Our backyard in the Spring

Over the last week or so I've taken pictures of the beautiful things growing in our yard.

one of the lilac trees (yellow blooms instead of purple)

The Maple tree

 

The tree by the house - no idea what it is called.

The pink blossoms on the decorative cherry tree, can you see the white blossoms on the rest of the tree?

The blossoms on the Braeburn apple tree

Yesterday I took some more pictures

 Our first onion sprouting in the garden.

lettuce - it's kind of hard to see, but there are lots of little sprouts coming up.

One of the dozen or so peas that have sprouted.

A couple more peas

The decorative cherry tree.  Can you see the white blossoms, and the pink blossoms in the middle?

The Braeburn blossom opening

Then today I took a better picture of the lettuce

And I finally spotted one potato plant popping up.

I am excited about the garden, and I hope it turns out well.  And if not I hope I learn something so I can do better next year.  And we won't have cherries or apples this year, but perhaps in a few years...

Pack Meeting - Becoming a Bear

Tuesday Amy and I ran a few errands in the city.  I thought I would have more time to go to store I wanted to, but I had to get home in time to change the sprinklers.

Tuesday night was Pack Meeting.  David only needed one more requirement to get his Wolf.  It was to participate in an outdoor flag ceremony.  So they opened with an outdoor flag ceremony.

I knew we would be outside for that, however I didn't realize the rest of pack meeting would be outside.  It was windy and getting cold as the sun went down.  But Aaron grabbed some blankets out of the van for us.

David got to give me the Wolf pin.  Amy didn't want me to go up there without her. 

As I got up there I realizes Amy had leaked through her diaper and my jeans had two wet streaks on them.

 Our Scout Master had to take over for the Cub Master because his wife was having a baby.

He's pretty good about teasing people. David's Wolf Leader Bonnie G* took these pictures for me.

We are very proud of David.  They didn't have the arrows to award him, but he should be getting 1 gold and 3 silver arrows at the next pack meeting.  He has a lot of fun at scouts, and he's learning all sorts of great things. 

Wednesday Aaron, Amy and I had the opportunity to watch David and his class perform in a musical assembly.

They sang some songs about America, then one that the students had written.  This year our little city is celebrating it's 100th birthday.  So the students wrote a song about our town.  It was fun.

Apparently they video taped it a couple weeks earlier, and it will be part of a DVD that will go in a time capsule.  Pretty cool! Wednesday night we also had more baseball, but no scouts, since Pack Meeting was the night before.

Easter Sunday (and Monday too)

Sunday was a pretty good day.  We had a light breakfast as Aaron needed to go into the hospital before church.  I started the dessert and got everyone ready for church, and we got there on time, just as Aaron arrived.  I didn't take any pictures before church, because there wasn't time, and no one wanted to.  The boys didn't want to wear the ties that Grammy sent for Easter either.  Oh well.  We'll try next week.  Amy did get a new Easter dress, but she wouldn't let me do her hair.  At least I got it brushed.  She did let me take a picture after church though.

She'd already taken off her shoes though.  Well church was interesting.  We had two youth speakers, and both were awesome, even though one was miserable with a sinus infection :( .  The topic of course was the resurrection of the Savior.  My friend Crystal did a beautiful musical number on the violin.  Now I can't remember which one it was, but "Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee"  keeps coming to mind.  We then had a missionary farewell.  This young man will be serving in Brazil for the next two years.  It was great to hear him bear his testimony.  In the middle of the meeting however Aaron got a page and had to leave.  I tried to get Amy to go to nursery, but she still refused.  Since our Family History class is only two couples and the teacher I can't really skip out on it to stay with Amy, so she came with us.  She particularly like the video we watched.  Aaron joined us part way through.  Then Aaron took Amy to nursery while I went to teach the Laurels.  My lesson went pretty well, however Aaron had to leave once again, and since Amy wouldn't stay in the nursery she had to come with me.  The girls didn't seem to mind, and they thought it was funny when she pouted and got mad when they tried to look at her.  We also watched a video in our class, so Amy was pretty well behaved.  It was also great to see some of the girls in their prom dresses.  The prom was the night before and I was pleased to see the beautiful modest dresses they chose to wear.

