A play date with a friend...

Aubrey was invited to her very first ever, real, legitimate play date today. And I couldn't be anymore excited. Aubrey still has a hard time associating with kids her age but her friend Makelle is always so sweet with her and gets so excited  whenever she sees her. Kelly's Mom and Dad are Aubrey's primary teachers and they couldn't be any more wonderful! Her Mom has a cousin with Down Syndrome and so she is very comfortable with all the crazy things Aubrey can throw your way. She knows she's a runner and is fast and knows what she needs to do to keep her from breaking free. Which means, I actually felt really good about letting her go. I knew she would be safe and that she would have a good time.

Lucky for me, Mandy kept sending me pictures of their many adventures.

Thanks again Mandy for having her over!

My little's and their random April adventures...

As usual, here are the extra pictures from our crazy April. 

Sleeping boy

Pretend sleeping boy...

Playing with the doll house, enjoying an ice cold drink from Swig...

I know I'm the worst, but I just can't help myself! Anytime I try to leave home alone, this little guy runs to the door with his shoes in hand and cries until I finally give in and let him come along... Seeing him so sad just breaks my heart!

So shopping at bedtime, in your pajamas it is.

This little guy is such a Momma's boy. Most often he can be found hanging out around my feet...

I made up a new hairdo. Well, maybe I didn't make it up, but I just started twisting her hair and this was the end result. I quite like it. You may be seeing this new hair style on all my girls quite a bit nowadays.

GF Pancakes and homemade Buttermilk Syrup. If you haven't tried it yet, do it now! It will change your life!

When you can't find Aubrey...

We took Brooklyn to Costa Vida for the first time post gluten-free. All their sauces are gluten-free so if you ask for corn chips or corn tortillas, almost anything there can be made gluten-free.

This girl was quite impressed.

This little girl was completely enthralled by the fountain wall at Costa Vida and quickly found herself sound asleep.

 This kid reeeeeeeeeeeally likes his yogurt...

My sisters and I went out for a little girls night and decided to pay a visit to our Grandpa. It was the first time we'd been to his new home at the assisted living center. We thought it was really neat his picture from the war was on the Wall of Honor. We are very proud of his service in the Navy and his patriotism for our Country.

A visit to the neighborhood park at sunset

That time someone whom I love very much, snuck off with my very favorite chapstick and decided to paint his face with it.

This girl LOVES swings. Like seriously. She just giggles and giggles every time she goes up and down. 

Dessert Pizza chocolate mustache. Gotta love the stache...

A picture from Preschool 

We've been having some nap time drama at our house these days. Aubrey has decided she doesn't need a nap anymore. Until 4 or 5 o'clock roles around. Then we can do everything you can imagine and still can't keep this girl awake. This going to bed at midnight habit HAS to be broken! 

And on that note. I think I hear my bed calling my name!

The cast comes off and more tooth drama...

 Madison finally got her cast off last week. There was much rejoicing.

Today, however, was not such a joyous occasion.

We had to visit the dentist.

And this little girl had to have a spacer put in AND two teeth pulled to make room for the ones trying to come in.

So of course, a trip to Paces Dairy was in order.

I guess there is always a bright side to everything right? Not only does she get a visit from the Tooth Fairy tonight, she gets double the rewards. Her note to the tooth fairy gave me the giggles.

Dear tooth fairy, I want to keep my teeth please. Have a fun night. I really want to see you. Can you wake me up so I can see you please? It would mean so much. Love, Maddie. 

P.S. Sorry it ripped.

Preparing for surgery...

This may be too personal for the blog but since this is going to be putting me out of commission for the next 6 weeks and will affect me for the rest of my life, I figure I might as well put it all out there. I've been having some issues lately and after much fasting, praying and pondering, we made the decision that I needed to have a Hysterectomy. This was a very tough decision to make but I truly feel like it is the best decision for me at this time. Although I knew I was done having kids, the idea that I could never change my mind once the surgery was complete was kind of a tough one to swallow. But ultimately, it has to be done. So the date is set for this Thursday.

Anyway, in preparation for not being able to drive for two weeks, or lift or clean or anything that puts any kind of strain on my stomach at all for 6 weeks, we have been very busy! 

Our biggest project has been getting our sprinkler system up and running again and our yard put back together.

One major project was to spread a truckload of dirt around our entire yard. The Voles pretty much destroyed our lawn last summer and left us with a very uneven and unhealthy looking grass. 

My oh-so-helpful little assistants, doing their thing.

It was all fun and games until he slipped into the muddy sprinkler hole we told him not to go near... Notice how sympathetic his sisters seem?

Since we know I will be stuck inside, not doing much for the next six weeks, we felt it was a good idea to invest in something that the little kids could enjoy. They LOVE their new trampoline. We ended up running out of time to get the whole thing set up but it actually has a little swing set that attaches to the side of the trampoline. 

Oh and one more bonus picture. Something that didn't really dawn on me until this week. Somebody actually has to get the kiddos ready for school every morning and this Daddio has never done any kind of girls hairdos before... So we decided we better practice.

We've worked very hard these last few weeks and I'm still not near as ready for this surgery as I would have hoped (or better yet, my body is ready, my house is not) but I guess this will have to do. Now let's hope we can all survive these next 6 weeks!

Wish us luck!

Picture day for our little dancers...

The girls got their costumes for their spring dance recital last week just in time for picture day. I didn't get many pictures but I still think the few I got are worth recording.

The girls all looked so cute in their outfits. I can't wait for their recital in May, not only to see their dances but also to get their pictures back.

It's been a great first year of Dance for both of these beauties!

Easter Sunday...

Easter this year landed on Conference Weekend, so I failed to get a traditional family photo in our Sunday Best. But we did still manage to have some fun with our family.

Although we always have a big egg hunt in Idaho, a few years ago we started doing a small egg hunt at my parent's house where each of the kids has to find about 10 eggs with their initial on it. We found they love searching with a purpose rather than rushing to see who can gather the most eggs. 

This little guy quickly (with the help from others) gathered up all his eggs then proceeded to sit down and eat Every. Single. Piece. of his candy. Right then and there.

 And then there was dying Easter Eggs...

And this...

Happy Easter everyone!!!