Spring has Sprung!

Luke HATES for his hands or feet to get dirty!

Sharing his snack with Clara Belle!

Having so much fun!!

As soon as it started to warm up Grace began begging to play in the sprinkler. So, this past Monday we decided to give it a go. Now it wasn't quite sunny, but it was pretty warm so it made for good getting wet weather! Grace had a blast! She was all over the sprinkler, getting wet from every angle possible! Luke wasn't as crazy about it. He would only get so close & then he would take off running in the opposite direction. He was content to sit on the sidelines & eat his peanut butter Ritz crackers.

The hunt is on!!

Our inside egg hunt...

Pics before church...in our "Easter Sunday best"...






Goodies from the Easter Bunny!!



Egg dying fun...

Our new "tadition"...

Grace & all her loot...

What a great lookin' bunch!

None other than the Lehrmann kids! (watch out Osmond family!)...

Grace means business!

We always have a ton of Easter Egg Hunts each year, which makes for a fun holiday weekend! We attended the annual Morgan Easter Egg Hunt on Good Friday. Saturday was the annual hunt at our church. Sunday we had a hunt of our own...only with ours we had to get a bit creative since it was far from good hunting weather outside! Each one provided some good laughs, yummy candy, & more plastic eggs then we know what to do with!

Grace was into what I like to call "selective egg hunting" this year. She was either interested in getting only the pink & purple eggs or she was interested in the eggs that made a noise when she shook them (meaning yummy candy was inside)! Every so often she would wind up with a few "other" colors in her basket. Luke was more interested in just running around. He would glady pick up an egg, but instead of putting it in his basket he would throw it! I had hidden some Starburst Jelly Beans in our eggs & he was rather excited to discover them...it made for a whole new ball game (or egg hunt)!

Grace added a new tradition this year. She saw a commercial on TV with a mom & daughter making Rice Krispie Treat eggs dipped in chocolate & sprinkles. She declared that we were making those this year. So, we did! It was very easy, fun, & quite yummy I might add! We had fun making them & she was pleased with our new "tadition".

We also did the usual PAAS egg dying kit. We made sure to do this while Luke was napping on Saturday afternoon! I could only imagine what would be dyed if he joined in on the fun. There's always next year for the little man! Grace had fun...she was more interested in the fact that her little fingers were stained from the dye! So much fun!!

The "Easter Bunny" left some cool goodies for the kids. I think the big hit of the year was the new Yo Gabba Gabba DVD that was in Luke's basket. Both kids have been mesmerized by it! That Easter Bunny knows what "she's" doing I tell ya!!

Capturing the Moment...

Last Saturday morning before our church's Easter Egg Hunt we stopped off at the Greenville Cypress Preserve for a "Kodak Moment". Thankfully, both kids were rather photo-happy & I was able to get some cool shots! I love trying to capture them in their typical childlike ways! Plus, I had just downloaded Corel Paint Shop Pro & had to have some cool shots to play with!!

I've got one thing left to say...

...welcome home Lehrmann kids, welcome home!

My parents bought a playhouse from some friends back home so they took it apart & brought it to us. We put it back together and added a few coats of fresh paint & voila...a new place to play!! We used chalkboard paint on the inside walls & that has been a big hit with Grace! Luke enjoys walking in & out, in & out saying "bye" the entire time! I predict there will be many afternoons spent outside playing in the playhouse in our future!! So much fun!!

Reno/Lake Tahoe or Bust!

For Spring Break Darren & I decided to venture out & do something off our "Bucket Lists". My mom came & stayed with the kiddos and we took off for the Reno/Lake Tahoe area for some snow skiing! Now, keep in mind that this was our first try at the sport! We stayed at the Eldorado Casino/Resort in downtown Reno. We hit the slopes at Mt. Rose-Ski Tahoe. It was the perfect ski resort for us ski virgins...it wasn't crowded & had the perfect laid back feel to it. We took lessons the first day. I'm guessing we weren't the star students because after staying close to the "Flying Jenny" & beginners slope for a while we decided we were ready for the Ponderosa lift & the "greens" that went with it. Boy, were we wrong! Right off the bat I ate it getting off the lift...that should have been my first clue! But, there was no where to go but down...and fast! We both made it down in one piece...of course, I cheated & after falling 2 more times I hiked up the side of the hill to the parking lot! After that adventure our first day was pretty much complete...we hung out in the lodge for the rest of the afternoon. With Day 2 on the slopes came more control & confidence and for Darren a second shot at conquering the "greens"! I was completely comfortable riding the Flying Jenny to the top of the beginners slope & working my way down over & over again. I was proud of my new accomplishment & I felt no need to attempt anything more! After mastering the beginner slope, Darren felt the need to move on to bigger & faster slopes...the greens that ate our lunch the day before! I would like to report that He did quite well! I will also say that after that he was also hooked! I was content to sit in the lodge & people watch. I would definitely try skiing again, but I can pretty much say I would choose my surfboard over a pair of skis (or snowboard for that matter) any ol' day! It was a fun, relaxing (with the exception of sore muscles & shins!), and much needed trip!

Now, onto the other items on our "Bucket Lists"...

Let it snow...Let it snow...Let it snow...

You know you are from the south if even the slightest bit of the "white stuff" accumulates and you are out playing in it!!!!

Saturday night the weather called for a 30% chance of snow. We figured that it would be a farfetched prediction. However, we were wrong! Around 8:30 that night...right about the time we were putting Grace to bed...we discovered that it was indeed snowing! We were all excited!! Grace's prayer was that it would stick & that we could play in it when we woke up the next morning. Well, her little prayer was answered because we woke up to our little world covered in about an inch of snow!! We all layered up and it was no time before we were out frolicking in the white stuff!! Grace loved every minute of it, but Luke was a different story! He could have cared less what was on the ground...he was cold & miserable! He was content to watch cartoons inside the nice, warm house. Grace made a few snow angels, tried throwing a few snowballs, and enjoyed it to the fullest extent. We took several pics to remember our fun morning!

From pink eye to a black eye!

It has been a wild couple of days around the Lehrmann house. On Sunday night we came in from playing outside & noticed some gunk around Grace's right eye. Sure enough it turned out to be pink eye. It spread rather quickly to her other eye and soon they were both nasty & pink. Darren took her to the doc on Monday morning (I stayed home with Luke so we would pick up as few doctor's office germs as possible) and got some eye drops. She stayed home from school both Monday & today. She has enjoyed the time off, but it ready to get back to school & her friends! I have been a lysol/hand sanitizer/chlorox wipes nazi around here. I want to try and prevent the rest of us, especially Luke, from getting it!!

I thought that would be the end of our colored eyes, but little did I know that today Luke would get his very first black eye!! It isn't as bad as I thought it would be, but it is still there. Right now it is a lovely shade of blue, purple, & red! He was watching Yo Gabba Gabba on Nickelodeon this morning. The characters were dancing around and he was up & dancing right along. He got a little carried away and was trying to recover from some sort of spin move when he found his little rocking chair with his right eye!! Ouch!!! Boy, did the tears fall. He was content to sit in my lap for the rest of the show. Poor little guy!! On our weekly trip to Walmart this afternoon he found a "Brobee" stuffed animal and I just had to get it for him. Brobee is his favorite character from Yo Gabba Gabba and I figured it was a good way to commemorate his first black eye!

I am hoping this is the end of the excitement in our house for the week!