All Things April - Insanity!

April was busy!  We had a lot of fun but it was packed full of events.  There was very little down time which seems to be how life is going to be with two children who are becoming more and more involved.  I feel thankful.  I feel blessed.  And, I feel exhausted.  :-) 

Harper's parent night at dance class -  She did great, but she spent lots of the night running to give Mommy and Daddy hugs and then running back to her spot.  Sweetest girl...  We will see how the recital goes.  There's not much dancing happening when Miss Harper has people watching.  :-) 

We went to a new theater with reclining chairs to see The Croods.  Harper laid with me through the movie, and Claire laid with her Daddy.  It was a great movie! 

Claire's school participates in Marathon Kids.  To finish her 26 miles, she ran the last one in the Hill Dillo Dash with her family.  She finished strong and we were proud of her.

Family pic before the Dillo Dash - I love this one of Harper.  She was so mad that she had to wear that t-shirt since it was so big.  As soon as I tied it up, she was okay. 

Claire & Ava being statues on the class field trip

Class field trip to the Texas Memorial Museum - It was a lot of fun.  I was so glad I got to join.

Jen and me before the Austin 10/20.  It was a really fun race.  There were 20 bands along the way and the route was flat which is unheard of in Austin.  We were met at the finish line with a medal and a cold beer followed by a Candlebox concert.  BIG FUN and a proud accomplishment for me!

Mommy at the finish line

My family, Christi and my Mom met me at the finish line.

The boys turned 7 and we partied big at Chuck E Cheese!

D and Chris

Harper played in this tea pot game the entire party.  She loved it!

Charlie glued himself to this game and his friends joined and gathered around.  It was so funny to watch them shoot zombies and get excited! 

Harper's class performed "Jesus Loves me" for the Young Kid's Appreciation Week where we celebrated our baby girl, Harper.  The idea was so beautiful.  It kicked off with us writing Harper a love letter.  We attended a chapel service in which she performed and then there was a parade where we made signs telling Harper how much we love her for her to find throughout the parade through her school.  

Dear Claire

Dear Claire,

Happy 6th Birthday, my sweet angel girl.  Words can not express my love for you, Claire Bear.  You make me proud every day.  You are a gentle, sweet soul, and you constantly strive to be kind to all.  You love making friends and you love trying new things.  You have very little fear, and I love that about you.  You will try any food, ride any ride, brave any new activity.  I have loved watching you grow from a happy little baby to a curious, chatty toddler to a beautiful, bright little girl.  You love to sing and dance.  You love helping others.  You are smart and have always tried your best in school.  You can read and write without much help at all.  You love all things girly like painted fingernails, sparkly shoes, and dresses that fill up with air as you spin.  You are also willing to get dirty and play spies in the dirt with your cousins, and I love that about you.  Right now, you love American Girl dolls, movies, books, etc...  You especially love the McKenna movie because she is a gymnast.  You love to play school and be the teacher.  You love to go to the movies, to swim, to play with your sister and your cousins, and to have slumber parties.  You are one of the best things I've ever done in my life.  I treasure you always and I can't believe you are 6 years old.

My sweet girl, I hope you know that Mommy will always love you and be here for you, no matter what.  I love you so big, bigger than all the stars in the sky. 

Claire on her birthday all dressed up for school. 

In the foam pit

On the trampoline

Sister on the rope swing portion of the obstacle course

The birthday crew

We sang Happy Birthday to Claire while she hung over the foam pit from the rings.  :-)

Happy 65th Birthday, Grandma!

Wow!  I got very behind on the blog, so I am going to try to catch up in a few posts.  I certainly can't let Grandma's 65th birthday go without writing about it.  We celebrated Mom/Grandma all weekend by spending good, quality time together outside by the pool grilling, swimming and playing.  We made Grandma a book of photographs that document her years as an AMAZING grandmother.  The kids wrote about Grandma.  When asked what they love most about Grandma, the kids' answers sum Grandma up so beautifully.  They wrote "she is always nice," "she takes good care of me," "she helps me when I have problems," and "she gives the best hugs ever."  Grandma is the best grandmother to all of our children.  She shows up for everything.  She participates in all activities.  She takes care of the kids when we need help.  They love her.  They need her.  They have a bond with her that is amazing.  They wrote some funny things too.  I love that one of them said that the funniest thing about Grandma is "all the silly songs she sings."  Growing up, I remember her constantly singing and I love that the legacy of that memory lives on through the kids.  Another wrote that "she says funny words like doo-doo and ratfinks."  She is so special and I am forever grateful that she is my Mother.  She shows us all in all ways what unconditional, strong love is and she shows up for each of our lives in an honest, open way EVERY day.  She is the rock of the family.  We love you, Mom.  We cherish you, Grandma.  We wish you many, many more birthdays.  You are the best.

Grandma and her grandchildren

Getting a little help blowing out her candles

Grandma, Harper and Claire

Happy Birthday to Papa and Happy Easter!

