Spring Sneak Peek

Four days after all that snow...it was nearly 70 degrees. But that only lasted two day. Now it's snowing again. Ahhhh, March.

So, while the weather was nice, we got outside! Playgrounds and bikes, HOORAY!



Daddy had to add some air to the tires before our ride!


Colin thought it was a bit loud.





Out of shape and needing a rest after a long winter.


They didn't take a long rest...







They were literally being monkeys.



It was a lovely, outdoor weekend. Just whet our appetite for SPRING.

Hello Mr. Peacock!

One nice day last week, when it wasn't snowing like it was today, we hit the park and visited our friend peacock for the first time this year!

First up, we fed the ducks and geese. Colin would just throw giant chunks of bread in the water. But Gillian would take her time and rip off tiny little bites to throw. Lasted longer that way. I can you this, the ducks and geese don't care what size the bread is!



Then we visited our buddy Mr. Peacock and his nervous-Nelly Peahen.



After seeing all the fowl, we took our bikes down to the bike park. We were the only ones there so we took advantage of all the space and RACED. Colin calls his red bike Lightening McQueen and Gillian calls her blue bike Holly Shiftwell and they like to RACE. And Gillian wins every time. EVERY time. It's not that Colin is slow. It's that he's unfocused. Gillian stares down the finish line and is intensely focused. Colin? Not so much. He prefers to "enjoy the view" while he moseys his way across the parking lot. It's pretty funny to watch. I need to get a video of it!

The kids got tired of racing after a bit so we walked across the road to a little playground and bridge to play before lunch. There was more racing. Foot racing this time!



Yep. They took good naps that day. Love those active, outdoor mornings.

Out Like a Lamb

January is supposed to go out like a lamb, right? Actually our whole winter has been downright sheepish. Hardly any snow or cold. But the last day of January it was practically spring like! I think it was about 60 degrees in the late afternoon. So, of course, we had to get out and enjoy it! The kids requested some bike time.






It was pretty funny, as much fun as C & G had on their bikes, they were just as interested in going up to each and every kid there and chatting. Asking them about their bike. Asking them if they wanted to play and be friends. And after a while, they started asking if the other kids wanted to race. They raced for about half an hour with one little boy on his scooter. C&G don't really quite get the whole "racing" concept, but they sure had fun.

Fantastic way to end January. Although just a LITTLE snow would be nice! Seems darn right unnatural around here!

Two Bike Riders!

Colin put on his helmet! And off he went!


Thankfully the weather has cooperated for a few more bike rides this month!

Look What We Can Do When it Doesn't Rain.

I think it has rained for the past 1,972 days. Except Saturday. Saturday was nice. Then it started raining again. Good thing we had fun while we could.

First order of business was getting those new bikes out for a spin.


Please admire the helmets; Daddy almost had a stroke getting them adjusted correctly.

As you can see, not a whole lot of actual pedaling was going on. Colin's legs are just a bit short for his bike; we need to get him some pedal blocks. Gillian can reach her pedals, and she actually did try to pedal bit, but I think it was still harder than just pushing with her feet. They had a ball anyway.



They still got a little Mommy/Daddy help too!


After a good bit of biking, we packed the trikes up in the car and walked over to Colin's favorite "Shaky Bridge" playground.



Then we took off down the hill to check out a big tree stump. A winter storm must have done in a big, old tree and the park service cut it down this spring. We enjoyed the stump; Michael counted the rings and we estimate it was about 100 years old. Very impressive.

They liked stuffing a hole in the middle of the stump with sticks and telling us it "was for the birdies." No idea what that means.



(Note to self: Shower on mornings Daddy brings the camera to the park)

We checked out the nearby stream, dog park, and bridge too. We got a lot done on our ONE nice day. Please, please, please STOP RAINING.

Easter, Part 3

We woke up on Easter Sunday to find that the rascally bunny HAD visited us at Grammy's house. Tricky Bunny. Colin needed a bit of help to find his basket that the Bunny had hidden inside a cupboard end-table. Funny Bunny, how did he know that Colin LOVES to hide there himself????

Gillian had been up a bit earlier than Mommy, Daddy, and Colin, and I think she spied her basket next to Papa's chair earlier, but she refrained until official "hunting time." The Easter Bunny was so nice as to bring C&G Max and Ruby Beany Babies! So fun!

(And yes, G is in full princess regalia at 7:40 am).

We had a nice morning playing with our Easter treats and getting ready for church. Yes, we took our two busy, loud toddlers to church on Easter when we don't do it weekly (which we should). My thinking was, my entire family was at church, and SOMEONE would be happy to entertain them. Turns out they were very good at church. They both liked the music; Colin was happy to play trains on the pew and Gillian did stickers and colored a bit. So, a better than expected experience!

Before we left for church, Uncle D was nice enough to get a family picture for us!


After church we had a nice Easter lunch at Grammy and Papa's house with lots of extended family and friends! The kids had fun with everyone, especially Joe! The camera was put away during lunch though, so no pictures! After lunch we packed up (always the WORST part of a trip) and drove back home. Gillian managed to grab an hour of sleep, but Colin was too excited to talk about all the bridges on the way home to sleep.

When we got home we discovered that the SNEAKY BUNNY had left more treats in our own home (as the kids say)!

BIKES!!!

(look at G's face in that one!)




I don't think the Bunny is normally this extravagant, but he must have known how much the kids needed bikes to enjoy this spring! Tricky Bunny.

So that was our busy-as-usual holiday. We all had a great time!