Happy Easter!

Happy Easter 2009! We were blessed again to have our whole family together for Easter. My Mom and Dad, Bill's Mom and Dad, and Jill and Sierra came to eat and hang out with us for the holiday. We definitely did plenty of eating. I think we went a bit overboard and actually might have had more dessert than food. Oh, well. LOL

The kids spent Saturday helping me cook several desserts and coloring Easter eggs.

Brady is trying to figure out how his egg ended up pink instead of red.

Sunday we had everyone over, so we held our traditional Easter Egg hunt in the backyard. Based on the pictures, it almost appears the kids have joined the witness protection program. We certainly did a good job hiding their identities:

Eventually we gave up trying to take candid pictures and just lined everyone up for some posed shots. Here's my mom and dad with the kids. This is the first time since they were toddlers that Brady and Sierra are close to the same height!

After the eating, egg hunting, eating, picture taking, and more eating . . . we got dressed up for late afternoon church and headed out.

The thermometer read 81 degrees. Very nice for Easter. We did have some heavy rains for about 45 minutes around lunchtime, but overall it was sunny and warm.

The kids decided that it was warm enough to swim. The pool thermometer read 71 degrees. Now, 71 is a beautiful spring day, but it's actually rather chilly water (at least for us folks in Texas). We explained that to the kids, but some lessons have to be learned through experience, so off they went . . .

I think Abby's expression here sums it up best:

Hope you all had a blessed Easter! Best wishes for a happy summer!

Happy Belated Birthday, Jill!

It is a bit hard to turn 40. Truthfully, I think 39 was harder. The anticipation of 40 is probably worse than actually being 40.

But I have to admit that it is a bit tough on the ego when your younger sister turns 40. Which mine did, March 18th.

In the far corners of my mind, I can still remember a little blonde girl getting stuck in the cherry tree in front of our house in Quincy. It's amazing to me that the little blonde girl is all grown up now with a beautiful not-so-little girl of her own. Jill's an AP Economics and US History teacher these days, and a classroom management trainer, NHS sponsor, and basic jack-of-all trades.

I think the best testament to the success she's found is that for the second year in a row, she has been selected to attend the top 10 banquet at her high school. The top 10 graduating seniors in her school each select a teacher that has had an impact on their lives, and she has once again been chosen by one of her students. What greater gift is there than to know that you have touched the life of someone, and that they will remember you forever? That of all the teachers' classes these kids have sat through, that yours is the one that stands out in his/her mind? So many kids pass in and out of our lives, that to know that you have been a mentor and a guide, helped inspire dreams and build a foundation for someone who may well go on to change the world . . . that is the most wonderful part of being a teacher. And an amazing legacy for a human being.

And that's just the first 40, Jill. What do you have planned for the next? LOL

Happy belated birthday, little sister. I'm really proud of you, and I wish you joy and blessings for the future! :-)

Jeannie and Jill, early 1970s