Staycation

We had lots of fun on our staycation spring break, especially sharing it with my mom and dad! We packed in a lot of fun too!! We rode the high wire bike at the Discovery Center, painted pottery, played cards and dominoes, rode our bikes to Sonic to get 1/2 price drinks, the girls played webkinz with my mom lots! Mike & I went out to dinner and a movie (for only $7.50!), had a gift card for Red Robin and went to the cheap theatre to see The Blind Side, while my parents took the girls to Incredible Pizza...fun! My mom & I went out to lunch at a Tea Room and then we went shopping. Mike & my dad went out to lunch for BBQ. We saw Alvin & the chipmunks: The Squeakel...I enjoyed watching the girl's reactions to the movie, as much as the movie itself. We all went and volunteered at Convoy of Hope, we packaged food into coolers that were shipping out to Haiti the next day. We enjoyed dinner at Andys (yes, we had frozen custard for dinner one night!) and McCallisters. We also enjoyed sitting down at the table for some healthy, home cooked meals. We ended the week with a trip to Silver Dollar City. They have a new 'thing' there where kids can 'pan' for real gems...the girls loved that! It was just lots of fun 'playing' together and enjoying life together. Yes, this week was about fun and togetherness.

St. Patrick's Day Update

Ok the girls were hilarious this morning. Neither one wanted to stick their hand in the trap 'cuz they were afraid the leprechaun was hiding in the box. They were excited about m&m's and glitter and green milk and yes, even that the leprechaun used our toliet when it stopped by. They were disappointed that their double trap did NOT catch a leprechaun. We figured the leprechaun must have been smart and took the ladder in with him, so he coud climb back out. And then he must have used the m&m's he left to keep the trap 'heavy' so that it would not fall on him as he took out the gold. Those leprechauns are tricky! Just ask Mike, they even turned the milk he took to work green. It appears we'll have to get smarter for next year if we're going to catch ourself a leprechaun! We also enjoyed our green dinner tonight!

St. Patrick's Day

So I've discovered that St. Patrick's Day is a small little holiday in which I can break up the routine of life and have a little fun. I've always made a green dinner for the girls. And last year we started making leprechaun traps to catch us a leprechaun. So this year the girls informed me that they know leprechauns aren't real...they are just folklore...and yet, they still want to make a trap. They are at that age where their brain tells them leprechauns aren't real, but their imaginations and their hearts secretly hope they really are.

So last night they built this elaborate trap with Mike. They had different ideas for a trap, so it became quite elaborate as they figured out how to combine ideas into 1 trap. On the outside of the box is a ladder with a door and a note that says "pot of gold inside". If the leprechaun climbs up and jumps in the box to get the gold, then there is no way for him to climb back out. Then inside the box is a pot of gold that is on top of a 'trap'. The trap is connected to a pulley system, so when he takes out the gold, it becomes lighter which moves the container which is connected to a bowl above it, that will fall down and trap the leprechaun. I'm probably not explaining this the best...but it's cool!

On the menu today?
Breakfast - Lucky Charms with (hopefully) milk the leprechauns turned green last night.
Lunch - Green yogurt, green apples w/peanut butter, green juice, green cookie
Dinner - green beans, green mashed potatoes, chicken (definitely NOT green), green milk and mint chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches.

I will try and post pictures later today. Right now I need to go wake up 2 girls to see if they caught a leprechaun last night!

Sarah

Sarah's 1st Grade (Patriotic) Music Program was tonight. They sang this song, "You are our Heroes" and I cried. I always cry at their school programs. This is just a sweet season of life we are in.

I couldn't help but think, as I listened to the song, that in my ways Sarah is my hero. There are so many qualities that she possesses that I wish I had more of in my life. The ability to live care-free, to not worry about tomorrow, what others think or even what the next minute will be... she has the ability to live in the moment. She's bright and works hard in school. She reminds me of the obvious (like I really shouldn't be surprised it is raining all week in March because after all, it is Spring!) She gives hugs and smiles easily. We nicked named her sweetheart when she was a baby... and it is the perfect name for her. She is always kind to others. She is just a sweet, sweet child. Her love and sweetness just pours out thru her smile.

Is she perfect? no. Does she have things she needs to work on (like listening and taking care of her things and not being lazy and letting others do everything for her?) yes. But that's what makes her human. I am so thankful for the gift of sharing life with her!

Can I also say that I loved an excuse to put curls in her hair and let her wear my dangly earrings! Sarah, you are so beautiful!

What Matters Most

Several years ago, when I attended a Hearts At Home conference, I heard Mary Byers speak. I've been on her mailing list ever since. Sometimes I read her emails, sometimes I don't, depending on how busy I am when they arrive. Today I paused to read her words and they spoke to me. I wanted to blog about them, so I can reflect again on them later. She wrote:

That's my message to you this month: as your children change, you need to change, too. Partly to be what they need as they grow, but also to be the woman God created you to be. It doesn't serve our children well if we hold ourselves back.

Spring is a time of renewal and new growth. As we enter this season, I encourage you to pause, close your eyes, and ask, "What matters most?" Not just for your children, but for you as well.

I think I need to spend some quiet time reflecting on these thoughts.

Morgan

Morgan and I hung out tonight. We had the best dinner of ever (her words)...tacos and cheesy fiesta potatoes from Taco Bell. We decided to call it our 'Convoy dinner' and eat it every time we volunteered at Convoy of Hope.

Tonight we went and packaged beans at Convoy of Hope. The beans are being sent to both Haiti and Chile to help earthquake victims. As we were leaving she said "That was a lot of fun." Yes, my daughter, it was a lot of fun hanging out with you and helping others!

I also just had to say that Morgan wrote a note on a napkin and hid it in my lunchbox today. It said, "Mom I love you. I hope you are having a fun day today. Love, Morgan" Oh, sweetie, you are so thoughtful!

Thursday I'm going to be the mystery reader in her class and I'm looking forward to surprising her! I love sharing life with her. Morgan, my life is fuller because you are a part of it!