Easter Weekend

We started Easter weekend off by planting flowers at the temple.  I failed to take any pictures but the girls were really excited and eager to help.  They can't wait to go back and see the flowers in full bloom!

On our way home we stopped by the park to roll Easter eggs. This is a tradition my family did every year.  The family humored me. Kelsey didn't care for it too much as she kept trying to come up the hill, after which she'd fall and loose the contents of her basket. lol.

 We finally let them open the eggs up to reveal the candy inside and the event got a lot better.

 I'm not sure what it is, but Miss Kelsey looks so big in this picture.

After church they found their baskets.

 Hooray! Barbie has swim suits now and no longer skinny-dips in her pool. (remember how a friend gave Rylee a barbie swimming pool for her birthday? Well, Barbie doesn't swim in her ball gown. Problem solved. lol)

 Don't worry, this one changes her clothes multiple times a day. Her most frequently asked question is "Mom, can I wear a church dress even if its not church time?" Answering No is futile. She'd just cry and then change anyway.

 I was not going to get the girls new dresses this year.  They have so much already. But then my Sister-in-law was looking for pattern testers for her dress pattern and I couldn't resist.  Rylee was really excited to pic the fabric out for their dresses.  On our way to the fabric store we were talking all about it and after a moments pause she frantically announced "But Mom!! I don't know how to sew!" "Well, would you like to learn?" "Yea! Mom, could you help me?" "Absolutely".

Funny girl.

She did help.

Oh, how I love my little Family! We're so grateful for our Savior! Because of Him we can be together forever.  Definitely worth celebrating!

Berry Picking

Last week we went up to a local farm to pick strawberries.  It was really fun!  The farm is near Fredericksburg (little German town we visit every now and then) which is about an hour away.  We had a pleasant drive.  Michael introduced Rylee to "the quiet game" which she loved. lol.  We played it probably 10 times each way. too funny.  Then on the way back (we're driving through Hill Country here) she looks out the window and said "Mom, look at this beautiful world!" Yes, it is beautiful.

It was a gorgeous day! Cloudy and a slight breeze so it wasn't too hot. The girls loved it too!

 We picked lots of great strawberries and Michael made loads of jam and I made a pie for Easter.

 our taste-testers

 The beds were raised, it was kind of cool.

We had a fun family day. I'm hoping to go back in few weeks for peaches!!

Bluebonnets

Spring in South Texas is pretty awesome. The roads are lined with wildflowers most of which is the state flower: Bluebonnets (not to be confused with bluebells a different flower or delicious Texas made ice cream)

One of these years I'll get some professional family pictures taken in them, for now we'll just use my point and shoot. Many people literally pull over on the freeway, but there are a couple more secluded fields that are slightly less dangerous.  We happened to be doing the kids club craft at Home Depot and walked to the flowers in the neighboring lot.

The girls loved picking and smelling them.  And I actually caught Kelsey with a smile :) Even if its a strained "cheese!" smile. I'll take it! I wish they'd stick around longer.

Obsessed with Frozen

Shocker! My girls love the movie Frozen. Its currently the most watched DVD in the house, and they are told they can't watch it A LOT. The other day Rylee asked if I would do her hair like Elsa. You mean you are asking me to braid your hair?? ABSOLUTELY! Her one request was it needed to touch her neck. haha.

 It was so fun! I've done similar before, but she's never kept it in more than a few hours.

 After being Elsa for a few days we decided to change it up and go with Ana's du.

Everyone in the house has an alter-ego from the movie.  Rylee is Elsa, Kelsey is Ana, Daddy is Christoff and I am Hans. She will literally go several hours where she only responds to "Elsa" and only calls Michael Christoff.  Its kindof endearing. Michael does an excellent job playing along, more so than I. I'll admit its pretty funny to hear Kelsey call me Hans. lol.

And here's a little video. Sorry, the first part is really quiet then it gets really loud. I tried to fix it, but to be honest, I didn't try hard.

chillin'

Just a little life update. The girls both snuggled up to me while we watched conference all last weekend.  It was kinda nice.  Though, their both being Momma's girls occasionally backfires. I love the snuggles though.

 I can't help but love finding the many faces of Rylee on my phone: silly girl.

{8} Brazo Bend SP

I'm sure you're beginning to wonder if our vacation ever really ended. I figured the more blog posts I can stretch it into the longer it will be that I have to come back to real life. . . . .something like that.  We really had a nice time. Thanks again Poc and Nana!

Well, the week had come to an end, we packed up and waited for Poc and Nana to come back from dropping Auntie off at the airport before we got on the road.  We decided to stop by Brazo Bend State Park on our way home.  They had a nice little visitors center and a baby alligator we could see/touch/learn about.

Kelsey's "you actually think I'm going to touch that?" look.

 They had a display of alligator/crocodile sculls to compare. You pushed the button and their mouths opened.  The kids had fun playing.

They also had a big "touch table" they had some neat stuff, turtle, armadillo shells, horns, snake skins etc etc.

 We drove around the park and stopped at a lake.  There is a path all around and we were told a Mother alligator lived nearby and could often be spotted carrying her babied on her back.  We decided to not put off the remainder of our drive home any longer and opted not searching.  We did walk out to the fishing dock and saw a couple alligators close by.

 We carefully disobeyed the warnings and had the girls turn their backs to the alligator for a picture.  There were rowdy teenage boys around who would have been a much more delicious lunch than these sweet things :)

We figured we'd seen enough and headed home.  I may or may not already planning another trip to the beach again soon. 

Freeport {7} strange souvenirs

Michael's sister is currently living in Japan teaching English.  We were very excited to learn she would be visiting the states and was planning to come to Texas with her daughter and the rest of us.  Of course she brought souvenirs for the cousins.  The little ones got cute toy bags and the older ones got doughnut making kits.

We opened the box and found color coded packets and a plastic compartmentalized container. Autie would translate the instructions and we'd help the kids follow the directions. Each packet contained a power that we mixed with water then like play-dough formed into a ball and pushed into the doughnut shaped form and let it sit where it then hardened while me mixed the next batch up. and then proceeded to frost and add sprinkles or 'crunchies'.

A bit strange, yes. But, Apparently these boxes are readily available in Japan.

 The 'dough' is pressed into the form here:

 Rylee did an excellent job decorating. They do look like doughnuts.

The  taste resembled a doughnut too.

 no complaints from the kids.  Rylee even tried to lick the frosting off her arm. lol.

Well, if making a memory was the mission, consider it accomplished. We can't wait for the next powder to food concoction we can mix up the next time we're together! :) Thanks for taking the time to bring and do something unique.