Easter....a little late!

Well, I know that I am a little late in posting some Easter photo's but we can't seem to escape our busy lifestyle. And since my last post we have added some home repairs to the long list of "to dos" and activities which has included a leak in the shower pan of Cody's shower. This leak was discovered only after our neighbors downstairs (we live in a high rise condo) reported that water was dripping from one of their smoke detectors. Oh, the joys of condo living! Cody's shower is now torn apart and we are awaiting the delivery of tile to get him back in business with regards to showering. Don't worry, he has been showering in our shower much to all of our relief. I am sure that life will continue to run at the speed of light for the next couple of months so I will post as often as I can for those who like to check in with us.

We are doing good and are looking forward to Spring Break next week. We have no plans other than to do some day trips to the local attractions and have lazy mornings. Cody is enjoying Upward Basketball and once again has an AWESOME coach and for the first year the boys seem to really be playing as a team. We are having a blast going to the games and they are really quite intense. Of course the girls love to play on the bleachers and socializing with all the parents. Grace is LOVING gymnastics and is doing amazingly well. We think that we have found her niche. Her balance is incredible and boy can this girl perform on the bar. I am envisioning lots of future hours at the gym and I can't wait. Emily is eager to join in on the gymnastics fun and given her flexibility she too will probably be a natural at gymnastics. We had a check up with her orthopedic surgeon on Tuesday and he said that her feet look absolutely fantastic. He couldn't be more pleased and said he didn't want to see us for another year...YAY!!!! Emily is just absolutely delightful. She brings such joy to everyone she meets. Just yesterday while we were ordering tile for Cody's bath she and Grace were entertaining everyone in the store including a large group of rough looking male tile installers with their singing, twirling and dazzling smiles. We left to waves and big smiles on everyones faces. Our sales lady told me that my girls had brought more happiness into their shop in one hour than she had felt in her 5 years of working there and thanked me for bring them in. I am so thankful that I have the opportunity to share God's light with others through my children. I love it that they are beautiful examples of the miracle's of God and evidences of His love. I am continually amazed at how far Emily has come in the year that she has been with us. She had absolutely no reservations in engaging perfect strangers yesterday. And the love that she and Grace have for each other frequently brings tears to my eyes as I am reminded of how difficult the early months were for Grace. Emily's unique personality continues to blossom and become more refined and each day I look at her with thankfulness as I think of how she has blessed our family and how beautiful it is to see her become all that God wants her to be. I hope and pray that I always provide that fertile ground for all of my children to grow into God's perfect design.

I am posting some Easter pictures as well as some of Cody's BBall pictures, a picture of Grace just before we went to a fundraiser for a friend launching his campaign for our US Representative (love those chances for the girls to wear their flag dresses) and another picture of Emily twirling in a beautiful dress which was a gift from our neighbors. Easter was a little low key this year. I just didn't have much energy to "go all out" which was just fine in that we enjoyed the simplicity of celebrating Resurrection Day. I was late in searching for Easter dresses for the girls and was delighted to find some cute dresses at Target and much to Mike's happiness they were far less expensive than the ones I had wanted from Strasburg. Of course Easter service at church was packed but was a glorious celebration of Christ's Resurrection. We then enjoyed a wonderful late afternoon meal at my sister's house who by the way, is expecting her third child in July and we just found out that it is a GIRL YAY!!!! The kids enjoyed hunting Easter eggs and the adults had fun watching and of course the food was YUMMY! The weather was perfect as we relaxed around my sister's pool while having dessert. It was the perfect ending to a great day. I hope that you all enjoyed Happy Easter's and that you are looking forward to a wonderful Spring!