Combing for Cackleberries (aka Rooting Roe)

Okay, Easter Egg Hunt

Or if you prefer, Pagan Fertility Celebration of the Vernal Equinox!

We went back to Summerlin for the annual Easter Egg Hunt. It really does not involve much searching and seeking, as the workers go out onto baseball fields with garbage bags full of food and candy. They tear holes in the bottom of the bags, pick up the bags by the tops and start spinning in circles like a Whirling Dirvish. The result is that clusters of goodies get strewn everywhere. It is up to the "hunters" to go and start scooping the largesse into their bags.

Josh and Allyse were geared up for the sweet safari.

Angelina with her bucket at the ready.

Joseph's pre-hunt ritual includes trying to cram his 7-year-old body
into a stroller built for children who are about half his size.

She's so hot that she's listed as a significant contributor to global warming.

The "hunters" are lined up at the edge of the baseball infield,
looking earnestly for clues to help them find their prey.

This is more of a "Where's Waldo?" photo, only the object is to find Joshua.

All that truly matters is that she had a pink bucket and that her pink skirt
wasn't in the dirty clothes hamper when she got dressed that morning.

Benjamin was shouting words of encouragement to siblings.

The successful hunters showing off their kill.

What Easter Egg Hunt would be complete without a faux train ride?

Happy!

I'm the bomb!

We're still trying to get explanations from Joshua on this face.
For purposes of this post, I'm calling it happy.

Bye Bye Baldwin

With some sadness, we note "the passing" of this great old piano. As it cannot be repaired without significant cost, we are going to offer it for sale on Craigslist in hopes that somebody can return it to its former useful self. We hate to see it go, as it has been part of the family for many years. However, since we have a replacement, it hardly makes sense for us to have two pianos.

"Hairy" Potter or Hermione?

Joseph was playing Harry Potter with Josh and Allyse, but the three of them went outside to jump on the trampoline. Along came Angelina, who found Joseph's robe and draped it on herself, picked up his wand, and then proclaimed herself to be Harry Potter. Personally, with all that hair, I think she looks more like Hermione Granger.

It's Genetic - Part Two

A week ago, Allyse rescued the placards from the garbage. The other night, she had the placards out in the kitchen. She was writing and coloring on pieces of paper, and then pasting the papers on the back of the placards. I asked her if she had settled on what to do with the placards, and she told me that she was going to use them for a lesson for Family Home Evening. Mind you, we didn't ask her to teach a lesson for Family Home Evening, and we rarely do. It is just something that she does because she loves to teach the family, and she will often spend a couple of days in advance of Monday night preparing the lesson. If she chooses to be a teacher, she will be great!

Fuzzier Than a New Tennis Ball

Allyse took these pictures of Benjamin during tummy time. I wish we had more digital pictures of Joshua from when he was a baby, as Benjamin's resemblance is uncanny. When Josh was at an age similar to Benjamin, Julene used to call him her "little chick" due to the white-blond fuzz that was on his head.

Benjamin's hair appears to be even fuzzier than Josh's. On top, his hair is now about 3/4" long and stands straight up naturally. It would make a perfect flattop or Mohawk, but we could never do that to a 4-month-old baby.

It's Genetic

On Saturday, Julene was in charge of a Primary activity. In preparation, she made small placards by printing some statements (e.g., "I am a child of God") and mounting them on different colors of construction paper. The placards were a primitive PowerPoint presentation for Primary. After the activity, Julene did what comes natural to her: she threw the placards in the garbage.

On Sunday morning, I noticed Allyse rummaging through the garbage. As I got closer, I realized that Allyse was rescuing the placards from the garbage. I asked her what she planned to do with the placards, and she cheerfully said, "I don't know." I then realized that although she didn't know why she was saving her mother's refuse, Allyse was doing what comes naturally to her.