A photo post to distract from the fact I haven't written in 2 months...

So.  2 months.  

First, I went to Ohio.  Alone.  Well, with the 3 kids...but no Jeff.  It was actually easy (until the ride home...but whatev's).  And then my wonderful in-laws watched the kids while I went down to Cincinnati to help my parents pack up their house.  They have now moved to their new house in Columbus where both my sisters live.  

Next, there was the yearbook project.  Hours upon hours of computer time spent begging parents and teachers for pictures, creating pages and formatting pictures, and then there's all the trips to the school to take pictures that were needed.

Someone will not be volunteering to do yearbook again.

And then...just as the yearbook was submitted (April 29th!), I got a call last Tuesday, that my very good friend Alwyn (mother of Michael's co-birthday party buddy) has cancer.  Stage IV rectal cancer.  At the age of 40.  So the last week has sent me reeling...and given me 4 children instead of 3 as I watched Michael's friend, and cooked her family meals, and did lots of computer searching about her cancer while she went to a million different doctor's appointments.  I am still processing this whole thing.

But I have pictures!  And not just of random children in random classrooms from a random school in PA.  

So enjoy!  Here's what we've been up to...

Softball!  Lily has started this spring...and she doesn't actually have very many games because not very many girls signed up for t-ball.  But she got a really cute uniform, and seems to just love it.  Even after she got hit with a ball in the thigh (ouch) and the top of her foot (ouch!  and why mom told her to put shoes on...ahem...)

We've been trying to learn chess.  Actually, since this picture was taken, Michael has totally lost interest.  Shocker.

The children's choir sang at church.  Not sideways.  But I am not spending the time to figure out how to flip this picture.  So you can turn your head.  ;)

We had Easter.  After a marathon drive home from Ohio, where Lily and Michael and I were sick with fevers, coughs, and general malaise.  No barfing.  So that was good.  But Michael didn't eat any candy out of his basket for 3 days!!!  I almost called 911 on the 3rd day, but he choked down a Peep...and then devoured the rest in less than a week.

 The Easter bunny always hides the eggs outside...no matter how cold or wet it is.  What a dumb tradition.  Who thought of that?

Michael and Jeff tried out the Home Depot project.  Michael wasn't feeling good that day, so it was a little anti-climatic.  We will have to try again.

Andrew has started lacrosse.  It's a lot more serious this spring...2 practices and a game each week.  He LOVES it...and he's actually holding his own on a team of 3rd and 4th graders.  He's been asked to join a summer tournament team.  The boy who used to dramatically fall down and wince at every little injury is getting checked in the head, and stepped on with cleats, and shooting goals (2 out of 4 for his team one game, and the only non-travel team kid to score in another) and pumping fists and having a grand time.  He's just found his sport, I think.

Michael turned 5...for real.  After 2 birthday parties (on with his friends and one in Ohio with grandparents), it was time to finally finish the birthday month.  But I think I love 5 year olds most of all.  It was so cute how excited he was to be FIVE!  and how much more he could do because he was FIVE and how he spent all his time telling random strangers that he was FIVE!

May is the season of performances...Mother's Day, spring, etc.  Andrew's was last week...the entire 3rd grade performed the Star Spangled Salute.  It was really cute to hear them all singing patriotic songs and reciting poems (yawn) and all the rest.

The kids have really been enjoying climbing our little Japanese maple tree in the front.  It isn't so little anymore, I guess. :)

And then last Sunday, Lily had her dance recital.  The video is priceless.  ;)  Here are some shots from before and after the performance.  Slicking her hair back just made her look so much older!

Okay.  I'll try and make it less than 2 months.  There are so many cute stories that happened and now I won't be able to remember them in 5 years, because I haven't written them down.  Must do this for myself if noone else :)