Picasso (I mean Stitch...I mean Alec) strikes again.....

Scene:  Mom and Son are ready to walk out the door. Mom had just finished putting on her make-up

Act One:  Mom notices it is "too quiet". . . . . .she also notices the make-up bag she left on the bed is no longer on the bed.  Mom calls Alec's name and hears a muffled noise 

Act Two:  Mom finds Alec under her bed with the make-up bag in question

Act Three:  Mom wrangles Alec out from under the bed to find he has decided to oversee his own hair and make-up for the day's production.  Mom thanks her lucky stars he only had it in his possession for 30 seconds and not 5 minutes

Act Four:  Post-Production clean-up at age 4 1/2

Bittersweet.....yes, that's the right word

We said good-bye to our beloved ski pass a few weekends ago.  It was, again, loads of fun.

After watching some of the pros come down the mountain, Grace had the hankering {is that even a word?} to try skiing backwards {her skis do have twin tips}.......this was her attempt:

Way to go Grace!!!

And since this was our last trip, my mom and dad came up to watch for a little bit.  They watched us come down a couple runs, we took a few pictures, then we went to the lodge and had lunch together.

It was also the one year anniversary of the day our sweet, wonderful, Aunt Sandie lost her battle with cancer.  My cousin, (her daughter Michelle), came up with the very cool

idea for everyone to release balloons at the same time on that day to celebrate and remember the wonderful life she lived. The kids each wrote a note to Aunt Sandie that they then tied to the balloon. Dallas's note consisted of a lot of "very much's".  I love you very much, I miss you very much, and, in not very much time I'll see you in Heaven.   Alec said: I hope you get this balloon in Heaven so you will know that I love you. Sweet words from sweet boys....

Grace wrote her own so I didn't get to see hers, I guess it was "private", but knowing her, I'm sure it was from her heart and just as sweet. 

We went outside, and on the count of three, let them go....

We watched them fly away until we couldn't see them anymore and at that point Alec declared they finally made it to Heaven  :)

It was very "bittersweet" missing our sweet Aunt, but at the same time remembering the amazing person and friend that she was to all of us. 

"WE LOVE YOU AUNT SANDIE!"

Easter: Take 2.......

The day before Easter my Mom came down with strep throat and we all decided to forego Easter dinner and stay home, rather than take the risk of having it go through everyone's family.  One possibility that we came up with was to have Easter over at Amy's and just bring all the food over there while mom stayed at home. But none of us felt like it would be much of an Easter without mom, and besides, she had set the table so pretty :)  

We had all been looking forward to the the fun day with good food and an Easter Egg hunt for the kids, so we decided to just postpone it one week till mom felt better.  So last Sunday we all went to church together and then went over to mom and dad's for "Easter".....

We got home after church and took our traditional Easter family pictures....

Then we all changed and the kids were on the hunt for all the Easter eggs hidden around the yard {some more hidden than others...} 

   

   

We sat down to dinner and ate our yummy ham, jell-o eggs, twice baked potatoes, spinach/strawberry salad and all the other yummies.  We washed it down with Costco's Gi-Nor-Mous chocolate cake and vanilla ice cream. Mmm...Mmm...Mmm....

And the great thing about the whole day was that it actually felt like Easter!  Which just goes to show that holidays aren't about what day you celebrate them, but more about being together as a family and keeping the traditions we all love.

Can You Duet?

Most of you know about my obsessive/compulsive/disorder with radio contests......I've won tickets to a variety of shows and concerts including Tim McGraw (with meet-n-greet), Martina McBride (twice, once with meet-n-greet), Rascal Flatts (with meet-n-greet), Bucky Covington, James Blunt (met him at the radio studio, and YES, he's "beau-ti-ful"), Sonics tickets, and the David Copperfield magic show to name a few.  The tickets always come in pairs and so I've been able to take Angel, and my sister Amy, but this time I took my mom to my most recent escapade to meet Caitlin and Will, the winners of CMT's "Can You Duet." 

The station fed us breakfast, catered by Qdoba Mexican Grill (breakfast burritos--very yummy!), and then we had a little intimate performance by the duo, followed by autographs and pictures. 

   

   

  It was loads of fun and I have to say, they are two of the most are genuine, down-to-earth people!  Not to mention how THEY CAN SING!!!  I actually got goosebumps!

It was good times, and I have to give a shout out to my sister Amy, and niece Taylor, for watching my kids so Mom and I could go! 

Helping Hands

Our weather the last few days has been so pleasant.  The rain has taken a break and the sun has decided to grace us with it's presence, so the kids especially have been taking advantage of spending time outside.....riding their bikes, chasing each other around the yard, and getting all their energy out.  Saturday Angel went outside to do some yard work and Alec was eager to join in.  It made me smile to watch him work right alongside his dad, doing whatever he was asked and trying his very best.  He was so determined to do his "job".  He is growing up so fast and we love this sweet part of his little personality.