April.April.

I am so happy to be (FINALLY) posting about April!  At the end of April/beginning of May, we were busy wrapping up the soccer season, and my school work kicked into HIGH gear.  Then. my iPhoto died, and well, some things just take longer than you think.

Easter was the beginning of April this year, and I was so thankful to spend special moments with our boys & our church family.  Hayden had an Easter Egg hunt that I was invited to attend.  I love having those special times to spend with each child.  I loved seeing him in his element, and getting a taste of his daily classroom, as I do each different holiday gathering!

One evening when Daddy was working late (and mommy served an early dinner but was then faced with: What do we do now until bedtime??!?), the boys and I went to DQ for an ice cream cone.  They were so sweet and funny and fun.  My little guy Calvin is looking so big these days, I think I'm just starting to experience when it is like with three little boys.  The looks we received from the other patrons may have bene because they love spider man PJs, or because of how close in age they seem.  It even strikes me as crazy some days, haha!

We decorated for Easter with the boys art work from school taped up on the wall, and some fresh flowers & lace.  We set out our nice plates and make a special dinner in our dining room, just us.  The boys LOVE Easter Egg hunts, and had been practicing hunting empty eggs for about a week for fun.  I let the boys help me put the candy in the eggs & we hunted them on Saturday.

 James made an Easter bunny nose, which was hilarious.  I used it to go 'hide' the eggs as the boys asked.  The 'Easter bunny' did her job!  Also, I cut my hair short-ish again.  I don't love it, but I'm making it work until the next try. haha

On your mark.... get set.... GO!

 I never cease to be amazed at the beauty of the trees in our backyard.  It feels like the Lord's gift to me over&over&over.

Our church had an outdoor service on our property for Easter.  The boys are not quite used to behaving for 'outside church' but they did ok.  We dressed up in our Easter clothes & had a meal together with our church family & the kids hunted eggs together.

Happy Easter from my Prose boys!

Our church has a lovely photographer who attends with us.  She took these next 3 images, and I just love them!  On our to do list: get new family pictures taken with Ingrid!  Check her out... Ingrid Wilson Photography

Calvin at Family Chapel for preschool.  What fun it has been to hear their songs and participate with my sons.  and what a beautiful little chapel.

You can't beat popsicles and 'nap time play dates' for the big guys.

We had a great experience with soccer for our little guys this year.  Hayden even made a really sweet friend on his team.  I think we will have many more seasons in our future!

One of James' favorite things: goalie.  Papa & the cheering section directly behind him!

Hayden scoring a goal!!

James & Hayden love their 'phones' which we collected for them to play their white noise as babies.  After going on so many runs with mom&dad they decided the ear buds are pretty fun.  Seeing them listen to their own 'music' which was Needtobreathe (their favorite!) was just hilarious & adorable & awesome.  "brother let me be your shelter!"

 I laugh at this picture of Hayden & Calvin playing soccer in their rain coats while James actually played a game soaking wet.  I know now, light rain means game on!

I get to love on this sweet little girl every now & then when my boys let me!  Not many things are better than sweet friends, hot coffee, & good reads.  Still working my way through 'Cold Tangerines' but have enjoyed the stories so far, but enjoy a more solidified plotline for most of my reads.  Somehow, I had ended up reading 'collections of stories' in the last 3 books I have been ordering from my wish list.  I hope it ends soon! haha

Hayden.  My jokester.  He decided he needed to dress up for 'Tea and Ties' day at school.  I thought I'd take him picture of his awesome gators & footballs tie, and I captured this. haha

I remember this afternoon I was frustrated.  We just had new grass planted in our backyard, and the sprinklers were running.  The boys asked me if they could run in the water, and I of course said no. Because, wet, dirty, messy, right?  I stopped myself and examined my 'no' and changed my mind.  I read once that you should try to say yes, when there is room.  It wasn't terribly costly for me to give them this gift & endure the mess.  Of course, I wish I could say it was an easy win.  It wasn't.  They then tried to readjust all the sprinklers their sweet daddy had placed and sent their momma off her rocker repeating the instructions 'do not touch'.  Thank you Lord for giving the moments of joy in the midst of struggle, no matter how costly they end up.

 Post-sprinkler dinner.  Naked spaghetti.  I was so close to losing my temper this entire time I remember, but I can't remember why.  I love the image because it doesn't capture my temper.  Lord help me grow and stretch with them as they push all boundaries.

My boy James; I loved watching you play!

We took Grandpa to the Monster Jam for his Christmas gift this year.  The boys had a blast, and we got to experience a country version of Monster Jam instead of the big city one.  The boys liked it, and I think Grandpa did too!

Another fun time with my Hayden: birthday party!  He got to celebrate a friend's birthday from church, which gave us the chance to see him with his church buddies.  These two were the sweetest!

 James is getting ready to head to kindergarten in the fall of this year, and we weren't sure what school would be best.  So we applied for a public charter school which selects by lottery in our county, and he got in!  We were so excited.  His friend Zara got in as well, and we celebrated with smoothies!  We were so thankful for that day.

I can't believe it, but my buddy Calvin is two.  already.  He is such a big boy, and wants to do everything that his brothers do.  He has a fiery temper (no idea where that came from! haha), but is just the sweetest little guy most of the time.  He sings 'twinkle little star' almost every night at bedtime, and still adores his elephant, Elephante.  He's sleeping in his toddler bed, but intermittently waking at night.  I hoping that passes soon!  He's saying new words everyday, and imitating his brothers in what they do & say.

The end of the month our James fell in our playroom and hit his nose on the edge of our train table.  I took him in to get checked out just in case, and luckily, it wasn't too severe.  I still can't believe this guy broke his nose at 5 years old.  I'm already praying the Lord gives me courage for how wild my boys become as they grow.  I feel a little faint of heart, but I am confident the Lord knows what he's doing.

Our sweet, home.  toys & high chairs & party decorations.

 James favorite move: the throw-in-to-myself!  He almost had a goal off of this one too!

Oh the late.night.grading.  I can now drink caffeine at night again and sleep like a baby!  I am grateful for the opportunity to work part time, but it was quite the adjustment from normal.  I'm thankful it was a sprint at the end and not a marathon!

Spring time popsicles.  These boys got comfy in these chairs so I tried to sneak a picture... and then Hayden strikes back!

 Not very often anymore do I have quiet afternoons.  But when I do, I notice the gift!

 Matt worked hard to get our pool in swimming order for these guys who were ready to jump in way before it was warm enough!  These guys waited as patiently, and the day arrived to swim!  After swimming, we sat on the chairs in the driveway to dry off a little more.  I said 'Thank you Lord for the clouds."  James said, "Yes!  Mom we should pray for that.  Dear Jesus thank you for the clouds to help our eyes see. Amen!"

Lord, thank you for the month of April.  Thank you for the soccer & Calvin's birthday & school & Easter.  Thank you for all you've provided and given.  Thank you for sweet prayers & brothers & pictures of joy in the struggle to capture it & hold it tight.  Thank you for restoring my computer images, and for giving me words to write down as our memory book.  Amen.