never a dull moment

whew! what a week!

ada starred in her first school performance as the zookeeper's dog. her line? "woof, woof! i usually have four or five puppies!" she told me "it's not what you say, it's how you say it" straight out of an Olivia book we have. she rocked it!

then they sang a funny little song with a dance it go with it!

elias took a tumble at the tumble gym and tore his ear open. this is a very bad picture a few days after the accident.

this man turned the big 3-5! yep, you heard it right, he is in his mid to late thirties! we celebrated all day saturday, singing happy birthday after every meal, eating cupcakes at sugarland and homemade cake after dinner. a pink pastel cake, fit for a king. we had breakfast at fosters, walked around the beautiful botanical gardens, had a sushi lunch and grilled out in the evening. ada was so excited for reza's birthday and elias was so upset it wasn't his own!

reza's homemade cake!

easter morning had a lot in store, easter baskets, gifts, an egg hunt, you name it! ada was so excited she got up extra early!

what was the easter bunny thinking, giving this kid a claw!

hanna with her bunny!
the egg hunt!

these two have such a hot-cold relationship!

easter ended with a naked waterslide extravaganza!

hmmm.

these pictures were taken in a matter of seconds. i can't wait to learn more about this little girl! she is sure to keep me on my toes!

today was a rough one.

i mean it.

li was sick, which is never fun. he wanted to be carried everywhere.

ada had a field trip to the life and science museum. i thought it would be fun to stay and let elias play. but like i said, he wanted to be carried the entire time. oh, and scream too. he likes to hear his echo i think.

did you forget that i also have an infant? she likes to be carried too. like, all the time.

hanna was good at the museum though. she impressed everyone.

then we got home and she cried all afternoon.

ada, well, was ada. sweet and sassy.

she doesn't like being the oldest all the time.

especially when elias is "tougher" (her choice of words.)

she is not tough. she tells me this daily.

i hope she gets tougher.

dying easter eggs.

if you don't have vinegar or lemon juice, it is really hard to make them brightly colored.

ada checking the dye.

then, i left for a minute and came back on the porch and the kids were eating the eggs. yep, they peeled them and ate them all by themselves in the matter of minutes. yummy.

hanna was exhausted after our field trip today. i set her down on the couch on the porch and her crying ceased.

ada refused to smile for the camera. then, i asked to to think of the funniest thing she has ever seen. "elias' poop... especially when it is green or blue!" she thought it was hysterical.

sick, but cute.

tomorrow will be better.

Luke Elliott Bass, my new nephew!

yesterday i got to hold my new little nephew, luke, or as ada calls him, lukie.

he is perfect.

he is so absolutely beautiful, peaceful, sweet.

not like my noisy, busy little bundle.

i was a little jealous to be honest.

i can't wait to watch him grow and am so excited that he lives down the road (like 35 minutes!) and my children will grow up with him!

congratulations shannon and brendon!

and here is luke...

shannon and her little boy

and finally, a group photo... hanna looks terrified, and below is why,

most of the pictures looked like this.

WE LOVE YOU BABY LUKE!

jeremiah was a bullfrog!

hodgepodge

once again, time has flown and i have so many things i want to mention! i am foreseeing bullets

- the big bad wolf dance that elias choreographed has now been moved aside so he can focus on his new interest: scubadivers!

- ada got her first "real" haircut! prior to this she has had about four small trims!

- we had a great time in charleston despite the weather and we attended our first oyster roast as a family.

- hanna has grown out of he crying stage! hooray for us! now, sleep...

- baby LUKE has arrived! my little sister shannon gave birth to a 9lb ball of love! we are so excited!

- warmer temps have allowed us to break out the sprinkler!

- our garden is almost planted, loads of tomatoes, zucchini, strawberries, cucumbers, and flowers!

- and, alas, our taxes are ALMOST done! refund time!

spring sure is proving to be lovely!

charleston
oyster roast!

i am pretty sure these two are related!

wild man!

my baby.

sibling love... actually, bribery!
his face is so full of love. i hope nobody ever breaks this kids heart.

three months!

this kid is officially three months! who knew time could pass so quickly. we sang her happy birthday in the morning, then departed the beach and headed to an oyster roast where she slept in the bjorn with a bad cold!