2 Celebrations, 1 Day!

We began the day with Easter baskets, Easter eggs, and church. The afternoon brought birthday presents and birthday cake. Tonight we will end the day with Easter dinner. So, needless to say we have been busy little bunnies around our house today! With Easter falling late this year, it also happens to fall on Sloane's birthday. Yes, my baby girl is 4-years-old today!!! It is hard to believe. This year she asked for a "princess birthday." Last October is when she began asking for a "Belle cake" and she has not dropped the subject since. So Aron, Russell, and I tried to make today as princessy as we could for our little princess!!!

The kids woke up ready to see what was filling their Easter baskets!

For Russell that meant... TRANSFORMERS - 3 of them!

For Sloane: A new baby, a new my little pony, and... CANDY!
Transforming Red Alert, Bumblebee, and Optimus Prime.

Ready for church in her new dress from Grandpa and Bevie Carlson!

Easter egg hunt on the front lawn.

Birthday lunch - McDonalds!

She loved this singing birthday card, "Happy birthday princess!"

Russell enjoyed overseeing the present opening.

Transformers rescuing the princess from the tower.A new bike from Papa Sleeper!

Time for cake!

Can you believe the detail? Even her hair is done!

Make a wish!

Musical Celebrations

Over the last week both Russell and Sloane have had Easter musicals at their school. Sloane's was Thursday night. She was quite adorable and enjoyed having the crowd clap after each song. Russell's performance was tonight. He was front and center! It is so hard for me to believe how much he has changed since his first Easter musical two years ago. At that show, he never opened his lips and became teary eyed when he saw me. Tonight he was a true performer, remembering every word and hand motion. Aron and I feel so blessed for Grace Christian Learning Center! To have our children so well taken care of and being taught the lessons of God is truly a wonderful gift!!! The other day when Russell was talking about all that he wanted in his Easter basket, I thought "Oh, boy! It's time to have a talk." So I sat him down on his bed and told him we needed to discuss the "real meaning of Easter." He replied, "Mom, I know. Jesus died on the cross for our sins and rose from the dead so we could all be together in Heaven one day." Sloane added, "Mommy, I love Jesus." My heart melted! They do understand! Enjoy the following pictures celebrating Jesus' most wonderful gift!

Spring Break - Michigan Style

I had the past week off of work for spring break so the kids and I managed to have a lot of fun while sticking close to home. The rain and chilly Michigan weather didn't stop us from getting out of the house! The following pictures will tell our spring break story.

Monday: A trip to the mall to enjoy the new butterfly exhibit, kids' play area, and of course a cookie and juice! M&M for Russell and rainbow sprinkles for Sloane.

Sloane enjoyed having the butterflies land on her, but Russell stayed away. Tuesday: The Detroit Zoo - We love this place! The temperature may have only been 39 degrees, but we still enjoyed a picnic lunch. We were sure to stop into the butterfly garden, chimpanzee house, and giraffe barn in order to warm up. A zoo favorite is always the arctic circle to see the polar bears.

Wednesday: Rain, rain, go away!!!

We decided to make Wednesday our pajama day. We boiled eggs and got busy decorating them for Easter.

We had all the eggs done by 10:00 a.m. so our next activity was homemade cookie making! There is nothing like melting chocolate chips to warm you up on a rainy spring day!!!

Thursday: Dinner out with friends.

We met up with our good friends Steve and Heidi along with their children and nine other members of their family for a fun night out at Mongolian Barbecue. The kids loved watching their food cook!

Russell and Sloane had a riot entertaining 20-month-old Luke and 7-month-old Stella!

Friday: A day trip to Frankenmuth!

Aron took the day off for a family trip to Splash Village in Frankenmuth. The kids were 100% water bugs the entire day! They were quite the adventurers as they went down EVERY slide and under EVERY water fountain.

Yes, they even went down the GIANT tunnel slides - multiple times!!! I wish I had pictures of the looks on their faces as they shot out the end, but it was way too wet to have my camera out.

The Race

I was planning on running the Nashville 1/2 Marathon on April 30th however, my training has been extremely sporadic and not up to my standards. With being out-of-town for most of February and March and going through a major family event that has caused my spirits to be less than enthusiastic (to say the least), running has not been a top priority. When Aron told me the other night that he wanted me to go ahead with the Nashville race, I laughed! Ha, right! Run 13 miles in under 2 hours, no way! His remarks were, "The race does not have to be about time, it needs to be about fun. You NEED to have fun!" Again...Ha! Well, that night after a slow 5 mile jog, my wonderful running partner and amazing friend, Leigh shared this video with me. My realization... Aron is right! Nashville is not about "the race." It is about rising up to the challenges life has recently planted in front of me. Nashville will be "fun!" So... Watch out Nashville, here I come!!!

Wedding Bells Are Ringing

Yesterday I had the honor of hosting a bridal shower for my soon-to-be sister-in-law, Kelly! This day was scheduled and coordinated originally by my mom. Mom picked the date, booked the location, chose the menu, and made the guest list. In February, I took over the planning. I sent out invitations, made the favors, ordered a cake, and put together a traditional silly shower game. Most of you know that this type of planning is right up my alley! However, this time things were different. I didn't have Mom. She of course insisted that the "show must go on" and so it did, beautifully. Although she wasn't there physically, we all felt her presence. We had a wonderful afternoon celebrating the love between my big brother Keith and his beloved Kelly.

Sloane enjoyed being part of the "girls only" party.

We had to get a picture of the cake before Sloane got her fingers in it! Sloane took the first piece and enjoyed every bite!

All smiles for cousin Katie and Ellie.

I am hoping that Ellie catches the bouquet at the wedding :-) A special mirror from Mom! She always planned ahead! Awwww... Sleeper Est. 2011

Springtime in Michigan - You Never Know What Will Happen

After looking back through my journaling from a year ago, I saw that on April 2, 2010 it was 82 degrees and the kids were swimming in Lake Michigan!!! Well, not in 2011! This year the kids had to find other options for swimming. Thanks to our family visiting from the U.P. the kids were able to enjoy some swimming at the local hotel. Neither Russell or Sloane have been swimming since September, so as soon as Aunt Nancy offered to swim with them at the hotel, the kids were ON it! It didn't take long for them to transform into the same two fish I had all of last summer. Now I only hope that spring weather arrives and quickly turns into summer.

Swim time with Aunt Nancy and Linda!

If Ever There Is Tomorrow...

I'm not sure that my heart or mind are ready to accept this, but a good friend gave me a frame that has this wording and I think it is not only special, but something that my mother would want me to believe. I only hope that I can be as great a woman as her and be the mom to Sloane that she was to me! I love and miss you Mom!!! My world will never be the same without you.

If ever there is tomorrow when we're not together, there is something you must always remember. You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think, but the most important thing is, even if we're apart I'll always be with you.