Spring break brought visitors our way!  John's sister from Colorado came down to see us- okay us, and to see John's brother who lives nearby and who recently had a new baby.  And let's face it, Jake (our 16 year old nephew) didn't come to see us at all, but to see Nicole.  Nicole lives a few houses down and is one of my Young Women.  I introduced them on facebook a while back and they have become really good friends.  And because Nicole's family has lots of teenagers,  we ended up inviting them to join us for lots of fun activities.

  

During our exciting spring break with cousins, friends, and family, we...

played games... 

went to a baby blessing (for our sweetest, newest cousin)...

 made new friends (Robby really fell in love with Galley Ann- who is from Ukraine and is currently living with John's sister's family.  She is wonderful and Robby adored her!).

We had fun being silly with cousins...

and visiting the Stockyards.

We took cute family pictures...

 ...went on first dates

 ...and made music videos at the park.

 This was by far the very best spring break we've ever had.  Instead of going somewhere crowded or traveling far away, we enjoyed having plenty of fun right here with family and friends.  It was perfect!  Thanks Clarks, Carsons, and Murri's!!!

Basketball

I know I will never stay caught up on this blog, but I might as well at least post a few highlights from my kids' lives.  They love going back through and looking at some of our favorite memories.  So here goes!

This year Tyler decided he wanted to play basketball instead of soccer.  I was proud of him for trying something new.  He (and his coach) discovered very early on that he was a pretty good defensive player.  He wasn't afraid to be aggressive in his defending the basket or his guy.  He knew how to stay on his man and how to rebound the ball well, so that was his main role.  

We were proud of how much he learned and grew in the sport.  He came in knowing virtually nothing and by the end, he could pass, shoot, rebound, and follow the basic rules of the game.  I was particularly proud of how he would practice a few drills either on his own or with dad each day so that he could get better...and he did!