Easter

I had to prepare Nathan's Easter package in February so it could be sent out in time for the March delivery.  The delivery goes to the mission office in Quito, so it turns out Nathan hasn't gotten it yet.  He made a trip to Quito for a meeting right before Easter, but he didn't have a chance to pick up the package.  Maybe he'll get it sometime... I made another scripture hunt for him and his companion and sent a little bit of candy.  

The kids had Easter baskets waiting for them when we got back from our spring break trip.  The boys got matching ties.  Savannah got some hair clips.  They all got their own set of house and garage keys, candy and snacks, a Blenders gift card, and a framed picture of Jesus.  

We never got a chance to decorate eggs this year, but had donuts, scrambled eggs, and fruit for breakfast.  We did a large dinner feast with friends again this year.  I think we had 21 people there.  I made rolls and potato casserole.  The kids decorated the traditional bunny cake.  We did our 2nd annual reading and singing of the Easter story (similar to our Christmas devotional).  The other special thing about the day was singing with the choir and listening to Owen give a talk in church.  He spoke about Jesus' resurrection and what it means that He lives.  He used the words from the hymn I Know that My Redeemer Lives and shared a few personal stories.  (Maybe I can round up a copy of his talk soon.)  It was a highlight of my day.  I also love that Owen's friend Ollie was in attendance - cool to have a good friend there to support Owen. 

We also took family pictures.  You would think it would get easier as the kids get older, but they're still pretty silly!

Temple Work and Family

After we checked out of the house on Friday morning, we headed to Yuba City.  We planned on doing some things that day on the way, but it rained all day.  We just ended up going to the Feather River Temple and then hanging out at the motel.  It was mine and Alex's 50th temple together, but it was also special in that we all went together and did baptisms.  All the kids are now old enough to go, so we can do more temple outings as a family.  We did some work for our own ancestors, so it was pretty cool.  We also got a mini tour of some of the temple.  I loved the trees on the temple grounds.

On Saturday, we got to visit Mike, Carrie, Nicholas, and Ryan. We had lunch and dessert with them.  They also had an egg hunt ready for the kids - never too old for egg hunts! It was fun to see the dogs together too.  Kai was happy to not be at PetsMart anymore.  We enjoyed being able to catch up, even though just a short visit.

 

Spring Break

We shared a house with friends over spring break in Novato, CA.  We got there Monday night and left Friday morning, so we basically had Tuesday-Thursday to explore the area.  We went to Point Reyes, Muir Woods, and Ft Bragg areas, along with a hike near the house.  We had a great time!  We did some outings during the day and hung out and played games and watched movies at night.  The house had a pool and hot tub, but only the kids ventured out there (too cold for me).  The kids made a fun music video (split in 2 for here) during their stay there of "You'll Be Back" from Hamilton.  Owen was the king.

I made a couple video compilations of some of the outings (had to be split in 2 videos to fit here).

I really enjoyed the wildflowers, the massive ocean waves, the sea glass, squirrels, giant trees, and mini cheesecakes from the cheese factory.  I actually liked all of it.  And of course the company was the best!

Young Women Camp-out

We had a young women camp-out at the beginning of spring break, which was a big deal for the girls since they haven't planned many camp-outs for them.  It seems like the boys are always going on camp-outs, but they forget about the girls.  Alex planned the camp-out, and I also went since they needed female leaders to go. We had a great time, with a spaghetti dinner and smores for dinner and dessert.  We stayed up pretty late chatting and got in our tent just before it started raining.  It drizzled a little bit during our pancake breakfast, but then we had a nice hike up to a view of Morro Rock.  The hike was pretty hard for a couple of the girls, but they all made it to the top.  Everyone was eager to get back down quickly and start packing up camp.  Most of the group took off.  Three of us moms hung back with the girl who was having trouble finishing the hike.  We got left behind... we thought we were on the right track but ended up getting lost.  At that point, I was giving the girl a piggy back ride, so we just had to try to get ahold of Alex to come find us and pick us up at the road where we came out.  We had trouble reaching anyone, and eventually I left the girl and 2 moms and ran back up the road a ways and found our camp.  Alex had got the message by then, so everyone was eventually back at camp.  I chastised Alex for leaving us behind and not circling back to make sure we made it.  

We found a cute mouse and caterpillar at camp, and I enjoyed all the wildflowers along the trail.  Alex headed on with the other leader to a meeting.  The moms drove the girls home, stopping for lunch on the way.  I had a pretty busy day because as soon as I got home, I needed to give the dog a bath, put gas in the car for Jared, clean out the car, and then get cleaned up for a wedding reception.  Jared headed to a youth activity with the Owen, Weston, and Savannah.  Everyone got back pretty late that Saturday night.

