Bob the Builder, Brunch, a Mouse and an Update.

We took the girls to a Lowe's Build-n-Grow clinic this weekend.  They had a great time putting their project together.  They made planter boxes.  Each of the girls got to pick out two plants to put in their planters.  Two days down and two days of water.  Hopefully, the newness does not wear off:)  Kendall was finished with hers, but I asked for an action shot.  Here is what she gave me.

Sidney so intent on working.  Who has time to stop for a picture?

Alright, finally that sweet smile.

Kevin and I went to a fundraising brunch a few weeks ago.  It was an essay writing contest for teens that have been affected by cancer.  The winners each read their essays and received scholarships.  The kids wrote about either themselves or family members.  It was a great event, but not a dry eye in the house.  When in need of a photographer to capture the moment, ask your six year old.  Here she is practicing.

Alas, the picture.  We have both our head and feet...excellent!

Chili, oh Chili.  Is he a Chiweenie or a cat?  This weekend he decided to be a mouse catcher.  Yuck!  Saturday afternoon as I was dragging the potting soil to the backyard, Chili comes racing toward me with a very large mouse in his mouth.  I screamed.  I jumped.  I ran to the front yard shouting.  Kevin laughed.  The girls raced to the backyard to see.  They are crazy kids.  They got quite a bit of enjoyment over trying to get close to Chili and see the mouse, then running off hysterically.  I am totally mortified, but grateful there is one less mouse to potentially make it into our house!

For those who have been wanting an update, Kevin has finished ten rounds of chemo.  They plan to do two more then give him a break over the summer.  The last few rounds have been pretty rough on him.  Ideally the platelet counts should be above 100.  Two weeks ago they were at 90, but they proceeded with the chemo at Kevin's urging.  Last Friday, the platelet counts were at 74, so they opted to hold off for a week.  When we have chemo this Friday, they are going to lower the does of one of the chemo drugs that is wreaking havoc on his platelets.  Despite all of this, Kevin remains positive and in good spirits.  We have been planning our summer to include a lot of fun activities.  First stop...Disneyland! 

An Easter Celebration.

This year felt like an extra special Easter.  Kendall had been baptized the Sunday before and we had a great group of friends and family over.  Valerie, Terrell, The Nelson's, The Weinrich's and our family celebrated the day.  The girls had fun decorating eggs the day before.

 

The colors turned out great.  We dyed some of the brown eggs and they turned out especially rich in color.

What started out as a simple lunch turned into a feast.  Everyone brought their favorites.  There was so much food we packed a ton of containers to go home.

 

I LOVE this picture of Rebecca goofing off.  Kendall's expression in the background is priceless, 'Adults...they are so weird.'

We had two huge egg hunt's.  The girls hid the eggs for the boys - round 1.

Rebecca brought several dozen confetti eggs that we hid with the rest.  The kids had a good time throwing those at each other.  I think Sidney take the prize as she learned it is best to peel the top egg off and dump the confetti on people.

The boys hid eggs for the girls next.  Gotta love these goofballs.  Easter dresses with tennis shoes and socks with sandals.  Love it!

 

Eli his one of the eggs in his shirt pocket.  Kendall was the first to find it.

Just how are we going to get that egg down from the tree? 

Kendall's Big Decision - March 29, 2015.

Kendall has been asking about baptism for a few months now.  It is a pretty big decision, so we talked a lot about it.  She came to us again last month after a lesson at her Awana class.  She said, "I know I am young, but this is something I really want to do."  She met with Pastor Brian and made the decision to be baptized.  She asked that her daddy be the one to baptize her.

She received a certificate.  A gentlemen by he name of Clint was baptized the same day.  It is such a small world as Kevin found out that he has known Clint's wife, through work, for many years.

