Easter Finally

We had plenty of Easter fun this year that's for sure. On Thurs we started off with an egg hunt next door at the Kerby's. This year Ty actually understood the point to the egg hunt. She was so excited to find them. Amber got them all sand pails to decorate and use to put their treasures in. We had so much fun kicking off the Easter weekend with Julie and Amber. Amber is always thoughtful when it comes to inviting us over for the fun activities she plans for her day care kids.Then on Friday we followed tradition and had our 1st swim of the year at mom and dads house. My kids always know come Easter weekend that they get to swim. I love seeing them in all of their cute suits and in sheer Heaven. After mom got them all UV resistant we had a blast. I swear mom was out there getting them all lubed up for 30min. Its quite a task when there are 10 of them. I'm not sure what us moms were doing inside but Gma took care of business like she always does. The spa was warmed up for those of us who are sane and didn't feel like swimming in 65 degree water. The bigger kids didn't seem to skip a beat and jumped right on into the chilly water. They were going crazy off the diving board and having a ball regardless of how cold the water was. Ty thought she would be brave and jumped in the big pool also. I have never seen her kick so hard to get back to the side. I'm not sure she realized what she was in for. Needless to say she decided to let the big kids do their own thing:) While we took a lunch break they colored a million eggs. They drew on them, stickered them and took time creating their own masterpieces. I love hard boiled eggs but man I am still trying to finish off the ones my kids made. After some more swimming it was off to hunt eggs. As if we needed anymore candy. I love Easter candy and start buying it the second it gets to the stores. Pretty much the day after Valentines. I am pretty certain there is nothing better than the Cadbury Mini eggs. Maybe next year we need to throw in some cash eggs.
They were all pleased with their findings and I'm sure will need dental work for it. We headed home that night a little early because both kids had ball games. I know they shouldn't be swimming on game day;) I remember my coach growing up saying that and I always thought it was funny.

Thankfully the Easter Bunny put some fun toys in their baskets and hardly any candy. The bunny hid all their baskets and they had so much fun tracking them down. I think they were more excited to get up for Easter morning than Christmas. Once they had all retrieved their baskets we had to hustle and get ready for church. As much fun as all the festivities are they are only a way to help us remember Christ death and resurrection. We had a brief talk on what Easter is about and off we went to church. I loved coming home and hearing each of them tell me what they learned about in primary. Tate told me how sad it was that people would do that to Jesus. I think its so awesome how as parents we have the church and our wards to help us teach our children. Without the guidance of the gospel it would be extremely hard to teach our families. I am so fortunate to have the many blessings that I do. I am grateful for my family, the gospel and this free country to live in. But most importantly I am grateful for the atonement. I realize it is through this sacrifice that we have all that we do. I mean without the opportunity to repent and better myself, eternal life would not be possible. There is not a day that goes by that I do not recognize just how blessed I am. I want my kids to know that the only way to truly be happy is to follow the teachings of our Heavenly Father. At times its not always easy but the alternative is much harder.

By the time the girls and I got home from church the boys had already changed out of their Easter outfits. I wanted a picture either way so here are just us girls. It was so fun to have B home this year for Easter. It felt complete unlike last year. We finished the day up with chicken in the dirt at Kyle and Linda's house. Also some hand cranked home made ice cream, just like it was done when grandpa was alive. We always have a good time and enjoy seeing members of Chads family that we don't see very often. From there it was off to my parents for some more dinner. It was a busy day but was definitely a great one!!!!