April's Post!

Well spring is here and we couldn't be happier! We have loved spending hours outside riding bikes and scooters, picking weeds and watering flowers, and just enjoying fresh air. I love living where we get all four seasons and seeing the living things wake up after a long, cold winter. Just seeing some color in our landscape other than white or brown is so wonderful!

Our little family has had a lot of exciting things to do lately so I have lots to share. I'm glad to report that everyone is healthy and happy. Tyler seems extra busy lately, he has taken on some extra scouting things and is looking forward to running Ragnar in June with some friends. He also has begun a large project here at home, building bunk beds for the kids, that is taking up spare time and garage space. He gives so much and I appreciate him so much!

I'm now 31 weeks along and still doing great. Starting to get uncomfortably big, and trying to get comfy at nights and get enough sleep is tough. But happy that little one seems healthy and is growing well. Both Cole and Kate have been able to feel him move several times now which is fun to share it with them. They like talking to my belly and asking him questions like, "Do you have lots of hair? Are your eyes brown like mine? I'll give you all my baby clothes when you get out of there!" It's adorable. I'm not worried at all about them accepting this little guy, they can't wait for him to get here.

Cole has started his second year of Tball and is really passionate about it. He is more mature this year and can handle the waiting (in the dugout to bat, in the outfield for the other team to bat, etc) better. He is really serious when he plays and tries so hard. I love seeing him enjoy sports and have a positive experience.

Kate will be two in one month! And has been amazing us with her vocabulary and comprehension of things going on around her. She is such a sweet girl but also has just as much spice, she's always testing her boundaries and can be very fiesty. We love her personality and my favorite thing is watching her and Cole interact.

Here's the little sweetie at Easter. I had high hopes of a beautiful spring picture outside by the blossoming pear tree, but we had to settle for the couch. It was a chore to just get them to sit for the camera before they took their church clothes off, sooo glad Tyler was there to get them to laugh so we at least got some smiles :)

She somehow bonked her head during the "photo shoot" and I thought we were going to lose her. Once again, daddy saved the day! So funny.

Kate loves playing the piano and leading herself at the same time. This girl gots skills. It's so cute how she balances the hymn book first, then takes her seat and raises her hand so seriously. It's such an important thing she's doing.

She loves wearing play dresses and always picks her boots with them. She likes to be girly!

Cole ate a scorpion!! I brought him back this sucker with a real (dead) scorpion inside from our trip to Texas, just thinking it was something cool for him to see and maybe he might lick it or something. Oh no, he wanted to crunch up the whole thing! It almost made me sick. He felt very brave and couldn't wait to tell his preschool class the next day.

This year Cole is on the Texas Rangers. This was before their first game, look how ready he is! He was running back and forth along the fence line to get warmed up. His neighbor friend Ellie is on his team again.

Here he is running from second to third. The tongue definitely helps with speed.

He kept pointing at me like this from the pitcher's mound when he was on defense. It was cracking me up! Later on in the game, he became interested in the little pebbles around his feet and would collect a bunch and bring them to me to keep for later.

We were so excited to have mom and Tegan surprise us and come all the way out just to watch the game! This is after the game.

Must be April...or October...we always re-stock our food supply every six months at conference time :) Here's one trip we took from the store.

Tyler's first two headboard and footboard for the kids' bunk beds. They are going to be beautiful! He is so talented.

While we watched general conference on TV, Kate loved getting up on the chair and leading along with Mr. Wilberg. It was a hoot.

Best buds!

Just thought this was adorable, Cole's friend Connor came over and we made lemon cookies.

Can you guess what the white substance is? I was holding one of our RS presidency meetings at our house and I realized it was much too quiet from Kate. I walk in the bathroom to toothpaste all over her cheeks and the sink. She is always into everything!

This was a fun morning, we woke up to a surprise snowstorm! Three inches had fallen at night and we were so excited. The kids (I mean, Ironman and Kate :) watched out the window for awhile before getting dressed up to go out and play.

Enjoying what could be the last snow of the season. We also grabbed the sled and walked to a nearby bunny hill to go down a few (hundred) times. Such a fun day!

Welcome to Utah springs, little bulbs! 70 degrees one day, covered in snow the next.

Easter baskets. Pure joy.

Dying Easter eggs! Also a joyful occasion.

We went for a hike one nice evening and had a blast. Kate hated riding in the backpack and much more preferred meandering around. We REALLY took our time on this one. Even Cole kept saying "Let's GO!".

I had a great opportunity to go with mom and Tegan to visit Christine in Texas and Parker and Jenn in DC for a week - a whole week away from my little family! I've never spent more than 2-3 days away from Cole/Kate. But I was really looking forward to seeing and being with my sisters/brother and nephews and just getting a break. It was wonderful and I enjoyed every minute. 

Tegan was a great airplane buddy. Mom too, she taught me to crochet on the way from Texas to DC! I 

While I was gone, Tyler ran the household perfectly and then had some reinforcements come halfway through the week - Lisa and Rod drove down to spend some time with everyone. I was so glad they got to spend time with the kids especially and do some fun things.

One of my highlights - getting pedicures in TX. Lovely!

We took a whole Saturday to get up early and see some great sights, Parker was a terrific tour guide. It's so nice having someone who knows their way around.

It was cherry blossom time! They were beautiful!

The Korean War Memorial, I learned that my grandpa Morrill fought in this war and was one of the wounded. This was actually one of my favorite memorials, it was so cool how it looked like the soldiers were walking through the bushes.

Lincoln Memorial. Look at our coordinating stripes!! We got style.

The most beautiful building (I think), the Library of Congress. I just wanted to see the books!

A rally at the Supreme Court. Democracy in action!

This is where Parker works, the Securities and Exchange Commission. It is right next to Union Station. I'm so proud of him and think it's awesome he works in this amazing city.

We rode the metro a lot this day. Another cool thing is that Jessica (Tyler's sister) and her fiance Chad live only 5 hours away and drove down to spend the day with us. It was great to see her, she gets married in July! We had such a great trip overall and made lots of memories.

Just love this girls' attempt to smile for the camera.

Cole actually took the next two.

Talked with the dr. this week about setting an induction date (both kids have had to be induced, I just don't go into labor on my own) and we're thinking about June 18th now. Which is sooner! I can't believe this sweet lil baby will be here so soon. I can't wait to hold him and see Cole and Kate love him. Life can't get much better :)