The Keene Family

We just love the tradition of palm branches on Palm Sunday. The kids look forward to waving them and yelling "Hosanna!" I got this adorable picture of my two after church this week. It is sad to look back and remember that the same people who once yelled "Hosanna" turned, just a week later, into cried of "Crucify Him!" JT reminded me that it was God's plan that Jesus should die for us, and that Jesus went willingly. I was so blessed by his innocent insight!

Tonight during dinner, we were thrilled to see a world of white outside our cozy house. It hailed and then snowed! We went outside and got a plateful of hail to look at it, touch it, taste it, and make predictions about what it would do once inside our house. Then we went outside again and ran in the snow, giggling and catching it in our mouths. Of course, I brought a camera. When I put JT to bed, everything was white and it was falling beautifully in the street lights. We watched from his window together, whispering about the snow and wondering what it would look like in the morning. It was a wonderful surprise to our evening. So stop complaining, Seattlites, and enjoy a little spring snow.

Our friends invited us to a real farm to see baby sheep and goats. It was soooo fun. These little ones were only eight hours old! Look who got to hold one... until she fell asleep. :) JT got to hold her too... but I couldn't back up any more for this photo! Little farmers in the hay Oh, how I wish her face was clear... As we were leaving, Jim noticed JT leaning on this fence. Obviously, it wasn't on. Phew!  That gave us some time for a nice talk about fences and electricity.   

Every child deserves a dad. Especially a dad like my kids' dad... who plays with them, teaches them, and smooches them. I got some great photos of him wrestling and chasing Haley the other day. I was thinking about how this is 100% DAD. Sure, I wrestle with the kids and I chase them around, but this kind of fun is only possible with a dad. I am sooooo very thankful that my kids have him! Jim has also been working with JT to help clear chairs and load trailers after church. I just love watching JT enjoy serving alongside his dad. We get lots of comments on him helping, and how he does a great job backing the truck up to the trailer. He gets Jim right on every time and hooks up the lights and safety chains while Jim is lowering the trailer. I finally got some video of this in action! In this first clip, JT notices that the trailer is too low and the hitch will hit. In this next clip, he gets it right on as he yells, "Back just a hair!" at the end. I love the ...

With the weather improving, we had some time outside this weekend to ride bikes, picnic in the yard, and enjoy the sunshine. Picnic lunch Sweetie pies! A good moment to catch on camera. :) We were invited to a birthday party with a dress-up theme for the first time. I will admit that I grumbled a little, but it turned out to be kind of fun. JT loved his Hershey's Kiss hat (he is the kiss!) and Haley was a Strawberry Jolly Rancher. You can't see it, but I tied her pigtails with clear plastic wrap. As my friends' children begin to attend school, I have realized how critically important it is to pay attention to moments when we can enjoy being home together. I had lots to do on this sunny afternoon, but all things I could do in the dark, while my children slept. Right then, there was nothing that was going to trump heading outside for some sunshine and bikes together. I turned on the PAC12 women's gymnastics finals the other day, and Haley c...

I really struggle with that one, thinking there should be an apostrophe. But I am pretty sure it is a night with Dads, not that the Dads have the night. I listened to a Grammar Girl podcast on this years ago. Anyway. Tonight was Dads Night at preschool. Jim left work early to be home in time. His awesome supervisor knew it was really important and let him leave extra early, just in case traffic was awful, so he got home in plenty of time. JT has been excited for days but he was so sweet and told Jim that, if something happened at work and he couldn't come, I could go because another girl in his case had a mom coming. But he was here, and it was a cowboy theme. We borrowed hats from Grandpa and Grandma Cole, who have these sorts of things. Jim's hat is a little small. :) Then Haley and I had a Girls Night... ice cream and a movie! She also took a big girl shower "all by herself." This means I stood right outside the tub and she kept closing the curtain and t...

Sunday morning, as we were enjoying a nice family breakfast, it looked like sunshine outside. Jim said, "It's too bad we can't ski today." And then I said, "Um, why couldn't we ski today?" We had plenty of time before we left for church to get organized, so we kicked it into gear: dry suits, handles, rope, skis, gloves, hats, blankets for the kids, vests, snack. After church, we headed straight to the lake. The water was very calm and there were partial sun breaks on the horizon. The kids were jumping up and down! I took some photos with my phone camera (and I just got a new app, called PicsArt, so I'm hooked on that now). Getting ready to ski Happy driver :) Happy passengers! Maybe that's because they are snuggled under a Mambi Blanket, which is windproof, waterproof, and heated . Lake Meridian, 47 degree water and 58 degree air Skiier Two Post-ski sun break Getting ready for when the water warms up Mrs...