Our schedule picked up in March with the addition of Little League to our regular busy schedule. For a few weeks we juggled ballet, swimming, OMSI class, baseball, art class, Cub Scouts, and Trackers all at the same time. Needless to say, it was a relief when classes started to end!
On top of all of the kids' activities, I got a new calling in Young Women at church. We went from basically having our evenings free to being gone almost every evening until 7:00 or 8:00. It took a lot of concentration and a few breakdowns to adjust to the new schedule and to somehow fit dinner and schoolwork into it!
Oh, and I turned 35 somewhere in all the craziness. I received some new gym clothes and a pizza for dinner, which was exactly what I wanted.
The kids are still cute. They were all dressed in primary colors so we had to take a picture. It's nice that they love each other.
Lily worked on a ballet adaptation of Alice and Wonderland for about three months. On the last day of class we got to watch her perform. She is getting so graceful and intentional about her dancing. It's always a delight to watch, especially since she enjoys it so much.
Clara was a real trooper since she was the one who was getting hauled everywhere without the fun of participating in any of the activities. I decided that Portland rainwater must run in her veins. She doesn't ever seem to be cold or to mind the rain. She'll jump through puddles, large and small, and wears her beanie everywhere she goes. As long as she has her rain boots, she doesn't want a jacket most days. While the rest of us find refuge in the car, she prefers to slop through puddles and welcome the rain.
For the past year or so Tommy has taken sewing lessons. He has really enjoyed making things out of cloth and learning how the sewing machine works. This month all those lessons finally paid off and he sat down to happily mend a pile of our clothes! I trust him more than anyone to repair my clothes since he is so careful and meticulous. Thanks, Buddy!
Grammy came to visit during Spring Break. Ben had a little surgery to prevent the formation of any more baby Chattertons, so it was nice to have Grammy there to help out with the kids while I took care of Ben.
While Grammy watched Clara I enlisted Tommy's and Lily's help to wash
the deck in preparation for later staining. They are fantastic workers
and scrubbed all the grime out of that deck like pros.
The girls are obsessed with PJ Masks. When Grammy came she brought
dress ups for the girls, who flew, climbed, and ran around our house
with their special powers. They roped me into the fun, too.
We had our annual homeschool Easter party, which is always so much fun. The kids got to play games, make crafts, and pet real life bunnies, in addition to playing with their cute friends.
That night, we continued our Easter fun at home by dyeing Easter eggs. It was super stressful for me with Clara there, eager to participate. She can be kind of a bull in a China shop. Grammy was Clara's personal assistant, which I am grateful for.
The next morning, we headed to a close-in Portland neighborhood for an Easter egg hunt with friends. We followed a giant bunny on a motorcycle to where the eggs were all hidden. The toddlers got to start a few minutes before the big kids so that they had enough time to gather some eggs.
Once the big kids were released the eggs got found very quickly!
Everyone had fun opening up their eggs to discover the surprise candy inside.
One unfortunate things that happened during Grammy's visit was that her air bed sprung a leak. Once it was clear that we wouldn't be able to repair the leak, we decided to have some fun with it. I filled it up and let the kids jump on it until it lost all the air, then we filled it up again and again. They had a great time! By the time I hauled the bed out to the trash the hole was bigger than my fist!
