Happy Easter!

I like to get a group photo of the kids occasionally. It's very nice when everyone cooperates.

But for every image where that happens, I have several that look more like this.

I'm grateful for digital cameras. And for funny pictures. We had a lovely Easter. It was a warm, sunny day. All the Easter baskets were on the breakfast table and the kids had some candy while waiting for our cinnamon rolls and bacon to be ready. We rounded out breakfast with some of our colored eggs and fruit salad.
The Easter church service is a favorite every year. Our choir opens with the same song almost every year and the hymns are accompanied by the organ.
We were home for lunch and naps and then went to my parents' house for an egg hunt and some remote control car racing. And a turkey dinner.

Moving the Olds

Mark has and Oldsmobile Ninety-Eight that isn't running at this time. It needed to get over to our new house. His original plan was to have a friend tow it on a car hauler, but no one in town would rent him one to move that model of car. So he hired a local towing company for not much more than the price of renting a trailer. We had the nicest tow-truck driver come for the job.

He encouraged Henry operate the hydraulics and move the tow truck.

He let the kids into the cab to blast the horn and operate various levers and buttons.

We can't say enough nice things about Mr. Paul.

Coloring Easter eggs

The big kids are getting good at this so the process feels less stressful even though there is more happening at once. 

 Nora made a solid colored egg in each available color.

The finished product always looks so cheerful.

 Happy eggs for lunches.

Wallpaper and paint

We said good-bye to all the wallpaper and borders as quickly as we could.

The cedar planks and curtains came down.

We hired painters to come and paint almost everything. They painted ceilings, closets, bathrooms, doors, and the walls in much of the house. It made such a difference and was so much faster than trying to do it ourselves. All the trim was painted white.

 

After the painting was done, we had the carpets cleaned and everything was ready for moving in.

The new house

Here it is empty. We closed last week and the old owners moved out over the weekend. This was the first time the kids got to see the inside. This will be the master bedroom.

 The dining room looking toward the front of the house. This was part of an addition in the 1990s.

 The home's original dining room.

We would like to update the kitchen.

We will enjoy having the fireplace.

We will use this as an office/playroom. It might be a room that the girls share when they are older.

Baby sweater

Her Great Aunt Eila made Camilla this sweater.

 It's beautiful and has fit perfectly this spring.

She always gets compliments on it.

And now she's managed to get those pesky shoes and socks off, so life is better.

Cooking dinner

My intentions are usually better than my execution for having kids help in the kitchen, but every once in a while I notice that they have learned something. Henry topped the pizza while the girls helped whip the cream for our first butterscotch pie.

Having more than one child helping didn't feel overwhelming. I constantly forget that they get more capable. (And would be even more so if I had them help more often.)

We also learned that we prefer butterscotch pudding to this pie.

Potholders

The kids got a potholder loom for Christmas and have been taking turns making potholders. Nora's first one, made Christmas Day, went to Anja and Liisa. This one Nora made for Cynnie.

Henry wanted to make a pinwheel design.

I help finish the edges but they choose the colors and do the rest of the work.

Idaho : Birthday celebrations, cousins, crafts

Our travel day was a little shorter this trip because Grandma Irene was visiting a new great-grandchild in Arizona. We missed having dinner with her.
When we got to Grandma's house Helena was given some birthday gifts. A book, finger puppets, and a fantastic red cape sewed by Grandma. It's going to get a lot of use in their make-believe play.

We made our usual visit to the library for story time. And it was craft day so the kids got to make a tissue paper fish. We also checked in on the live fish in the library and saw the fattest koi.  
Aunt Jennifer organized a birthday party for the little girls and Mark. Millie loved her birthday tiara.

She opened presents like a pro.

 Birthday buddies.

 Balloons and the cakes that Jennifer made.

 Aunt Maryann is always a favorite with the kids.

 Aunt Becky arranged a serious crafting session. They are decorating picture frames.

Henry is pretty sure he needs a tablet just like cousin Tony.

Grandma Irene joined us for one night, it was so good to see her again.

A busy and fun trip.