Easter Eggs

     Growing up we took dying eggs very seriously.  And it wasn't just the kids.  Dad had some tricks up his sleeve and was always one of the last ones to leave the table.  My mom got us each a carton of eggs.  One dozen each is a lot of eggs to color.  It is also a lot of eggs to hide!  There were eight kids, but my youngest brother, Todd is autistic so he didn't ever participate with the eggs.  So seven kids with a dozen eggs each--where do you store all those eggs?  What pot do you boil them in?!  But Mom did it. She got it done so that before Easter we would sit down and color. We had wax crayons a masking tape, spoons, cotton diaper cloths for gently blotting, vinegar, and imagination.  We didn't get that advanced this year--but there was a start. 

Sarah's duck, Garfield, and bunny rabbit (she made some ears after I took the picture)

Rachael's frog and blue bird

Some of our favorites:

 

Spring Break Part 2

Wednesday we stayed home.  I got some work done here and they played outside again!  LOVED it!  This was the best weather for Spring Break that I can ever remember.  We did some crafts and pulled out all the glue, paper, stamps, ink, markers, puff balls, hole punch, you get the idea.  Then we put it all away after making a few cute Easter cards and pictures.   In the afternoon a family of girls came over the play and they had popsicles, climbed trees, rode the scooters, played with the Lego table, and  drew with the chalk.  Erica came outside again too.
Just a minor glitch came Wed evening when Rachael fell off her scooter.  When she came in crying I thought something was broken because it was a cry of a lot of pain.  But she calmed down soon enough and went back outside (but not on her scooter).

Thursday we went to the Zoo.  Best trip to the Zoo ever.  I found the entrance on Connecticut Avenue (that was new) and we found a great parking place.  We met cousins and friends and the weather was once again beautiful.  I do short trips to the Zoo.  Maybe because I always have a baby ready for nap time, maybe because my patience is short, maybe because I am a home body--I leave around lunch time.  But in those few hours we saw so many wonderful things.

Three families, 12 girls, 2 boys

Maire in the olive hat

Rachael in the Star Wars cap, Sarah in the purple sweater

Elizabeth (in the hat my Aunt Holly made for me) & Ethan--see the dimples?

lemurs on Lemur Island

Tiger

king of the jungle

We saw lemurs on Lemur Island--cross my heart, I've never seen the lemurs there before.  We saw the lions and they were moving and playing and climbing and hiding.  There were 7 lionesses and 3 male lions--one with a big mane.  The reptile house had the funniest Iguana and some very active crocodiles.  When we came out of the reptile house, there were the orangutans climbing up their 'ropes' to go from one part of the zoo to another on the "O" line they call it.  Never seen them do that before--it was fantastic!

Rachael's elbow was bothering her Thursday night and it was swollen.  Here we go again.
BUT no one is sick still.

Friday I couldn't get her in to see the doctor, so we went again to the ER.  oh. joy.
2 x-rays later it is still not broken, but they gave her a sling.

Saturday we did not go the Burke Lake Park because the temperature dropped making Saturday morning 40 degrees (bbrrrrrrr).  So we took them to get donuts again.  Donuts from Shoppers are really good.

Saturday night we colored eggs, but that's a new post entirely :)

What a lovely spring break we had.  And the best part is that I sewed all week long trying to finish a dress for Elizabeth.  Found out on Friday that I didn't have the correct kind of zipper or zipper foot (neither of this mentioned on the pattern and in the notions).  So the dress still isn't done.  I'm building up the courage to just make the dress with a regular zipper instead of an invisible zipper.  But I love to sew.  I think it is one of the things that I find pure joy in doing.  --and that's another post too.

Spring Break Part One

Spring Break was awesome!
First off, no one got sick.
That was great.

We weeded  our small flower garden out front and bought a few pansies at 50% off and some seed packets.  A member of our ward was getting rid of some hostas so we have 3 free hostas out front.
I do feel bad because our landlords had a really nice garden out front, but I think we killed it our first year here.  (I was really bad off our first year here).  The girls each picked some flower seeds; lavender, four o'clocks, sweet peas, and another one I forgot.  On the way home from getting seeds we got donuts at Shoppers 'cause they are the best.  The rest of the day was spent outside.  Erica came outside too and sat in the exersaucer.  It was beautiful weather.

Tuesday we went to Burke Lake Park.  We got there about 9:30 and we had the playground to ourselves.  I am still kicking myself that I didn't bring a camera.  I was going to bring it and I forgot.  It was another beautiful day.  They climbed the playground equipment like slides and stairs and bars and ladders, but they also climbed rocks and trees. Erica loved the slide and "ooohh"-ed when going down the slide.  She especially loved to go down with a sister sliding next to her.  Her hair got all static-y and that just added to the adoreableness of the morning.
Rachael and Sarah decided to make a see-saw by placing a branch in between where two trees met.  After several attempt they did it!  It was so fun.  All 4 of them could go on at once; one on each end with two in the middle on the fulcrum.  They even gave Erica a turn on it :)  Maire was fascinated by the trees that had knots or holes in them.  "Look I found a creature's home!"  Then she would find another one.  She filled each crevice or hole with more leaves to make it warm and the bed softer.  She wants to be an 'animal scientist' when she grows up and I think she will be. Elizabeth was a great big sister the whole time.  She followed Erica around, and carried her around.  She would greet the other little kids that started coming to the playground too.  She may be 12 but no one is too old to enjoy just being at Burke Lake Park.  

On the way home we stopped at the library because they needed more books in order to survive the time during Spring Break when they weren't going to be outside.  Everyone got books and for the rest of the day they would take turns reading and then going outside.  I know they are all reading comic books in these pictures but they basically devour as many books as they can on the first day.  I do have to limit 'graphic novels' or 'comic books'--only 2 each for Spring Break, but usually it is only one each per library trip.