A Few Things

Two front teeth are gone! Kinda feels like a milestone because their faces seem to change when those big teeth come in.

Tyler is a Young Author! He was chosen from the 3rd grade to have his book published in the school library - it's kind of a big deal. We're pretty proud of him over here. He spent all weekend illustrating the final drafts. Story is called "The Amazing Robo Adventure" and it's a good read, if I do say so myself.

Audrey sure has some great girlfriends. Spent the afternoon with Presley. These two signed up for a girl scout day camp together this summer, along with a few other girls from their troop. Starting to have summer on the brain... I think it'll be a good one.

Eating outside again. Great dinnertime weather.

And beginning to put together an Easter menu. I think it's gonna be the five of us for the first time in a few years (usually do Adam's parents, but they'll be out of town). Want yummy, easy, and something Adam and I will enjoy, but is still appreciated by my three little eaters.

Enjoying my Ladybug break. Nice to have a few Mondays off, and this Saturday we are all off for the first time in forever! Spring Break is right around the corner.

Egg Hunt

This morning was our church pancake breakfast and Easter egg hunt. Primary put it on, so it was a little busy for us but it was great fun! Adam and I tag-teamed since Tyler had a game. Audrey and Cole came with me early, and they were the best little helpers. Big shout out to my awesome friend Michalle, who planned so much of this - it ran smoothly and really it was because of her. We love our ward and all the friends we got to hang with this morning.

Love these cuties. At what point will Cole pass Audrey in height, I wonder.

Fun with friends.

Tyler got there just in time (and had another great hit at the game!) With handsome buddies, Kaleb and Benson:

What happens when you ask boys for a silly picture:

Audrey and Ellie - love these two friends.

Little egg hunter:

Happy with their loot.

Beginning of the Week

One last birthday celebration with Grandma Tait. It was fun to all get together to celebrate her and Adam. Delicious dinner - we've eaten well this week!

Adam is on hiatus until mid-April. Always nice to have him around. The budget gets tighter, but we've gotten pretty good at the balance. He still works from home and coaches, too. I get to enjoy things like sneaking out for a pedicure, volunteering in the classroom (did Ladybug with Audrey's class last week), help with school drop-offs, taking kids to sports, piano, scouts. He'll be around during spring break, too, which is a bonus. His schedule can sure be crazy, but over time I've learned to focus more on the good stuff, and stress less over money.

Playing Legos. Something in their eyes looks the same to me in this shot.

Today's reading awards. Go Audrey and Tyler! Both hit over 150% of their reading goal for two semesters in a row. It was College Day, too, and once again they represented Ithaca and BYU.

Cinderella was perfect! Especially with my perfect afternoon date (who covered her eyes every time she thought they were gonna kiss.)

Also at Tyler's last baseball game he got the best hit EVER!!! It was so awesome. 2 strikes, he was gonna be out - then BANG! He was so happy. Ended up getting a run for his team. It was all very exciting and Audrey told me how embarrassing I was for cheering so loud. Next time I'll be better at pictures. He also had a great play in the outfield. So proud of him! He's working hard, always happy when they have that payoff moment.

Happy Birthday Adam!

We love you Adam. Thanks for being the kind of guy who doesn't mind making your own birthday breakfast (mostly because I had to speak in church today, but hey at least we let him sleep in.)

We are pretty biased, but he is the best dad ever.

Adam's birthday has been all about eating well. Last night we had a date at Piccola Trattoria. We've been wanting to try that place for quite some time. We're pretty picky about fancy Italian because of all the years Adam worked at Le Madri in New York - didn't beat Le Madri, but it was delicious! Tonight we grilled Jackie's yummy salmon (best and easiest marinade - half soy sauce, half maple syrup. Make it! Soooo good!) Had very fancy Skinny Cow's for dessert.

Tomorrow more celebrating with the Tait fam because Grandma's birthday is this week, too. Happy to keep the fun going for this guy. Happy birthday Adam! Thanks for always being way older than me. We're so glad you were born.

Calm after the Busy

Man this morning was lots of juggling. Taught my last Ladybug Music class this session (yipee for a little break!) Babysitter came to stay with little ones while Adam helped coach Tyler's baseball game. Got Audrey and Cole after Ladybug, dropped off sitter, picked up Tyler after game since Adam is teaching a workshop, drove straight to mall for Audrey's Girl Scout field trip. Then big sigh after driving all over the place. The field trip was to Paint A Dream. It was so cute, would be a fun summer outing with all the kids. Audrey had a blast.

The boys and I had such a nice time at the mall while she painted. The weather was absolutely perfect! Plus snow-cones, playground, and checking out the fish and turtle pond. It was so relaxing (yes, somehow the mall was relaxing on a Saturday!) The fresh air and sunshine were the best. Nice to hang with these two:

Picked up some new shoes for Audrey since we were at the mall, then we all came home and crashed. Looking forward to date night out tonight. Adam's birthday is tomorrow - gotta start celebrating.

