Easter, Snow and Puppies = Spring Break!

Decorating eggs is such a great tradition... so staining and messy and fun!! This year we tie-dyed, which worked well, we thought. We dunked string and wrapped eggs with dye and I made a couple concentrated colors for adding splotches with cloth bits. All of Camten's eggs were green. All of Trinity's eggs were orange... because the orange coloring was in the pink cup. All of Aidan's eggs were blue - light blue, dark blue, blue stripes, blue splotches - he was very creative. Shad chose red primarily, but dabbled artistically and helped me keep an eye on the little ones... "Mom, Trinity's got the scissors!" She can find scissors however I hide them out of eyesight.

While I was boiling eggs, I played on the computer and the kids ran in circles - I can't remember if we were playing Monster Trucks at the time (I think)? After a short while (or so it seemed to me) Aidan complained of a weird stink. Then Shad asked what that smell could be?! I woke up out of some deeply important email to wander out to the kitchen and see what they were talking about. Multiple kids help absent-minded Moms - I mean, one kid complaining of something is just background noise, but two is worth investigating. This was definitely worth investigating. Apparently I'd allowed all the water to boil away and the eggs were burning to the bottom of the pan! And they sure did stink!!! I was so sad to throw a whole batch away that I saved them for 10 minutes, but it was just too overwhelming. I dumped them out, took out the garbage and aired out the house. So... boiled eggs ARE burnable, and we suggest that it's best to not dot it.
Well, burning a batch of boiled eggs let to another predicament... not very many eggs. I have always tried to bring as many eggs to Grandpa and Grandma's as I'd like to bring home, and since most get "loved", more is better. Besides, they're so fun to decorate! But running to the store for some more eggs is really quite complicated. It takes a certain amount of energy and organization to get four children in the car all wearing coats and shoes... and then unload them at the store without bringing in extra toys or having sudden bathroom urges (still wearing coats and shoes)... and then get someone in a grocery cart and keep track of the rest without yelling too loudly or running into any other shoppers... and then find the eggs and ONLY the eggs and hopefully get in a SHORT line at the checkout... then buy ONLY the eggs without losing anyone while typing in debit card code... then get all four back out to the van, SAFELY crossing the parking lot and get everyone buckled back in, making sure we still have all the shoes and coats we came with... AND THEN it's a downhill slide to home. I don't usually have much trouble driving and arriving home, and I don't care who still has on shoes, etc, since I can take them all piggy-back in the house, if necessary.
All that to say I opted on NOT going to the grocery store for some more eggs. What else could I use? How 'bout any of these many, many plastic eggs splayed all over the house?! So I thought to myself. I pulled out the Easter Stash, which was all the way in the back bedroom, and therefore STILL STOCKED, amazingly, and filled some plastic eggs to fill the cuota. As it turned out, the little mini-Chips Ahoy were a hit! Um, yea! That's what I meant... brilliant idea. Yea.
Snow is always a hit at our house. It's so pretty and feels like God's Mercy or Love or something amazing... except after Easter! Snow over Spring Break was weird!! Over and over and over and over... it's snowed a few times today. Really weird. But definitely memorable! And the kids take such great pictures in snow. I totally didn't allow them to eat it, but I couldn't stop laughing, either, which didn't help my demands to stop!

Aidan made a huge snowball to get Shad with... I found Shad hiding...
Shad and Camten look sooooo alike.

Trinity's so bubbly and full of fun energy. She loves snow as much as Camten and Aidan. They don't care if they get cold and only come in after some part of them is totally icy and they're shivering all over. Happily for me, we got there quicker in the slushy stuff! (Alright... since I'm admitting stuff today... what happened was, I told everyone they could go outside as soon as I took a shower. That way I could watch them better, so I thought. Aidan was ready before I was even dressed, and Camten needed lots of help to get his fingers in the gloves and socks on his feet, etc, so there I was getting Trinity ready with my hair still wrapped up in a towel. And after letting her go outside it dawned on me that I couldn't stay inside and fix my hair NOW... I had to keep an eye on Trinity! I threw on some shoes, a coat and grabbed my camera and headed out with soaking wet hair. So... that's why I was relieved we weren't staying outside all morning. Now you know. I suppose that explains why I'm not in the pictures, too.)

Our little puppies are already 5 weeks old! They are sooooo cute and run wobbling out the bathroom door whenever I open it to let Diamond out. Sniffers in particular is quite set on getting out and playing with the kids as often as possible. She will cry and scratch at the door in hopes I'll think she "needs" to play. Trinity is quite compassionate and will open the door for her, which catches me by surprise. Trinity LOVES the puppies... everyone loves them, but Trinity LOVES them! She's especially likes Cent, the quieter one, because she'll sit in Trin's lap. I can't tell if the puppy is having as much fun as Trin, or she just can't escape. She doesn't complain, so I don't interfere over-much. (Well, I did step in with the pick-up-puppy-by-the-neck trick. I stop the play-with-back-leg trick, too. Besides that, I mean, I don't interfere.) These two puppies will make great pets when they're ready to find homes in a few weeks... and we'll be more than ready!! (Ok, I'm NOT explaning that. Just suffice to say that we're enjoying them a-plenty, but it's ok to go potty-train somewhere else. Life seems ALL about poo sometimes. Camten is doing well, and Trinity's giving potty-training a try, too, so I feel like I'm cleaning lots of accidents... and then add puppies trapped in the bathroom.... seriously, we need a barn for this kind of thing! Now I've totally said too much. I'm going to watch a movie. G'nite!)

Some Fun

Puppies!

We are proud to introduce Diamond's gorgeous tiny PUPPIES!!!



They were born on February 23rd.

Two little girls, Cent and Sniff. We haven't given them official names, exactly, but our kids are creative for discussing purposes. Of course!!! :-)

Diamond is such a wonderful Momma... I try not to stress her out too much with the camera while they're so little... so more pictures to come later! Yes, the one puppy is hiding under the cupboard... it must be a warm, snuggly place. The family has currently taken over the back bathroom, so Trinity and Camten have discovered the joys of showering! This is a great retreat for the dog family away from the curious cats. The peacocks come to visit out the bathroom door. They hung out all the first day like storks or a congratulating committee, or something.

Hop On Pop or Four on One

Ha! This is one of our kids favorite games of all time. Wrestling Daddy!!!

Anyone who's talked with Jeremy might have heard a story, might have heard his "no fear" attitude that would make him take on his four kids all at the same time.

He never admits that they've won, either, although he did point out that Trinity has an important role...

She often pins his head or gets in the way of the rough boys so Daddy must protect her. It's part of the Amstrong Kids' plan.


Then Aidan can poke Dad in the belly-button. He's fearless, too.

Camten's laugh is infectious... we all laugh just hearing him laugh!

Shad directs the attack with pricision.

The slippery cardboard was a perfect surface. After wearing Daddy out, they practiced breakdancing 'til Dad and Mom where ready for an impromptu Quiet Time!! :-)