Everyday Joys

I've been experimenting with my new Nikon camera, so I was snapping pictures of the kids today. Here are some of my favorites. They give you a pretty good idea of our everyday life around here.

The trains are pushed aside, and the Hulk is battling some mean Star Wars guys. The rest of the Avengers are sleeping in the roundhouse. I keep wondering what happened to Thomas and Percy and all our train friends. But really I'm wondering what happened to my little Grant Boy. When did he get so big? It hurts my heart to think that my baby is really 4 years old.

Liza Lou. She's always writing and drawing and creating. She has learned to read this year in kindergarten, and she loves the new world of words and letters it has opened up to her. I love it too. Watching my 5-year-old learn to read and getting to be the recipient of countless notes and wonderful pictures of flowers and hearts and girls with beautiful dresses is a happy part of my life right now. 

Yes, Kimball has started to love reading, and it makes me so excited for him. When I was in 3rd grade I kept a list of all the books I read, and surprisingly, I can still remember some of the titles on that list. I happened to think of "The Voyages of Dr. Dolittle" while I was at the library this past week, so I picked it up for Kimball. He's been waking up early to read it every morning. Kimball also started learning the Star Wars theme on the piano recently, and he has done an awesome job with it. Having Mark gone so much leaves Kimball with a lot of responsibility at home. We have our battles here and there, but he is such a good kid.

Come and Gone

The beard has come and gone. He shaved it for church today, since he was conducting sacrament meeting. And now he's gone back to Asheville. We already miss him. This coming and going is hard stuff. The beard we can do without, but we sure like having Mark around.

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

We listened to C.S. Lewis's "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" on our road trip last week. The kids and I finished watching the movie tonight. We all loved it. As soon as the movie ended, Grant ran upstairs and brought down our knight costume, saying, "I'm King Peter. Mom, you be the White Witch and fight me!" 

Liza says she's Lucy, and Grant and Kimball keep arguing about which one of them is King Peter. But they are all agreed that I am the White Witch. Why can't I be Susan? All well, I'll show them how mean I can be. :)

Happy Spring: Asheville, Birthdays, Easter, Charleston, Conference

The kids had 3 weeks off of school starting March 15. Mark has to work in Asheville for all of March and April, so we headed down to Asheville (about 3.5 hours away) to spend time together as a family. We started off the kids' break with a visit from Nana and Grandpa, so of course, they got to come to Asheville too...

We hiked up to the top of Grandfather Mountain and got to cross Mile High Swinging Bridge

Playing at Split Rock in Grandfather Mountain State Park

Exploring the grounds at the Biltmore

It was oh so good to see my parents and spend 5 awesome days with them. I wish they could come every month.

My Grant Boy had his 4th birthday. Grant is all about super heroes, so his birthday was full of the Avengers and Spiderman and good guys and bad guys. 

Avenger party!

This is the "Hulk Smash Cake" that Grant helped me plan and decorate

I really don't want my baby to be growing up so fast, but we sure do enjoy this kid in all his stages. 

We had to take Nana and Grandpa back to the airport, so we spent a few days in Durham. I took the kids to a super cool trampoline place called Defy Gravity one morning. I'm pretty sure I had the most fun of all.  Wall-to-wall trampolines is a dream come true for me!

My friend took this picture of me doing a back flip. I could still do lots of tricks, but I was so sore the next day!

Then I celebrated my big 33rd birthday, back in Asheville so we could be with Mark, my mountain-man hubby.

We spent lots of happy, quiet days all together playing games and reading books in our little apartment. Mark would go to work and the kids and I would hang out till the afternoon when Mark got home from work (his schedule is so nice in Asheville!). When it was warm enough, we played outside and went hiking and exploring. 

A Sunday evening walk at the Biltmore

Just outside our apartment building

Hiking on the Mountains to Sea Trail near our apartment

Mark took his big yearly ophthalmology test on a Saturday morning, then we loaded up the van and headed to the Isle of Palms, just outside of Charleston, South Carolina, for a few days at the beach with some friends. We rented a beach house with the Schmutz, Preece, and Draughan families, then the Paxtons joined us later in the week. It wasn't overly warm weather, but it was beautiful and we still had a great time playing on the beach and exploring Charleston.

