The last...the first, April 12, 2011

The last nap in her toddler bed, previously referred to as her "big girl bed."Taking it apart. Tear in my eye.
New room. Almost finished. We still need to get a head board and curtains, (Nana is working on the curtains.)
She said she likes it, not so sure you can tell by this picture though.
My dresser from when I was a little girl.
First time in her "big girl bed."
She isn't sleeping yet, even as I type this. She just called me upstairs to tell me one of the bows on her new comforter was untied. She also just told me she feels sad for herself since she doesn't have her old bed and her animals don't stay on this bed. I knew that would be a hard one. I cannot believe my baby will be 5 in two weeks. SO not ready for that!

Our Garden Beginnings

Brent preparing the soil for planting.
Seth was holding these pea seeds. Just seconds later, he dumped the whole bag. We may have some strays peas growing:)
Contemplating whether or not our cucumber mounds are the right size.
We just used regular yarn to mark these first couple of rows. We will get some garden string, stakes, and a little fence once we get it all planted. A big thank you goes out to Brent's parents for all their help in getting us started on our garden.

Preschool Praise, April 10th, 2011

She is so serious when she performs. She gets into it!
All dressed up in her tutu. She was excited to sing on stage.
"I just want to praise him, I just want to praise him!"
Some of Elli's friends. Caleb, Rebekah, Sam, Landon and Olivia. There are about 30ish kids on stage. Wow, lots of 3-5 year olds:) Made for some funny times.
Lily, Caroline, and Madilynn. Caroline was cracking me up!

Fun Doesn't Begin to Describe it!

I love this little girl. She is so much fun to play with. She is posing for Leah, who got these "jams" for her. We were afraid this might be the last time she got to wear them because it is getting warmer and she is getting bigger. When she posed, I got a little sad thinking that I may capturing "a last". Elli will be 5 in one month and it is hitting home that there have been many last times as she is growing. We will soon have the last night in her nursery since we are changing her room into a big girl room. We will have the last time she sleeps in her toddler bed. The last time she sits with me in the rocker in her room. (it is moving to our room to make space for a bigger bed) I have cried many time thinking of her getting so big. 5 seems to be a hard age for me, though she cannot wait. I thank God for the time He has given me to be there for her lasts. Here is looking to the future of firsts:)
Elli was at first terrified of me in this tunnel. (I was acting like a monster) She ran from me screaming. Then, she saw it was fun and we got in here together. It ended up being quite a fun little game:)
Getting ready to attack daddy!

Leah's Birthday Party, March 20, 2011

Elli and the birthday girl all decked out in green.
The dessert spread. We had fondue, molasses cookies, and cake. \Do we know how to throw a party or what?
The happy family, plus one:)
Elli cannot wait to see what the presents hold! I did have to ask her not to open Leah's presents and she got sad and cried in the corner. She loves surprises as much as I do!!!!
The girls. We always have fun celebrating birthdays in this family.

St. Patrick's Day

I got the swings out so Elli could swing. She was so excited:)
So fun to watch them play.
She loved the baby goats!
We couldn't pass up a chance to get to Young's with th great weather. We met up with Deanna, Landon, and Olivia to see he new goats and cows, as well as eat some ice cream. They really did have fun playing together.
Elli loved this little outfit. She had a great day at school too. They had a leprachan visit their classroom and mess it all up. She was so excited to tell me everything he did while they were outside playing. She also thought he was at our house, but that maybe Fergi barked and scared him away. She did however see that her toothbrush was inside a cup and blamed it on him. (Really I did it just to mess with her:)

Last Day, all day outside at beach and pool!!!

Another one of Elli's little friends. They were sharing a cookie:)
One last shot by the pool.
Just having a little fun.
I really wanted a family picture by a palm tree. It turned out great.
Love this one.
One, two, three!
And a pose:)
LOVE this picture of Lance and Liam.
Arisbeth with Elli and Liam and the doll she got for Elli and horse for Liam. Arisbeth was so touched by the kindness and adoration in Elli that she became overwhelmed with emotion, excused herself to go cry, and then came back with gifts for the kids. She told the waiter that she has never been touched like this but that Elli really touched her heart. Another great opportunity for Elli to see the positive effects on others of showing kindness. Arisbeth sang a song just to Elli and even danced with her. She gave both the kids these gifts, hugged them and kissed them. Liam too was enthralled with the entertainment and offered smiles at just the right time, all the time:) What a special week of vacation we had and what a wonderful memory with which to end the week.

Thursday, many activites

Love this picture of the two of them.
We enjoyed feeding the iguanas again. Look at this big one. He was eating all the fruit!
Little surfer girl.
Lance, Lana and Liam arrived at our resort in the afternoon. It started to rain so we went in for naps and played at the kids club for a while where Elli made more friends and played with the bunnies. Later that evening we went across the way to La Isla for dinner and hanging out:) Devin and Liam were dressed alike.
Lana and Elli were dressed alike.
Italian dinner. Fun times with the family.
Just the two of us.
The whole gang. Yes, we were all in one bedroom that night:)
Elli decided she was going to be brave and pose for pictures with some of the statues and things around La Isla (the mall). There are people that pretend to be statues, that Elli is terrified of, but she thought she could get a picture with this owl. We were all laughing so hard!!!!
When Lance, Lana, and Liam arrived, Elli came into our room and slept on this little chair. The ottoman was the same height as the chair and it was Elli's size:) She slept great, at least until 6:15 in the morning, normal rising time in Cancun!

Wednesday, Beach and Pool day!

Another pose by little Elli.
Our Elli made a friend Ellie. They had such fun playing but Ellie went home this day. She cried and asked for Elli's email address so they could keep in touch. Crazy. All the kids loved Elli. They would cheer when she would get there in the morning and wanted to play with her all day. Elli of course is very kind to others and the parents loved that about her too. So glad I was able to praise Elli for her kindness and for showing Christ's love to others.
Look at me in the sand:) We had some fun playing for a while. Then, she wanted to go...back to the pool:)
Family picture in the sun. Elli wants to live here. I told her we would have to gt a house and wouldn't be living in the hotel with a pool. She changed her mind.
So serious:)
So cool:)
Concentrating on making stairs for the Mayan ruin she and Brent were working on in the sand.
And what is the end to a day without a messy cup from Chocolate City? We were all feeling sick after these huge cups of ice cream drizzled in everything yummy!