Happy Easter

Along with all the flowers, blossoms, dresses. We are so happy to celebrate Easter. It was so nice to listen to conference, do our resurrection eggs, and try to focus on the Savior this past week. It's so easy to get caught up in the commercial part of Easter, with all the candy, eggs, and the Easter bunny. I really wanted to make sure we paid extra attention to the real reason we celebrate Easter. I love that our church likes to focus more on the Savior's resurrection instead of just his death. To KNOW that he lives again and that because of him we will too. This knowledge brings so much peace and happiness.

Spring Break in Myrtle Beach

A great deal, some days off, the beach, what a perfect combo. We were in need of some R&R and what better place to get that then the off season at the beach. We didn't have to fight crowds, we had the beach to ourselves, and traffic was minimal. Growing up, this is one of the beaches we went to as a family. It was fun to go there with my own little family this time.


The favorite activity on the trip had to be combing the beach for shells. Cora loves to look for them and has quite a collection. She and my Mom could spend all day looking for shells if we'd let them.


Myrtle beach is in South Carolina but is really close to the border of North Carolina. There is a little town called Calabash right near the border and it is famous for their seafood spreads. They also have restaurants down in SC so of course we had to go partake. A buffet of Shrimp, crablegs, and every imaginable seafood dish. I was in heaven.
This is Cora looking a little crabby @ the Giant Crab Calabash. She was done taking pictures I think.

All in all we had a wonderful time. Our little taste of summer in spring.

Meeting in Madison, GA

The best thing about living in Georgia right now is that my sister's husband is also stationed in GA at FT Benning. I'm always trying to think of when we can get together and what our next adventure will be. Her husband plays in the Army band and was going to be traveling for the week, so she and my nephews decided to come for the weekend. We thought it would be fun to take a little field trip. We found a little town called Madison, GA about an hour and a half from Augusta.

Visiting this quaint little southern town almost made us feel like we were stepping back in time. Madison is famous for it's collection of restored Pre-Civil War and Victorian homes. Another name for these homes are antebellum homes. The restored down town square is like stepping onto a set of a movie. There is a big courthouse that stands right at the corner of the town square. It was so fun to look at all of the blossoming trees,and cute little shops along the way. We didn't have a lot of time for our walking tour, but we did get to go in an awesome toy shop, a stained glass store, and walked past a very unique antique store called Attic Treasure. Of course w. our time being short we went to the only restaurant in town w. only one server and the slowest kitchen I have ever seen. They didn't even have a kids menu. Of course as soon as we walk out we see the pizza place w. slices for $1.50. That would have been a better fit w. our time constraints, but we crossed the street at the wrong crosswalk and didn't notice it till we were finished at the other place. Just our luck.
Lucky for the kids we spotted a playground and headed in that direction on our walking tour. All in all we adored the little town of Madison. I hope to return and maybe read all the historical signs next time. ;)

Things I've Learned Since I've been 5

Cora really has achieved so much this past year. She turned 5 years old last June and since then has learned how to:

-Ride her bike without training wheels
-Swing on the swing without anyone pushing
-Dive off the diving board @ the McChord pool and Grandma's pool
-Touch the bottom of Grandma's pool in the 8 FT
-Reading all by herself, 1st 2 books: Green Eggs and Ham, Cat In The Hat
(I love that these were some of the first books I learned to read too)
-Tie her shoes all by herself
-Started playing soccer and scored a goal
-Will swim on our neighborhood swimteam next month

Sorry if this seems like one of those parent brag posts, it's more for our memories and everything she has accomplished in just this last year. Definitely a year of firsts that we want to remember. I'm so proud of you Cora.

My Co-Pilot

This has been an interesting year full of change. With Cora in full day kindergarten Shay and I have missed her terribly during the day. I do have to say I never thought I would have that special one on one time with Shay the way I did with Cora. During Darryl's 1st year long deployment it was just Cora and I and I called her my little co-pilot. This year I've been able to have that same special time with Shay. I look at Cora's schedule now with school, friends, and teachers, getting to see almost more of her than we do. I realize that time with her is precious and something I treasure more than I can express.
Lately Shay has been so much fun to run errands with and be my model when I want to practice taking pictures. I'm surprised she doesn't run the other way when I break out the camera with all of the pictures I've been taking lately. I do need to spend more time with her on her ABC's and 123's. It's just so much fun to have fun that sometimes it gets put on the backburner. She is saying the cutest things, she is so mellow, and she is such a snuggler. I will miss this special time with my girls when they are both in school. Thank goodness we still have the summer, then I get to enjoy more of both of them.