Not Quite Spring...Yet

Aaron LOVES Easter and spring. He gets so excited to see the first Easter eggs of the season. This year he saw Grandma's Easter eggs, squealed with delight--and I knew we would be digging out our Easter decorations VERY soon! It feels good to bring some spring back into our lives. My boys are playing basketball in the driveway again. I've taken Ginger for walks without bundling up first. But March is fickle. One day it's gorgeous outside, and the next day it feels like the middle of winter. So, before we jump into spring with both feet, here are some winter moments we've had around here these last few weeks.

Kaleb and Daddy put together the USS Chicago. Kaleb actually did most of it himself!

 

On one of our snow days we hooked up the sleds to the 4wheelers and had fun
in our own neighborhood! Hopefully our neighbors didn't mind. :)

Don't let this picture fool you. Derek did the driving, I held on, and the kids
took turns on the sleds. Pictured here are Braylen and Aaron on sleds.

Kaleb worked hard to carve out his own snow fort.

Making pizza with Aaron is always an adventure. :)

One day Aaron decided he wanted to do an experiment with all kinds of ingredients.
Good thing baking soda and vinegar are cheap!

I told the boys to build a snowman. When I looked at it I laughed and laughed!
It came up to my knees. :)

On the last day of February, Braylen had his first of two "spring" band concerts. :) Here he is on the snare drum.

I realized that parents of drummers never know what songs they will hear at the concerts. It is always a surprise. :) When Braylen practices his drums at home, "The Sound and the Fury" sounds an awful lot like "The Pink Panther." Or, "I'm a Believer." He did a great job at his concert and we were very proud of him.

Kaleb officially graduated from his piano lessons on February 27th. He took private lessons for 2.5 years, just like Braylen did. We gave him the opportunity to continue, but he chose to be done. I am thankful for the blessing of an incredibly gifted, compassionate teacher. Both Braylen and Kaleb thrived with their teacher, Karah. Aaron continues to take lessons from her, so we're not quite finished yet. :) Some day I hope our boys will look back at their piano lessons and be thankful for them. I truly believe learning to read and play music stretches their minds and spirits in ways only music can.

And that is what we've been up to around here! One more thing before I sign off today. When showing something to Aaron recently, he didn't respond. I could tell he wasn't paying any attention to what I was saying. When I called him on it, he replied, "My eyes were still in my head. I was paying more attention to my thoughts than my eyes." Ha! :)