The Month of April

April showers bring May flowers...that saying has felt true lately. 

The month of April also brings new dresses, Spring Break, and Easter this year!

 

See we have Easter cookies to prove it's not far away... 

Notice the hockey sweater in the background? Normally our April does not include the hockey playoffs, but this year it does! The Hurricanes are back! The month of April is fun for so many reasons. 

Field Trip Chaperone

Chaperone three second graders at the Museum of Life and Science in Durham...easy enough assignment, right? Well, actually not so much. I chased those three all over that huge campus- trying to referee who went where, who teased who, who chased who...it was exhausting! But Collins, Liza, Teddy had a fabulous time with three free hours to spend at one of the coolest museums in our area. They climbed on the tree house, saw farm animals, went in this really cool wind/mist exhibit, saw butterflies up close, and even fit in some engineering. I have no idea how Ms. Barefoot manages that whole class. Those three wore me out, and I was only in charge of them for the morning. But a fun morning and field trip it was!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Laps for Lacy

Collins recently ran 40 laps for Lacy! Their spring fundraiser involves lots of talk of prizes, lots of bracelets to earn (you get one after each lap you run), and luckily- pizza afterwards. Luke and I had fun watching her run, and it's great that all the money goes to technology and teaching positions at the school. So a good day for Lacy!

 

 

Up a Tree

Always up a tree! The girls have now found a new place to hang out after school- in a big tree at Lacy. Of course they have to climb up their moms to get there, but they happily hang out in this tree for a long time after school. But they are outside and having fun, so it's fine by me. I also don't have to worry about where they went- they are stuck up there till we help them get down. :)

Newest Obsession

Newest obsession is Aldi. Mom has been getting me to try this grocery store for years, but I was being ignorant and just never went in there (why? I go by there twice a week on our way to gymnastics). But now that I have, my eyes have seen the light! I have become a true budget shopper as their stuff is good and cheap. I got the haul above for under $30! The girls are already making fun of me because I cannot stop talking about Aldi. But when you buy as many groceries as I do, it's important to watch the budget. It's become a game for me- how cheap can I get our groceries?? Pretty darn cheap is the answer if you shop at Aldi's!

Spring Loveliness

You forget how absolutely magical spring is until it comes around again. North Carolina winters can feel long and cold so when that first warmth hits your skin, you know you are in for a treat. First, the sky gets really bright blue and clear. Then the trees explode with greenness all around you. Then the purples, pinks, and yellows burst forth everywhere in the form of beautiful flowers. Watching spring arrive is truly an amazing thing around here. Which means lots of runs for me, lots of outside time for the kids, and lots of time staring up and around me soaking all the loveliness in.

 

 

 

Who Had More Fun?

Our family split up the first weekend in April. Who do you think had more fun?

Collins and Brian headed to Camp Seagull for a weekend of Y Guides and camping out. They did so many cool things like biking all over camp...

 sleeping in this very luxurious cabin with lots of fun girls and their Dads...

 grilling out in the rain (with s'mores!)...

 learning important survival skills...

 and catching the biggest fish in the lake!

They did not go to bed at a reasonable time, they were not afraid of the ice cold water while zip lining, they completed every activity in record time, and they could not stop telling fun stories from a FABUOUS weekend of camping!

BUT...they were not the only ones to have fun. Addie, Luke, and I came up with some neat things to do while they were away so don't feel sorry for us. Because we saw a baby alligator!

 We also petted a bunny at "Meet the Animals" at the Science Museum...

Then Luke and Addie had dress-up time at Gigi's while Mom got a work out in...the trick was to not let Dad see this picture!! :)

On Saturday, Addie had a cooking birthday party for Stewart where she got to make pancakes for lunch, and then Missy came over to join us for brats and the Final Four!

On Sunday, Addie got to go to another party- this time a princess party at Gracie's house. She totally dressed the part!

That party overlapped the church Easter egg hunt so we high-tailed it to church where Addie stripped down in the parking lot because a Belle dress is not helpful for hunting. And aggressive hunting she did! No eggs (a.k.a prizes) were getting away from our girl.

 

 

 

 

 

Finally back at home, Collins and Brian had arrived after a long road trip and we were all so happy to be back together. Collins must have hugged me ten times saying how much she missed us and her home. Guess it's good to go away and have an adventure, and it's also good to realize what you have back home. :)

The girls played, we told stories about our weekends, and we finished the night with some Cajun pasta. Not sure who had more fun, but I am sure we were all tired from our weekend and even more happy to be back home together.