Friday Date

Cole got a Mommy and Daddy date this morning. Took him to his last Ladybug Music class this session, then hit Carney's - the hot dog train.

He was way happy, but kept asking when the train would start moving.

Pretty much in heaven with his lemonade and french fries. A nice treat to spend time with just our little guy.

Breakfast!

Grateful for the husband on hiatus who gets to brave the looong line at the school pancake breakfast. It's for the kids who reached 100% of their reading goal. (The line goes pretty fast actually, but with Cole in tow... at 7:45am... ugh.) There are three of these a year, so I'm happy to send Adam to one.

Congrats to our awesome readers!

Happy St. Patrick's Day! We got our annual box of Lucky Charms, but didn't catch a leprechaun.

Ready for Green

After I reminded them to wear green tomorrow, these two got it in their heads to make leprechaun traps. Barely saw them this afternoon they were so busy drawing plans, then executing. Guess I need to buy some Lucky Charms - that's how we celebrate St. Patrick's Day around here.

Love, love this gorgeous weather and sunshine 'til late. Played in the yard for quite some time with back doors and windows open. Has me dreaming of summer. But let's get to spring break first.

Ah, Friday...

This kid is so super cute - I'm glad I spend my mornings with him. Last week at the library he was singing "the Darth Vader song" (as he calls it) and this guy stopped and said, "Star Wars? The force is strong in that one." It was too funny. I think Cole enjoyed the compliment.

Lucky me I got a lot of girl time this week. Monday met my cousin Hannah and Aunt Wendy at Hugo's for dinner and it made my week! Wednesday these awesome girls got together to celebrate Brooke's birthday. Love all these faces so much. We are all so young! Clearly Brooke is only turning 29!

Kids had off school today thanks to parent/teacher conferences. Can't believe they're starting their third trimester. Report cards were great - so proud of them. Celebrated with Menchies.

This morning we hit the zoo because Cole has been asking me forever. It was such a weird day. First it was super hot. I think it got into the 90s! Also no more going to the zoo on Fridays - too many field trips and I swear they followed us everywhere. My kids were such great sports though, and we had a great morning together.

Splurged on the carousel.

My two funny boys who sit in the grandpa chairs on the carousel - the ones that don't move. Seriously!?

Then the zebras. After we saw the zebras we sat for a snack. Cole fell off his stool and I could tell right away he was really hurt. He landed on his arm, and wouldn't move it and his hand was shaking. Wouldn't squeeze my hand or touch anything. It was a little jarring - I thought he might've broken it (kept having flashbacks).

We went home and I let Cole nap. After nap he still wouldn't put pressure on his arm so I called his doctor. Wonderful Becky invited Audrey and Tyler over to play, and Cole and I went to the doc. Luckily they think it's just badly bruised, so we opted out of the X-ray for now. Will just watch it over the weekend. He's already using it more, so I think he'll be okay. Poor thing.

Kind of a crazy afternoon, but so grateful for my awesome kids who rolled with the punches. Audrey and Tyler were so sweet with Cole, and it really helped me to not stress out. I told them about a million times tonight how much I appreciated that. Now to decompress with Empire while I wait for Adam to get home. Holy moly that show is so crazy but good.

Opening Day

Great first day of the season! Tyler got the first hit for his team, and scored their first run. His other first was pitching. He's come so far from this time last year when he barely knew how to hold a bat! Pretty cool to watch.

Adam assistant coaching makes me happy.

Morning with Friends

We were all about the buddies this morning. These kids played so well, it was nice to be home with them - and I even cleaned some house. Henry and Cole:

Cole and Paisley:

Really the highlight was this tree coming down on our front corner. You could see it all from the back yard, and kids were mesmerized. We spent a lot of time out here, and looking out the front window.

It's That Time of Year Again

Baseball season in full swing this week. First game on Saturday. We are the Dodgers, and Adam is assistant coaching. I was never a baseball fan until Tyler started playing last year. I really look forward to the season, even though it makes afternoons busier. I'm sure once the season ends in June I'll happily welcome a schedule-free summer.

Last weekend we saw Lexi compete in gymnastics. She was so awesome and won 2nd place in her division (which is like the highest division short of going to the Olympics, so that's pretty cool). I tried to get good shots of her tumbling across the floor, but they didn't come out. Audrey's been asking about gymnastics for quite some time, so this weekend motivated me to sign her up for trial classes at our nearby gyms. I did the math and realized Lexi could actually coach Audrey in a few years, and now I'm day-dreaming of that becoming reality (I think Adam's mom and Kim are, too). We'll see... I think Audrey could have it in her.

And if you want a good vegetarian recipe (and like sweet potatoes) these enchiladas are so good, and easy - especially if you like shopping at Trader Joe's. I used their salsa and enchilada sauce just like in the recipe, and doubled it to make more. Made them last night and we all liked them - keeper for sure.