Gardening

Spring fever has hit. We have been working hard in the garden getting it ready to plant some good stuff in the ground. The weeds were crazy, every inch of the ground covered in weeds taller than the dog. We filled the yard waste trash can twice and there is still a HUGE mound that needs to be dealt with. Happily, I'd say that we only have 4-5 more hours of work until the ground is ready for planting. Now, we get to figure out what yummy fruits and veggies to plant. we've got strawberries, tomatoes, cucumbers, jalapenos, and another variety of hot pepper (I can't remember the name.) I think perhaps another berry and maybe some green beans and bell peppers. Hmmm, I should probably get back out there.

Easter

Happy Easter! What did our Easter look like this year? Well, here goes...

Sleep in a little later than usual because of a later church service. Eat brunch at church then go to service. The kids sing in service and Shawn does the video. Go home and grab last minute things and the dog to take to Grandma Maggie's and Grandpa Craig's house. Get to the Grandparent's house and the kids go nuts finding eggs. Hold the week-old bunnies that Great-Grandma Sonnie brought. Eat linner. Sit and talk. Ashton goes to the neighbor's house and jumps on massive trampoline. Alayna watches her new Barbie movie from Grandma Darlene. Start fire in fire pit. Roast peeps and make s'mores using peeps, chocolate rabbits, and crackers. Sit and talk more. Play 'Apples to Apples'. Shawn goes to work and the kids and I go home. Whew! But it was fun!

Anacapa Island

On Saturday, April 3rd, we took a boat trip with some friends to Anacapa Island. What an experience! We had to be to the dock by 7:15 for our 8:00 departure. Way too early for a Saturday morning, but that limited the severity on the sunburns. All seven of us happily rode on the bow of the small vessel as it left the marina... oh boy, as soon as it hit the open water the kids got really scared. The water was still choppy from the wind the night before so it was quite intimidating riding on the bow while it slammed down. Vicky and I really enjoyed the ride up front but felt sorry for those suffering in the back. About half way to the island we came across a large pod of dolphin. What a joy to get to see them jumping and splashing around! We finally made it to the island with only two of our party of seven feeding the fish. What a great victory! We got to spend three hours hiking on the island and it was wonderful. I don't if God could have made the day any more beautiful. The boat ride back was uneventful, which was a blessing, although we would have loved to see a whale.

Happy Birthday Ashton!!!

Hard as it is to believe, Ashton is 8 years old. Sunday we had a small "party," Tuesday (the real birthday) we went out to lunch and dinner and he got a Razor scooter that he loves so much he tries to sleep with it. He has gotten messages and calls from so many people he feels like a king. Tomorrow he gets to spend the day with Grandma Maggie. What fun!

Basketball season is in full swing. The kids are having a great time. Alayna doesn't look terrified the whole game and Ashton plays hard. That boy wants the ball so much you can almost taste it. He is constantly running up and down the court and positioning himself for rebounds. One of the highlights for him is having another boy named Ashton on his team.

Yes, we had a week of crazy storm weather. No, we didn't hide inside the whole time. We took advantage of the dry times and went walking down to the barranca to check out the water level. While on one of our walks we found butterflies trying to dry out. They couldn't fly because they were all wet and it was about to rain again, so we moved them from the sidewalk to the a sheltered spot. The kids were so happy to save the butterflies. Ashton and Alayna also really wanted to splash in puddles so we let them. OI! I mean, really? Ashton had so much fun he was sitting in the water. Yeah, they had to defrost after that. Gotta love the rain here in So Cal!

Basketball season has started. Both kids are playing and have had two games thus far. Alayna, who plays at eight in the morning on Saturdays (wrong, I know) looks scared and nervous through most of the game. Ashton, on the other hand, is loving it. He has scored in both games and plays hard.