Coloring Eggs

I love my husband.  But, he doesn’t get it.  He has no idea why traditions are fun for kids.  He thinks, why not do something new?   And, I see what he’s saying… (sort of).  But, I love traditions.  And so do my kids.  And, so we do them!  Even if it means running to the grocery store for eggs and vinegar the day before Easter.  🙂

 

This year, more than ever, the kids had a blast doing the eggs.  Sierra was so distraught when we ran out of eggs.  So, we got out a paintbrush and used the leftover dyes as watercolor paints.  That did it.  She was happy.  And, so was I!  It’s so fun dying eggs with the kids now that they are old enough to get it and do it mostly on their own.  Oh, and special thanks to Pinterest… using a whisk for an egg holder is brilliant!

Easter Fun

This year, more than ever, we are really trying to go deeper with our Easter devotions.   The girls know the story(s) by now.  In fact, just this morning they were complaining -er – reminding me that they already knew the story of Peter denying Jesus.  It was a great opportunity to let them know about a “rhema,” or a fresh word of God specifically for them.  (At least, that’s my understanding of it as a non-scholar!)  We worked through the scripture once again, and I had them tell me all the new things they had learned.  Even they were surprised at how many details they didn’t really think about before.  (And I received a fresh rhema, as well!)

Now, I have to be honest.  Sometimes, (too often, in fact), I have these grand visions of how things could be.  My creative mind wanders off, and I have visions of glorious Bible studies linked with supporting crafts and snacks and object lessons and games and…. then reality hits.  I am either too tired, too busy, or too overwhelmed to really carry through with my plan.  So, I scrap it altogether.  Yup.  I do absolutely nothing.

I am learning, though.  Learning that it’s ok to wing it sometimes, and not have it all meticulously planned out.  In fact, in many ways that leaves more room for improvise and for the Holy Spirit to come in and work.  Does that make sense?   This week Monday rolled around much quicker than I had anticipated, and I had nothing planned for Easter.  I just knew in my heart the girls were ready for something more.  So, each morning we’ve been diving into His word.  I didn’t plan it.  I still don’t know exactly what school will look like tomorrow.  But, I know that God is speaking to their hearts and His word will not return void.

All that to say, we have found some time for some Easter fun, as well…

Easter cookies!

Easter sock bunnies… a craft my sweet friend brought over to try.  I thought they were SO cute!

Good old foamies!

And… the big girls are now in an art class, which means whatever they bring home I get to try with Sierra, who sincerely wishes she were 6 so that she could take the class, as well. (As do I!)  They started with salt dough bunnies, so guess what Sierra and I did the next day? ** smile**

May God bless you with a fresh rhema today!

Feeling Artsy

At any given moment it seems you can find me day-dreaming about art projects.  Not ones for my kids, however… I see painting my walls, rearranging my furniture, and ideas galore in my head.  Perhaps it is because we have a small remodeling project coming up that will finally allow me to decorate my very own office.  Woohoo!  In the meantime, I get to watch my kids do art of their own.  Here’s some of our latest:

Ribbon baskets for spring: always a favorite.

I started a board called “birds for Natalie” on my Pinterest wall.  This girl still can’t get enough of birds… or art… so when the two merge, it is a good thing!

Easel painting.  Classic.

I found this fun idea at JDC.  It’s called the “roller coaster name project.”  We did it yesterday to go along with our week of devotions talking about Holy Week, and what a “roller coaster” it must have been for Jesus, (to say the least!)

And, one last project… for now.  I got this one form Meg over at Whatever.  (I say that as if we’re old friends.  Meg has no idea who I am, but I love her blog!)  Spring flowers.  Perfect for the season!

Happy Crafting!

Amy’s Farm

Yep… another day, another farm!  I could get used to this farm life… as long as we had this perfect spring weather and someone else doing all the work; ha!  Once again, I’ll let the pictures do the talking.  I mean really, is there any place more photogenic than a farm?

I just have to comment on this photo.  This picture is so precious to me, because its subjects are so precious to me.  These girls are such precious friends to my girls, that my heart aches knowing they will be moving away in a few weeks.  I will treasure this picture always!  And, look at my little Malachi thinking he’s a big boy!

Milking a cow was pretty awesome.  It was actually much easier than I anticipated.  I wonder if it’s just this cow, or cows in general that are easy to milk?  Anyone?

This girl loves horses as much as I love coffee… and that’s A LOT!  I’ll leave you as we left… with the 3 little 6-day-old piglets:

Horse Camp

I’m gonna let the pictures do most of the talking here, but let me just set the scene for you.  Chilly morning.  Slightly foggy and overcast.  Just the right temperature for jeans and a sweatshirt.  Old farm.  Cats EVERYWHERE.  Laid-back old farmer.  All girls, and all older than my A and N, who spent the entire day there learning about horses and feeding and playing with other animals.  Sierra spent a couple hours there as well and got to ride a horse, but was very sad when it was time to leave.  Malachi was in heaven, and so proud to show-off his walking.  Ok, here we go.  Warning:  LOTS of pictures!

So, the farm was called “Foxcroft Farms,” if you’re interested.  The fun part was, they had a real fox!  And, it was the sweetest thing ever; (even when Malachi poked its face over and over!)

If the girls had their way, they’d be running back there tomorrow!  Lucky for them, we actually do have another farm trip planned tomorrow.  And, another cool day forecasted; woohoo!

St. Patrick’s Day 2013

There’s no better proof than a random holiday that Pinterest has made me a more creative mom!

