Ryan's Baptism

Since Jason was gone Ryan had to wait a whole extra 4 months before he got baptized. Now the wait was over. Grandma and Grandpa Morrow came out for the occasion and since it was Easter weekend we celebrated that together too. Oh, and the girl's birthdays. They managed to sneak that it there with a shopping trip to the Mall with Grandma. It was a fun-filled, action-packed, wonderful weekend!
Ryan's baptism was nice. It was a special day!Lunch at the Spaghetti Factory to celebrate.Funny thing about this picture is my shirt is inside out. I didn't notice until I got into bed that night. I can't believe no one told me. I walked around like that all day! Dyeing Easter EggsLots of Games-Loot, Chess, Spoons.On their last night Kelsey, Kate and I headed to the hotel for a Girls Night with grandma while grandpa came to the house for a Boy's Night. We took over our P.J.s and any goodies we could find and stayed up late playing games. I'm not sure what the boys did, but it couldn't have been more fun than this. Check out Kelsey and Kate's nose moves! The next morning while the girls were soaking up real T.V. Kathy and I headed for the hotel gym. (I still had a cruise to get ready for) Unfortunately, with all the rain we'd been getting it caused damage and leakage to the hotel gym and they closed it. Not to be deterred we ended up walking the hotel floors and stairs.Another thing we learned about Jenna is apparently she loves sprouts. She was sneaking them by the handful. She called them "crunchies"And Eric loved the extra attention. He'll go and do anything as long as his blanket is near! We loved having Grandma and Grandpa here. Thanks for coming!

Kate turns 10

Kate's birthday was low-key this year. We decided to save the real celebrating for grandma and grandpa Morrow came that weekend. After school, with her best friend by her side we took Kate bicycle shopping. She was desperately in need of a new bike. Her old one just wasn't cutting it anymore. Especially since Jenna was now interested in it. Yeah, it was kind of small. We hit a few stores without any luck. Apparently, according to Kate finding the perfect bike has nothing to do with price or features. Instead, it's all about color and does it make her look good. That's our girl for you. It took a few stores and a trip back home for a pizza dinner and ice cream cake but she found it. She's got her big girl bike and sniff, my Kate is a big girl. When did she grow up?

Kelsey's 5K/Jason's 15K

After my successful Indoor Triathlon race Kelsey decided she wanted to get in the game and found a 5K to train for. She was diligent with her runs and trained everyday. Jason decided on a whim, the night before, to enter the 15K. He'd been running but not training. The weather the day of the race was perfect. As I waited for them to come in I kicked myself for not entering the 10K myself. But with other kids to tend to and not willing to ask anyone to babysit at 6 am on a Saturday morning I passed. Kelsey did fantastic and ended up winning not just her age-group but Women's overall. She was pleased!
With a friend Micaela showing off their medals.While waiting for the results of the race Eric finds a friend. He walks over to this guy and just stares. Not a minute or two-it was a long time, in that exact position, hiding behind his blanket. I'm sure that man thought it cute at first and then a little unnerving, "Why is this kid staring at me?" I thought it was funny!

April Fools Strikes Again!

After the April Fool's joke we pulled on Kelsey last year she decided to get us back. Kate got makeup applied to her face. Ryan got cups full of water set on the headboard of his bed. Jenna got a mascara moustache. Eric got painted toe nails and we all enjoyed pink and blue milk in the refrigerator. But nothing compared to what was in store for Kelsey. Kelsey didn't think we'd get her again but we did. And we got her good! When Jason found out he was coming home on April 1st which just so happens to be April Fool's Day AND Kelsey's birthday we couldn't resist. Immediately, we set into motion the events that transpired below.

The Plan: Since Jason's flight was to arrive just as the kids were coming home from school I told the kids that I had an "appointment" and they would be going to their friend's house after school. The "appointment" of course was picking their daddy up at the airport. After dropping Jason off at home I set off to pick the kids up and take them out to celebrate Kelsey's birthday with a dinner at Chevy's Mexican restaurant.

Meanwhile, Jason was picked up by our friend Deor and her daughter Heidi and taken to the restaurant ahead of us.
Their cover for being there was Heidi needed to interview a family whose father was deployed for her Broadcast Journalism class. (Why she needed to do this at a restaurant??-Kelsey never questioned) Jason disguised himself as a server with a gigantic sombrero. . .




The kids were so surprised and excited. They thought he was coming home on Friday. Even Eric remembered his daddy! We are so glad he is HOME!!!

Oh, and Happy Birthday/April Fool's Kelsey! She didn't think we could get her AGAIN but I'm sure she's glad we did. I don't think she'll ever forget her 14th birthday and the day her daddy came home.

Those of you who missed last years April Fool's Joke can go here.