Easter

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2012

Outside Fun

The weather has been so nice lately!  After having 3 months in a row of temps over 100 degrees last summer, we are really enjoying the days of 70 degree weather right now.

The grass in the back yard was very long last time Joel cut it so it left piles everywhere and the girls had a great time raking it, filling up buckets, putting it on dirt patches to make it 'grow' over the dirt, etc.

Gracie can pump her own legs to swing now!!  She still requests one push to start her off but then she can take it from there, which is very nice for me.  =)

Grandma Jayne and Grandpa Bob got them scooters last year but they were a bit big for them so we put them in the attic.  We got them down this week and they are LOVING them!!  There is a neighbor girl that rides her scooter on our street quite a bit and the girls always admire her.  Ava even drew a picture of her:

So to have scooters of their own now is very exciting to them.  =)

They have also been riding their bikes quite a bit.  We live on a very quiet, dead-end street with only 8 houses so it is perfect to ride bikes on, especially during the day when most of our neighbors are at work.  

We meet friends at the park by our house about once a week.  Yesterday there were caterpillars everywhere so they each caught one on a stick. 

The girls played with theirs for about 4 hours...at which time the caterpillars gave up on life, having been picked up, dropped, petted, and squished to death.  I saw Gracie petting hers and quietly singing 'Go to sleep...go to sleep...' 

Ava's was tiny.

R.I.P. 

Antlers and Gracie Caterpillar

Home on the Range

We had a great time last week visiting Donnie and Rene's 'closer house' (versus the 'far-away house') as the girls say.

Gorgeous weather.  The clouds were amazing that day!

 

 

 

Triplets!

 

 

 

Art Class

Last night we read Lunchtime for a Purple Snake, a book about a girl who visits her Grandpa's art studio and he teaches her about mixing colors to make new colors and they paint together.  So today we practiced mixing colors and painting!  

Gracie was thrilled to mix red and white to make PINK!

Ava mixed red and blue to make purple for the snake. 

Ava loved looking at the picture in the book and then trying to copy it.  

I was impressed with how well she did!  

Gracie spent over an hour painting the rock that the snake is crawling over.  She had a great time mixing colors and trying to make 'mud' but we don't currently have black paint so she wasn't able to make it exactly how she wanted.  They both had a great time...but in very different ways.  Its fun to see the differences between them.

Mine didn't turn out too bad.  =) 

We love this huge paper roll my mom got at Ikea!  The day before we had read A Picture for Harold's Room (one of the cutest books ever!) and tried to draw some of the things that he had. 

We've had a fun week.  Rene's family was down at their ranch so we went out there twice to spend time with them and see lots of baby cows!

We met friends at the Children's Museum on Friday.  Lots of fun!

Went to Story Hour at the library.

Read lots and lots of new books we borrowed from the library.  

I came across several lists of suggested read-alouds for children (thanks, Barb!) so I went off that instead of randomly selecting books and we've really enjoyed them.

Caught a frog and played with him until he was on the verge of a heart attack.

Created homemade mud puddles in the back yard and got very, very dirty.

'Helped' Joel repair the fence and got very, very dirty.  

They tried to dig holes like he was for the fence posts, then they 'planted' some grass, covered it with dirt and watered it, and keep wanting to go check to see what's growing in their 'garden'.  HA!  

So this evening I think we'll go buy something to plant...

Some Recent Pictures

It's that time of year again...time to pack up the too small/winter clothes and pull out the bigger/summer clothes!  We are blessed beyond measure to receive all of Amelia and Gabrielle's clothes!  You should have heard Ava when I dumped out the bags.  "NEW CLOTHES!!!!!!  Can I try on this one?  OH, I like THIS one!  Do you like this?  Oh, I have to go show Daddy!"  

She is a girly girl, through and through.

The closet is full: 

The dressers are full.  I think we're set! 

Came upon this the other day: 

Joel has been repairing our fence.  Taking down sections and re-cementing the posts to make it sturdier. 

Breakfast outdoors! 

Modeling some new dresses on Sunday:

 

Joel preached a Children's Rally in Edmond a couple weeks ago.  I think there were around 180 people crammed into a church that probably only holds 100.  People were lining the aisles and some had to stand the whole time.

Precious girls worshipping during song service:

He did awesome!

This sweet girl received the beautiful gift of the Holy Ghost!

We spent the night with Matt and Amanda and got to visit with them the next day and eat at The Cheesecake Factory!!

Joel took Gracie for a special Daddy Day recently:

And Ava came with me to re-decorate my Sunday School classroom:

Both girls are completely attached to the PJs they are wearing in this picture.  They have insisted on wearing ONLY these ones for months and months and months.

I'm so sick of looking at them!

They won't give them up though.  I have tried to convince Gracie that they are too small (sleeves are 3/4 length now) but she insists they're not.  I tried to tell Ava we needed to pack hers up because they are winter ones but no such luck.

Oh well.
=)

Ava's Morning Routine

For 2-3 weeks now, Ava has been very much into getting dressed each morning and fixing her own hair.  She picks out her clothes, goes into the bathroom and shuts the door, changes clothes, sprays water on her hair and combs it, then picks out a headband to wear.  Then she emerges from the bathroom, very proud of herself and ready for the day.  It is SO cute.  =)

Imagination Strikes Again