Celebrating Special Friends

Earlier this week, we discovered that a surprise party was being planned for our dear friend Julie. We quickly decided that we needed to make a trip up to Escalon to celebrate this special occasion! We left late Saturday morning, stopped for lunch in Fresno and then arrived at Dave and Jen's house for a visit. Dave and Jen are very special friends and we are so thankful for them! We enjoyed being with them and seeing their beautiful daughters, Ella and Delia.

*

Beth, Allie and Ella enjoy some time together...

*

Dave and sweet Delia

*

Jen cuddles with Ella and Allie

*

Nathan gives hugs to his stuffed cow (note the cow's diaper - Nathan pretended his cow was a baby!)

After spending precious time with our friends, we headed to another dear friend's home. Jane opened up her home to our kids so we could attend the surprise birthday party. The kids were SO excited - and had a wonderful time. (Unfortunately, I neglected to take pictures of this part of our day..)

We celebrated Julie's birthday at Chevy's and they gave her this great sombrero when they serenaded her. Julie is such a special person and many people came to celebrate with her. She was totally surprised and a little overwhelmed about all the attention, but she had a great night! She is a beautiful person, inside and out.

It was so good to see Julie again!

A bonus: we sat with Dave and Jen at the party and got some time for uninterrupted adult conversation. That was pretty special!

Happy Easter!

We had enjoyed a beautiful Easter Sunday. We had a wonderful service at church to celebrate Christ's resurrection, then headed to my brother's house for dinner and an Easter egg hunt. We all had a great time! Here are a few glimpses of our day...

Cool Dude

As Nathan got onto his bike this evening, he said, "Mommy, you can just call me cool dude!" He sure keeps us laughing!

Cousins

We met Phil's sister and her family at the park this afternoon. The kids enjoyed seeing Jack again. It was a beautiful day and we had a great time! We're so thankful that we live close enough that we can meet occasionally.

Beth Has a New Look!

Beth had an exciting afternoon! She went to the eye doctor... and came home with new glasses. She had been complaining about not seeing the clock in the van clearly, so we thought it was probably time to take her. (Our kids are basically doomed, since Phil and I both have to wear contacs or glasses). It's a good thing we took her - she already comments on how well she can see now! At this point, she only needs to wear her glasses in the classroom. Beth is very excited about her new glasses - doesn't she look sweet?

Happy Hikers (Part 1)

This afternoon we headed for the hills! We drove to Kings Canyon National Park (less than one hour away), had a picnic lunch, and set off for a hike. We had a great time - the scenery was beautiful and the kids were so excited about our outing! Phil is already researching "kid-friendly" hikes in the area. We'll definitely be hiking again in the near future!

(just in case you were wondering... we did NOT attempt the full 7.8 round trip hike! that would have been much too ambitious!)

Happy Hikers (Part 2)

I love lupine!

On our way home, we stopped to explore another trail along the river. The kids really enjoyed climbing on the rocks!

One Big Happy Family

To celebrate Phil's return home (after six days in Minnesota!), Allie drew this colorful picture of our family. I love the bright, happy colors - they make me smile. I love that Nathan is perched on his Daddy's shoulders - that's one of his favorite places to be. Just in case you're wondering, it's not drawn to scale. I look like a giant! Phil, however, appreciated his reduced waistline in this picture. =) But just look at those feet! Kids' artwork is so precious to me - I hope you enjoy this family portrait too!

Our Garden...

Phil built a raised bed garden in our side yard two weeks ago. Today we finally planted our seeds! We planted carrots, radishes, sugar snap peas, summer squash, peppers and cantaloupes. We are not sure what to expect and are fully prepared for complete and utter failure! But, we are hoping that at least some of the seeds sprout. The kids are so excited about the whole process. The seeds are planted, they will get plenty of sun and water... so now we watch and wait!

Dinosaur Days

Beth's class has been studying dinosaurs for the past several weeks. Each student had to write a report and create a diorama. Beth chose to study the Spinosaurus. I can safely say that I now know more about a Spinosaurus than I ever really wanted to know! Phil came to the rescue and constructed a dinosaur out of modeling clay, with some help and lots of encouragement from Beth. Since he did such a wonderful job, I told him that he has earned the privilege to help with every project. I'm not sure he was too enthusiastic about that distinction, but he was a good sport. Beth presented her report to her class on Wednesday. She did a great job!

Fun in the Sun

Today was a glorious Spring day! We spent much of our day outside enjoying the weather. Allie practiced her roller skating skills, Nathan zoomed around on his bike, and Beth enjoyed playing with the hula hoop! As for me, I thoroughly enjoyed watching them while I soaked up the sunshine!

(Don't forget... if you click on any picture, you will be able to see it larger!)

Basketball Buddies

Beth has been bitten by the basketball bug and has been shooting baskets on our neighbor's hoop. Allie and Nathan decided they wanted to get in on the action, too, so we brought out our smaller hoops and they got busy! Allie's choice of footwear may not have been the most practical, but she sure had fun. (Note her fuzzy slippers and princess shoes!).

SNOW DAY!

This morning, we headed for the hills to find some snow. We didn't have to go far this year, since we've had more wet weather than we did last winter. We found a great spot for sledding. We all had a fun day - but we will definitely sleep well tonight! Climbing up hills in the snow is good exercise!

This was the only time that Nathan went down the hill with one of us. He insisted on going by himself the rest of the day. He had such a great time!

Beth also spent most of her time trudging up the hill and sledding back down. She ended up in all sorts of strange positions, but always had a smile on her face!

After missing three days of school this week with a flu bug, Allie was happy to be at the snow, but she didn't have enough energy to do much more than watch. She is still not 100%, but we're glad she is feeling a little better.

At the end of our time in the mountains, Nathan was the one who did not want to leave. "I go down just one more time, okay? Please, Mommy?" Now that we are back home, he is sitting on the sled in the front yard, reliving all of the fun!