As soon as we got home from church I started the ham and the rolls.  Then I put Amy down for a nap.  She wasn't happy about it, but she sure needed it.  Aaron called just as I was putting her down, and said he was on his way home.  Together we got the rest of dinner ready; deviled eggs, mashed potatoes, green salad, and a mustard sauce for the ham.  I also made strawberry shortcake for dessert.  I need to post that recipe!

We had a great dinner, followed by a great FHE lesson by Timothy.  He retold the story of the crucifixion and the resurrection of the Savior.  Then he read a story from the Friend. David wanted to hide Easter Eggs for the activity.  They've been doing it all week, until I finally put them away.  I wonder how many times I will have to vacuum before all of the plastic Easter grass is finally gone.  It was a good evening

Monday was back to the grind.  I waited all morning for the repairman to show up to fix the lawn tractor.  I finally called them and they said he'd be there around 2:00 (2 hours late), so I decided to run a few errands in town.  When I got back the phone rang, and it was Sears wondering if they had the right number.  The repairman had been trying to call to get directions.  Ugh!  So he called to get directions, and that's when I noticed my plants that were getting some sun through the window.  When I went to make that phone call Amy decided to do some weeding.

 

all of the tomato and pepper plants I planted 6 weeks ago had been ripped out 

After further inspection it looks like there are two tomato plants  that survived.  The other half of the peppers that were planted 4 weeks ago are still intact. 

I think we may have to buy some tomato plants this year.  And next year I'll have to put them where no one can reach them. Of course that means getting a shop light for them, so they'll actually grow.
The repairman arrived 20 minutes later just as Amy and I finished up lunch.  I put Amy down for a nap and just as she fell asleep he finished.  Quick and easy - apparently whoever put it together pinched a wire leading to the clutch.  So he had to remove the cover, splice the wire, and put it back together.  So glad it finally works.  That night we had baseball once again. Aaron got home and mowed the lawn while we got ready for bed.

Happy Easter!

Easter Baskets and Egg Hunt

Yesterday I didn't do much because I waited at home all day so I could sign for a package, and in the end they left it on the door step at 5:14 pm, without knocking, and without me signing anything.  Grrr!  Oh well, at least we have our laptop back now!

We've tried to separate the Easter Bunny, Egg Hunt and all the fun stuff from the most important part of Easter.  It's fun for the kids, but sometimes it takes away from our celebration of the Savior's Resurrection.  So we decided to do our Easter Baskets and Egg Hunt on Saturday.  It's the first time we've been able to to this in our own yard.  The plan was for me to wake up early before the kids got up and "help" the Easter Bunny hide the eggs.  However Amy woke up at 5:30 am :(  So I tried to get her back to sleep in my bed, but that didn't work.  So at 5:48 I coaxed her down to the play room and then told her I had to get something.  What I got was my shoes, the Easter Eggs, and a coat.  I quickly hid the eggs, and came back in.  According the Google it was 25 degrees out there.  Brrr - It didn't feel that cold though.  Then I started making breakfast - creamed eggs on toast - with the boiled eggs we decorated on Thursday. 

The Easter baskets the night before

Soon Amy came upstairs and found her basket.  Gotta love that bed head.  Maybe I should have taken her pony tails out. 

We mixed in gifts from Grammy and Auntie Eva. Amy loves her new phone.  The one she has doesn't make sounds like this one.  It could be because we let the batteries die, and never replaced them...

I told Amy the gifts were from Grammy R*, but I think she thinks everything is from her.  Sorry Easter Bunny you don't even exist in her mind.

Mmm, jelly beans for breakfast

David liked his loot too, and soon realized there were eggs outside.

Off he goes

Aaron helped Amy find some eggs

Timothy was a little late, but he got his share as well.

Amy liked the Cadbury Creme Egg for a little bit, but then her fingers were sticky

This is typical, David sorting his candy, and Timothy chowing down.

However it seem David has eaten almost all of his candy.  Timothy ate his fill and hasn't touched it since.  Amy is carrying around her basket everywhere she goes, and snacks on the candy occasionally.  Although we've offered her breakfast, lunch and a snack I don't think she has eaten anything but candy.

