Books and a Bunny...

We have been going to the Library for "story time" since Alec was about 18 months old, and he has always loved it (I think he loved it even more when he was younger actually). Ava is not as big of a fan yet, but maybe it will grow on her. We go when we can...we hadn't been for several weeks, and I was actually not planning on it today. At the last minute I remembered that the "Easter Bunny" is always there the week before Easter...how could I pass up a free photo with the Easter bunny! So, we all piled in the mini van and headed for the Library. Ava was not very cooperative during story time, and just wanted to get out an run around, but Alec liked it. Ava's reaction to the Easter Bunny really surpised me since Alec has always been great with dressed up characters (and he is my more timid one). Ava doesn't ever seem to be afraid of anything....until today apparently. She got this VERY serious look on her face and got very quiet and withdrawn. Luckily I snapped a picture before she started crying! Anyway...Alec loved seeing the Easter bunny and had a great time at least!

As you can see she was fine when she wasn't looking at the Easter Bunny!

Team Work!

My two little sweeties are starting to get along better these days. They have been very affectionate with each other lately which is fun to see. Every night before bed they have to have a little hug and kiss fest, and Ava wants to sit on Alec's lap and snuggle for a minute. It's really cute. Today after we picked up Alec from preschool I was carrying the trash can back to our house because the wind had blown it down the street and Alec wanted to carry the lid....well of course so did Ava then. Alec was so sweet he said "Ava, we can carry it together...that's called "Team Work"! I was pretty impressed :) Lest I deceive you let me assure you that their relationship is far from perfect! They can really get into it over toys, and I hear Ava's high piched scream pretty much all day long because she wants a toy that Alec has or vise versa. But I just want to bask in the sweet little moments that come along every once in while....it's what keeps me going!

I also have a little video clip of the kids when they were having an affectionate moment. Alec and Eriik had just gotten back from the church father/son campout...as you'll see Ava really missed him! As always ignore my annoying commentary...it's like I just can't keep myself from talking (I feel like I have to repeat everything Ava sais just in case others can't understand her) ...oh well, at least the kids are cute.

Funny Girl...

Well, Ava seems to really love wearing anything that is not hers these days. At any given moment we will find her wearing our underwear on her head, socks on her hands, her daddy's shoes on her feet, and many different hats on her head. When I am driving her in the van she almost always takes off her shoes and socks and puts her socks on her hands....it's becoming an obsession with her! She really is our funny girl...always making us laugh with her silly faces and expressions. She's sure got a mind of her own and already seems to have a style all her own too! Anyway...I found a few pics of some of those moments taken this month.

She loves Alec's Bob the Builder hat. Notice the pony tail holder that she is using as an arm band....hey it matches the outfit!

In these last two pics she is wearing a goofy christmas sock on her arm. This is her favorite sock to wear as a glove.

Spring break play days...

Well, we have been keeping busy this spring break with lots of play dates. On Monday after Alec's Karate lesson we were supposed to go meet at a neighbors house to play with her son and a friend that she wanted us to meet. But that had to get postponed at the last minute because we were temporarily stranded out of town because our van battery died...not fun, with a one year old crying and a four year old saying over and over "but I thought we were going to play with Robin!" Then, on Tuesday we had a play date at my friend Brenda's house with her little guy James. Then on Wednesday we met some friends at the park...and then we switched to another park because of it being so crazy crowded (I think the whole town was there!) Then today Alec went over to his buddy Carson's house to play, and was there all morning while Ava and I went shopping! It was a nice little break. So, here are some pics from the park yesterday.

The three amigos

Everyone loves Luciana!

Love this pic of Sabrina and AJ

Old Friends...

Old friends?...well, I guess we haven't known them since childhood or anything, but I call them this because they are great friends who, despite the distance, we figure out a way to get together with. We had Justin, Jenn and their 4 kids over to stay with us this past weekend. Eriik has been friends with Justin since he first moved here after college and they were involved in the college and career ministry together at church. They moved away about 4 years ago, so we love it when we can get together with them, and just hang out. It was fun to see their 3 1/2 year old, Elijah and Alec playing together. This was the first visit with them that the two seemed to become real "friends". I can't get over how well they played together...seriously, not one argument!!! I think it was because Elijah gets lots of practice sharing with his 3 other siblings. Also, it was absolutely adorable how Elijah was feeding Alec the whole time (literally putting food into his mouth)...aparently this is just something he does, very cute. Also, this was Alec's first chance to have a friend sleep in his room with him, and we tried to give it a chance, but when it hit 10:30 and they were still talking and breaking out the toys it was time to split them up....so sad. Ava and Sarah are about 7 months apart too so, I'm sure they will be playing together more in years to come. Although the visit was too short, it was good to see them, and we are thrilled that they are coming back in May! I got a few pics, but didn't get any of the twins...maybe next time. See Jen's blog "Truly Blessed" off to the right for more pics.

They played with these "shooters" almost the entire visit

Western Day!

Today was Western Day at Alec's preschool. This is the best program of the year since they perform in their Cowboy and Cowgirl outfits and we get to eat some good ol BBQ!Alec did a great job and we could actually hear his voice singing out loudly...he knew all the words. The video clip I posted was not his favorite of the 2 songs they sang, but I thought the ending was cute. On the video you can hear my reaction at the end of the song which is a little embarrassing...but I swear I wasn't as loud as it sounds on the video....my mouth was just right at the camera :) I was just caught off gaurd becuase throughout the whole song he hardly did any actions at all and then at the very end he does this little Indian yell solo...I thought it was pretty cute.

Springing forward!

Man...let me just say that I LOVE the warm climate we live in....especially in February and March...when much of the US is still shoveling snow. It's so great to be able to play outside with the kids in the warm fresh air. We have been spending alot of our time outdoors lately. There is a little playground at the church right at the end of our street that I was given permission to go to by a staff member. We walked up there the other day and the kids had a lot of fun. There was a huge leaf pile that the kids had fun playing in too. On our way back to our house we saw some beautiful tulips that I had to get a picture of with the kids. So here are some outdoor pics from this week.

Getting crazy with the leaves!

They really DO love each other!

Alec picked some weeds...I mean flowers for me...so sweet.

Mary came over to play on Wednesday too. Notice our dilapidated play gym (it's about 8 or 9 years old and came with the house)...I'm hoping for a new one real soon...I think it's worth it with the amount of time they spend outside!