happy Saturday

We're in the midst of a very happy day. :) Brant worked this morning, so Annie, Memph, and I went on a long walk in the sunshine and chilly breeze. At one point we passed by a little league baseball game between the "Orioles" and the "Phillies." Oh my goodness. I'm pretty sure those kids had to be at least 4 or 5 years old, but most of them seriously looked like Annie's size. All running around with the uniforms and gloves and little hats. So adorable. I can't wait for Annie to play. She can't wait either. She could have stood there and watched that game til it ended, I think. 

After our walk, we played outside and went on a few adventures in the car. I wanted to show some pictures of the robin's nest above our front door, though! Look how cozy!

Usually the momma robin is sitting on the nest or on the power lines right above our house, keeping an eye on things. The other day I saw a beautiful blue egg inside the nest. See the transom window by the nest? It's the perfect spot for me to peek from inside.

Annie has quite the collection of springtime vehicles. She takes them very seriously, just as she does her miniature car collection. Here's the big wheels bike. Still can't quite reach these pedals . . .

This next bike is awesome. She couldn't reach the pedals in the fall, but now she can! And she's learning to ride it so well! Can you tell how hard she's concentrating on pedaling?

 And here's her car. Lately this is more of her luxury vehicle, in which she'll eat her snacks, cradle her baby, and store all sorts of goodies.

Every playtime ends with her parking her vehicles all alongside each other. She's very responsible. :)


Here are some more pictures from our playtime today . . .

 I pulled out the pacifiers as I get baby things ready. Annie quickly snatched up this blue one and hasn't relinquished it yet.

When Brant came home, this is what he found . . . notice the clothes and diaper on the ground. And the look of carefree joy on Annie's face.

Hope you all are having equally sunny Saturdays!

a glimpse into the life of Annie

See the shirt she's wearing? It's a white dress for the new baby I just bought today and had put in the laundry hamper to wash. See how the laundry hamper's open? Yep, she went in and got the baby dress out. The shirt I had put on her is lying in a heap next to her book basket in front of that open laundry hamper.

The two blue plastic things in bed with her are step stools that she turns over and uses as baskets for her babies to sleep in. She carries them around, usually with a book or two inside as well, and, apparently, sleeps with them.

I took this picture at about 6pm. A little late for an afternoon nap, you may say. Well, I put her down at 2:45. Twice I had to go upstairs and remind her that she should probably lie down in bed instead of spending all of naptime taking all of her books out of her basket and off her shelves. So, when I checked on her at 6, it looked like the third try finally took and she had fallen asleep. :)

HOT

I will not put in my AC units in April. I will not put in my AC units in April. I will not put in my AC units in April. I will not put in my AC units in April. I will not put in my AC units in April. I will not put in my AC units in April. I will not put in my AC units in April. I will not put in my AC units in April. I will not put in my AC units in April.

Happy Easter!

Well, we're at the end of a beautiful, fun-filled day. Annie is still up, reading books in bed and chatting with her new stuffed animals about the Easter Bunny.


Easter started early; last night we opened a package from GramE. This outfit was included, and Annie put it on immediately. She was so excited to show us how she can dress herself, and she did! Then she posed for pictures.

 Also in the package were some books, a new swimming suit, a stuffed rabbit, and 2 new cars!! Oh, the joy! GramE gave us some clothes for the new baby girl, too. Annie was just as excited about "Mommy's Baby"s clothes as she was about her new ones. :)



This morning we woke up and found that the Easter Bunny had come to our house and hidden eggs with candy inside!

Then it was time for church! We all got dressed up and took pictures. Annie's were the cutest, so here ya' go!

Church was wonderful. We participated in 2 choir performances (Brant sang in the men's group, which sounded awesome), I got to conduct the congregation in the Easter hymns, which I LOVE, and I taught my Easter lesson for the 7-year-olds. So much fun.

After church we rushed off to be in Gettysburg for dinner with Grandma and Poppy, and Thomas and Caroline. You may not believe it, but the Easter Bunny stopped by their house too!! He hid the eggs outside this time, though!

finding eggs in the raspberry patch . . .

and the horseshoe pit . . . .

and the woodpile!

Then we all sat down inside and watched a little baseball while eating some of the loot before dinner.

Easter dinner was delicious! Ham and scalloped potatoes and yummy green beans! MMMmmm!

After dinner we played a fun game of Peggity (a British version, actually) with Thomas and Caroline and then headed home after lemon meringue pie, coconut cake, and ice cream. :) Lovely!

time for some serious gardening!

Yay, spring is here! It's been rainy rainy RAINY lately, but today seemed like the perfect day to get started on the Ellsworth Garden! :) 

Brant did all the heavy lifting.

Annie wanted to stay in the front yard while we brought in bags of compost, sand, and peat moss. See my yellow tulips in the background? They just bloomed this morning!

Nancy came to help out. We're going to co-op our garden with the Joneses this year. Yay! :)

The girls did their part by keeping the baby dolls happy, going on walks around the yard. :)

Oh MAN that dirt felt soft and delightful! 

I hope you all appreciate this picture of me, big and pregnant and barefoot in manure. :)

Finished product! Today we planted a few early spring goodies--peas, spinach, kale, and chard! The little seeds are tucked in there. :)

Happy Springtime!

just playin' on a sunday morning

Annie and Brant built a huge ramp and slid all her cars down it!

At one point, Annie of course took a break to read a book :)

 . . . and here's a video!