Thursday, April 12, 2012

spring so far


spring has been a whirlwind of activities and weather. my mom and becky took the boys to washington dc for spring break. they made some great memories and saw more sights than i thought possible for a weeklong trip. while grant was gone the weather was cold and rainy-so the girls and i tried to make the most of some indoor activities. i was wishing i had the energy to take them on  a mini vacation or even to the zoo-but a a big worm, puddles, and bubbles would have to do :)

 we finally were able to plant some fruit trees-hopefully in 2-3 years we will have apples, cherries and pears-
bobby worked very hard to get them all planted before the week of rain-
 and then the weather turned super warm. 90 degree warm. our old inflatable water slide is now demoted to a tarp because of the holes the mice chewed in it-
so the new idea for hot days is this primitive water slide. i bought a roll of 10ftx100ft plastic sheeting and the kids helped roll it down the hill, secure it will plastic stakes and then add water and dishsoap. they had a great time for 3-4 hours. the only injury was a sunburn-next time we will need to figure out a way to speed up the slide that doesn't involve washing away the sunscreen :)
 and one of my favorite things about the coming of spring is the beautiful evenings. after dinner we can go outside and play, eat popsicles and enjoy the greenness and amazing light.

we said goodbye to tony a few days ago. it was our first official pet funeral.  i didn't take any pictures of that, but as i was going through pictures i had forgotten i'd taken this picture of him a week or so before he got really sick. he was our first farm cat. 

baby is due to arrive in 12 days now. it is both exciting and scary to think about how our lives will be changed. i remember when i was pregnant with emily how i was so unsure about how love can expand to fit more than one child. i know now that it happens without a thought. automatically the love fills the spaces. i know it will happen like that again and that it will start as soon as i see his little face and toes and fingers. it is all the other parts that still feel scary. how will i do with all the lack of sleep? how will i get everyone to bed? how will i feed and bathe them all? 
but, it is also easy to feel so amazed at this opportunity and can't wait to see what awaits-