Snapshots from Easter, 2014

Regretfully, I didn't get many pictures on Easter Sunday. We had a very nice family and friends gathering except for missing Paula and Eric. Paula had worked overnight and Eric had another commitment. Hopefully next year the whole clan can come. We had an unusual dinner, a bit of the traditional (ham/twice baked potatoes), and then the requested taco dinner which, in our family, is almost always what everyone wants to eat.

Jon brought me, as he sometimes does, a lovely bouquet from his yard. He was disappointed with the lack of "blooms" but I thought it was beautiful and in fact, still is.

 

After dinner and lots of laughter and fun the three C's had an egg hunt. The following pictures show a bit of that.

 

Chris.....

 

 

Claire and Chris....

 

 



Chris on the run.....

 

Chloe....

 

 

Chris, the least camera shy that day....

 

 

Chloe showing her nearly full bucket...

 

 

Chris spotting some "color" in the yard....turned out to be dropped oranges...

 

 

 

Papa, examining one of the girls' stash....

 

 

We had bubbles, a little art work, and a walk with Aunt Suzie's dog, Miley, and Lisa's dog Brody. All in all, a great day. We were so thankful for the beautiful weather and for our friends Connie, Wayne, and Jo (GG Hagle) that joined us for the afternoon.

 

A great way to celebrate the risen Lord, family, friends, food, and lots of fun!

 

A report back on the events of the previous blog entry when Claire and Chloe were chosen to represent the Kindergarten class to the visiting committee that was to determine Distinguished School Awards. The word was that the girls did very well after waiting from the eight grade students down through the first grade students to get their turn. The committee reported that they were very anxious and excited for their turn to come. When all was said and done and the girls had finished, they asked the committee members if they would like to buy some eggs from them. Hilarious! We all had a good laugh over that! Enterprising little gals I would say. Love those twins!

A Little Fishing, A Little Theater, and A Little Work!

The weekend and the beginning of Spring break for the girls, started off with a fishing outing with the three C's, Mike, Papa, and Grandma. We went to a lake that was not too far from their home and that was somewhat accessible for Papa. It was a perfect day, warm but very comfortable temperatures, and happy and excited grandchildren. Mike, of course, had lots of work getting each pole ready and baited (worms...yuck), but the children were patient although very anxious to get their poles in the water. As for fish, we weren't too successful, but hopefully, we have lots of opportunities ahead to try again.

Claire, Chloe, and Chris sit near Papa while Mike works on the pole setups.

 Chloe and Chris checking out the tackle box.....

 Finally...the poles are ready and the fishing begins.....

 

 

Chris fished as well, for a bit, but after the second total tangle-up of his fish line he moved on to the available snacks.....

 

 



After fishing, Chris was very excited to come home with Papa and Grandma. Mike was taking the girls to see cousin Jesse in a high school musical production a two hour drive away on the following day, and we all thought it might be just a bit too much for Christopher. We were very happy to have him visit us. We spent all of Saturday morning outside working and he helped sweep, rake, do some planting and was our official water person for the plants. We had such a great time and he really did do a good job on his tasks. Meanwhile, the girls and their Daddy, went to see the theater production and had a wonderful time. All reported that Jesse was terrific in his role and very, very, funny. The show was Shrek the Musical, I believe, and Jesse had a huge role. The reports were that Jesse is very talented and from what we have seen him do previously we certainly can agree.  Below are the girls with Jesse and then with a young woman that was also part of the play.

 

 

 

Also attending were Uncle Larry and Aunt Paula so that made it extra special for them. Claire told Papa when we returned Chris home, that she had been in the car for two hours, sat at the play for three hours, and then rode home in the car for two hours again. She was very excited to tell Papa that was seven hours of total sitting time. Wow, she is beginning to use her math skills!!! 

 

 

When we brought Chris home Claire and Chloe greeted us in the following outfits. Chloe made sure we knew that she had fixed Claire's hair and had chosen Claire's jewelry and totally fixed her up. They are such fun and I can't imagine what they would do without each other. Chris proudly carries his "to-go" container left from our quick dinner out.

