Happy Easter!

What a joyous Easter we've had today! It was a bright, sunny, perfect day. Grammie and Grandpa Ward came down from Norththern Viriginia on Saturday and we had such a wonderful time together (can't even think about moving so far away!). The girls loved getting dressed up in their Easter dresses and even seemed to understand the true meaning of the holiday. This is not to say that they were not also thrilled about the Easter bunny coming, but it was nice to see them catching on a bit. Mark gave a nice little family devotional this morning and then when we went to look outside at the signs of rebirth in the yard. It was nice to see that the girls seemed to get the parallels on some level.

Before church, Millie wanted to take Abby through the woods up the hill behind our house to say "Happy Easter" to our neighbors. Millie has taken pains to cultivate a friendship with them (the first time she went up there, she apparently walked right into their house -- needless to say we had to have a little talk) and will go up and help them with their gardening, chattering away the whole time. They are a retired preacher and his wife and wonderful people. Millie and Abby showed them their Easter dresses and then they talked about going to church. Our neighbors mentioned that they have drums at their church -- a detail which quite intrigued Millie -- and as I sat in our sacrament meeting singing "Christ the Lord is Risen Today", I realized that nothing can replace the fullness and feeling of the Spirit in sacrament meeting. I'm so grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ and the knowledge that we have.


The Easter bunny was apparently a little too generous this year (perhaps the poor bunny was a little hungry when she did her shopping?) as the girls couldn't fit all of their Easter eggs in their pails, but they had fun combing the lawn and woods for their treats. Then, as we were getting dinner ready, we made the mistake of giving Jane a few jelly beans to keep her quiet. After that, she refused to eat anything but candy for the rest of the evening (which we of course could not allow, although she did manage to get her grubby little hands some of Abby's malted milk eggs before we noticed) so we put her to bed with a full cup of milk and are hoping that it will tide her over until morning.



Earlier this week we had a wonderful time at the Darden Easter party visiting the Easter bunny (Jane would have nothing to do with him) and having an egg hunt.

Spring Has Sprung!

Yes, I am a slacker. I have let my blog writing lapse shamelessly and I am determined to do better. Thanks to a few faithful readers for encouraging me to get back on track :).

It's been a busy month and we're looking forward to the next few months which promise to be even busier. It's exciting and a little nerve-wracking to think of Mark's wrapping up school, and our move to Texas (I'm endeavoring to maintain a positive outlook on this new locale while I continue to fall even more in love with this part of Virginia on a daily basis). So many big changes -- but exciting ones. Mark and I are heading down for a house-hunting trip this weekend and the cost of living, I have to say, is the bright spot of the whole move for me -- the salve to the wound (to be a little dramatic). We hope we can make a good, smart decision and find something we really like.

Meanwhile, Spring is coming on strong here and it is brilliant! It's been so nice to be outside enjoying the cool, sunny days. And there's something so hopeful about a world full of blossoms. The other day, on my way to take Abby to school, we drove down a street full of blossoming trees and saw some daffodils. Having memorized William Wordsworth's poem "Daffodils" for a 6th grade poetry unit, I started to recite it, but since 6th grade was such a very long time ago, I got stuck and trailed off. I thought that I was pretty much saying it to myself until Abby piped up from the backseat and asked, "What happens next?" Anyway, I posted it as this month's quote on the sidebar, because I've always loved it. I love the Spring!

The girls and I had a great time this past Friday visiting a farm managed by a dear friend from our ward. The 30-minute drive through the rolling, spring-green, cow-dotted hills of western Viriginia was breathtaking. Upon arriving at the farm, Brother Ehlers loaded some bales of hay in the back of his pick-up and took us into the pasture to see the baby calves. I don't think I had ever been in an open pasture amongst the cows before and we all loved it. Jane was especially excited when a mooing cow came jogging toward us (she was terrified of all of the other animals, though -- as in screaming-and-plunging-herself-into-her-mother's-arms terrified). The girls then got to pet/feed the horses and miniature horses, and run around in the wind and sun. It was magical.

Millie Turns 6!

Cute Cowgirl!

Abby looking for lost loot in the haystack

Blowing out the candles on her cowgirl boot cake

Millie showing off her skills at the Rattlesnake Toss

It's hard to believe that Millie is already 6!! She is such a grown-up girl these days and has such a big, generous heart. I remember -- and you'll have to forgive me for this little trip down memory lane -- the overwhelming feeling of love she brought into the delivery room when she was born! It was powerful and overwhelming. She was such a cheerful, fun baby and now she exudes joy and light on a daily basis in our home. We love our Millie!

And she is so willing to be pleased (when in the mood, of course). On her actual birthday, a Sunday, we had a special breakfast and dinner and opened a few presents and as she was going to bed, she said, "This was the best birthday ever!" Did we really need to do the whole party the following weekend?

"The best birthday ever!"

We did have such a fun time getting ready for her party, though (mind you, this is the girl who has been eager to begin planning since October), and an even better time at the party itself! Millie chose a cowgirl theme and we rounded up a posse of her nearest and dearest friends to head on over to "Millie's Ranch". We did a cowgirl necklace craft, played Pin the Hat on the Cowgirl, Rattlesnake Run, and Keep the Cows in the Pasture. The highlights, however, were the treasure hunt for the outlaws' buried gold, and a hay hunt. We had a rip roarin' good time and were so glad that Grammie and Grandpa Ward and Uncle Dave could come down for it, too!