Happy Easter

So, this past Easter weekend was awesome. We kicked it off with a milestone: leaving both kids overnight at grandma & grandpa's house Friday. How have we gone 2+ years without doing this before now? We've gotta get out more! Although I can't imagine loving my kids more than I do, even on those less-than-perfect-days, it was AWESOME to have some alone time with Eric. We dined, shopped, ran (well, jogged, actually -- 4 miles with Daisy and Jax!), went to the temple, hung out, and finally felt the urgent need to retrieve our kids ASAP. Tiana and Luke loved hanging out with cousins on both sides of the family all weekend, swimming Saturday night (well, Luke is still learning to love swimming, I guess!) and enjoying a fabulous Easter breakfast: the works, prepared on dad's new CampChef stove on the patio with the help of Tiana. Monday came with all it's sunshine, which only prolonged the fun of the weekend, and now we are bracing ourselves for April snow tomorrow. Uggh. Sometime Spring will come and stay!

The Hunts

Oh, the TRAUMA of being second to Derek in grabbing that one particular egg they were both heading for! Thank goodness this Easter egg hunt had plenty to go around!

Tiana and Derek chompin' at the bit to get going at Grandma & Grandpa Balls' house Easter Sunday.

Can you feel the thrill of the hunt? Tiana was anxious to catch up with Molly and Andrew, who got head starts because they are younger.

Coloring eggs at Grandma & Grandpa Goodrich's...4 dozen for 4 grandkids...they were excited to show them off!

FUN

FUN is getting a new swingset and then testing it out under the stars that very night with mom and dad. Then waking up early the next morning (6:40!) to get out and swing and slide some more in the freezing, very un-spring-ish weather, armed with a hat, coat, and mittens. Then racing out after preschool before the last student was even in their car to have a little more fun in the backyard, this time with baby brother in tow. (He had fun in his swing, too!) Oh, if this blustery weather would just let us have some more FUN! Eventually spring will come...

Here comes Trouble

So, Luke is now jetting around the house on all fours like there's something exciting to chase. Or get in to. Or sneak away from. Last weekend he had his first painful encounter (that left a mark, anyway): a run-in with the piano leg. Ouch!

Dirt....it looked so delicious, he just couldn't pass it up. The question is, will he fall for it again?

You're Cool, Man!

Luke has taken on this new relaxed pose lately....you know he's happy and enjoying the moment when he throws his hands up behind his neck to observe whatever is going on around him. It's so delightful! He finds this way to relax even in the most preposterous of situations and makes us chuckle every time.

The best is bedtime: Luke tucks

his arms up behind his neck,
gazes up at his animal mobile,
and smiles his way to
sweet dreams and sleep.

Safely(!) encircled in his

big sister's arms, life is GOOD.
He has no clue what danger lurks in this position...
just one little roll to the left...

She's Snowshoeing!

Tiana has reached one of those milestones in life that we all look forward to...the ability to walk in her own snowshoes! On New Year's Day we headed with Brett up to the mountains to have some real, grown-up fun. And fun it was: from snowshoeing and powder-jumping to sledding and exploring the mountainside, Tiana was game. I used to want to hold on to my little toddler forever and not let her grow up. Now, I'm discovering that she's just as much fun to be with as she's getting older and more able to really DO things.

Tiana and Eric playing "Roughie" in the powder...

She was so proud to snowshoe instead of ride on mom or dad's back!

The Good, The Bad, and the Gray

So we took the kids on a mini-vacation to the Homestead in Midway last night, partly to celebrate my 35th birthday (ouch!) and partly to just get out of town. I had high hopes of a beautiful mountain retreat, relaxation, good food, and good cross-country skiing....I've been dying to get out and try skiing with both kids in tow in our awesome Chariot! The quiet seclusion of the Homestead was great, as was the food at Fanny's Grill. We swam, we slept, and we watched TV to Tiana's heart's content. The weather, however, didn't cooperate so much. We awoke to damp drizzle, but doggedly headed out to ski anyway. It is SO annoying that we had to ski in such slush! Thankfully, the rain held off until we were almost done. And, I have to admit that I'd rather be out skiing in slush than sitting around inside on such a gray day as this was. Lunch at the Dairy Keen in Heber cheered our rainy day blues, and at the end of the day, I feel content. Here's to another year....

Highlight

We took Luke to the temple to be sealed to us on Dec. 26. It was undeniably the best day of the holiday season. Do you ever catch yourself enjoying life so completely that you let some things slide? Like posting on your blog, for instance? These last 3 months, that's what I've been doing. Enjoying ALL that is my life. (For glimpses of how good and rich life is, check out our web album! I've been a little bit better at updating it, at least!)

Laughter at Dinner

This video of Luke laughing at Tiana is mild compared to the laughter that he's been producing lately. The unfortunate thing is, when he sees the camera, he tends to clam up, so this is the best I've got. My favorite sounds are my childrens' laughter and giggles.

Boo!

We've just now come to the end of the BUSIEST Halloween season we've ever had. For the past week and a half, Tiana has had some fun Halloween event or another that required her costume every single day but Sunday. (Even then, I'm sure she dressed up just to make sure the fairy wings still fit correctly!) From picking pumpkins to carving jack-o-lanterns to parties to witch-hunting, we did it all. Not to mention the double trick-or-treat treat (once at dad's office, once around the neighborhood!) Check out more pictures on our web album...
The video that follows is the donut-eating contest at the Goodrich Halloween party. Tiana's giggles and squeals are adorable!