I looked at my calendar the other day and realized nearly every day there is something written in permanent marker!
My Life is suddenly very busy again!
I wouldn't say its' "back to normal," because still, with all of the restrictions, there are barriers in how we "do" life. But wow, we are here and there with school, sports practices, Youth Theatre camp and dinners and outings with friends.
Life feels full, and I have to admit, I am loving it.
Our Spring started out with Easter,
John's 40th birthday
and our 16th wedding anniversary (when I promised to share my life with him forever....and get a dog 😁
....Oh, and throw in four kids too...
We celebrated John's birthday with a family gathering around a big farmhouse table in our kitchen. I had the dinner catered, and John said it was exactly what he wanted to commence the next decade of life.
Easter was the next day.
We went to church and Evelyn was very excited we had matching Easter dresses. I mean, how many years can I get away with matching with my daughter and have her excited about it?!
This year, we did something different: we took the week off from life and traipsed around theme parks in Florida.
John's parents graciously watched the kids (we boarded Lucy....😬)
We spent the week exploring Orlando and devoting whole days trying to get on new rides at Universal Studios.
It was much needed and really fantastic.
What was also fantastic though was my carpet cleaner coming a few days after we came back. I desperately needed to get puppy residue off my floors, and just the sound of hot water and suction was music to my ears.
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| She just always seems happy, no matter what. |
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| Everyone seems like her as a pillow. |
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| But she is perfectly comfortable sprawling out wherever there is room. |
Lucy tags along whenever she can.
During Spring Break we went to the coast for the day.
She makes long car rides ride a little more exciting.
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| First time at the beach! She didn't know what to make of the waves. |
I can not believe that we are in the middle of the third trimester of school. What a year. My kids have been thriving being back in their school full time. They love their friends and teachers.
They recently had a jog-a-thon fundraiser at school. West Hills exceeded their goal! The kids had so much fun running their laps and participating in spirit week the days leading up to the event.
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| Each day was a dress up theme. |
Evelyn has been writing and practicing her 3rd grade patriotic speech. This project is a big deal in the 3rd grade at West Hills. Each student researches an important person in the United States history and writes a 1st person speech about his/her life. They then dress up and preform their speech from memorization. It's usually a big parent event at West Hills, but this year they will be recorded and sent to the parents instead of being in person.
Evelyn chose Elizabeth Blackwell, a woman doctor in the 1800s. The night before her speech I asked if she was nervous. She responded: "No, I'm excited but also sad because then it will be over." She is having a blast in 3rd grade. I am grateful everyday that she gets to spend her days at school again.
The boys were busy with their 1st grade animal research papers. This is a big project for the 1st graders at West Hills. They read, write and make a diorama about an animal.
I love listening to Evelyn talk about her gymnastic competitions with her friends at recess. I smile when Levi tells me how they scored the goal during soccer with his classmates. Their ages are so precious, and I am trying to soak up every moment of their third and 1st grade year.
Evelyn begged to do track and field this year at school. They have practices on Mondays and Wednesdays, and she comes home red faced and exhilarated.
The boys are starting baseball and have been playing flag football.
My Sunday afternoons are spent on the sidelines cheering on our boys at their flag football games. It's so nice to be able to see and catch up with the other parents again!
SO yes, we are suddenly busy again!
And it's so good!
