{iPhone Rewind} :: April

Eli's notes from Pastor Milt's sermon <3

Reading a letter he got in the mail from Granny {with help from his trusty assistant}

Me: What is this on my mirror?

Aiden: It's a rainbow, Mommy

Me: Well, let's not draw on Mommy's mirror anymore, ok?

Beautiful flowers from my love

Wanting to offer Mommy snuggles when she's not feeling her best. I sure do love them!

It's April. And we are still experiencing below freezing temps. It didn't snow, but I am ready for WARM weather, please!

Maddie wrapped up her year of Pioneer Girls! Now I have a ton of badges to sew on to her sash :)

They have loved decorating and setting the table recently. I love how they work together, offer Mike and I pictures of the two of us together to look at, and how Aiden likes to look at pictures of himself LOL

Sharing his science book about "Planets, Dwarf Planets, and Other Things" with Granny and Grumpz :)

He has been super focused on Perler Beads recently...

Behold. Captains Law, Judgment, and Conviction! {From The Mansoul Chronicles}

Maddie and I {finally} got haircuts!

At the park with Daddy :)

Kid art on Daddy's office dry erase board

Tossing the football

"I love you" flowers are the best :)

We're diving into crochet with Maddie! She's actually doing pretty well for a beginner :)

Easter 2025

For Easter this year, we were able to attend our church's Good Friday service, which was a wonderful blend of prayer, singing, Scripture reading, communion, and reflection. Pastor John helped lead a dramatic reading of the passover to the cross, and it was a really sweet evening with our church family.

Easter mornings are split for us as a ministry family. Mike was already gone before the kids got up, as he was off to help with the Sunrise Service. I got to do Easter baskets with the kids {taking a video for Daddy}, so they didn't have to wait, and then we got ready for church.

This year, the kids each got new rain boots, a puzzle/sticker/joke book, a chocolate bunny, and new Yoto cards. We don't do gifts as big as Christmas, but we do want to make it a day of celebration and fun, since it is a day of celebration! The day to celebrate that Christ has risen!

Mike preached both services, and we got to celebrate baptisms, which is always special. We were excited to have our friends B & C join us for the service too. Since it was a busy work day for Mike {too much going on!}, we were not able to snag a full family photo this year, but I was able to grab one of the kiddos!

The rest of the day, we enjoyed time outside, grilling for dinner, and just spending time as a family. Which was a perfect way to wrap up a busy Easter weekend. We missed being with family, but we are so thankful for our church family and for the time to soak up the sweet days of childhood with our kiddos. 

We are thankful for the cross and for the empty tomb. He is risen!

{iPhone Rewind} :: March

Maddie and I got to enjoy a fun girls' lunch at Panera :)

Baby shower for our sweet friend Hannah

While Maddie and I went to lunch and the baby shower, the boys enjoyed their own lunch at Pot Belly!

Sometimes I wonder if they're actually listening during school...but then I'll find random notes taped to the wall and realize that they are listening and that they believe me LOL! {this is what they learned in sinsse = science}

We got to serve with Generosity Feeds again, helping to pack 10,000 meals for our community!

We said goodbye to my Honda Pilot, so I needed to clean it out. Definitely a past life, in more ways than one! I also cleaned out CD's haha!

I went looking for the second set of keys to the Pilot, and came across an extra set of keys from one of my brother's old trucks. It was also from a past life, when we were all back in Dallas, and we saw him more often, and it just made sense for us to keep an extra set for him. I sat in my basement reminiscing sweet times, crying over a silly set of old keys. It hit me like a ton of bricks. I know grief does that, but it definitely came out of nowhere and derailed my afternoon. 

We bought a new {to us} Telluride! Considering that the Pilot sounded like a tractor and barely made it to trade-in...we're thankful for the Lord's provision.

A Portrait of Aiden, age 6. A hat from the local garbage company. Orange glasses. A Blippi shirt. Pooh Bear by his side. Holes in his pant knees from lots of play. #timeslowdown

The kids are loving the new ride...especially the sun roof!

Our Community Group had a Pi Day celebration- complete with pizza pies, dessert pies, and Frito Pie!

Sweet gifts from Maddie, left on my dresser :)

We drive by this spot multiple times a week, and we are always on the lookout for this gopher/marmot/groundhog friend. The kids were so excited to finally see him again and asked for me to pull over so they could watch him eat!

Showing our St. Patrick's Day spirit! We learned the legacy of St. Patrick and made green smoothies.

I absolutely LOVED studying Revelation with these ladies {not everyone is pictured}. I was so proud of them for sticking with it!

They did a 2-week project to repave the cul de sac, and it was EXCITING entertainment around our house!

Having lunch on the porch, watching the repaving project :)

Aiden and Maddie finished their first grade math book! They'll finish out the year working through their second grade math book!

Mike found Maddie's doll house family arranged in a family hug. And I love everything about this.

Telling Daddy about his library book. With his upside down dress up hat.

Sweet Family Time

We got to spend the last week with Grandma and Papa! It was so good having them in town, and we had such nice weather that we were able to go out and do quite a bit. 

They arrived on Saturday, which is when Maddie had her Father Daughter Dinner, so we kept things pretty low key since she had to get ready for her date. The boys got to enjoy some extra time playing games and painting with Grandma and Papa, while Maddie was off dancing the night away :)

Sunday we headed to church, and then we had lunch at Uncle Julio's and then the kids got to experience Build-A-Bear for the first time. It was such a fun experience, and despite the plethora of choices, we actually made out fairly well. Chase, Fluffy, and Flame are a happy addition to our stuffie collection haha.

We got to visit Harper's Ferry. I had been before by myself, so it was nice to show the area to the rest of the family. We had beautiful weather, though the wind was pretty cold. I am so glad that the kids enjoy historical sites and museums; it makes adventures {and school field trips} more fun!

We also got to visit a goat farm to snuggle some baby goats! :)  A friend of mine had told us about the new kids and how you can go snuggled them {for free!} during the week, so we stopped by to check it out. And it did not disappoint! I was surprised that Aiden pet the goats, but he actually did pretty well. It helped that they were mostly calm, and he could pet them on his terms. Eli pet a goat and then was done. Maddie didn't want to leave haha.

We also visited Mount Vernon. We had originally wanted to go into D.C. to see the cherry blossoms, but the parking was limited due to peak bloom. We decided to skip the crowds and see Washington's home instead. We hoped to see some cherry blossoms on the property, but unfortunately they weren't quite blooming yet, but the tour was still worth it!

Washington's Tomb

View of the Potomac from the Old Tomb

The lone blooming cherry blossom haha

The rest of the trip was filled with games and reading and dress up and grilling. It was a sweet week together, and I am so thankful for the time to spend together.

We miss them already, and we're looking forward to the next trip!