We went to Houston to celebrate Papa's birthday and also to celebrate Easter.  Papa, we thank you for being such a fun loving, adventurous, silly soul.  The girls love every minute of their time with you.  We thank you for your generosity and your kindness.  You have helped all of us make many wonderful memories through vacations and fun times with you at your home.  Here's to celebrating you for many more years to come!  We love you, Papa!

Papa and all of his girls

Claire is obsessed with her umbrella, mostly because she loves to sing and dance underneath it.

Sisters swimming and being silly

Harper singing some tunes for us

We woke up Sunday morning and hunted Easter eggs.  Then we went to First Baptist Church in Houston for a wonderful Easter service.

The best Easter egg of all, Lilliann!

Silly sisters about to hunt eggs

Cousins sharing eggs

Family picture before church

The Nix kiddos - grandkids and all!

Mimi, Papa and their grandgirls

Claire and Harper before church

Sweet cousins before church

We then drove home for a fun Easter egg hunt with Grandma and Pops

Math Pentathlon is NOT for Sissies...

Claire participated in Math Pentathlon club every Wednesday after school.  They learned five different games that teach different math concepts in board game style.  Claire got really good at them.  She can beat Mommy (for real!).  Many students in her after school club did Math Pentathlon at school, but then did not do the tournament.  Claire wanted to compete, so Daren and I signed her up and had no idea what was in store.  I was asked to judge one of the events which was really interesting to say the least.  Claire competed in all five events.  There were 800 Kindergarteners from all over Central Texas who competed.  Claire did a great job and had a lot of fun!  It began at 7:30 am and Claire competed until almost 3 pm.  It was a LONG day.  Claire tried hard, had fun and even earned a ribbon.  She made us all very proud.

In her team shirt wearing her event star that tells her what event to go to and when.  She was so excited!

Harper, Christi, Pops and Daddy came later to cheer Claire on!

Hope and Claire - two silly Math Pentathletes!

Pops bought Mommy a Math Pentathlon cap - my HS students think it is pretty hilarious!!

WAY TO GO, CLAIRE!  We are so proud of you!

Spring Break 2013 - Ruidoso, NM

The day we were to be out of our house forever is also the day we packed up and left on our 10 hour trek to Ruidoso, NM.  It was a fairly easy drive, and the girls did great.  We spent the night at a decent motel in Post, TX and got to Ruidoso in the afternoon on Sunday.  Throughout the week, we skiied, rode horses, spent the day at an amusement park, hiked, relaxed, watched movies, and acted so silly!  We made wonderful family memories to last a lifetime.  It was a great trip.

Panther Lodge - This was our home for the week.  It was INCREDIBLE!  And it was just what the Dr. ordered after a few very long and stressful weeks.

This picture is in front of one of our favorite Ruidoso restaurants, Cafe Rio.

We came, we saw, we skiied.  Well, sort of...  The girls had lessons.  D and I took the gondola to the very top of the mountain and skiied all the way down.  That was our day on the slopes!  It was one of the most exhausting days of parenting thus far.  Skiing with two young'uns is no joke!  D and I decided that one day was enough until Miss Harper was old enough to be in ski school.

The girls on Apache Mountain

Harper LOVED making snow angels.  She spent a lot of time laying in the snow.

On the gondola

The next day we rode horses on a trail ride through the mountains.  It was beautiful.  Harper liked it a lot, but Claire especially loved it since she got to ride alone on her own pony.

Big girl about to take off on her horse

The next day we made a day at an amusement park in Ruidoso.  We rode go carts, played miniature golf, got lost in the mountain maze and more...  Harper and I rode together in the go carts.  I can't think of another time in little Harper's life that she has laughed harder or had more fun!  SHE LOVED THE GO CARTS!!!

Claire and Daddy rode the go carts together. Claire loved it too! 

We entered a mountain maze.  The goal was to find the letters that spell MAZE and then find your way out.  Claire had a blast doing this.  Harper and Daddy lost interest before we even found M and they found the exit and took it.  Mommy and Claire were in the maze for at least an hour collecting all four letters.  Claire got very competitive, took it very seriously, and had a blast!

One of the girls' favorite things about the trip was that they got to have sister slumber parties each night.  They loved the special time together, and Daddy and I were extremely lenient about bed time talking.  :-)  Eavesdropping made for lots of laughs for Mommy & Daddy.

Little Miss Sunshine Bear

One of the days we hiked the fitness trail. The girls loved it because there were logs set up for people to do agilities, or rather balance beams for the girls to do gymnastics.  :-)

Mommy captured a sweet moment of Daddy and his girls.  Boy, how they love him!

Sweet Claire Bear

Harper LOVES to ride on shoulders.  Her face says it all.

I love this picture - Harper is in deep conversation on her pretend Barbie phone; Claire is talking to an imaginary friend sharing the stick with her.

Claire on Daddy's shoulders.  She LOVES to be on shoulders too.

The fam on the hike

The fam

Sisters