We attempted to go to another Easter Egg Hunt this morning, but the park was closed for "spraying", so I drove around trying to find the church that was sponsoring it.  By the time I found it there wasn't anything left, so I drove home without stopping.  David was upset the most, but oh well.  I don't think they needed any more candy.  I have eaten way too much already.  I just want it out of the house!  We have been able to go outside and spend some time in the beautiful weather!  It is a gorgeous day.  It's now 64 outside.  I love Spring!

Oh, and Aaron was "forced" to take a fly fishing class today.  Even though he is on call a co-worker coerced him into taking a class with him an hour away.  Aaron tried to decline, but the guy even found someone to cover for him.  So after he checked on his patients this morning he went to the class and is headed back now so he'll be home in time for dinner.  It's a great start to a great weekend!

Easter Eggs

Thursday (almost caught up) - I finally feel like I'm back in a normal routine.  I didn't have to work in the garden, or run up to the city, or work on a birthday party.  I got back into my exercise routine.  Amy and I got to spend some fun time together.  While she was napping I boiled 2 dozen eggs.  Only 18 of them didn't crack - it's a good thing I did that many.  After dinner we had fun dying Easter Eggs.

Amy really wanted to hold an egg before we were ready - it got dropped a couple of times before we were ready.  No surprise there.

We covered the table with newspaper because someone always spills.

After they were dry we put stickers on them.

Aaron helped Amy

Timothy did well on his own, but dropped that egg several times in the process.

Amy had fun with the stickers afterward

David didn't want his picture taken

But Timothy did

Amy wanted to show me all the stickers she put on her shirt.

Luckily my kids love boiled eggs.  I have visions of deviled eggs, potato salad, creamed eggs on toast and plain boiled eggs in the next few days.  What else can I do with them?

The Garden and Baseball (and an update)

I neglected to mention that Saturday night Aaron and David went to help some friends clean the church late Saturday night, late as in after David had already taken a bath. But they had fun, and I let Timothy stay up a little late with me and we played a game.  It was fun.

Sunday was a great day.  Before breakfast I started some bread since I would have to make two batches to have enough for our dinner guests.  I started the second batch right after breakfast.  I don't think I would have been able to pull this off without two ovens.  I had one warm to help the dough rise faster.  I jumped in the shower and had Aaron take the first batch out of the oven and put the second in.  He pulled them out of the oven while we were all waiting in the van ready for church.

I really enjoyed the talks during sacrament meeting.  Although I was really distracted by David.  I guess I need to pay attention better next week.  Amy again refused to go to nursery.  Sis. J* wasn't feeling well and wasn't at church, so we didn't have our Family History class.  I stayed with Amy in the nursery for the first hour, but then I had to teach my lesson, so I tried to get her to stay, but eventually I just brought her to Aaron. 

My lesson went well, even though it was a small class.  After church I took the kids home while Aaron rode with a visitor.  He was interviewing at the clinic, so Aaron showed him the apartments we lived in and then he came to our house to join us and the K* family for dinner.  He had to leave around 3:45 for dinner so we had dinner early.  Amy gave me a hard time about taking a nap, but she did finally sleep for about 45 minutes.  However she had fallen asleep on her arm, and it was hurting her.  So she just whimpered in her room until she was ready to come out.  I couldn't even open her door because she'd fallen asleep in front of it.

We had clam chowder in bread bowls for dinner.  Unfortunately the chowder was burned a little bit because the crockpot cooked hotter than I expected.  I should have left it on warm instead of low :(   Oh well, we ate it anyway.  The K* family stayed until about 6:00.  The kids had fun playing outside, in the play room and the game Clue, since we still had it.  Aaron and I enjoyed talking to Michael and Shannon.  We learned that we have a flowering dogwood in our backyard, and peonies.  We had leftover cake and ice cream for dessert before they left.  We still had time for FHE and scriptures.

Monday was another busy day.  As I attempted to clean the house, Aaron was out busy rotatilling the garden so the compost could be mixed in.  Then we set up the sprinkler system for the garden.  Aaron went with a friend to pick up the rest of the brick for the retaining wall.  By the time he got back I was just putting Amy down for a nap.  As soon as she was asleep Aaron and I finally finished the garden.

