Playground

This weekend Ben's parents came into town to help build a playground for the kids.  It was a long project but the guys finished it Saturday night and it looks great! 

We also purchased mulch (SEVEN yards!) to go under the playground.  We ladies started hauling it to the backyard in the trash and recycle bins. We were covered in the black dust when we were done for the day. And when I say, "done for the day", I mean having moved only about half of it. So at the moment, we have our own little "mulch-e" sitting in our driveway. 

The kids are really enjoying it -  thank you Grandpa and Grandma!

Middle School Retreat

Ben and I have been helping with our church's jr. high department this year. Ben leads an 8th grade boys group and I have the 8th grade girls. We really love it! This weekend was the retreat, and we had a blast (pretty sure the kids had fun too)!

There are a lot of funny memories that I took away. I won't be able to take the time to write all of them down here, so I will just share one snippet from my experiences. 

We all met in the church parking lot Friday evening. We were not taking buses, but 8 borrowed vehicles, each driven by one of the leaders. There were 53 people going and we had exactly 53 seats available! After about 15 minutes of people arriving, the announcement was made for the students to start claiming a seat. Well, you can probably imagine the chaos that this set into motion. Every student had already calculated the "perfect" group that they wanted to ride with, but not everyone had the same vision. Then when a group was solidified, they wouldn't fit in a particular car, so the herd would run to the next car hoping for better luck... this carried on for about thirty minutes.

Anyways, I guess I had my own expectations for the ride - I would have been way pleased if my girls rode with me, and if that didn't work out, then just girls in general would have been great, but it wasn't to be.

The very first group to get settled was five 7th grade boys... and you guessed it, they randomly claimed MY car!  Before we had left the parking lot, one boy had completely painted is face with camo paint. Then they disassembled the pvc pipe marshmallow gun one of them had brought and used the pieces to beat each other the entire way there.  Boys are so weird. 

I thought I might escape that group on the ride home, but on Sunday morning one of them came up to me and said, "Hey Susan! (Great, so glad I made an impression on them.) Can we ride in your car again???"  And because I was beginning to sorta find there wild ways wildly entertaining, I acquiesced to his request. 

Again it was a great trip, and I did get plenty of girl time too!

Quote of the Day

(Quick background:  We talk with Elena about how God has given her blue eyes, pretty hair, lots of teeth... etc...)

Elena (picking her nose):

God gave me a LOT of boogers! Yeah, I DON'T LIKE all these boogers! 

(still picking, still picking, still picking...)

Easter

Well this year's Easter felt pretty different.  For one, we weren't with family; and secondly, Evan had a bad stomach bug so we couldn't go to church Easter morning! That said it was a great opportunity for our little family unit to make the day special.  We read the Easter story to Elena from her children's story book in the morning and then in the evening we all went outside for a little egg hunt... oh and somewhere in the middle, Ben watched the Masters ;). 

The Cross

We used this cross that I made from our Christmas tree branches as a visual for Elena. This was the first time she's been told the story about crucification and resurrection. The weight of the truth made us prayerfully choose our words. 

The Easter Baskets

Each was filled with a Pez dispenser and a rubber-duckie  (but they were actually from last year). Hey, I believe in setting the bar low - we can only do better next year :). 

Let the Hunt Begin! 

Elena didn't have too much competition, which was a-okay with her.

Evan took the singular form of the word "egg" in "Easter Egg Hunt" seriously. He found his one egg and was done. But oooh was he happy with that egg.

This is my favorite

Happy Easter Everybody!

Fun in the Sprinkler

We put down sod in our backyard and have since been watering it every day to keep it alive. Elena has played in the sprinkler a little bit before, but this was Evan's first time and boy did he embrace it!

He just hovered over the sprinkler

Elena was a bit more hesitant

 

18 Months

Evan turned 18 months today! I always double and triple check my counting at this point in the game because it's so easy to lose track, but yes, I do believe today is the day. :) We just love, love, love seeing the new things he does on a daily basis!

- As I think I've mentioned before, he loves cars -- cars, trucks, scooters... anything with wheels. I dropped him off at the church nursery yesterday and they had brought in extra toy trucks just for him! His reputation truly proceeds him. 

- He yells enthusiastically in the car when we go over a bump, "Wooooah! Weeeeee!" or when we pull out of red light, "Go, Go, Go!!!" (I swear I'm not a crazy driver... but I'm sure he'd have more fun if I was.)

- He loves to point and label pictures in his books. Some of the stronger pictures are flower, fish, shoes, car, rubber-duckie and ball.

- He and Elena are developing more of a friendship... still lots of fights... but they seem to really enjoy each other's company. Elena's figured out how to call him over for a hug, and like an obedient puppy dog he obeys!

- We have a plastic slide that he likes to go down... on his back... head first. He saw big sister do it and had to do it too.

- I sing, "This Old Man" and bounce him a little just before I put him in his crib for the night. He could be wiggling to get out of my arms or crying to go back out of his room to play, but as soon as I start singing he puts his head on my should and is completely still. Sigh... please tell me this won't change anytime soon. 

love you, Buddy!

A Little Girl's Prayer

This is pretty much a direct quote...

"Dear God, pease help Mommy and Daddy to obey,

and pease help it not to rain on the inside,

and pease help Evan to be a big girl.

In Jesus Pray, Amen."

And they all said, "Amen"

Backyard Update

Here are some more changes going on in the backyard - 

 First we added a large stone as a step down from the patio. By the way, that stone weighs 300lbs... it was interesting getting it back there! Also, I've got about half the plants in the ground around the perimeter of the patio. 

We purchased a tree, to give us MUCH needed shade in the afternoons! This is the view from the house. It's a Monterrey Oak for those who might be curious. 

And this is the view of everything together. (Taken from one side of the backyard.)