McKenzie's 12th birthday party

McKenzie had quite the birthday party yesterday. We went swimming and then came back home for dinner, presents, cake, and "a movie." There were 16 girls in all (which was about 10 girls too many :o) I don't know what we were thinking expecting 16 girls to quietly watch a movie (Only 3 girls ended up watching the movie, and I felt like time stood still for 1 1/2 hours!) Needless to say, we were quite happy when the last parent picked up her child :) The girls had lots of fun swimming, and I had two good friends help drive and chaperone - thank goodness for friends!

We had a wonderful time celebrating Easter today. In the morning the kids enjoyed searching for their Easter baskets and getting to eat chocolate and Fritos before breakfast! We also dyed our Easter eggs (finally!) I spent some time reading the Bible and making a list of what God does for me every day: He watches over my way, hears me when I talk to him, fills my heart with the greatest joy that can be found in this world, helps me not to be afraid when things seem to be against me, and lets me take refuge in him. I'm so thankful that the Bible helps me get through every day! Peter, the kids and I all walked and rode scooters to Starbucks. Peter and McKenzie spent lots of time talking with each other which was really special. We had Easter dinner at Jim and Amy's house. We had a delicious dinner with yummy desserts (thanks to Mary!) and had fun playing Apples to Apples. We feel like the luckiest family alive to have such a wonderful family.

Little Jack

We were in heaven yesterday babysitting our little cousin Jack! It's been a long time since we've had a 1-year old at our house, and we treasured every moment with him. It was so fun to see how excited and curious he was to look at flowers, feel rocks, watch the school bus bring Kelsey home, and throw rocks in the stream. Spending time with Jack helped remind me to appreciate the little things that I so quickly pass by now that the kids have gotten older. Jack was a great eater and kept saying "mo hoop" for "more soup!" at dinner :) We can't wait to spend more time with him again soon!

Over the past two weeks, I have been on a cooking craze, trying many new recipes from my favorite magazine. We have had Thai Coconut Curry Shrimp, Steak with a Shallot sauce with homemade baked french fries, a new chili recipe, and Spicy Peanut Chicken over Rice. The most exciting thing of all is that the whole family is liking almost everything I'm making which is a definite bonus.

More Fun at the Beach!

We decided to do a one night getaway to Cannon Beach for a little family time! We had lots of fun together. The kids really enjoyed writing with rocks in the sand. We also played jump rope with a huge piece of seaweed, jumped on the hotel beds, watched a couple of movies, and went to my favorite bakery. It was great to have the Guses, Hearings, Katie, Meg and Jack join us for part of the day on Thursday.

Spring Break Swimming

Each of the kids brought a friend with them today to go swimming at the Southwest Community Center. This is one of our favorite places to swim because they have two big pools with a 20-30 foot-high water slide, fountains, rope swing, basketball hoop, etc. The kids had a lot of fun, and I spent time getting to know McKenzie's new friend's mom (who just moved here from New Jersey). After swimming we all came back to our house for cookie baking and hangout time. Everyone was given fresh-from-the-oven peanut butter/chocolate chip/Reese's cookies to take home :)

Coffee Shop Visit

We had a very nice, relaxing family day together. We started off at Barnes and Noble where the kids each got to choose a book that they want to read during spring vacation. Then we headed over to the Ladybug Coffee Company in St. Johns for delicious coffee, biscuits, and a cinnamon roll. The kids read their books for about an hour while Peter and I hung out. We decided we need to come back soon because their Sunday brunch looks delicious!