March Misc

 Savannah had a fun activity for young women's  - smashing cars!

                                            

Weston worked hard on a big school project.  We had his group over to our house after school one day to paint the backdrop.  They had to prepare a presentation, complete with props, costumes, speaking parts, and activities for groups of elementary kids.  Weston's group presented castles, knights, and masons. They had the kids build castles out of blocks and did a little catapult.  

I had some tulips bloom this year (that I planted in the fall).  Savannah made a cherry pie for pi day (3.14).  Weston finally let us cut his hair, and Jared got to practice being the barber again. We went to another band concert for Weston (although this wasn't a school concert, but some of the school kids participated in a community concert). 

We had some green food for St. Patrick's Day.  I forgot to take pictures of the kids in their green ties and dress for church! 

We helped our friend Julie celebrate her birthday.  Kai got a bath since she was traveling with us and boarded in a PetsMart for spring break.  Jared got all 4 wisdom teeth out before spring break in preparation for his mission.  He did pretty good with recovery, but obviously was pretty swollen the first day.  I was told I should video him right after the procedure because they say funny things.  He didn't say anything too weird, but he did ask the nurse twice about when he could start running again.  He was really concerned about that! 

Basketball

Savannah tried out basketball this year for the first time.  She wasn't confident dribbling the ball, but she did pretty well on defense and scored a few buckets throughout the season.  Her team ended up at 2nd in the league, winning 7 of 9 league games.  They advanced to the championship game in the playoffs, winning the first 2 rounds.  The championship game was decided in overtime, with Savannah's team winning 20-16.  She got to be on a winning team this season! 

There was one game when everyone on her team had scored except Savannah.  They graciously designed play around her until she finally made a basket as well!  It was nice to have all of her team pulling for her and cheering her on.

Owen made the school frosh (freshman/sophomore) team this year.  His season started immediately after football ended (season overlap).  Owen's team only won 8 out of 22 games, so they struggled a bit.  Owen started the first 7 games at a forward position and then got injured.  He was out for a couple games and then had Christmas break to recover.  However, when he returned in January, he had lost his starting spot.  He maintained his positive attitude all season though and was a good asset to his team.  He got the coaches award at the end of the season for his good sportsmanship, positive attitude, and being coachable.  He didn't score many points (2-4 points a game), but he was more valuable at defense and rebounding.  His season high was 6 points in one game.  

February Fun

We didn't have a very exciting Valentine's Day - just some candy exchanged and ice cream sandwiches.  Savannah made some valentines for her school classmates.  

Alex and I went on a date night a few days later with friends.  After dinner, we played a game with our friends at the local Home Goods store.  Between the 4 couples, we drew names.  Each couple had to choose and buy something from the store, under $15, for the name we drew. Then we exchanged items, and we each had to prominently display the item in our home for one month.  It was pretty funny!  We got Alison and Morgan the dog picture that said, "I'm sorry for what I did."  We were given a painting of 3 chicks golfing. Kristi and Jason got a golden poodle that they named "Fifi".  I think it's now their good luck statue!  Donald and Julie weren't too disappointed with their new yard decoration. 

Savannah and I had a girls night while the boys went camping.  We also were able to give our friend Becca a birthday present (which we had been anxiously holding for a few months after finding it at Costco) - a big Lilo & Stitch Squishamallow. 

Jared did a prom-posal for his friend Grace.  He rigged up the back of our car, so that when she opened it, confetti popped out at her.  She responded with a cute Goldfish and Swedish Fish acceptance. They'll head to church prom the end of April.  

Surprise Party!

Right after the youth temple trip, I headed to LAX to catch a flight to Texas for my dad's 70th birthday party. Audrey picked me up from the airport and we headed over to my parents' house.  It was a surprise party for my dad, so they had arranged for him to be gone most of the afternoon.  My mom, Carrie, Audrey, Ashley, and Alison had nearly everything ready to go by the time I got there.  We were waiting there when my dad arrived.  He was really surprised to see us, since he had no idea about the party AND it wasn't the weekend of his birthday.  Other friends shortly arrived, and we had a nice dinner party.  Audrey put together a video highlighting my dad's life, along with messages from each of the grandkids at the end.  Here are the messages from my kids.  We had a fun time, and it was great to be together with all my siblings.

This link might work for the full video.

We had a superbowl party at Sam and Audrey's house on Sunday evening.  Somehow I only took a picture of the food and Mama Kelce's cookies that night.  Audrey put together a Taylor Swift game / questionnaire, which was fun to do while watching the game. 

I headed back home on Monday afternoon (arrived Saturday afternoon), so it was a short trip, but well worth it!