B-E-A-UTIFUL!!!

I thought about titling this post "waiting on summer", then I realized how often I mention the weather.  This post will be no different but I'll leave the name of the season out anyway. 

Easter and Liz's wedding came and went since I posted last.  Easter Sunday we had mikelle hunt for eggs around the house and dressed everyone up for church.  Mikelle LOVED the dress she wore.  I bought it on- line dirt cheap but it is gorgeous.  She looked like a little Princess.

 Liz's wedding went well.  Just Chance and I drove down to Utah.  There we lots of babies to play with. Chance, Max, Lincoln, and Reagan all enjoyed each other's company.  Chance didn't seem to mind all the new people and places.  We had a really good. time. 



These pictures are blurry but Chance and Max were having a good chat



Outside Salt Lake Temple just after the sealing.



Jess sang and played his ukelele at Liz's bridal shower.
Chance couldn't take his eyes off him 

It's a beautiful day.  It's been rainy and cold but we are being patient.  We have a lot of hopes for this summer.  Mikelle loves to play outside and the yard is nicely fenced in.  That should help with all the canning I would like to get done this year.  I have finally gotten ahead with my flower beds thanks to Danny.  He came home early from work a couple of Saturdays ago and went to work weeding for me.  When the kids were napping he sent me to the greenhouse.  By the time I got back the beds were cleared and ready to be planted in.  Things look really nice and we even got some rose bushes for the back of the house.  Danny is great! 

I planted almost 40 tulips last Fall.  A nasty gopher got all but three...sad.

Mikelle is potty-training.  FINALLY.  She decided she would stop fighting me on it at the same time that I decided I was going to put my foot down.  She wears "big girl undies" all day now.  She can make it through naps, and through the night, but we're not quite ready to make to leap to undies at night yet.  She really likes it.  We still have some kinks to work out in the daily bathroom routine but we hope by her third birthday she should be pretty well set. 

Mikelle is wearing a princess tutu, carrying a pink patent leather purse
on one arm, a sunglasses carrying case is under the other arm, and she is
also wearing her favorite purple headband which makes her slightly resemble Rambo

Chance is walking along the furniture and gets into anything and everything he can.  He laughs a lot, very spontaneously at times.  He'll be playing by himself and just laugh out loud like he just remembered a good joke.  We find him very entertaining.  He is branching into new foods and will eat just about anything we...or Mikelle, give him.  He has grown out of the baby seats and swings and generally doesn't like to be stationary anyway.  He claps and kisses and is well on his way to waving...and Danny hopes...fishing and other father-son activities. 

That would be dirt around Chance's mouth.  Now that he is so mobile he
is also a detector of things he shouldn't have in his mouth.

I took these two photos after I realized that Mikelle had switched sandwiches
with him, taking his jam and giving him the peanut butter. No allergic reaction so we're good.

When chance started spending more time climbing on this than sitting in it
I knew it was time to put it away.

The kids get along great.  They play really well together.  Mikelle likes to play mommy with Chance.  She copies things I say telling him to "spit dat out Chancy...thas yucky" and "don't cry chancy...is a-wight".  She tries to be very helpful.  Chance is a very fast crawler and sometimes when I am a little distracted he disappears.  Mikelle always knows where he is.  I just ask her and she says it matter of fact, "oh chance is in da office" or "he's pwayin in my woom". 

Danny is very busy as usual.  He and Brad Feik have some plans for a good side job this Fall.  They've been offered some straw standing and their making plans to cut, bale, and sell it.  His business sense about these things never ceases to amaze me.  He has me making spread sheets for cost/profit analysis, he's got his feelers out for good deals on equipment, and he a Brad have been making contact with local dairies.  It will make the fall a little busier for him but it should be really good for us all around. 

I am still running everyday and trying to get in shape.  I'm not sure about the half marathon in September, that may depend on whether or not any of my sisters can run with me.  I am planning to run the 5K fun run in Haines on the 4th of July.  Beyond that I am not sure what my next goal will be.  Danny's is my coach.  He gets me up in the morning and even runs with me on days when I am not very motivated.  Things are good.  We hope to have our first family campout sometime this summer and now that Danny got a taste of hunting again I am sure there will be a bit of that too.  With the help of a kiddie pool and a lot of sun it should be a good summer. 

These are the blossoms on our biggest apple tree.  The smell wonderful.

Our Orchard, apple and plum trees are blossoming.