A Birthday!

I post I also missed way back in February was Merry Grace's birthday.  She requested a red cake with white icing and a heart in the middle.  I tried to oblige as best I could. :)

 
She really wanted to get to stay home from school on her birthday.  So we let her.  (Yeah, we're suckers. ;))

 Her big present was a new bike and since she was going to be home from school, we let her open her presents first thing in the morning so she could play with them during the day.  Her siblings gave her wonderfully cute and thoughtful gifts.

 We had Merry Grace close her eyes so we could bring out her bike.  I guess Paige closed her eyes for moral support. :)

As usually seems to happen, I forgot something.  The candles.  So we improvised with some various and assorted candles that I dug out of storage.  I think it worked fine in a pinch.  I'm not sure if she'll get her wish, though....;)

Merry Grace is one of the sweetest, happiest kids I know.  She's the merriest of the merry and is a little ray of sunshine and laughter in our home.  We love her to bits.  The fact that she's already six years old still makes me catch my breath a little bit.  But she's a joy.  That girl is nothing but love.  (Well, there may be a little bit of drama, a little bit of sass and a bunch of giggles.  But mostly love.)

Here is Merry Grace through the years...

 

Birth

 

Age 1

 

Age 2

 

Age 3

Age 4

Age 5

Age 6

I love that girl.  Love her, love her, love her.

Back Tracking

I've missed a few important events that I haven't blogged about and that deserve some blog time. :)

First off is Ian's first pinewood derby.  I wish I could describe in adequate detail the time, effort and prep work that went into it.  Cory and Ian worked hard on getting everything together and had a great time doing it.  Ian always has such enthusiasm for whatever project is in front of him and this was no exception.  He jumped full force into pinewood derby prep.  

We had pretty low expectations for the pinewood derby.  We hoped he would win at least one race and have a good time. 

He sure looked cute waiting for the race to start. :)

And here is a video of him winning one heat. :)  

Let's just say that he far exceeded our expectations.  Much to our shock and surprise, he came in first place in the whole thing!  We were so excited for him!

The proof is in the pudding. (Or the chalkboard. ;))

What We Love About Spring

It seems like winter was a little like spring and spring is a little like summer.  But we are LOVING the warm weather and the chance to be outdoors more.  There are so many things we love about spring, but here are just a few of them.

Finding inch worms: Our maple tree has tons of inch worms on it and the kids (minus Paige--the child who will not hesitate to touch a snake--wants nothing to do with them) love catching them and watching them crawl around.

 Finding Four Leaf Clovers: Honestly, our yard is more clover than grass.  Which makes fertile ground for finding four leaf clovers.  After a school assignment to find one, Ian discovered he has a gift for finding 4 leaf clovers and has found close to 10.  What's even better is when you can find both an inch worm and a 4 leaf clover, as evidenced by this picture. :)

 

 And when you've mastered the skill of four leaf clovers, why not kick it up a notch and find a FIVE leaf clover?! :)

Jumping on the Trampoline: The kids have LOVED jumping on the trampoline, especially Paige.  She asks to "champ on the champoline" All. The. Time.  Its one of the many times I'm grateful she has siblings who are more than willing to "champ" with her. :)

Pouting: Ok, not technically a part of spring, specifically.  But is it bad that I think she's adorable, even when she pouts? :)

 Riding Bikes and Scooters:  The kids love this, even if they make me a little nervous with how fast they want to go.

 Getting Stronger: Paige was convinced Ian wasn't strong enough to pick up the chair.  Looks like he showed her. :)

Shooting Hoops:  Ian loves playing basketball in the back yard.

 Even if sometimes he cheats to make the shot. :)

 The Front Porch: We love having lunch or snacks or doing homework on the front porch.  It is the BEST.

 There are probably a million more reasons we love spring, but these are a few of them.  Welcome, Spring!!!

Quoted

A conversation with Ian:

Ian:  We need to start drinking more gasoline, now that baseball season is starting up.
Me:  Dead Silence
Elise:  I think you mean gatorade.
Ian:  Oh yeah.  I always get those words mixed up.

Let's just make sure it's only the words that get mixed up.  Yikes!