The Keene Family

Monday night, Jim got back from a two-week work trip. Tuesday we made no plans and just relaxed as a family. And the weather was decent and we had lunch on the boat and we SKIIED (shouting) for the first time since December. Normally we try for once a month all winter long, but this year we had horrible weather and just never got a chance. It was a wonderful way to welcome Jim back. And guess what?! We don't need a baby holder anymore. That's right - JT and Haley sat nicely on the seat while Jim or I drove and did just fine. JT can flag, and does a great job. Haley sat very still the whole time and didn't slide around on the corners. When the whole trip was over and we were loading the car, Jim looked at me and said, "You know what this means, right?" Big smiles. Not that we don't love having other people in the boat - because we do! - we just get super disappointed when it's a calm, dry day and we can't find anyone to join us or babysit. Hooray fo...

When you finally get to sit at the dining room table to eat, you're a big kid.  When you fit in the blanket basket along with your brother, you're still a small kid. :)

When we met the Shucks at the park for playtime and lunch this week, JT was so excited to see his friend Asher. They haven't seen each other in awhile and they had a great time. Very quickly, they grabbed sticks shaped like rifles and played hunter in the trees. JT tells me they were hunting deer. So we watched as our boys ran through the trees with sticks in their hands, prayed they would come out with both eyes, and felt our hearts fill with joy. Oh, to be a kid again! Discussing the next hide  I got two action shots... Then the girls joined them and JT was concerned, "Haley has a stick, Mom!"  Coming back from the woods...   The girls were more interested in the slides than the sticks.  Love this face!   We had the hungry hunters save us a table while the women gathered up lunch. A great morning!

Easter weekend was so much fun! The kids woke up on Saturday to eggs in their grass pots. (Aside: my mom planted cat grass in these baskets with the kids and it has grown like crazy. JT and I measured and charted the growth every day and it was growing an inch a day for a whole week!) We read the book The First Easter over breakfast and got ready to go to an egg hunt. We met our friends the Bonnells and the Schmalzes at the egg hunt. Don't the kids look excited? :) It was Haley's first egg hunt so I focused mostly on taking pictures of her in action. JT only wanted to pick up one egg (seriously) so there wasn't much action there. Haley really got the hang of it and ended up with a pretty full bucket. Afterward, Carl helped the kids look at their loot. Then we all went over to the play structures and played in the sunshine. We walked down to the lake with the kids and took some pictures by the river. The older kids p...