The thrill of the hunt!

Shiny plastic eggs filled with candy scattered all over the yard means lots of FUN for everyone! Brennen and Gabe opted out of the hunt this year and graduated instead to the egg hiding crew. Lizzy was on her fourth (yes, I said fourth) hunt of the week. And Tim, being the oldest, was pulling in quite the candy load!

And as for Easter pictures with all my kids, this one was the best of the lot!

(see previous post for more interesting shots)

Lizzy and Tim with cousins, Hayden, Carter and Miles showing off their spoils.

Easter picture fail...

If anyone has any tips on getting four children all looking and smiling at the same time, I'd really like to know.

So we start out with 3 out of 4...
Then add the 4th, but he's in trouble at the moment for something I can't remember, so he's a sullen kind of 4th.

And then the light is too much for B.

So we try again...

and again...

Until I just give up.

The Easter Bunny was thrilled to find those purple ties though!

Wacky Thursday!

I know what you're thinking...wacky Thursday? Well, at Lizzy's preschool there just so happened to be a "Wacky Wednesday", but since she only goes on Tuesday and Thursday her class got to dress as silly as they wanted on Thursday instead. Lizzy picked her outfit all by herself and even wore it to bed the night before. And she wouldn't let me touch her hair, not even to run a brush through it. Oh, and don't forget about the boots! Now that's WaCkY!

Gabe and the Arrow of Light

Well, it seems as if the Piper family has been in cub scouts FOREVER...maybe because we have! But tonight was a special night in cub scouts, Gabe was awarded the Arrow of Light award. This is the highest award in Cub Scouts and is the only award he can take with him to Boy Scouts and into adulthood. We are so proud of Gabe and the many accomplishments he has earned in scouting. And I know he is already having a fabulous time in Boy Scouts and planning to go on and earn his Eagle!

Soccer!

I love the idea of my children having after-school activities, but usually, when it comes down to it, getting them all where they need to go at the time they need to be there is just a tad overwhelming for me. But even so, I decided to let Gabe and Tim join a soccer league. And I have been very happy so far. They both have just one practice during the week, and a game each on Saturday. There is a park for Lizzy to play at (always a huge bonus!) and they always play at the same field. I have had so much fun watching them play and develop their skills. And after practice, I have really loved how tired they are...Tim goes right to sleep! Gabe as goalie.

Gabe's team: The Red Bulls

Timothy's team: The Cobras

How many Pipers fit in a queen size bed?

The Answer: One! Jeffrey and the two older boys were out camping with the scouts this weekend, so I, being the kind mother I am, invited my sweet 7 year old Timothy to stay in my bed for one night. Only he didn't leave any room for me!

Lizzy-isms

This girl is absolutely delightful...most of the time anyway. I just love the things she says, and the words she uses. So here are a few of my current favs!

"Mom, are you going to school or not? I don't care...I'm a genius!"

"Cupfolder" = cupholder

"Ring around the rosies, hopsa copsa rosie, ash-lez, ash-lez, we all fall down!"

"Jew-li-er" = jewelry

Reading time with Tim

To say that Tim is thrilled to spend what used to be 20 minutes, but has now been upped to 30 minutes, reading out loud every day after school, would be stretching the truth a bit. Ok, it's an outright lie! So when he accidently skips a day and ends up with double the reading to do before he can go play, it can be a bit of a struggle. Lucky for us we have a full library of Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Garfield comics to make the reading a little more fun. Today Garfield was the choice. Tim even exclaimed, "I could read Garfield for TWO hours!" Did he? Nope. But it was interesting to watch my young man as he made himself comfy during his hour of booktime.