =)

A typical sight -- gathered around the computer.  Two boys on Greg's lap and Elizabeth swatting at the mouse.

Taking a break from conference at an elementary school playground near our home.

Quick and Easy Easter Craft

This idea came from "My Mix of Six".  It's one of my very favorite blogs.  I don't even remember how I "found" it...but it really has effected "the mom I want to be".*

Just in case you think I've left Joshua out of something exciting...I had it all ready for him to do too.  But someone didn't want to get their hands dirty.  =( 

*I especially love what she does to celebrate holidays with her family.  Her ideas are cute...but doable!  (Not to mention she takes beautiful pictures!)  Even more than what she does...I love the fact that she has her traditions she does each year...and then they do them! 

It sounds basic...but for me I think knowing what are different holiday "plans" are...and not redeciding everytime how and what we do would be huge! 

This year I've started a file on my computer for each holiday/special occasion and am collecting things to go in it.  Hoping to start some traditions and just do better and keeping some we've already started.  (I'll try to post more on this thought as special occasions happen.)

Feeding the Birds

I saw this cute idea for making "bird feeders" with pine cones on my friend Jenny's blog here and had to try it myself!

We had a fun time going out early on a little pine cone scavenger hunt...

Elizabeth checking out this "curious" thing.

Then we spread peanut butter on the pine cones...

(Loving the "charity smile".)  =)

Rolled them in birds seed...and hung them on a nearby tree.

Family Home Evening -- Jeopardy

This winter...on nights when we felt a bit "snowed in" we'd sometimes turn on Jeopardy to watch to help wind the kids down.  Ironically...they think it's the most exciting game!  I thought maybe it would be a fun "format" to try to teach/review some things they've been learning in Primary.  When Joshua heard what we were going to do he said, "So you mean I'm going to say, 'I want Book of Mormon for six hundred and two'?" 

I just used a foam board and 3x5 cards.  I just had a list in my hand of the questions...instead of writing them on the back of the cards...so I could adjust the questions a little based on who it was.  (Don't tell!)  Each person just kept the cards they got right so points could be added up at the end.  (If you can distract them from actually adding them up...everyone stays a lot happier!)

Questions ranged from "What is your Primary teacher's name?" under Primary People.  To "Recite the first Article of Faith" (I had some little papers printed out to help--using the first letter of each word).  They've been learning "Follow the Prophet" this month in Primary.  Our music leader has been amazing at having them act out the stories and learn the verses...so I would read them a verse without saying the prophet's name and they would guess.  Etc. 

It wasn't the most spiritual thing we've ever done.  But, it did keep their attention!  I found them later playing it by themselves...Nathan saying to Joshua, "Who was the first prophet of Thomas S. Jefferson?"  (Uhhh...I think they were listening...but another week of playing with the same questions might not be a bad idea!)

Seeing Spring Through New Eyes

When anticipating Spring with my baby girl, I think I've been excited to envision afternoons at the park with her sitting by my side on a blanket watching Nathan and Joshua play. 

There's a tiny park just down the road from where we pick Nathan up at the bus stop.  So, after the bus comes we walk down and spend a little while there playing before we go home each day.  This last week I "made the mistake" of letting Elizabeth out of the stroller to sit on the sidewalk with me.  Here's what happened...

A dash to the playground...

Then a dash to the forest...(Can you see how high she lifts her little knees up when she crawls?!)

This girl is no "picnic blanket sitter"! Since then she's just loved...

The swing!

The slide...

And about anything else we'll help her try!

It's just so fun for all of us, really, to get a little more of a glimspe into the curious mind and adventurous spirit of our 11-month old Elizabeth!  There's magic in seeing spring through her eyes!