 

 

 

 

 

What a wonderful start to spring break and the season of Spring! Now if you prefer to avoid a Grandma's bragging, stop reading here..... otherwise, enjoy the following.

 

Chloe was once again, chosen "Student of the Week," Kindergarten level, for displaying the virtue of "forgiveness". Each week, as I have mentioned before, one student from each grade level is honored for their practice of whatever that week's virtue is.  I must say Chloe is very kind and sweet to all of her classmates from every indication I've heard and seen, so I believe she would be very forgiving should the need arise. Both girls truly love school and their teacher, and it is clearly evident. Their school has been nominated for a Distinguished School Award and the judging committee visited last Thursday during the time I was there for my volunteer hours. Claire and Chloe's teacher pulled me aside and told me that Claire and Chloe had been selected to be interviewed by the visiting committee and she was very excited for them. The reports later were that it went very well which doesn't surprise me. They can be very charming little girls. I loved that I had an opportunity to whisper encouragement to them before I left about using their best manners and looking adults in the eye when they talked. There...I said it...I bragged.... and enjoyed it thoroughly. So proud and blessed! During my volunteer hours I had been asked by the teacher to share a bit about my career of working in a Library. With the help of a sweet friend who quickly captured some pictures for me at the Library where I worked previously, I enjoyed doing a very short little presentation. When I spoke, very simply, about books being grouped by subjects, i.e., dog books together, cat books together, science books together, Chloe's hand shot up. She said that she knew about call numbers and proceeded to give a very good and accurate explanation of how to find a book that you are looking for. I was very surprised and pleased with her common sense knowledge about it. Go Chloe!

 

Looking forward to the week ahead when we will have dear friends as house guests for a couple of days, and then to Easter Sunday when most of the family will be here for dinner and fun. I'm so thankful for the reason we celebrate Easter and the freedom we have to do so. Christ is Risen!



A Great Way To Learn!

This past Friday the three C's came to Papa and Grandma's for an overnight stay. It was one of those quick visits since we had obligations early on Saturday morning. We had a good evening except for Chloe feeling a bit under the weather, but we all went to bed early and Chloe woke up the next morning "feeling great". Our obligation was to take part in a 2-5K Walk4Water  raising funds for clean water wells in Africa. The three C's are already good hikers, which they often do with their parents, and so I was sure this walk would be a breeze at least for Claire and Chloe. Paula met us in the morning and Mommy and Chris went to an adjacent park and creek to hang out and play while the girls and I took part in the walk. We carried buckets and eventually filled them with water to experience just a bit of what it feels like to carry water each day. Small learning centers were set up along the way where we could stop and listen and watch demonstrations in order to see and understand what the African citizens go through to obtain clean water every day as well as learn ways for us to conserve our water here at home. Claire and Chloe took in a lot of information and it touched their hearts to learn how hard life is for some people.

Here we are just before heading out on our walk. I loved their touch of the wild animal hats they wore.

 

 

 

 

Along the way.... an African drummer group.

 



 

 

Below the girls, learning about the few drops of water that are used to wash hands along with a bar of soap on a string in order to use the best hygiene possible. The key is to shake off the excess water after washing with soap and not to touch your clothes which may be dirty and contaminated. The setup of the water bottles on strings along with the bar of soap was very interesting and creative.

 

 

 

After filling our buckets with water we continued on. I was very proud of the girls carrying the water. Towards the end I did encourage them to pour some of their water in my bucket as they were really quite heavy for them. At the end of the walk they had an authentic water container much like what the people use and neither girl could even lift it. It made an impression that African children must learn to carry that heavy load.

 

 

 



 



After the walk we met up with Chris and Paula for a quick snack, short rest, and then headed over to the playground area for a little time to play. Chris had a great morning with his Mommy. The last picture is Chris and Humpty Dumpty taken by Paula while we were walking.

 

 

 

 

I am looking forward to next year hopefully to once again take part in this walk and will also be looking for other opportunities available to learn while having fun. I for one, am very, very, guilty of taking my water for granted. I plan to consciously try and cut back on my water use for many reasons including the fact that our area is facing a summer of drought.

 

Happy Spring!