Sometimes Lack of Sleep is a Good Thing

 

We went to Cabela's on Friday as a family, and enjoyed the many activities there.

As a result, we got home really late, which meant Natalie and Megan fell asleep the next afternoon during Kimberly's violin and piano recital :)  All the better for enjoying the recital!

A Little Bit of Rock 'n Roll

According to John, he is raising the girls right.  This is the girls impromptu dancing to some good 'ole Bon Jovi. 

Newness

This is one of my favorite times of year, when all the newness comes to life in our yard. 

 

 

 

 

 

Happy Spring!

 

 

 

This 'n' That

 

This is what a real astronaut looks like up close. 

 

 

 

 

  This is what true sister love looks like.

 ...including a sisterly kiss.  Megan may be smiling, but afterwards, Megan swiped her arm across her cheek, with a vehement 'eewww'. 

Apparently, the love only goes so far.  

 

This is a married couple out clubbing it for the night.

(Perhaps one of the few that were drinking soda with no alcoholic additions)

 

We decided to be adventurous this weekend and after dinner out with some friends, we checked out a jazz club in Ogden where 94-year-old jazz legend Joe McQueen was playing some fabulous jazz tunes with his band.  We will definitely be heading back again because we had so much fun.  

 

John and I were both in jazz bands in high school (me on the good old ivory keys, and John with his tenor sax), and John often listens to the local jazz station on the radio, so it was right up our alley.  In fact, we've always talked about wanting to find a good jazz club, and are thrilled to have finally found one.   

 

If you are wondering - yes, we are Mormon, and yes, this was technically a bar, but it was classy, and with the open-air act, smoking wasn't allowed, and the atmosphere was great because it was all older people our age and up (aka, drinking responsibly - no crazy drunks from what we could tell).  One of the best parts was getting to visit with the eclectic folks sitting around us. 

 

That was our last several days.  Now onto a new week.

A Fun Weekend Indeed

We had an event-filled weekend, beginning with our first family bike ride of the year, followed by ice cream with Grandma and Grandpa Rimington and Aunt Tammy.

 

 

 

 

 The youngest girls enjoyed playing out in the sunshine, and then Natalie had her birthday party with a bunch of her friends. 

 Princess Jamine joined in on the fun too. 

 

 

I've decided there is a great advantage to having a set of 'youngers' and 'olders'.  Kimberly and Alicia were a ton of help - Kim made the cupcakes and cake, while Alicia helped decorate the cake and drew some art for the party.  Then during the party, they helped out with the crafts and games. 

 

Afterwards, we drove up to Park City to check out their museum where they have these Lego sculptures on display.  (If you are interested in going, it only runs for one more week)

 

 

 We came home afterwards and ate cake and ice cream and Natalie opened up her presents. 

 

Happy Un-Birthday to This Little Lady

Just in time for her birthday this Saturday, Natalie has a fractured wrist.  :( 

 

Playing with some friends this afternoon, she tripped and fell, landing on the hand that was trying to break her fall. 

 

She is in this splint until Monday to allow for the swelling, and then they'll put on a cast, something she'll get to enjoy for at least 4 weeks.  Looking on the bright side, at least it's not during swimming season.

 

Poor gal.  She was so sad when they put this on.

I am sad too because she is getting a new bike for her birthday, something she won't be able to ride for at least another month. 

 

Ah, the joys of childhood!

Let the Beading Begin

 

 

 On Friday, the girl's last day of Spring Break, Aunt Tammy came down to do bead work with them. They made necklaces and earrings.

 

 Even the younger girls got into the action with some pony beads. 

John came home late that afternoon from a business trip to Vermont, and brought home this souvenir. 

Vermont is famous for their maple syrup.  They even have different grades based on the taste and color.  I was so anxious to try it on Saturday morning.  We made some delicious homemade pancakes, and poured this yummy goodness on them, but apparently my taste buds didn't get the right memo.  I am so appalled that they didn't like it!!  Kimberly and I are the only wierdos around here as everyone else quite enjoyed it. 

 

Spring Break Continued

On Wednesday, we set off for the zoo, only there was a slight problem.  When we arrived, it was incredibly crowded - so bad that we couldn't even find a parking spot in any of the lots and cars were lined up the road for at least a half mile and the line to get into the zoo was a length I couldn't even fathom conquering, so we went with Plan B and headed over to This is the Place State Park. 

Alicia chose to stay with her friends at the zoo (with their mom), so therefore, she is in none of our pictures.

The rest of us had a GREAT time with no crowds. 

 

They had a ton of fun activities, like: 

 learning how to spin wool into thread

 

how to iron the old-fashioned way

 

 

 making designs in leather

 

 

and even learning how to write using the Deseret alphabet: 

 

(Did I even know they had their own alphabet?  Why no, I did not. Did you?)

 

The girls even got to pan for gold:

 

 

They also had a cool train that took us around the park, and then a mini train too. 

 

 

 

 

...and you can't beat the view up there either. 

 

 

The girls' favorite part were the baby animals, where we spent a good deal of our time. 

 

 

 ...and of course, some fun pony rides. 

 (Kimberly brought along her friend Allison)

 

We had a delightful time, without crowds, for 6 whole hours. 

We came home and slept really well that night. 

Spring Break - Day One

Spring Break ensued this week, and might I just say first off that spring break without the need for naps, strollers, diapers, or copious amounts of toddler snacks while out and about is a luxurious spring break indeed.

 

We started off the rainy week with a trip to the dollar movies to see Rise of the Guardians.

 

It was delightful sitting and listening to the girls laugh away, and to have Megan sit for the entire movie, completely enthralled. We have reached a new milestone in our lives folks.  Time to celebrate. 

 

We were not celebrating however when we arrived home to the smell of these cookies that sat roasting themselves into oblivion in the oven I left on (and cookies left in) while we enjoyed the movie, blissfully unaware of our home being put in danger. 

So glad the cookie gods decided to keep them sun bathing a little longer without bursting into smoke or flames. 

 

We had a delightful day today as well, but I am too pooped to write about it, so you'll get part two later this week.  Until then, the couch and my good book are calling out to me.