Goofing around in the yard

Yard work

The Hubbards bought me some new plants and bark to landscape our front yard.  The boys helped too!  Here are some of the after shots:

Where's Ashton?

Ashton's found a new hiding place.  Or, at least he thought he had!  I thought I'd share.

Mother's Day/Birthday

I had a lovely mother's day/birthday combo and feel very loved!  Derrik did surprise me with a new camera but I haven't had time to load photos from it yet.  As soon as I familiarize myself with the manual and get the software loaded, I'll share the pics we took over the weekend. 
Right now, I'm gearing up to finish our homeschooling year!  I have a big meeting Friday to show off our quarter school work.

Boys in the Striped Pajamas

The name has been picked, the outfits perfected, the music selected and the boys are officially a band!  Ashton isn't an active participant and may just jump in for a song or two, but Ethan and Cameron have worked really hard on these concerts!  We usually are given tickets and get autographs afterwards.  It's great!

Spring Concerts

We had our final choir concerts for the year!  Cameron, Ashton and I did ours on one weekend, and Ethan did his the following weekend.  The boys did a nice job and we are all breathing a sigh of relief that that part of our school year is over! 

San Diego Spring Break

Derrik attended a conference in San Diego last weekend and we tagged along for some spring break fun! We did a lot over the four days we were there so I created a slide show to share the highlights.  I moved it to the bottom of this page to make room for other posts!

Jim Henson Studio and Hollywood trip

We had the privilege of visiting the Jim Henson studio today and take a look at what goes into making one of their current shows, "Sid the Science Kid."  The muppets are officially owned by Disney now but small projects are still going on at this studio.  It is also the original studio where Charlie Chaplin made many of his movies.

The boys each took a turn using the computer that makes Sid's mouth, eyes and ears move.  Very cool.

The trip ended with us hunting for the Hollywood sign.  Just when we though we'd lost it, Derrik took us up a hill through a residential area and there it was! 

Eastery fun

Cameron and Ashton enjoyed decorating some eggs.....
The Easter bunny came by and left some treats......

There were 117 eggs to find in our yard.......

We then went off to church and then to the Hubbards to have a yummy Easter lunch.  It was a good day.  While we were driving home, the 7.2 earthquake happened down south.  We didn't feel a thing!  The Hubbards felt it at their house.

Ethan's birthday

Thank you to everyone for all the birthday wishes!  Ethan took the day off from school and spent the day doing what he loves: watching tv!  We took him to see "How to train your Dragon" in 3D and then out to dinner.  Then we went out for some clothes shopping!  He is officially eleven  :).

The ring that won't let go!

Cameron bought a ring from a vending machine yesterday afternoon and slipped it on his middle finger.  It slid on okay but he later noticed that it wasn't coming off.  We tried dish soap, cooking oil, taping the finger, etc.  He began complaining that it was hurting and the knuckle on the finger was starting to swell because he was pulling on it so much.  Finally, Derrik came up with a plan:  remove his finger!  No,   :)  he used some pliers to gently stretch the metal until it snapped open.  Cameron was very happy and will never, ever buy one of those again!

Singing in church last weekend

The boys all sang in church services last weekend with their choirs. It's always fun to see what songs they've learned. This year added an audition-only choir for Ethan that he is especially proud of. Here are my photos:

Valentine's Day fun

Since the older boys were homeschooled this year, they didn't get the traditional Valentine's day stuff. So I decided to treat them to a Valentine's day scavenger hunt. Each clue starts with this: Roses are red, Violets are blue, I have something special, just for YOU!
Here they are reading clue #1:











This clue lead them to these FOAM swords:













Then off to clue #2 which brought them outside to the mail box for these notebooks and workbooks:











And clue #3 took them to the backyard for these:











Clue #4 lead them to the table for candy. Yes, I gave my kids candy for breakfast on Valentine's day. And they enjoyed every minute of it (I did too actually!) They also found a little letter from us.











Derrik and I went out to celebrate Friday night with some friends and had a great time! I hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day!

Stuff 'n' Fluff

January is gone, February is in full swing. Here's what we've been up to:
Ethan went to winter camp the end of January. He was in the mountains in 3 feet of snow! He had a blast!
Here Cameron and Ashton are waiting to say goodbye to Ethan for the weekend.








I chose to wear a red scarf last week when I took Ashton to Mommy and Me Preschool since it was our Valentine's party. As soon as he saw me he asked me if I was going to the snow. Then, a little later, he said he wanted a scarf too. So, here we are sporting our scarves at preschool.

Private Rock Concerts

Derrik, Ashton and I have been treated to several rock concerts in our living room. Both Ethan and Cameron have been entertaining us by doing a karaoke-style show where they play along to a CD with their guitars and keyboards. We sometimes get candy thrown at us as part of the show. It's been a real treat to watch them prepare and perform for us! Derrik even got in the act!