Mother's Day Report

I am so blessed to be a mother to three wonderful girls. I am so fortunate to be a mother. I used to detest Mother's Day and often skipped church on this dreaded holiday (I am a faithful church attender so this is unusual for me.) Before I adopted my girls, I wanted to be a mother so badly that listening to talks about mothers, just hurt too badly so I often stayed home and read a book or something to take my mind off of Mother's Day. I now really enjoy Mother's Day, but I am very mindful of others who might experience a lot of pain on this holiday.

Anyway, today was a perfect day for me. After church, we enjoyed a yummy lunch, had FHE (family home evening...typically done Monday nights, but we always have ours Sunday afternoon because Monday nights are busy with ice skating), then I had what I really wanted...a nap!! After a nice nap, we went for a walk to a little waterfall near our house. It was a beautiful sunny day. Nothing is nicer than a walk through the woods in Western Washington on a beautiful day. We came home and enjoyed our first picnic dinner of the season and ended with ice cream cones. It doesn't get much better than this. Oh, I can't wait until summer officially arrives! We are camping the weekend after school is over. YIPPEE!!! I love summer!

Here are a few pictures from our adventures of the day:

 Rachel was so excited to find an "Arizona" rock. She had so much fun there and talks a lot about returning.

 We went to the falls with our neighbor friends so they are in our pictures. The girls had a fun time scrambling over rocks and exploring.

 Rachel pretended this was a balance beam and made me slightly nervous.

 This was my attempt to get a picture of my two girls together....Erin Joy cooperated...Rachel not so much.

 This is a good picture of Rachel and the neighbor girls. Too bad Erin Joy isn't in it...

Tree huggers...

 I definitely live in a rural area...not often you see a sign for a lost goat wearing a collar:)

 My girls had fun making dandelion curls for me as Mother Day gifts.

 Our picnic shared with neighbors...notice the girls still wearing bicycle helmets:)

 I love the notes from my sweet girls.

 My "mommy corner" is getting very full. I added a shovel from my youngest foster daughter.

 All three girls made special shovels for me (they bought a bunch of shovels in bulk years ago...).

I love to see their personalities coming through in their shovels.

People who know my girls will easily guess which shovel was made by which girl...

 Here is the cute Mother's Day gift from my youngest. (Her favorite color happens to be purple).

(We don't have a TV....she is right...my favorite TV show is "nun!") I definitely love to take naps too:) So precious!

It was a fabulous Mother's Day for sure!

Rachel's Band Trip to Leavenworth/Wenatchee

We were really excited that Rachel and her marching band marched in the apple blossom parade in Wenatchee. That was a perfect excuse to go to Leavenworth and stay at the Enzian Inn. We LOVE the Enzian Inn! The kids love the swimming pool. I love the breakfast and the alphorn. We all love the scenery. Leavenworth is a truly beautiful place.

Rachel stood on the ledge. I was a little nervous, but she wasn't.

Rachel's band...

Having fun in the hat shop....

Erin Joy slept completely inside of her pajamas with her huge stuffed penguin that she insisted on bringing. Not much room left in the bed for me....

Here is a video including a video of the kids marching....

Erin Joy's Honor Choir

Erin Joy had a really fun time practicing and performing with the honor choir. She did an excellent job. I know this is a long movie, but maybe Grandma and Grandpa will watch it.

 We think the "E" stands for "Erin" and not "Everett."

Easter Report

 We colored eggs...including a couple of fresh eggs from a friend.

Erin Joy refused to color her special egg. She is convinced there is a chick inside of her egg. She kept it warm a few days in her room until I made her take it outside. (Stinky, rotten eggs in her bedroom didn't sound good to me.) She has been keeping it warm with leaves outside. I tried to convince her that her special egg would never grow a chick because it wasn't fertilized by a rooster. (My friend has hens and no rooster.) She doesn't believe me. She keeps checking on her egg every day.

Sorry the picture is sideways. I give up trying to turn it around.

 Here is my attempt at fruit art. It's a bunny...in case you can't tell.

We had a fun Easter egg hunt at a fun campground down the road. It is a great place to hide eggs. We lost a few last year and three this year. I hope some camper enjoys three plastic eggs. Oops.

 I sure wish I could post pictures of my little one. She's the cute one all distorted in the front of this picture. I love this picture place. Nothing like a hollow tree to make a fun picture.

 Notice the butterfly on her hand....she had a lot of fun with it.

 The forest makes a great hiding place for eggs.

 Silly girls showing their best bunny pose.

 The Easter Spider comes every year and leaves a yarn trail from each girl's bed.

 After following the trail, they are eventually led to a clue that leads to their basket. It is a very fun fairly new tradition that was introduced to us by our cousins.

 We also went to an egg hunt at a local church. There were also bouncy houses, animals to pet, and craft projects.

And of course....Easter dress to wear to church where we will learn the true meaning of Easter. Certainly not the bunnies or the eggs.

Notice the great flower box....purchased to help foster kids go to camp. 

Happy Easter!