Just so cute!

One day last week Kristen watched Ryan for me while I met Nate for lunch. She sent me these pictures of their playtime. Her littlest girl is just about Ryan's age. Are these not just the most adorable pictures? Ryan's fussing when I left was such an act. He didn't miss me.

Nikki's writing

Nikki brought home some of the cutest stories today, and I just had to put a couple of them up here. I don't know why this first one got rotated, but I'll transcribe her stories below the pictures.

If a Leprechaun granted me 3 wishes, I would first wish for a blue Mermaid. Then I would wish for a 3 dollar bill. Finally, I would wish for rollerskates!!! I love those things.

If I had a umbrella it would be big enough to fit my whole family! It would have the rainbow colors. It would be humongous. On rainy days I would bring it. I would be reading to it. playing with it. Sing with it. And it would talk to me. It's birthday is May 11! Like me! I would love an umbrella. But mom wouldn't let me. (The last line made me laugh!)

Our Overgrown Paradise

We live in such a beautiful place! It may be a little overgrown and rundown, but I just love being here.

The view from our back deck may not be all that spectacular in just a picture, but we love all the wildlife we see in our backyard. We have squirrels, robins, beautiful cardinals, lots of other birds, and this morning we were almost late to church because we were watching two rabbits chase each other around.

Of course, I love this view in the back yard, too.

M.I.A.

Our internet has been cutting out off and on throughout the week -- it's been more off than on, which is a pain with my morning work online and also the fact that our phone is set up through our internet. But we have a Tracfone for such situations, because how can you get your internet fixed if you can't call to let them know you have a problem? This usually works well, except Ryan has a thing for phones. So yesterday, when I couldn't find the Tracfone I knew it was because Ryan had it. I thought if I cleaned up enough it would turn up. But I cleaned and cleaned and cleaned. By bedtime the house was in shipshape, and I still hadn't seen any sign of that phone! This morning, our internet thankfully was back on and I called the Tracfone from our regular phone. Sure enough, it started ringing away, and I found it in a vase under the kitchen sink. Ryan Robbins!! Okay, so I didn't clean out under my sink last night. That's what I get for thinking I had cleaned up everywhere!

It's all about perspective

I was about to start feeling sorry for myself that Nate is out of town for the next three days, but then I remembered that Josh is getting deployed and Kim will have her husband out of town MUCH longer. So, I'm not going to complain. I think I'll be grateful. Maybe I could make a 3-ring paper chain?

Easter

We had a really nice Easter, but I didn't get that many pictures. This is my favorite. I didn't plan well enough to get the eggs dyed during Ryan's nap. He really didn't appreciate being buckled in his seat away from the action, but there really was no other choice.

It was a great weekend to just be home and together and to remember the Savior. I hope everyone else enjoyed it as much as we did.

Daddy's Little Helper

April Fools!

I finally got Nate with a good April Fools joke! The girls really wanted to do something and had three or four plans to get him. Doesn't this chocolate cake look yummy? I turned my cake pans upside down and frosted them. It was perfect because it was lopsided just like I would normally make a cake. :) Nate was in a hurry when he got home from work because he was going out with the missionaries, so he didn't have time to cut into until he got home later. He served himself some ice cream, got out a nice long knife, and tried to cut into the cake. Oh, I got such a good laugh! He was so disappointed, and I just couldn't wait very long to bring out the real cake that I made. The girls were already in bed and missed the moment, which was sad because they were really looking forward to it. But they did get some chocolate cake, so I think they're okay. Thanks for the laugh, Nate!!

House pet, anyone?

This is just wrong. I picture in my mind a pest control commercial that shows an animation of bugs crawling into your house leaving their germy footprints wherever they go. So, that's extra dishes for me to wash now. I was tempted to empty the whole drawer into the dishwasher. Not to mention that I will definitely be even more on the lookout upon opening drawers and cabinets in the future. My potholders are in the drawer below this one. I'm really not in the habit of checking for spiders before I stick my hands in them, but maybe I should be. These spiders are all over the house. They actually blend in pretty well with wherever they may be, so I don't really see them that often. However, that's a two-sided coin because while I'm glad they aren't in my sight all the time, it creeps me out to think about what's lurking where. They don't move very fast, so I guess it could be worse. In all of our previous houses, we have just sprayed our own bug spray for any kind of pest other than termites. This time we might be in a little over our heads. We have opted to go for the full shebang service contract for at least this first year. Bug man will be here in two days! He can't come soon enough!

A Wonderful Day

I read a book and took a nap this afternoon while Ryan was napping. Wow, that felt SO good. My cleaning/organizing project today consisted of putting the puzzles together with Ryan. Don't you just love that happy little face? I could just kiss him all day long. I'm so grateful to be able to stay at home with him. I love being a mother.