Easter Dresses 2015

Mary and Sara wore their Easter dresses to church today (even though it's not Easter Sunday.) Mary really, really wanted her and Sara to have matching dresses. I thought for sure she would have outgrown that, but I was wrong. She insisted! So I have yet another year of my sweet girls in matching Easter outfits!

I took pictures just before church, so we were a little rushed. And it was too cold to go outside. And David was in no mood to join in. And Sara is two. So....as I say when it comes to pictures and my kids, "I get what I get and I don't throw a fit" (usually).

Some odds and ends posted on yet another snow day

It wasn't a two-hour delay after all.  School is canceled today.  Sigh.

David and Mary are off playing with the neighbors, so I will take this opportunity to post some random pictures from the last two months with accompanying comments.

Sara and my mom look at a book in our Idaho hotel back in January.  Sara is so sweet and loving.   People love to be with her.  She has a special gift of bringing happiness to those around her.

Sara loves books.  She is much more genuinely interested in them than my other two kids were as babies.  Sara is truly excited to see what each new page will bring.  She also enjoys the act of carefully turning the pages one by one.  

These pictures were taken over a month ago.  I love spending my days with this sweet baby.

This little cutie still has no teeth, no words, and has taken no steps.  So it's hard to believe she will be 14 months old tomorrow.  But she is getting some of the toddler attitude and sense of humor.  She is curious, thoroughly exploring her surroundings.  And she watches her big brother and sister, joining in their fun.  My personal favorite is when I sit and do Mary's hair--Sara gets in the supplies and earnestly tries to put her hair in a pony tail.  It's so funny.

BFF Bailey came over for a sleep over on MLK weekend.  The boys worked hard on this Lego creation, which they named Fort Bavid.  What luck that David's best buddy lives just 2 hours away.

This is the Grand Canyon.  This was a Grand Crisis.  But it everything turned out fine.  By the way, it weighs two hundred pounds and takes up a lot of shelf space.  It's adorable, but, really, how long am I obligated to keep it?

This is the first grade at their music concert.

You can find Cousin Evan in this picture.  (Middle to the right, white button-down shirt.)

And the lovely Mary.  She was very nervous beforehand, but then thoroughly enjoyed performing.  That's Mary.  She gets nervous before performances, but she ends up LOVING it and totally gets a high from it!

Usually Mary takes a bath with Sara.  But this time it was David.

Sara loves her silly brother.

This is David and Brother Echols.  David's Pack had a father-son cake contest, and Brother Echols kindly filled in.  Brother Echols is super nice, and David had a great time.  Plus, they passed off a bunch of  Cub Scout electives while they were waiting for the cake to bake.  (By the way, Universe, enough with the father-child events!  We are blessed to have awesome, fun, loving people fill in--but these events still make my kids so, so sad. They can't help but be reminded that their dad is not here. )

This is David and their cake at the Blue and Gold Banquet.  (A HUGE thanks to Aunt Janell who was inspired to send cake pans for Valentines this year.  She thought it was totally random--but it was truly inspired.  It was a small but real mercy to have the storm trooper cake pan on hand for this project.  Thank you, thank you.)

The cake won an award!  (And it was yummy.)

The theme of the Blue and Gold Banquet was Invention Convention.  David did a presentation on George Eastman, the founder of Kodak, who made easy-to-use cameras that everyone could use.  David did an awesome job!  He is a smart kid and he know a lot of things.

One Saturday we went to the school's extravaganza.  I usually dread things like that.  But it was so fun!  It was a huge undertaking with carnival games, drawings, a silent auction, bouncy houses, tons of food, etc., but really well organized.  The kids had a blast--it was like a play date with the kids they never get to have play dates with.  Mary even won a prize!  Yay for a fun Saturday activity (that conveniently fell in between Sara's naps)!!  Also, now that you know where my kids go to school, please don't kidnap them.

This is a three-person Sunday morning play date.  Can you see the three?

David, Mary, and their dad.  They were busy playing when he was available to skype, so the brought him along.