Before

During

After

Finished project

I also took a few more pictures outside:

One of the lilac trees

When the kids got home we started planting in the garden.  We planted potatoes, carrots, lettuce, Swiss chard, peas and onions.  We are still having some cold nights, so I can't plant much else.

 The onions are up here

The rest of them are at the bottom

We also made some mounds for pumpkins, which we will plant later.

Our ornamental cherry tree.  

It has white blossoms, with some branches grafted into the middle - they have very pretty pink blossoms that are starting to bloom.

After dinner we rushed over to baseball. Compared to last year this is very informal.  Tee ball is about the same for Timothy, however coach pitch for David is really a step back for him.  They don't actually get "out", and everyone gets to bat each inning just like tee ball.  I kind of wish I had put him in the local Little League, instead of the City League - oh well.  I guess we can do that next year when it will be kid pitch.  I just hope he's ready for it.  It was a cold and windy day - thus the coat under or over the T-shirts.

David at bat

Timothy practicing throwing during warm ups

Then it was time to go back home and get ready for bed. An amazing thing happened during scripture study that night.  The kids were quiet and calm.  They listened.  We were reading in Alma 5.  Alma asks a lot of questions about true conversion.  We discussed some of the questions with the kids.  When Aaron asked about repentance, Timothy told us about the steps of repentance.  First feel sorrow, then say you're sorry, then right the wrong, and don't do it again. And when Aaron asked who they needed to say sorry to, Timothy answered, "The person you hurt and Heavenly Father."  I was excited that we had a productive and successful scripture study.  Then it was off to bed.


Around 9:00 I realized I never got a call about when to expect the lawn tractor to be delivered.  So we called Sears only to find out that they rescheduled the delivery for Wednesday and never informed us.  In fact they said the tractor was damaged and they had to get a new one.  This took several calls and talking to several people to get this straightened out.  It was a mess, and luckily we were compensated for it.  Or at least we were told we would be compensated.

Tuesday Amy and I ventured up to the city to return several items and buy several more.  Luckily I returned more than I purchased.  Amy and I had some lunch and then I put her down for a nap.  The rest of the day is a bit of a blur.  I remember that Aaron had barely enough time to come home and grab some dinner before he went to scouts.  We also quickly ate and then headed over to the church.  I had a Relief Society meeting, and I was teaching one of the mini classes, on blogging no less.  It was fun to tell people about why I blog.  Amy refused to go to the nursery, so I told her she could stay if she sat on the chair next to me.  She was doing really great, and then Aaron came in at about 7:15 and said he could take her for the rest of scouts.  Freedom!  The meeting was fun, and I got home around 8:45, and Amy was still awake - oh well.  She's been going to sleep so late recently.  But she still wakes up before 6:30 am.  It probably doesn't help that it's getting light before our alarm goes off in the morning.  Anyway...


Wednesday I spent most of the day doing laundry, making strawberry freezer jam, and running the sprinklers.  They delivered the lawn tractor, but couldn't get it to start.  It took them about 10 minutes to figure out that whoever assembled it didn't attach the battery tightly enough.  Aaron came home for lunch, but didn't get to spend much time in the house because we were trying to figure out why the sprinklers suddenly turned off.  We think it was because we had two neighbors above us (closer to the irrigation canal) that were running their sprinklers.


After school it was another crazy evening of baseball games and then scouts.  I discovered that the Little League teams have games up to 30 minutes away, and last up to 2 hours - maybe I don't want to do Little League next year.  Well after I dropped off David at scouts Aaron was home trying out his new mower.  Or at least he was trying to.  It turned on fine, and drove fine, however the blade won't engage.  What good is a lawn tractor if it won't mow?  So he spent the rest of the evening on the phone trying to get someone to come and fix it. It would have been easier if they had left a manual when they delivered it.  The only manual they left was for the engine, and that was working just fine.  What a pain.  They agreed to give us a 1 year in-home warranty, but they can't come look at it until Monday.  While I was gone picking up David from scouts my Laurels had stopped by with an Easter pail filled with candy and a card.  So sweet!  Wow - this is getting long!  More coming up.