The Thrill of the Hunt

The Easter Bunny did a little something different this year and left a scavenger hunt for the kids to find their baskets. We weren't sure what their reactions were going to be when they woke up and found a lone note in place of their baskets, but they were great sports. And they seemed to have a good time following the clues all over the house until they finally found their Easter baskets on the table in the bonus room.

They just knew the Easter Bunny was going to hide Easter eggs in the front yard, and sure enough, he delivered (on the sly while going out to collect the morning paper)! It was also the maiden voyage in their new Crocs that were tucked in their baskets.

Of course, they had to compare their hauls, and Osten even made an adjustment or two to even things out!

Happy Easter!!

Got Strawberries?

It was a strawberry feast for Marci after church this morning. This picture doesn't quite represent the puree of strawberry that is spotted all over her Easter dress. It does, however, give you a good idea of exactly how she was hamming it up this morning during a baptism that took place during the service. She kept looking back at Daddy and me and giving us this face. I think she was relishing in the power of being out of our reach. If this morning is any indication, the teenage years are going to be off the chain with this one!

Easter Surprises

Easter hasn't officially arrived, and it's already been full of surprises.

Marci found the golden egg at our neighborhood Easter egg hunt this morning!

And she got to hold a bunny.

And Osten . . . rode his bike this afternoon with no training wheels and no crash landings!!

G-O-A-L

Look who scored his first goal of the season! And somehow, I was lucky enough to catch him in action . . .

. . . and later resting on the sidelines.

Goooooooooo Comets!!

Yay, Osten!

A Terrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

Alexander isn't the only one who has a bad day every now and then. In our house, the sure sign of a doozie of a day is when Wrigley gets her name on the board. In fact, to date it's only happened once. And for the record, that's Daddy's handwriting in the photo!

Dining Al Fresco

I think I could serve mud pies for dinner and so long as it was outside, the kids would think they was terrific! As an added bonus, our swingset has a picnic table tucked under the slide. To say we have enjoyed it immensely, would be an understatement. In fact, I can hardly even remember life without our swingset/picnic table combo. It was a dual present from the grandparents a couple Chistmases ago, and it's been a real hit!

Name That Letter

Just the other day, Marci and I were in the car on our way to pick up Osten from school. I took a turn into a nearby shopping center, which of course, did not go unnoticed by my little backseat driver.

"Mommy!" she shrieked. "This is not the way to Osten's school."

"Yes," I acknowledged. "We're going to swing by the mailbox so Mommy can mail a letter."

"A letter?" she questioned.

"Yes, a letter," I replied.

"Is it a letter to your friend?" she inquired.

"Yes," I confirmed.

"What letter is it?" asked my inquisitive and ever-observant child.

"It's just a letter to a friend," I repeated.

"No," she persisted. "What letter is it?"

"Honey, I told you. It's just a letter to a friend."

"Mommeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!" she demanded. "What. Letter. Is. It??!!"

No response from Mommy. Just lots of deep breaths. And then finally from the backseat came this sweet, simple and innocent explanation for her frustration.

"Is it a 'C' or an 'A'?"

Oh, did I need a laugh like that!! I think we'll save the discussion of homonyms for another day.

Army of One

Here's Osten in what is currently his favorite costume with what has always been his favorite Lamby. Even though we have two alternate and seemingly identical lamb blankets, there is no substitute for the one-and-only Lamby.

Lamby is an army of one, I guess you could say. And Osten is his fearless commander!

Sticky Hands

Recently, our neighbor, Connor, caught a couple of lizards and was nice enough to share his new-found pets with Osten. We only kept him overnight, but Osten was thrilled to have an animal to call his own.

We kept him in this old apple juice jar, and he spent the night in our garage. Even though he was with us for just 24 hours, the kids got rather attached. They named him Sticky Hands, a name that is more descriptive than creative! Osten and Marci played with him all afternoon and even took turns taking him for rides on their swingset.

It was a very sad moment when it came time to return Sticky Hands to the great outdoors.

Even though Daddy promised Osten and Marci a childhood full of many more captured creatures, saying good-bye to Sticky Hands was still a tearful event.

Sunday School

Here are a couple of shots of the kids from Sunday School last week taken by our church's Director of Christian Education. Marci just recently graduated from the Nursery and now joins the big kids on Sunday mornings. As usual, she is very excited to get to tag along with her big brother. And from what I hear from the teachers, she is holding her own.

I just love this picture. Marci sure looks up to her big brother!