A visit and a vacation.

Jared had a conference in Palm Beach so we decided to go. But we needed a babysitter. So my mom and my little sister came to our house and watched the kids. It worked out great because it was my little sis's spring break that week. So that means that my mom had a big helper.

It was nice to get away for a little while. Thank you so much for taking good care of our family while we were gone!

Jared and I having dinner on the beach. I really didn't take any pictures of us because we didn't even leave the hotel. While Jared had classes in the morning I went running on the beach and then lounged on the beach til he was done. Then we lounged on the beach more. Then maybe lounged by the pool and had somebody to bring us water and food and fruit. It was wonderful for a few days. Then we came home to happy kids and Grandma who didn't seem to worse for wear.

The Beauty after the Rain

The Mud Pile

We decided to plant a garden and fruit trees (9 trees, yes 9 of them) this year. So we built a planter box and had some dirt delivered. They dropped it on the driveway and Jared hauled the dirt to the box (thanks honey!). I found some little shovels for the kids and everyone got involved in helping. Well, the kids were just happy to play in the dirt. And yes, that is dirt on Lauryn's mouth. Must have tasted really good.

Girls on the Run is a great event that Amanda has been preparing for for 2 months. She stayed after school 2 days a week with other girls in her class and they ran and did other fun things. At the end of the 2 months they run a 5K!

Daddy and Amanda just before the race began.

I was Amanda's running buddy so I got to run the race with her. They also had lots of fun things to do there like hair painting for all the girls(or anyone else cause I saw lots of brothers with pink hair too), games, food, prizes, and face painting. And it was all free! The kids had a blast!
Here is Amanda getting her hair painted. Still can get the last red streak out of her hair......3 shampoos later.
Amanda with her friend, T, from our church. They ran the race close to each other.

And below is Mom and Amanda just after we crossed the finish line. She got a medal and we are very proud of her for running over 3 miles!!!!

Ethan's Preschool Program

Ethan and the kids in his preschool class put on the cutest program and recited pretty much all the songs that they had learned throughout the year. It was a parents delight.
Then the kids left the stage and came back wearing caps. Needless to say Ethan was not happy to be wearing his. But he got over it.
Below is Ethan with his preschool teacher, Mrs. G.
Spring Flowers

Here are just a few pictures of the beautiful iris's that are blooming in my front flowerbeds. I love them!