We had friends and family over for brunch to celebrate the day.  Grandma Terrell made Kendall a beautiful cake.  Some days Kendall's maturity astonishes me.  Her thoughts are beyond her years.  Granted she still loves to be crazy and have fun like all other little kids.  It is the thoughts that spill out in the quiet times that amaze me.  I am so proud of this little girl!  She has a love for Jesus and a love for her family that is beyond words.

Awards Night.

Monday, April 13th was a pretty special night in the Strong household.  While the girls were attending their sparks awards night with Grandma, I was attending the Idaho Athletic Association sports awards banquet with Kevin.  The girls each received awards for completing their books and pins for finishing the frequent flyer cards.  Kevin received the state Middle School Athletic Director of the Year award.  The following day, he received a special citation award for all of his contributions to Middle and High School Athletics.  So proud of them!

Odds and Ends.

This post is very long overdue.  Just a few odds and ends pictures that I want to capture.

 

Kendall went to her friend Cortni's birthday party.  They went to Build-a-Bear and ate lunch at the mall food court.  She had a great time.  Cortni is a friend from last year.  The two girls have managed to remain in touch.  Remarkable at her age, since I cannot even seem to do that at my age!

Terrell has a butter crock that I have envied for several years now.  I have searched long and hard for one just like it to no avail.  Every thrift store trip, I scour the kitchen goods hoping to find one.  Last month was no different.  As I walked through the youth ranch kitchen goods, I did not see a crock.  As I was walking to the book section, something caught my eye mixed in with the Easter decorations.  What?  An identical butter crock.  Woohoo!  I am now the proud owner of this little thing.

Kevin is a Pinterest lover.  Personally, I have only been on there once.  He finds the GREATEST ideas.  We have hanging solar lights, a wooden bike rack, a mural on our shed, a succulent garden...the list goes on.  Here is his latest creation.  A Lego table for the girls.  Super inexpensive and very handy!

Chili Goes to School.

As planned, Chili spent 6 weeks in doggy school.  The instructor was awesome.  She encouraged the girls to be very involved in the training.  Chili got to wear a cap and eat ice cream on the last day.  The school had a blue and orange cap, but Kendall told the instructor "No way, not unless it is Cal Poly Green and Gold."  Right on!

Chili made a few friends in school.  Kuma, super stubborn, yet very sweet dog.

Ruby, the Jack Russell Terrier.  Did I mention that we almost adopted a Jack Russell a few years back.  After watching the energy that 8 year old Ruby had, I think we made a good call to opt for a Chiweenie.

Samson, such a sweetie.  He just needed to learn to play well with others.

Chili has been doing great.  Kendall has even gotten him to "roll over".  I love that the girls learned so much also.  Sidney has to remind me to turn my back if Chili starts to jump on me.

Sidney - Going Solo and Growing Up!

Sidney has been eager to go to a birthday party solo.  She sees her big sis get birthday party invites and go off to do fabulous things.  I have tried to explain to her that Kindergarten is a bit early for that, but her desire remained.  Alas, she received an invitation for a friends party last month (2 actually), but we were only able to make it to one.  She was SO excited as she carefully chose a present for her friend.  The birthday party was Barbie themed.  

She went "solo" which is a major feat for her right now.  She told me about every detail afterward.  They had a party bag line in which the mom had made a game of the kids getting to choose party favors.  They decorated their own cupcakes (Barbie of course).  Each girl had her nails done by the birthday girls big sister.  They took pictures in the fabulous Barbie booth (I thought this was such a creative idea!)  Then they watched a movie.  You guessed it, Barbie!

Sidney has also made a new friend.  His name is Stone.  His family recently moved to Terrell's neighborhood.  Sidney and her friend Stone have become inseparable.  They play and fight like siblings.

 

Sidney also received the academic achievement award at school.  We are so proud of her! 

To celebrate the occasion, I bought her flowers.  She was so proud that she borrowed my phone to take a picture to send to Grandma.

Oh, and she lost her two front teeth.  Not to mention she still has two missing bottom teeth.  Our little Dracula!