This is so cute to me.  It's nice when they can skype.  The time difference has been killing us.  So far the kids have really only been able to skype with Greg once on the weekends because he is asleep when they are at school.  I realized that he's just going to need to start getting up in the middle of the night--especially to talk to David, who really needs to be able to talk to his dad during the week.  I usually talk to Greg on the phone every day at 11 for about 15 minutes.  Sometimes 30 minutes. I am old-fashioned, and we usually do not skype.

Mary and Sara are developing a very close relationship.  Mary takes very good care of Sara, walking her around the house, reading her books, and helping me clean up her messes.  She also likes to take care of Sara in the mornings, which I appreciate so much.  I have really begun to rely on Mary a lot.  She carries a lot of responsibility.  I have to remember she's only 6.  

Greg said it best:  Sara is a giver, not a taker.  She gives joy and energy and happiness.  She is gentle, and she will trust you to be gentle too.  And that trust, that sweet smile, fills your heart with gladness.  This is a special little girl.

David and Mary are back from sledding.  Gotta go...

Christmas Chaos 2013

What a wonderful Christmas day!  David and Mary were delightful:  No bickering, whining, fighting.  (A Christmas miracle!)  They loved all of their gifts.  (Everyone was so thoughtful in their gift-giving!  Thank you, thank you, thank you.)  It's fun to help David and Mary get started with their new toys, but it's nice that they are old enough to be more independent.  David and Mary and their fun, good, positive attitudes really made Christmas special this year.

As expected, Sara captured our hearts and our attention.  She's just so cute!  She loved being part of the action.  She definitely sees herself as part of the kid crew in this family.  And she loved all of the new things she could explore.  Sara goes on little "adventures" around the house, and the Christmas chaos provided ample opportunity for adventures.  (She also got a new nickname for Christmas:  Scout.  We'll see if it sticks.  Greg is the one who makes nicknames stick, and he only has a few more days to do it.)

We did have one big meltdown.  It was mine.  (David and Mary can't have the monopoly on meltdowns.  That wouldn't be fair.)  I have been able to focus on Christmas the past month.  It provides so much meaningful busyness and happy distractions.  So once all of the presents were opened .... I had to face the reality that Greg will be leaving.  Let's just say it soured my mood.  Fortunately, I have a patient husband and wonderful children whose happiness and contentment saved Christmas from Mom's moments of panic and grouchiness.

Pictures from Christmas morning ...

The exciting  big reveal!

Checking out what Santa brought!  (Even Sara.)

Santa certainly didn't forget sweet Sara.

Baby's first Christmas!

Sara went right to work playing with her new toy.

It was a big hit.  (You just never know with an 11-month old.  They usually prefer dirt, lint, or paper.)

The princess castle was a big hit with everyone.

David and Mary spent a good amount of time checking out its features.

But Sara came back to claim it as her own.

And she successfully bullied her brother and sister away for some play time by herself.
(She's getting pretty feisty with those two!)

Not very long ago Mary declared that all she wanted from Santa was a nutcracker.  It was the kind of sincere and hopeful desire that would result in a broken heart if her wish went unfulfilled.  (So much for finishing the Christmas shopping early.)  Santa knew just what kind of nutcracker Mary was imagining.  And he miraculously (and very last minute) managed to find her just the right one.  It was definitely a "tender mercy" if not a full-fledged miracle.  (David's Skylanders gift was kind of a miracle too, but that story probably only seems miraculous to Mom and Dad, so I'll keep that one between me and Santa.)

Santa also brought Mary an outfit that matches Stacy's. 

She wears it every day.

Opening gifts lasted throughout the day, and it was joyous.  This year we may not manage thank you cards, or even thank you emails ... or even thank you texts.  But I want to say that each gift was loved and appreciated.  We could recognize the thoughtfulness and generosity behind each one.  Thank you to everyone who helped us feel loved and brought many smiles into our home that morning!

More pictures--lots more pictures--of Christmas chaos.  (Keep scrolling.  There are some tender ones of David and Mary helping Sara with her gifts.)

And the baby says, "Good grief, Mom!  Enough pictures already!"  The baby is right.  Enough pictures.



Happy holidays.  May your week be filled with joy ... and not too many meltdowns!