Spring Has Sprung

I love Spring (actually I love all the new seasons as they are approaching).

One afternoon, while looking out my bedroom window I spotted a gopher.

He had made a nice little mound in our yard.  So after texting these pictures to Mckay, he told me to go and kill it (he expected it to be done by the time he got home...I think he was half teasing, doubting I would really do it).  He finished by letting me know that it is in my blood (I grew up on a farm where gopher hunting in a different way was a constant summer chore).  Only our gophers are hardly seen above ground.

Anyway, I loaded up with Payton's BB gun, a shovel if that failed, and a hose to flood him out if needs be.  Once the gopher spotted me he went back in his hole, as expected.  I turned on the hose and let the water run into his hole until he finally popped back out again, this time he was much more aware of my threat and only came out showing his head.  It made for a small target and the BB gun wasn't doing a thing.  With the hose running I approached the hole with the next best thing, a shovel.  I'll spare the details but needless to say that is one less gopher to mess up our yard.  I am sure I was a funny sight but when I texted the following picture back to Mckay, he called back a little shocked and relieved to have the job done.

Sorry little guy.

Yippee for a splash of color and some flowers to spruce things up.

Brielle is such a girl and loves wearing this nice spring dress grandma made for her.

Off for a fun little bike ride through town.

It was the perfect solution to put this little guy to sleep.

So precious!

Another spring project was to clean out the area between our sheds.  We are hoping to make a garden and play area back there.  The kids were good troopers as we got some of the existing rocks out of the way, cleaned out the weeds, and raked.

It is fun to work/play as a family.  We make a great team!

Library Time

Brielle loves going to library time.  She enjoys visiting with her friends, listening to the stories, crafts, snacks, and special visitors.

She was happy when the fire truck was there and she was able to sound the horns.

Future firefighters.

Cute kids.

And an ice cream bar to top it off!  Amazing!!

Gavin 6 Months Well Check

6 Months already!!

Gavin is chewing on his new book from the doctor.

He still has his fuzzy hair and is grabbing all sorts of things to keep him entertained.

I love his concentration face!

He truly is such a good baby.  I feel so lucky!

Here are his stats:

Weight:  15 pounds (7%)

Height:  26 1/2 inches (40%)

Head:  44 centimeters (68%)

Gavin is sure loved in our household!  I know he too loves all of the attention, except when it becomes a little too overwhelming.  He can sit up for a few seconds before he begins to lean and tip over.  It is easy to make this sweet boy laugh and he just melts our hearts with his big dark brown eyes.

She's Got Mail

McKenzie recently mailed a letter to Grandma and was excited when she received some mail a bit later from Grandma.

We are grateful for all forms of technology/communication that bridges the gap between our loved ones far away!

Begging for a Bike

It seems as if all bikes need to be fixed again each spring.  From low tires to training wheels or not.  Brielle has been begging for Mckay to fix her bike now that the weather is getting nice.

It sure made for one happy little girl when all was said and done!

Starting Kitchen Projects

It seems as if Tax Season ended and we've hit the ground running with all sorts of projects we have been eager to do.  One of those came as a bit of a last minute split decision.  The weather was not so good Saturday so we worked on a few projects and decided to go buy some paint and spruce up the kitchen walls.  It is a fairly large room so ready or not!  I am sure that the kitchen remodel will take place one phase at a time as we budget for things here and there.  Although it is amazing what just a can on paint can do...

I love doing these sorts of things with my partner in crime!

The kids were also eager to participate, good job Kenzie.

Many hands make light work, right?

Looking good Brielle!

Keep it up Taylor.

Priceless!

Good job Payton!

It was a fun project, but it took most of the day, from start to finish!

Eventually we want to paint the cabinets white, add a back splash, change flooring and counter tops, and upgrade those appliances.  Oh well, it'll take time.

I love the way it lightened up the kitchen.  It feels so clean and fresh!

Yeah for another update!

Fun at the Circus

The Circus came to town and the kids received coupons at school, so we decided to take our family on a much needed family outing!  The kids were beyond excited.

They were impressed with all of the stunts.

Of coarse the elephant was a hit!

Although we didn't ride.

It was pretty big!

It was fun going to the circus, but it was even more fun watching the kids' reactions at the circus!

It was a great evening.  We ended the evening going out to dinner with some friends who met up with us at the circus (Rachel, Carson, and their kids).

Helping Hands

Brielle is such a huge helper!  She is always eager to do her share and being an assistant brings her joy.  I love this about her and I am often trying to think up a job just to let her help along side of me.

Here she is feeding Gavin while I was working in the kitchen.

Another day she was eager to help me vacuum and clean out the nasty van.

Having her around is awesome!!

Elementary Talent Show

The school had a little talent show and Taylor's class performed to the Ghost Busters song.

Here is our little "Ghost".

Taylor was pretty animated while dancing to this song.  It was super cute!

A Free Day Together and Gavin is Now 6 Months Old

Whew!  We made it through yet another Tax Season!  Having children to keep me busy does make it a bit easier, although we were all really starting to miss Mckay, and are thrilled to have him around a lot more!

Mckay was off work on April 16th!  We headed to town with Brielle and Gavin.  We had some much needed shopping to do and wanted to play with a little bit of our tax return.  We also had a yummy lunch together!

This happy boy is now 6 months old!  Oh my...he is really starting to change.  We are loving his easy going personality and his smile and laugh is contagious!  He has awesome fuzzy hair that makes me giggle!  What a Cutie Pie!

Wear Orange

The kids were asked to wear orange to school for the fight against hunger.  Here are a couple of pictures they had... although I didn't find any with McKenzie in them.

Payton with several of his school buddies.

Taylor and some of his classmates enjoying their lunch.

Helping Daddy

I sure wonder what McKenzie's future holds.  She adores her dad and loves going to work with him most Saturdays she can during Tax Season.  It is shocking to me that she wanted to do it almost each and every week and she could literally stay there the whole time with her daddy.  She is a good helper and companion for him as she shreds papers and visits with him over their lunches.

This particular day she was working on a cover page for her Penguin report.  She is a bit of a perfectionist and I guess it took some time for her to be pleased with this masterpiece...sigh.

She felt better when Mckay sent me this picture and her entire family was impressed!!

Another day, just relaxing while reading a Jack and Annie book.

Melts my heart!

Being silly.

Perhaps this is why she enjoys going to work with daddy!?