Our Easter egg hunt at the beach house with all the kiddos

Battery Park in downtown Charleston 

Checking out the beautiful old houses on Rainbow Row

My favorite thing about our beach trip was our girls' outing to visit Middleton Place, an old Southern plantation. The gardens and grounds there were beyond beautiful (they are known as the oldest landscaped gardens in the US), especially with the azaleas all in bloom. And the history was fascinating. Learning more about the slave trade and slavery in Charleston was sobering but important. I got such a better feel for what life was like in the South before the Civil War and could better understand why things are like they are today. I loved going through the house and seeing things like an 1818 copy of the Declaration of Independence, printed on silk (Arthur Middleton was one of the signers of the Declaration; his father was the president of the First Continental Congress) and right by that a copy of the South Carolina Ordinance of Secession signed by Williams Middleton in 1860. Much of Middleton Place was burned at the end of the Civil War. The Middleton family had hidden many of their valuables in other locations though, so we were able to see some of their gorgeous furniture and paintings, silver candlesticks and pitchers dating back to the late 1700s when Arthur Middleton and his wife had traveled to Europe, and so many other beautiful, interesting things. I know I'm nerdy, but I love learning more about people and places from the past.

    

Jenny, Amy, Eliza, and I in the gardens at Middleton Place

Isn't that amazing?

Part of the house that was rebuilt after it was burned in 1865 

We drove back to Asheville after our Charleston trip, then came back to Durham on Friday. We wanted to all be home for General Conference. We missed dying Easter eggs last week, so we made up for it today. Then, as is tradition, the kids rolled their eggs down the driveway. I'm not sure why we do that, but the kids love it.

General Conference was amazing. I would listen to talks like that for a whole week if I could. I loved the music and the spirit that filled our home the last two days. I loved the messages on the importance of family and faith and sharing the gospel. With spring finally here in all its warmth and beauty, with several weeks of wonderful family time behind me, and with the power that comes from a weekend of General Conference, I am ready to start fresh and be a better me. 

The kids start back to school in the morning. Mark is back in Asheville. Real life begins again. I am so thankful for times like these last few weeks when life slows down and I get to focus on what matters most.

And just because it makes me happy, here's a picture of my favorite Hulk.

Minnesota!

For Valentine's Day, Mark surprised me with a trip to visit my sister Andrea and her family in Minnesota. I have had a hard month emotionally, so he felt like this would be the perfect way for me to recharge. And it was.

After spending 24 hours stuck in St. Louis during a snow storm, I was so happy to finally get to Minnesota! Don't get me wrong, I'd had a fun time hanging out in the airport all day Thursday, waiting in horrendous lines, finally getting a taxi to a hotel (and thinking I was going to die as I sat squished in the backseat of that van, watching cars spinning in the snow on the roads all around us), hanging out in the Redbird Bar with my new friends Robyn and Dylan, then sleeping on the couch in Robyn's hotel room... yes, I'd had a great first day of my trip, but I was really relieved when I finally saw Andrea. We picked up Spencer from work and had lunch at a yummy Mexican restaurant. Then we headed home and waited for the kids to get home from school, and the party really began...

Being the awesome aunt that I am, I always seem to bring out the mature, sophisticated side in my nieces and nephews...

I brought a balloon animal kit for the kids, and I was impressed by their creations! 

We played Pound the Table, Ticket to Ride, and Settlers. I loved sitting around their table laughing, eating, and playing games. 

Mark ordered pizza and had it delivered to us Friday night, so that was a fun surprise. Mark was home taking care of the kids and still managed to do nice things for me while I was away! :)

I took a picture with each of the Driskill kids so I could show my kids how tall Tyler, Amanda, Zach, and Devin are all getting. It's hard for me to believe that Tyler and Amanda are both way taller than me and that Zach and I are exactly the same height... at least I've got a couple of inches on Devin still. But I'm sure he'll pass me up soon too!

Of course, our Saturday morning temple trip was a highlight. It was beautiful and happy.

Zach played awesome in his basketball game that afternoon, then Saturday night we went to the Ice Castle by the Mall of America. I loved being outside in the snow and cold (I kept saying it felt so Christmasy!), and the ice castle was really neat.

That Viking had the greatest laugh. Very Viking-esque.

Tyler took this picture of his mom and dad, and I thought it was super cute. :)

It was so good to be in the Driskill's home, go to church with them, play and laugh with them, watch family videos, meet their friends, hear about all the kids' activities, and stay up late talking with Andrea. I needed some good sister time and family time, and I sure got it. I had plenty of time on my flights and layovers to read and watch movies and think and write. It really was nice to get away from all my responsibilities and get to be just me for a little while. But I was so ready and happy to see Mark and my kids when I got home Sunday night. What a great Valentine's gift, Mark. Thank you! And thank you, Andrea, Spencer, Tyler, Amanda, Zach, and Devin for letting me come visit!