Aloe Vera

Got our first sunburns of the year - oops! We used up the rest of the sunscreen from last year... which apparently didn't work as well as we thought.  Fortunately we already have some new for this year.

Patriotic

I took this patriotic dessert to a BBQ with friends.  I took home an empty bowl!

Morning Dew

Magnolias

This morning I was out taking pictures of the magnolias in bloom and I took the picture on the left.  In the afternoon we checked on them again, and it had bloomed!

Food Network

Rachael loves to watch food network, then make up her own cooking shows. Here she is making basil soup.

Coworkers

My little job has been great; not only because the hours are flexible and the work is usually interesting, but also because I have such great employers.  Yulanda brought Rachael some princess paper dolls and some princess magnets to play with when I had to take her to work with me today.  Then they played paper dolls on the floor!

Kitchen Class

We made soft pretzels for playgroup today.  The kids were more interested in playing with the dough, but I was more interested in the yummy results!

Rainy Days and Mondays

Rainy days and Mondays... grow mushrooms in the yard.

Strawberries

Still finding lots of yummy things to make with strawberries from the garden.

Fancy Nancy

Sunny Days

Rachael and I had grand plans for a "spa day" after school today, complete with manicures, facials, and strawberry parfaits.  But when we realized it was our first sunny day in about a week, we decided we should capitalize on it with a new water toy.  We shopped a couple of places before we settled on this octopus sprinkler.  It was lots of fun!

Salad Spinner

We picked some lettuce from the garden for dinner tonight.  

Rachael loved using the salad spinner to clean it off.

Fresh Pineapple

I love Maui Gold Pineapples.

Rachael and I ate an entire pineapple in 2 1/2 days.

Snowflake

This robin is a frequent visitor to our backyard.  We know it's him because he has a white spot on his head that distinguishes him from the rest.  I wondered if that spot would grow out this spring, but so far it's still there.  We call him "Snowflake."

Guilty Pleasures

Wonder bread - creamy peanut butter - and marshmallow fluff.

Skills

Last year I agonized over how to get Rachael's thin, fine, short hair into a passable bun.  This year when it came time for the rehearsal I just pulled out all our supplies and whipped it up it almost no time! It could still use some polish but it doesn't seem nearly as daunting as it did last year.  And it held all day!

Strawberries

Look what I picked in the garden!

Lights

When Rachael goes upstairs to get ready for bed at night, she turns on the lights as she goes.  Every. Single. Light.  There are five, including her bedroom and bathroom.  Except for the bathroom, I have to turn them all back off.  Every. Single. One.


(I should also be thankful for batteries... I had to take this picture without the flash because the batteries in the camera were running too low to run it!)

Roses

I love it when my roses bloom in the spring! This one opened up completely a day after I took this picture.

Sprinkler

We have a sprinkler in the center of the garden that will water the entire garden.  And apparently, a six year old head.  (I love the water droplets on her hair!)  I wonder if we can grow some more cute girls this way...

Mother's Day

This morning Rachael made her bed all by herself, then put some "surprises" on it for me.  The surprises were a card, a bouquet she colored and cut out, and a picture of her with a poem.  She worked on all of them at school this week.

After her morning surprise, she asked if she could fix me breakfast. Here is a recap:
Rachael: Mom, what would you like?
Me: Probably cereal, since we have to leave for church soon.
Rachael: OK, what kind would you like?
Me: Cinnamon Toast Crunch.
Rachael: Can you get a bowl for me?
Me: Sure.
Rachael poured the cereal in the bowl,, then said: Can you please get me some milk in a cup, so I can pour it over the cereal?
Me: Sure.
Rachael pours the milk over.  Then she put a spoon in it all by herself.

The best breakfast prepared by a six year old! It's nice to be loved.

Good Example

This sweet young man is a friend of our family.  He turned 8 not too long ago and was baptized a member of the church today by his dad.  I'm glad for his example to his family and to ours.  It was fun witness his special day!

Fashion Princess

The kids had their own version of the Derby race at school today.  This morning, Rachael got up and put a dress on and insisted on "fancy hair" for the day.  (We did two reverse french braids).  She came in second to last in the race, but she was certainly the best dressed.  Red carpet winner!

Gardening

She loves just playing in the dirt... we might have to leave some empty dirt for digging!  Right now she is playing with a tiny earthworm she dug up.

Playgroup

It's a Rachael train! Rachael, Alex and Blake are playing with the sisal jumprope she made in Nauvoo.  Rachael is the engineer, Alex is the coal car, and Blake is the caboose.  I love it because they invented it completely on their own.  Choo choo!

Fishing Buddies

Daddy is teaching her to use her brand-new pink spinning rod.

Backyard Garden

It's looking GREAT so far this year!