I Love

Watching things grow.

A Bug!

On a recent trip to the park, Lincoln found a bug.  Oh my, was he excited to see this bug.  Lincoln is my little naturalist, always noticing a bird here, a bug there, and many other wonderful outdoor things.  He can watch these things for quite some time and his enthusiasm is very entertaining.

 Whispering he says excitedly, "Ah, a bug!  A bug!  A bug!"

 He calls Daddy over.  "Daddy, a bug!  Right there!"

 He calls to me as I take pictures.  "Mom!  A bug!  Ah-mazing!"  He's so excited he giggles.  "You found a bug?  That's so awesome," I say.  I'm so proud of my little naturalist.  I love how he notices these things and gets so excited about them and . . .

All of a sudden he says, "STOMP!"  And that's the end of the amazing bug.

I Can't Believe He's Two

Lincoln's gone and turned two.  How dare he?  He's my baby!  

Despite Mom's reluctance, Lincoln had a great birthday and enjoyed turning two years old.  

 This is Lincoln and his BeeBee the morning of his birthday.  He wasn't sure what was going on but loved how everyone kept singing to him.

 Lincoln loves strawberries.  Can you see the juice dribbles going down his tummy?

 He got two books for his birthday, a book about kitties and a book about planes - two of his favorite things.

His favorite part in his favorite book is the part about bushbabies.  We couldn't resist and gave him a cute, fuzzy, soft bushbaby for his birthday.   He also got a barn with animals.

 Excited for some cake!

"Hip, hip, hooraaaaaaaaaaaaay!"

Lincoln also got a new shirt and a race track from his Grandma and Grandpa Hawkins.  But the biggest hit of the day, was when Grandma Hawkins brought over a blow-up beach ball for each of the kids.  All the kids love those balls, but especially Lincoln.  He carried that ball around all day and we had to convince him to put it down so he could open his presents from us.

We all had a great day.  Isn't it so fun to celebrate birthdays?  I just wish there was more time between birthdays.  I feel like my kids are growing up too fast for me!

Back to Bear Lake

It was hot outside Saturday, so what did we do?  We went to Bear Lake, of course!  We can't stay away.  It's one of our favorite places to be - and it only takes us about 45 minutes to get there.  Gotta love that!  

For this jaunt we went around to the south-ish side of the lake where the sandy beaches are still hidden under last year's very wet winter and spring.  

 It cracks me up how when then kids see water they must immediately search for rocks to throw in said water.  I can remember being that way as a kid.  It's irresistible!

 It didn't matter that the water was really cool.  Hudson and Libby had to get in it anyway.  Hudson was walking around in there up to his chest.  Ethan, Maria, and I could barely stand to put our toes in there.  Lincoln would have none of it.

 I'm so proud of this guy.  He's just finished his MBA.  What a happy thing!  It's such a burden to go to school and work full time, and be a dad and husband full time.  He's done such a great job balancing everything.  Now, if only we could find him a job!  School is beginning to seem like the easy part compared with job hunting.

As per the norm, Lincoln refused to go in the water, or touch the sand with his bare skin.  After throwing rocks for a while he parked himself on a towel and proceeded to hand me rocks, directing me to throw them in the water.

It was a gorgeous day and we were practically the only ones there.  We had a great time.  It was a much needed break after the last few weeks of school.

So now we are in that horrible place to find oneself: limbo.  We're trying to figure out where we need to be, what's best for our family, how to get to that place, all the while trying not to think too much about the student loans we'll need to tackle looming in our not too distant future.

We've been giving these questions a lot of thought and a lot of prayer, trying to listen to any bit of inspiration the Lord is willing to throw our way.  

As we figure these things out, we'll keep you updated.  I think there's a big change in store for us.

Little Gems From Today

We were finishing up dinner when Hudson said he was full. Then he picked up his glass of water, paused, and said, "Well, my water hole is not full but my food hole is full."


 While admiring Hudson's slinky Libby said, "I miss my stinky."


 Libby was lolling in her bed as she so often does when it's time to clean her room. I was busy cleaning and trying different ways to convince her to come help when she suddenly popped out of bed with her hand over her eye. Still covering her eye she said, "I'm a piwate (pirate)!". Pirate Libby cleaned up.

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Added April 23:

Tonight, while Ethan was jogging, Hudson was riding his bike . . .

Hudson:  Dad, is my brain an important part of my body?

Ethan:  Yes, it's very important.

Hudson:  Why?

Ethan:  It tells your body what to do.

Hudson:  So if I didn't have a brain I would die?

Ethan:  Yup.

Hudson:  I need to keep my brain in my head.

Ethan:  You sure do.

Hudson:  My brain gives me power . . . to go fast!



While eating toast . . .

Libby (holding a piece of paper):  I'm going to mail this to Jesus!

Hudson:  You can't 'cause you don't know where Jesus lives.



While climbing into the tub . . .

Hudson:  I'm not necessarily a boy.

Me:  I don't think you necessarily know what necessarily means.

Easter Eggs

We have a tradition of dying and hunting for eggs on Easter.  Here are my little ones dying their eggs . . . and hands:  

Ethan and I hid them in the backyard.  They were so excited to search for their eggs.  Well, most of them were anyway.  There's always one, isn't there?  (Let's just ignore the fact that it was me when I was a kid.)

 Posing for pictures.

 Go!

 My Linkies was such a good little searcher.

 And so was Libby . . .

Until she found a patch of wet dirt that commanded her attention.

It Makes Me Smile

Getting Out