Is Spring Finally Here???????

Well, here's to a LONG over due update!!! Wow, it's been a while. Our computer crashed at the end of January. While we were planning on getting new one we certainly weren't planning on getting it that soon. Oh well! The new one sure is nice. I think that our monitor on the other was from the 1990's! I was a big gray bubble - I actually think that it was the the one that belonged to our first (I'm talking when I was little) computer. :)

Anyway- I feel like we're officially in a new season - SPRINTER!!! This weather just won't seem to let up! A couple weeks ago it was 70 degrees on Sunday and then snowed all day on Monday! AHHHH! The gloom and darkness is really getting to me. This weekend was pretty nice. It was warmer although not really sunny. We took advantage of it and headed for the park while we could! (Pictures above) But here it is Monday morning and not looking so great out. Elly is dying to ride her bike so it looks like we might be strapping on the rain jackets and going for a ride.

The pictures are of the kids at Easter. It was SOOO early this year! Despite the frigid egg hunting weather we had fun. ( Can you tell I'm upset with the weather???? ) Elly had an egg hunt at her preschool and I, being the practical one, dressed my kids in pants and coats. I felt so sorry for the little girls in their cute little SLEEVELESS Easter dresses!

Oh, and for those of you who haven't heard the story yet - our little Elly did indeed get a haircut! Yes, in fact she gave it to herself. I was busily getting everything prepared for Madyson's birthday party the next day. I was just finishing up decorating her cake and the kids were all in the living room watching a movie quietly, or so I thought. I sent Madyson downstairs to clean up their bathroom and she says "MOM, there's a big glob of hair in the garbage!" Thinking that someone had just cleaned the brush of something I kind of brushed it off and just told her to finish up. Again "MOM, it's like a huge glob of hair!!! I walked down to the bathroom, look inside the gargabe and instantly know what it is and WHO it belonged to. I stared at LONG chunks of beautiful, dark brown hair!!! ELLY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I screamed. I ran upstairs and looked at her horrified. She had chopped pretty much all of her hair, except for a long chunk in back that she simply couldn't reach, all the way up to her ears!!! Now for a long time this has been one of my worst nightmares. I had felt so fortunate that my girls had never cut their own hair. I have a friend (HI MEL!!) whose daughter's LOVE to cut their hair. She was always so calm about it and dealt with it so well. I thought that I would freak out if that ever happened. Well, it did!!!!! I took her to the mall that night to see if there was anything that could be done. I'm standing at the counter of Regis explaining to the young gal what had happened. I was in tears, Elly was in tears, the stylist was practically in tears. But, to my surprise she actually was able to make some kind of style out of it. At first I was get really sad whenever I saw her, but little by little it has began to grow on my and believe it or not, it really suites her. Her sassy little cut fits her personality to a T. It has began to grow out and it starting to look a little better (beside the lovely little fringe she cut right at her scalp in the front). I too am over it, but pray that this never happens again. She promises that if she ever wants to "look beautiful" again she will tell me first and we will take her to a lady that "knows what she is doing". Oh my Elly, the stories that I will someday have to tell her!

It's had to believe that the school year is almost over already. Madyson is doing awesome - just flying through her schoolwork and excelling in every subject. She just completed a 8 week project in her PEP program (the advanced program she attends once a week). She studied butterflies and then put together a big presentation for their learning carnival. I was really excited to help her - you all know how I LOVE BUTTERFLIES! And it turned out great. She was able to use some of the pictures from our trip to Seattle last September. We visited the Woodland Park Zoo and explored their butterfly house.

Elly has only a few weeks left of preschool and then off to FULL DAY kindergarten. Our school is the first in the district to switch to all day kindergarten. I'm sure that she is far more ready for that change than I am. I'm a little apprehensive! It seems like a long time to expect a child that age to pay attention for. And I'm not quite ready to let go either. She too is doing really well at preschool. Being one of the youngest kids in her class she had huge adjustments to make! But like I've said before, her teachers love her. She is always giving them something to smile about and I'm sure they won't forget her soon.

Cameron is living with us now. He moved back her in January. It has been an adjustment for all of us. We are all still trying to figure each other out and we have days where I want to quit, but he has made some huge progress! He has made a couple of really good friends and seems to fit in well at school. As of right now he's doing well in school. Coming from an environment that was very unstable I'm sure that all of this is just now starting to feel sort of normal to him. I wake up each more and have to remember this. I know God has a purpose for this situation - though sometimes it is hard to see past the hurt I'm feeling about it. Please pray for Cam and for our family. He is very loved yet refuses to believe it sometimes. I remember being a teenager and thinking that my parents just wanted to ruin all my fun. Turns out they really did just love me and care about my safety and well being!!!! I never would have thought that at 27 years out I'd be figuring this all out.

Jordyn started walking last month. She refused to walk for a long time. She much preferred to crawl or just be carried. I knew she could do it and then one day I guess she just decided it was time. Now she didn't just take a step or two. She literally got up from Terry's lap and walked all the way across the room to me! Now she is all over the place and getting into everything! But she is so stinkin cute that most of the time we just laugh when she gets into the snack cupboard (that happens to have a broken child latch) and pulls EVERYTHING out onto the floor. We had some fig newtons in there and she loved them. She would pull everything out, find the newtons and walk aroung with the bag until someone opened it up and gave one to her. In the pictures she was playing peek-a-boo with the flower. She would laugh and hide her face and then I would say "Peek-a-boo" and she would pop her chubbly little face out and laugh even more. She is a sweet baby and I am having so much fun with her. I am sad that she is no longer a little baby but I'm cherishing every moment I have with her and each new little milestone that she hits. She's cutting her top molars right now and has been a little cranky - but hey, who wouldn't be!

Well, I'm sure that's long enough for everyone. Hopefully it won't be another 3 months before I post an update but with 4 kids I guess you never know. We love and miss you all!!!! Keep in touch!

-Amy and Family