Neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt

We LOVE Easter Egg Hunts at our house! Saturday morning we began with our neighborhood egg hunt that my amazing friend Circe puts on every year! It's so great to not have to fight the big town crowds, and the kids get LOTS of eggs! Thanks Circe for another great year!

Here's Jacob with his cousins, Lincoln & Brigham! Jacob seriously idolizes these boys!

Even Jonah got in on the fun with his token single egg! As long as he had something to slobber on, he was happy (until he found the playground bark, that is - yuck!)!

Sarah was like a girl on a mission! She was filling her basket with eggs as fast as she could!

Sarah with a basket full of eggs! "When's the next Easter Egg Hut? I'm ready for MORE!"

General Conference

A week ago we enjoyed watching General Conference. It can be pretty hard to catch everything that's said with 3 little people running around. So the words of wisdom we actually DID hear were relished! Thank goodness for the Internet and Ensign so we can read everything we missed!

Brandon has a Conference tradition that he started with his father: polishing shoes. Here's Jacob joining in on the memories. His job in the process is to buff the shoes to a shine! And notice his "Conference Tent" in the background:)!

Is This The Face of a Thief?

What do you think? Is this the face of a thief?

Yesterday I threw the kids in the car to make a mad-dash to the mall to find an Easter dress for Sarah. (Can you make a mad-dash to the MALL with 3 small children? I don't think so!) We raced around the mall while I dressed and undressed Sarah in various dresses in the middle of the stores (poor girl!). Thank goodness the Easter Bunny was there with goodies to hand out . . . which is a great bribe for little children being dragged around a place they don't even want to be. (The Easter Bunny is actually a little scary. Sarah kept as wide a distance as possible from him, and Jonah started crying.) I was pushing Jonah around in the stroller while I ran, paying very little attention to him, when I looked down and noticed my 1-year old son had shoplifted a pair of shorts from the previous store! Ahh! I grabbed the kids and dashed back across the mall, to the store where the shorts belonged, and apologized to the store clerk for my small thief! I guess I should pay better attention to ALL of my children and what they're getting their little hands into!

In Loving Memory

Maurine Brady Allred
January 7, 1925 - March 25, 2009
Grandma, you are truly one of the most beautiful, pure, and righteous individuals I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Thank you for your example, your service, and your love my whole life. I'll miss you until we meet again!

Sleep Deprived

I'm so tired . . . and it's not because of kids. Jonah has slept 12 hours a night since he was 2 months old. Jacob and Sarah get up occasionally for a bad night, but for the most part they're pretty heavy sleepers. This is the reason I'm so tired:

I'm so tired because at the end of most days Brandon and I stay up late talking for hours sometimes! I'm tired because I'm married to my best friend! There's nothing that we can't or don't talk about! So, I'm grateful to be tired. I'd much rather be living on 5 to 6 hours of sleep a day while being married to such a wonderful man than not taking the time to talk to each other about our days, our kids, and our families.

Thanks Brandon, for so willingly listening to me talk on and on, for being interested in my life, for sharing yours with me, for sacrificing your own sleep, and most of all for being my best friend!

**Sorry, everyone. I know it's cheesy, but this is my journal and this is how I'm feeling right now!

Spring Fever

Boy, do I have spring fever! Last week was GORGEOUS with the sun shining and the temperatures warm enough you almost didn't even need a jacket. The kids have been playing outside, taking their loud, little voices out with them (yeah!)! They bring the mud back in with them, but that scrubs out (thankfully, I was wondering there for a minute). I started running again last week and found my spirits lifted by the fresh air and sunshine. My husband and kids were rejoicing that their happy mommy had returned again!

But last night the weatherman reminded me that we live in Utah, where the weather changes as quickly and often as my kids' moods. Mother Nature can be cruel sending a snow storm to us now in March! It's to be expected, I guess. I should probably be grateful for the relief sent last week instead of grouching over the impending storm. But I've tasted the spring now, and I don't want to go back. It means pulling back out the hats and gloves, and spending lots of time dressing and undressing kids. It means loud, little voices inside my house again. It means running through the slushy streets trying not to slip and fall (because a broken leg in a cast will definitely not help with my diet/exercise plan) while cars spray you while you wear your tight, unforgiving spandex for warmth.

Spring! Where are you? Come back to me soon . . . please!

Get-Away

Last week I went with my 3 sisters-in-law and mother-in-law on a girls' get-away!!! I am so grateful that we all get along so well, and can enjoy these little yearly trips. Donna treated us all to a Melting Pot dinner . . . yummy! I definitely overate, but it was worth every bite. The Melting Pot is probably my favorite restaurant!

We stayed at the Hampton Inn, compliments of my frequent traveling brother-in-law! We all packed games and snacks for the evening, but after that HUGE 4 course meal we just laid around the room and talked. I have to say, I just LOVE sisters! Counting my sisters and the in-laws I have 7 wonderful sisters whom I all adore! What a blessing they are in my life!

As the mothers of little children and one very busy mom-in-law, we all relished in the opportunity to sleep in the next morning WITHOUT interruption! Hmm, it felt SO good to be able to lay in bed without little voices asking, "Mom, when are you going to get out of bed? I'm hungry!" We enjoyed a leisurely continental breakfast at the hotel, visited some more (we all live by each other, how could we possibly have so much to talk about?), and then left to do some shopping!

We didn't plan anything grand or big, it's just nice to get-away! I so enjoy the company of wonderful women!

And I have to be sure to thank the super dad who fed the kids, got Jacob to preschool on time WITH show-n-tell, remembered to pick Jacob up from preschool, and even fixed Sarah's hair for the day in piggy tails! And the whole time I was away instead of saying, "Hurry home," I heard, "I hope you're having a great time. Enjoy yourself! You deserve it!" What a great man I've married!

I'm always amazed at how fast the time flies during our retreat. Maybe we should stay an extra day or go more frequently? I don't know . . . that may be pushing my luck!