Easter

This year's Easter was pretty low key-some egg dying, Easter morning egg hunt, and baskets.  The kids went with Shane and his dad for Easter dinner and came back with a whole bunch of goodies.  The Easter Bunny does not disappoint!  I think it is now time to throw out the Halloween candy.

Ava's egg hunt at her school.

Dying Easter eggs.  The kids really enjoyed it and Alex wants to make this a family tradition.

Alex and Ava Easter morning with their baskets and goodies-books, chocolate,and gum.

Looking for Easter eggs.

Spring Break

Usually for spring break the kids and I hang around Valpo and I plan day trips for us to go on.  Not this year!  At first we were planning on visiting my mom and step-dad in Canada and then my mom suggested that we go somewhere warm.  Like I was going to say no to that.  We decided on a Caribbean cruise but didn't tell Alex and Ava; we wanted it to be a surprise and they were definitely surprised.  The kids loved being on the ship and we had so much fun-swimming, magic show, movies, ice cream twice a day everyday (them, not me).  The ship also had a great kids program, so I got a bunch of free time to go to the spa for a facial and massage.  I don't think I can top this year's spring break.  The kids are hooked and are asking to go on another cruise!

On the ship

Snorkeling in Grand Turks

Puerto Rico

St. Thomas

St. Thomas

Swimming in the Caribbean

Pinewood Derby

Ok, so the Pinewood Derby was at the end of January and I'm only now getting to it. Someday I will be better. Anyway, this was Alex's first one and he was really excited. Since my brother was here for Christmas, he was able to help Alex with his car. They measured and cut and sanded and the car turned out great! The day of the derby arrived and I have to say, it is really fun to watch. Alex won his first race, which totally made his day and he came in 3rd, 2nd, and 1st, respectively in his other heats. He wound up coming in 4th out of the 13 wolves (I did not count the wolf who came in first overall) and had a great time. Way to go Alex!

Ready to race!


Alex and some of his cub scout friends.


Goody bag at the end of the race.

Christmas

Another Christmas has come and gone and we had a wonderful holiday. My mom, step-dad, and brother came to celebrate the holiday with us. We did a bunch of stuff while they were here: Alex and Ava's schools Christmas programs, opening presents, movies, shopping, and eating well. We had a great time with our family!

Christmas programs: Ava as an angel...

and Alex wearing a lei and singing "Mele Kalikimaka".


The kids got to go through their stockings before we had to leave for Church. They were really good about waiting to open their presents!


Presents! Beyblades, Star Wars, books, and DS games for Alex. Horses, dress-up stuff, books, and DS games for Ava.

Halloween

Once again I am behind but at least thought I should get the Halloween post up before Christmas. Alex and Ava had a very fun Halloween, with Trunk or Treating, class parties, pumpkin carving and of course, trick or treating. They got a mountain of candy, which made them very happy and will probably last them until next Halloween.

This year Ava was a unicorn and Alex was Darth Vadar (yes, I realize Darth Vadar uses a red light saber, but I refused to buy Alex another one).


The kids with their pumpkins and their haul for the night-not too shabby considering they also have their Trunk or Treating buckets inside.

Two Wheels!

At long last, Alex has learned to ride a bike. I feel guilty that it has taken me this long to teach him. We have tried in the past but after falling a couple of times, Alex's confidence diminished and his enthusiasm to learn dwindled, so I put it off. This spring, though, I bought him a new bike to try and get him excited again. It worked but he was really nervous about falling again and really did not want to try. However, this past Labor Day, I was determined to have him learn. We went to the local school parking lot where the surface was flat and where there was a lot of room to practice. After a lot of encouragement and a few threats, Alex got the hang of it and is now a happy bike rider. Way to go, Alex!

First days

Alex started 3rd grade this year and Ava is in her 3rd year of preschool (she missed the kindergarten cut-off by 3 weeks). Both were excited for the new school year and I now have 2 kids in school everyday. It's really nice. After going back and forth for much of the summer, it was decided that Alex would return to the charter school, and so far so good. He has had a much better start this year than last and I really like his teacher-which makes a huge difference. Ava is back at Little Lamb and loves it there. Since she goes everyday, it will really help her get used to kindergarten next year.