Easter

For Easter this year, Dave had to play guitar at our church and my dad had to play piano/trumpet at my parents' church, so we celebrated together as a family at our house on Saturday.  It was only our second time making the Easter meal--the first was during the covid shutdown when we stayed home and had our own meal.  The ham turned out perfect, and we had fun with some cascarones that my parents had brought home from Texas.  We were sad that we weren't able to spend any time with Dave's family, because his dad was still not doing well at the time.

Easter morning, Dave was up and out of the house early for band practice before the three services.  The girls and I attended the late service, and then we ended up spending the afternoon and having dinner with the Pakiz family, since they had also celebrated Easter with their family on Saturday.  

These three are like sisters!

So thankful for the "framily" that we are!

Abby turns 14!

For the first time ever, I was gone on Abby's birthday, but we made sure to celebrate before and after my girls' trip.  First, Abby had her good friend Olivia over to hang out and sleep over.  I wish I had gotten more pictures of them, but I only have this one of them playing some fun games:

Abby was happy to open presents a few days early:

We celebrated with my parents at Dave & Buster's (something Abby wanted to do for her birthday in 2020 when everything was canceled).  I didn't take any pictures, but we had a great time!  

With her friend, Kira, I picked up the girls from school and took them up to Sky Zone.  The girls had a blast jumping and we picked up Chipotle on the way home at Abby's request.

At 14 years old, Abby is quiet, does well in school, loves horses and making jewelry with clay beads, enjoys helping in the nursery at church, and is usually pretty cooperative and helpful at home.  She had her 14-year check up and was in the 13th percentile for weight (90 lbs.) and the 48th percentile for height (5 ft., 3 in.).  I can't believe she will be a high schooler this fall!  😭

Abby's 14-year interview

Favorite color:  light blue or sage green

Least favorite color:  brown

Favorite book:  Out of my Mind

Favorite fruit:  watermelon

Favorite vegetable:  carrots

Favorite tv show:  Heartland

Favorite movie:  Cruella
Favorite animal:  dog or horse

Favorite food:  enchiladas or pasta

Favorite school lunch:  pizza

Favorite thing to wear:  leggings and big sweatshirts

Favorite snack:  Goldfish

Favorite zoo animal:  zebra

Best friends:  Kira, Addy P., Addy R., Olivia, Bailey, Lilly K., Lilly B., JoJo

Favorite cereal:  Apple Jacks

Favorite drink:  Peace Tea

Favorite thing to do with Mommy:  play games

Favorite thing to do with Daddy:  wrestle

Favorite thing to do with Norah:  play games

Favorite thing to do with Sadie:  snuggle

Favorite store:  Vera Bradley

Favorite toy:  American Girl dolls or Barbies

Favorite game:  Rat a Tat Cat

Favorite song:  "Heat Waves"

Favorite thing to do outside:  basketball

Favorite holiday:  Christmas

What I want to be when I grow up:  horse trainer or optometrist or marine biologist

What makes me happy:  hanging out with friends and family

What makes me sad:  when I have to take seeing and hearing tests at the doctor

What I like about Daddy:  he's weird

What I like about Mommy:  she's nice

What I like about Norah:  she's nice

What I like about Sadie:  when she growls at me when I say goodnight

Now that I'm 14:  I get to go to high school

Norah's 4th grade concert

After two years of canceled music programs for Norah, it was so fun to be able to attend her 4th grade concert this spring.  They did a great job, and Norah even was in a small group that showcased recorder skills that the kids had learned.  

Norah loves her buddy Sophie from daycare/church!

Norah in her classroom

Texas Girls' Trip--Day 3 (Forth Worth Stockyards)

For our last full day of the trip, we went to the Dallas Farmer's Market, since it was open on Saturday mornings.  Then, we drove to the Forth Worth Stockyards.  We walked around a bit and decided to go to Joe T. Garcia's for lunch.  The wait was crazy long, but the atmosphere was worth it once we were seated--it's all outdoor seating in a huge courtyard with beautiful fountains and greenery.  The food was delicious!

Back at the stockyards, we were just in time to see the cattle drive.  We even go to take turns sitting atop a bull.

For the rest of our time at the stockyards, we did some shopping, listened to some music to give our feet a break, and attempted to join a ghost tour (we gave up and left the group a little ways in, because it was too ridiculous).  Visiting the stockyards was definitely a unique experience!

Texas Girls' Trip--Day 2 (Dallas)

On our second full day in Texas, we spent the day exploring Dallas.  We started the morning trying to go to the Dallas Farmer's Market, but realized it wasn't open that day, so we went to the Deep Ellum neighborhood to see some of the neat murals.  We also had a yummy lunch of Mexican food on a rooftop of a restaurant.

In the afternoon, we took a trolley tour and had ice cream at a park downtown, then drove past the plaza where JFK was assassinated.  We also walked across a long pedestrian bridge with some views of the city.

We had a delicious dinner back at Deep Ellum at the Pecan Lodge (amazing BBQ!).

 After supper, we had reservations to ride up to the top of the Reunion Tower for sunset views.  The views of the Dallas skyline were pretty amazing!