{party of 7}

Last night was a milestone of sorts, but a totally unplanned one. That's not usually my style, but after a burned dinner, a smelly house, and hungry kids, I veered from my normal "planner" self, and we met Rick for dinner. That's right. All seven of us--for the first time.

We enjoy doing things as a family, and so we are all out together fairly often. Eating at a sit down restaurant is a whole different ballgame though, and I knew that it would be interesting to say the least.

Some lessons learned:

-We are a party of seven, not five (which is what I told the hostess).

-Our family is a fire hazard. It was a challenge finding a spot where we would all fit--including our two high chairs.

-If you go out to eat before 6pm on a weekday at this particular restaurant, odds are you will be one of the only patrons with children. Not only that, it was so quiet, you could hear a pin drop. Or, every.single.noise my children made. They weren't being naughty--just normal kids, but I was hyper-sensitive since it was so quiet.

-My babies can't eat french fries quite yet. It results in a lot of choking and other things I won't mention here.

-Ryan eats a lot. I did know that already, but when you're paying for the food at a restaurant, you REALLY notice. Good thing the kids' menu was 99 cents that night, and that he's under 12. We just ordered two of them. :) The waitress was thrilled.

-Most of all, I saw that it could be done. It was messy, and imperfect, but the kids loved it (and did really well), and we had a great night as a family. I have a tendency to not want to do things unless they can be perfect, but I'm gradually learning that when I let go of how I think things "should be", I'm able to enjoy my children in a way I wouldn't otherwise.

{4}

Four years ago, my darling and miraculous baby girls were born. Now they are beautiful little girls--full of life, energy, and happiness.

KATE:

daring
dynamic
charming
sassy (in a good way :) )
sweet
a peacemaker
strong and steady

EMMA:

our little "librarian"
expressive
shy
a perfectionist
nurturing
emotional and sensitive
happy

It has been such an incredible experience to watch them grow up, and to see their personalities blossom. Watching them together is always interesting. They are not dependent on each other, and are okay to be doing their own thing, but they like to know that the other one is there. They are protective, and watch out for each other--but they definitely have their moments of disagreement. In the end, they love being together. There is a reason that I put them to bed in different rooms, then move the sleeping girl back into her bed. If not, they will stay up and giggle all night long!

We love you, sweet girls! Happy Birthday!

{dancing queens}

I still remember one of my first dance recitals. Just picture a bunch of 5/6 year olds, wearing shiny blue leotards with lots of gold fringe, dancing to "Uptown Girl". Yes, I know. It was the 80's, and we were right in style.

My dancing career didn't last too long--I traded in those dance shoes for a soccer ball and cleats, but I always knew that if I had girls, I would want to give them the opportunity to dance.
Well, here we are! The girls were old enough in the fall to start in Miss Linda's pre-ballet class, and they have loved every minute of it (and secretly, so have I).

It's definitely a new world, though. After the dress rehearsal on Thursday afternoon, I was exhausted. Full makeup and dress, costume changes, TONS of pictures and posing, and all of my kids to boot, I was in a full sweat within 10 minutes.

How lucky was I, when I ran into the husband of a very good friend. He was there with his kids, since his wife was home with their new baby. He made me the best proposal ever...if I would take his little girl and do all the dance stuff with her, he would take my three boys with him over to the library (it's attached to the auditorium) until we were finished. It was a DEAL!

This recital was just for ages 5 and under, and as you can imagine, it was darling. Emma is not quite as outgoing with crowds as her sister is, so she was a little more intimidated by the full house. The first dance actually went well, but the second dance proved to be too much. Poor little thing. She just stood there for the whole thing, with her head down, but she didn't cry. If you look closely in the video, you can see her behind another dancer, until they all start moving. After it was over, she couldn't wait for the next one, so it must not have been too traumatic!

When they are three, you just want them to have a good time and enjoy themselves. No pressure--just learning how to get in front of other people, learn something new, and make friends. I think that was definitely accomplished.

{brothers}

I LOVE this. As a mother, this just makes my heart melt.

{my little helper}

Miss Kate is my helper girl. She likes to help with everything I do...baking, cooking, cleaning, and helping with the boys. She's the best "finder", and runs faster than anyone else in the house when a baby needs a toy or a pacifier. I just love having her by my side.

This afternoon I was feeding Jack, and had set down his food and spoon for just a minute. When I turned around, Kate had taken over what I started.

I have to say, for being 3 years old, and for it being her first time, she did a great job! Next time though, I think she might need to grab a bib. :)

{egg hunt}

Our annual Easter Egg Hunt is something we look forward to every year. We were still blessed with beautiful weather, and with yummy food and friends, it was a perfect morning.

We divide the eggs up into age categories, and Rick is always in charge of hiding the older kids' eggs (8+). A couple of years ago they let us know that the eggs were just too easy to find, so he took that as a challenge. We are still finding eggs in our woods. :) Good thing I always add in extra eggs, just in case!

This year, he had the help of a very good friend of ours, and they were having a grand time trying their best to hide them as difficult as possible. They climbed trees, used tape, dug holes, and incorporated several other methods I'm sure I don't want to know about. It was so funny to watch them--I think they were having more fun hiding them, than the kids would have finding them!


Ryan was proud of his egg hunting injury (he and a friend helped each other scale a tree).



I love Emma's basket--you'll notice only pink and purple eggs are allowed inside. Miss Kate didn't care--she was only after the chocolate!

What a lovely Easter weekend!

{spring break}

I'm not sure how we got the sun gods to look down on us this week, but it was absolutely perfect. For it being the last week of March/first week of April, it was unseasonably and delightfully warm. We broke out the flip flops (okay, the kids did...mine have been out for months!), pulled the new shorts out of the drawer, and took out the sunscreen (even though I totally forgot to use it, and poor Henry has lobster legs).

Last Sunday I had the kids wear their Easter clothes to church, since this Sunday we would be home enjoying General Conference. It was my boys' first white shirt and tie, and I was thrilled when I found one for Ryan to match. I actually had then all ready by 8:15am (a miracle in and of itself) so I could take pictures, but I didn't have the most willing participants. Oh well, at least I have it documented!





The rest of the week brought bowling, lunch out, good friends, BBQs, the park, a trip to the zoo, and enjoying the sun. Rick was even able to take a few days off, providing us with much-needed and enjoyed family time.


(Notice Emma with the flamingos...she insisted on posing for this picture, because they were her favorite color--pink. She really wanted to see pigs, which are her favorite animal AND color, but these made her happy.)


Rick was trying to prepare me today, for the very, very likely scenario that these sunny days are not permanent, but I'm choosing not to think about that right now. For now, I'm just soaking up the rays, leaving my windows open, taking advantage of all the park time we can get, and enjoying no coats or socks!