Preston's First Easter...

Things have been busy around here.  We put in the landscaping around the house.  We weren't really thinking we would put it in this soon, but with our mud loving Ryan we had to do something so he could play outside.  You can see in the first picture that he has one of Justin's fishing poles that he has decided makes a good digger, and then in the next picture is Easter with some shrubs in the back.  I do a horrible job taking before and afters of the house. I have a hard time wanting to show off the work that is taking place around here because I feel really fortunate to be able to afford it all but don't want to come off as privileged. Justin and I never thought in a million years we would be able to afford nice things like our new house.  I mean we dreamed about it and we have worked our tails off, especially Justin, but don't want to showcase to brag about it, so my documentation of the process is really horrible!

Anyways...on to Easter! I didn't even attempt new Sunday Easter outfits this year(I am trying to save money) but managed to get a picture of the kids that displays our new found reality perfectly! Zach is becoming too cool for pics as his teen years are soon approaching, Kate is my best helper wrangling Preston, Ryan is as squirmy as ever and never stops, and Preston is becoming very content as sitting up on his own now, which makes us all pretty happy, especially me.  Holding a baby and moving into a house has been no easy task.

We went to Grandma and Grandpa Thompson's house for Easter dinner and had a fun Easter egg hunt for the littles after. Kate and Ryan scored some good lute while Preston sat in real grass for the first time and attempted to figure out just what he should do with a plastic egg. Just as any baby would do his age, he decided to see if it tasted good.

I love this time of year when flowers start to bloom and a new birth of everything starts to take place. I am grateful for our Savior, Jesus Christ, who died for us and was Resurrected on the third day, testifying to me that He lives and that I too will someday be resurrected. I am grateful to live in country that allows me my religious freedom to enjoy these great blessings in my life at this time. Happy Easter!

Spring Break at Seaside...

Since we just built and bought our house in January we weren't feeling up to spending more money on a family vacation so opted to do a "staycation" right here in Oregon.  Grandma and Grandpa had some time on their hands so were visiting us for the week. We picked a great couple of  days to drive down to Seaside to play. This was Preston's first time to the beach.  We stayed overnight in an airbnb that was a few blocks from the beach.  We had so much fun flying kites, playing catch and building trenches. It was so nice to have a break from our everyday life and schedules to unwind and sped time together as a family. 

On our way back to Portland we stopped at Camp 18 for dinner.  I have lived in Oregon my entire life and I cant believe I had  never eaten or stopped their before.  We stopped originally to let Ryan check out the Lumber Museum and all the old lumber equipment on display.  He knew every single machine. What a treat for him to walk around and check things out. We had a great meal and brought home their famous giant cinnamon roll. We bought 5! Two for us and three to give to families in our ward to eat during Conference weekend.  

We did a few other things this week as well like watched Trolls, played at Omsi, etc. And Grandma and Grandpa worked on getting Preston to crawl all week, and it worked! He is starting to really get around on his own. A staycation was exactly what we needed to recharge.

On the Move with a Mouth Full of Teeth...

I was beginning to wonder if Preston was ever going to start crawling. He is so much later than all my other kids. I mostly blame it on how much we hold him of course, but I guess I was thinking he would want to be running around with his siblings that he would crawl sooner than all of them to keep up. He finally has it down, so now I better keep everything off the ground! Bring on the vacuuming! And oh, look at those teeth! Looks painful...but he has been in good spirits for the most part.

 

Kate be Ballin'...

Kate survived her first season EVER of basketball. She joined her cousin Brooke's team when they needed more players. I am so glad she made the choice to play. Her crazy height made her a very valuable player. I am so proud of her for trying new things and making new friends. She even scored a few baskets! Way to go Kate!

Team Swish!

Zach had a fantastic basketball season.  His team "Team Swish" went undefeated! His coach, Andrew Stephenson, was an outstanding example and mentor to these boys and Zach. Zach enjoyed getting to know a lot of new friends from the West TV, now at Cedar Park, area and just had the best time! It is so rewarding to see my kids exceed and have a great time doing it.

Ryan's Swim Lessons...

Oh Ryan, I am so sorry it has taken me so long to sign you up for an activity. You have deserved something just for you for so long, and with having to juggle three other kids, and one being a baby, I struggled to put another activity on the calendar. But I am so glad I did this spring! You love swim lessons and pay attention to the teacher so well. Sometimes as a parent you wonder how your kids respond to other adults and situations. I know I have not given you the attention you so deserve and feel guilty for it daily. But to watch you listen to your teacher and do what she is asking, with excitement, warms this mom's heart of mine. You will be summer pool ready in no time!

Preston is 7 Months...

Preston is loving meal time and looking oh so cute in his adorable bib! I have to put a plug in for this bib. How did we NOT have these silicone bibs for my previous three kids? Whoever created these is genius! Gone are the days of having to put yucky bibs through my washer and dryer. Now I just wash them like I would a dish and let it dry. Love it!

I also love that Preston is sitting up ALL by himself! He is so proud of himself and we are all proud of him. No if we can just get to the point where he can crawl and get himself to sitting on his own and then back to crawling, we will be in business!

 

 

Las Vegas Mayor's Cup...

Oh Zach's soccer team is going to play in a tournament in Vegas in February?...Where do I sign up? We left the middle two kids at home with Marissa Schnell and flew down with Preston in tow, because clearly Vegas is the place to take your baby for their first trip. While we were hoping to experience warmer weather we didn't, but we did have a great time watching he and his team play. They beat the #4 team in the nation(woot woot) and we saw some old friends(Casey and Tammy Waldren) from Justin's BYU Soccer days.  Justin's parents and Aunt Jayne and Uncle Tyson and kids also came to cheer Zach on since we were close to them. We of course hit up our favorite, Cafe Rio, and had a wonderful time catching up. We are grateful to have such a supportive family! What a fun trip! I am sure the first of many to come...