Cousins Come to Cincinnati!

Tree Huggers?
Since it has been rainy here, we've been trying to take advantage of any sunshine that we get. We had fun running around and just enjoying being outside. There is a fun tree to climb in our neighbor's front yard. When Spencer and Mikey saw it, they decided that they had to climb it. This is cousin Spencer in the tree. He is 5 years old and lots of fun. He likes Spider Man, eating popcorn, and playing with his cousins.













Here is cousin Mikey in the tree. He is 2 and loves Buzz Lightyear. He also loves to read books. If you can't find Mikey, the chances are pretty good that he is in a pile of books reading quietly. That is, if he is not running around with his brother and cousins.


















This is Morgan in the tree. She has loved to climb since she could walk, and has spent lots of time in this tree. As her cousins were climbing, she could not pass up the chance.



















Here is Rachael in the tree. If you look at her pocket, you can see her toy cell phone poking out. Chris and I finally got a cell phone plan. Our cell phone sales associate Jill, gave Morgan and Rachael toy Motorola Razr phones to keep them occupied while I signed our cell phone contract. As we were leaving, Jill said that they could keep the phones. On the way to the car, Morgan said, "Oh my goodness Mom, that was like, SO COOL!" (Oh boy.) Rachael and Morgan have been taking their 'cell phones' everywhere. What does that mean for when they are teenagers...?












Movie Night!
We thought that it would be fun to have a movie night with Spencer and Mikey. Morgan and Rachael let the boys choose the, as they were the guests for the weekend. Initially, Spencer wanted to watch The Princess and the Pauper (sorry Jaron). He changed his mind to Return of the Jedi, with a little help from Chris. (Chris was banking on Spencer choosing a boy movie...maybe he's seen a few too many Barbie movies.) The girls love Star Wars, so they were happy. (Thank you Princess Leia!) We had a great time and ate 4, yes 4, bowls of popcorn!

Easter in North Carolina

We traveled to North Carolina to celebrate Easter Weekend with our friends, the Blackhams. Morgan and Rachael are pictured here with Brooklynn (6), and Emma (4).












For a special treat, we all went hiking in real mountains! Living in Cincinnati, we have hills and woods, but no mountains. We hiked, had a picnic, and even got to see some waterfalls.











Chris and I are pictured in the 'window' next to Window Falls. Chris has been really busy on his recent surgery rotations, so it was so nice to have a trip as a family.












Pictured here are our friends Kim and Aaron Blackham, with their girls Brooklynn and Emma. Morgan, Rachael, and I got in too. This is the other side of the 'window' at Window Falls.

We had a wonderful visit with our friends. Chris was able to shadow Aaron one day at the hospital. (Aaron is a surgery resident.) Our friends are trying to recruit us to that part of the country for residency. We would not mind at all. Morgan declared that she hopes Heavenly Father wants us to move there. Rachael agrees, as do the Blackham girls.

A World of Music

This month, Morgan participated in a concert at school. The children sang songs from different cultures and dressed in different ethnic costumes. Morgan was able to wear a skirt and shirt that Uncle Vincent sent her from his mission to Mexico. Thank you Uncle Vinnie!










Nana surprised us and came to see the performance. Rachael and Teddy enjoyed the concert from Nana's lap. Actually, Teddy came in quite handy. As obnoxiously proud parents do, Chris and I were waving to our daughter up on the stage. We could see her looking for us, but she couldn't see us. That is, until Nana held up Teddy and waved him. Thanks Rach, for insisting on bringing your friend! After the concert, Nana treated us to Graeter's Ice Cream. Yum!



After the concert, Morgan's music teacher Ms. Jason posed with the girls for a quick pic. She is a good teacher and is one of Morgan's favorites.

St. Patrick's Day!

On St. Patrick's Day morning, the girls awoke to find the milk had been turned green! At our house, a Leprechaun pays a visit and turns our milk green. He also leaves candy, and you can tell where he has walked because there is a golden glitter trail left throughout the house. (Very fun to look at, not so easy to clean up...)








This year we started a new St. Patrick's Day tradition. For dinner, we ate green eggs and ham. As we were eating, we thought of 'That Sam I Am', and decided to read Green Eggs and Ham while we ate them. Thank you Dr. Seuss! We also ate Baked Oatmeal cooked and served with our green milk. (Morgan declared that the green milk looks odd, but it tastes just the same.)