Easter

their new chickens from Mama and Papa

 "Come on out..." says Joe

Easter egg hunting

Three random things

 Last Tuesday we woke up to about a inch of snow on the ground.  I came into the boys' room when I heard they were awake...and I found them peering out the window saying, "Why did it snow?"

Of course, the snow was gone by mid-day, but it was a COLD day to re-adjust to!!!!

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 On Tuesday or Wednesday, the last caterpillar formed its chrysalis, so we carefully moved them to the butterfly house.  We are eager to see if they survive and we get to watch a butterfly emerge!

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We finally had decent weather on Saturday that allowed us to work on the siding. Jake helped hang the siding (until it got too high). So, with 3 of us working, it took about 3 hours!    Only 3 sides to go! :)

Meanwhile, Joe played nearby with all the bungees he could find...to help hook all kinds of vehicles together. 

A birthday

   Josh was surprised Friday by his several swimmers showing up to celebrate his birthday.  I later learned that this was the first birthday party he'd ever had.  He was completely surprised!  :)

  Sunday was a beautiful day and we got to enjoy spending some time at a state park in Indy.  And Monday, Josh had school in the morning, but we had time to hide his gifts and make the clues for him. The boys enjoyed watching Josh try to figure out where the gifts were! :)

 
And finally...(after Cub Scouts) it was time for cake and ice cream! :)  As we put all the candles on the cake earlier in the day, Joe said, "This might not be a good idea!" 

Singing

I just have to record these moments...so fun to hear their voices singing out!

Toes in the water

  While Sunday was a warmer, sunny day, I would not say that it was a great day for a dip in the water.  However, we did manage to get our feet wet on our hike. 

   Josh had a meeting so the boys and I enjoyed the day by going to a nearby state park for a short hike. Well, with all the rain we got in the previous days, the path was muddy.  However, I didn't expect to be cut off by the creek that overflowed making the path impassible in a dry way. 
  So, instead of cutting our hike even shorter, I figured...hey, I have boys and you don't get to do this on every hike.  So...I suggested we take our shoes and socks off and walk on the rocks and through the water to get to the other side (seeing that it would only be a few steps in the actual water). 
  They accepted the challenge. 

   We made it safely to the other side.  Joe did NOT like the ice cold water.  I tried to explain that the cold pain he felt all the way to the bone was what I had experienced all winter while icing my knee.  He didn't seem to have sympathy for me...he just didn't like the cold water.
  We got our shoes on and kept hiking.  But we shortly came to another creek crossing.  Looking at the map we tried to guess how far it was from this crossing to where the path would cross back.  We decided to try to follow a makeshift path for a bit, but ended up taking off our shoes and crossing this part of the creek. 
  However, we couldn't find the path again on the other side. We had even left our shoes off in hopes of not having to put them on and off and on and off.  No such luck.  So, knowing Josh would be done soon...we decided to just barefoot it back to where we originally crossed and then be able to put our shoes on for good.  
  It was at that point that Jake said that this was a fun adventure.  I told him I had hoped he would see it that way.  :)  
  Joe, on the other hand, told us in the car when we picked Josh up that next time he was going with Josh to the meeting...the water was TOO cold!

Blowing things up

   The boys and I headed to the children's museum since we haven't gotten to go in awhile.  It was unexpectedly crowded, but the boys still had fun.  And, it was Wacky Science Thursday...so we got to join in on the science activity. 
   You might be able to see from the two pictures below how the bag expands as vinegar and baking soda are enclosed in it.  However, that wasn't where the teachers stopped.  They allowed the kids to come of with changes to the variables in order to experiment with how fast/slow the bag might expand or if it could explode.  Yes, the kids finally reached the point of exploding the bag...which was pure fun. 

   

    And here, the boys are captured in the huge bubble they can create around themselves in the bubble room.  Fun stuff!!!

Changing the pillow cases

 Last week, the grass was brown. This week, it's green.

 Last week, we still had cool temps.  This week, it's warm.

 Last week, we had Chicago Bears pillow cases on the beds. This week, it's Cubs!

 That's right...the day of the first Cubs game has its annual tradition of being a special day in our house. After starting the day looking for our Cubs shirts (of which Joe's was incredibly too small...so this task required some shifting and trading to find something that fit)...we carried on to the next tradition which is to change the pillow cases. 
Then, this year we made baseball sugar cookies...which were iced and ready to eat just in time for the 2nd inning! :)  The cookies were a big hit...unlike the game's end result. But...another season begins. And this year, the green grass and warm breeze is extra special to enjoy!