When I say “St. Patrick’s Day,” the girls think of one thing… Lucky Charms!  It’s one of their favorite traditions.  You’d think I was feeding them chocolate ice cream sundays for breakfast.  (And really, they’re probably not a whole lot healthier!)  Between a few bowls for breakfast and then snacking on them after church, we almost finished an entire box today!  This year we also had Irish soda bread that my husband bought after having a sample at our market.  And, let me not neglect to thank Target for the tattoos!

Even the little guy felt like a big man snacking on them at the big table with the rest of us!

We played “Roll a leprauchan.”  (Thanks, Pinterest!)

And, we made some movable leprauchans with brads…

And, some leprauchan cookies…

…All thanks to Pinterest!

Finally, we enjoyed dinner with some of our dearest friends.  They will be moving away soon, but I can’t even think about it or there might be tear stains all over this computer!

Grace reading us the clue for the leprauchan scavenger hunt.

I’m not sure why I like this day so much… we’re not even Irish!  But, it is fun and easy just to pull out some green.  And, it’s always good to remember how simple God made the gospel such that St. Patrick had only a clover to tell the world of the trinity and God’s love!

Updates

So much is going on these days.  I’m hoping, (praying), that the flu season is over for the Yeh’s!  It truly feels like we’ve come out of a fog… and what a great feeling that is!  In talking to friends and acquaintances lately, it seems we weren’t the only ones hit hard this season. Anyway, here’s a little update on the kiddos:

Malachi is officially a walker.  And, officially in the “toddler” stage.  He doesn’t like to be told no, but does like to get into everything he’s not suppose to.  (Exhibit A: flour and Kix)  Oh, but he’s sweet.  As sweet as they come!  He loves to cuddle and sleeps like an angel.

Miss Natalie just finished a season of ballet/ tap.  She did super at her recital, smiling right through an accidental cut on her foot in the middle of the tap performance.  What a trooper!  She was fun to watch, and made me proud!

Not-so-little Sierra just began gymnastics.  She’s had 2 weeks, and is loving it.  You would never know by her serious expression throughout the hour, but when she’s done she can’t stop smiling as she tells you all about her fun as fast as she can spit the words out.  It is precious, really.  And,, I love seeing her receive instruction from someone other than her parents!

And, Allison… my oldest!  She is 7 going on 18!  (Or so it seems!)  This girl has such joy for life!  If she’s not dancing in the kitchen or teaching her sister how to play “chickers,” (Easter checkers), you can find her playing outside, making-up games, or even doing her schoolwork.  The word “bored” is not in her vocabulary!  I am so thankful for her contagious enthusiasm.

Chicks

Spring part 2… the chickies!  So, we decided we wanted some more chickens; mostly because we wanted more eggs, but also to try a few new breeds.  We decided on 5 more chicks bringing our grand total to 10.  (Now it’s time to get to building a bigger coop!)

As usual, the girls are having a blast with the chicks.  And, so am I this time.  Not that I didn’t enjoy the chicks the first time around… but I can’t say I handled them before.  I’ve not only overcome my slight fear of these birds, but grown quite fond of the.  One in particular, little Bethany, I can’t resist holding throughout the day!

Sierra is doing remarkably well with the chickies.  No squished chicks; that’s a good thing!

Natalie’s chick is “Gilfie,” from her book Guardians of Ga’Hoole.  I just love that!

Friends are welcome … but come soon, because they grow-up fast!

The Garden

And just like that we’re two weeks into March, already!  Ahhh, March!  March means one thing… spring!  Gardens, Easter, flowers, baby chicks… and perfect weather; I love it all!  The only problem is you can’t garden unless you actually have a garden!  When we first moved into this house, I would spend a long time searching the yard for a nice sunny potential garden spot.  I finally found it… on our patio!  So, together Daniel and I drew-up our dream garden bed.

He began work on it last summer;  {Mostly at night to 1) avoid heat and 2) avoid our 4 little distractions!}  As he was building it, we lovingly referred to it as “the monstrosity.”  After all, as long as it was custom, we had to include everything… like a wrap-around bench that would double as a storage unit for pool toys!

By fall it was ready for a paint job.  As usual, Daniel got the girls in on the action.  They waited on me to pick the colors, and then they had fun painting away.

Fast forward to March.  It is finally (almost) complete.  It is filled with dirt.  My “graffiti” on the bench has begun.  Pillows are bought.  The sprinkler system is hooked-up.  And, the plants have been planted.  (Once again, Daniel had some “assistance”)

Oh, they’re just such cute helpers!

And, they love the “dirty work.”

My favorite are always the snap peas.  Mmmmmmm…

Getting there!

WELCOME, March!  I hope to share our other new spring addition tomorrow!

Pizza and a Movie

Sometimes it’s the simplest of things…

Friday night.  Natalie has ballet/ tap class which happens to be right next to Round Table Pizza.  It’s raining, and I’m exhausted from a long week.  She finishes at 4:30, and I pick-up a pizza to take home with us.  (Don’t mind the open disaster of a game cabinet or filthy dog pillow!)

Usually the Disney channel has movies to record on Fridays.  I had recorded Tinkerbell that morning, and almost forgot about it until we got home.  Inside, I was more excited than they were to discover it.  I didn’t have to cook, and I had 90 minutes of happy tired campers occupied.

Of course, I forgot that we had 3 birthday parties to attend that weekend and we would be eating pizza the rest of the weekend… but it was so worth it!