Mother's Day

I have this silly image in my head about Mother's Day....that I will be served breakfast in bed, that the children will be clean and quiet. And that they will be perfect in church and then come home and sit at my feet, gazing adoringly at their sainted mother.....HA! But it is such a special blessing to be a mom and to have all my children with me at last. I don't even care that I couldn't get ONE picture with my kids where someone wasn't crying. I don't even care that they were extra naughty in church and I spent my time with them in the nursery. Lonny made me a special breakfast (who cares that it wasn't in bed?) and made sure the day was as nice as possible. I have a wonderful family who loves me and that's all the gift I need.

A Visit from Cousins

We were super excited to host Lance, Lacie and their beautiful kids as they made their way from Oklahoma to start a new life in California! Connor was sooooo happy to see Hope and the girls loved meeting Callie. And we ALL loved meeting our newest addition, Tyler! I regret not taking more pictures, but we had so much fun. We had a going away party for them and Connor made sure to sit himself between two of his favorite little ladies, Hope and Victoria. And Ella and Callie are two little peas in a pod. It was a super special time. We are very excited to go to California in November and spend Thanksgiving with these people we love so very much!

Connor Earns His Yellow Belt

Connor is doing great in his karate class. The big day finally came for him to test for the next level. He had to demonstrate what he has learned AND break a board. I think I was more nervous than he was! I had to stay home with the girls, so Dad went and was prepared to capture the action on video. When he got home, we watched the video and I got to see Connor break his board...on the FIRST TRY!!! He was OUTSTANDING!! Next time I get to go. Hanshi autographed the board for Connor and took some pictures with him. It is a proud accomplishment!

Spring Break, Part 2 - Oceanside!

We ended our vacation by spending family time at the beach. We had a blast! You simply could not keep Ella out of the water....she would have swam to Grandma's house in Hawaii if we let her! I was worried that Abby wouldn't like the water, but I was wrong...she would scream and laugh every time a wave hit her. And Connor loved making sand castles and new friends. We reluctantly left the next day. But when we got back home everyone was so excited. The girls were looking around the living room like it seemed vaguely familiar...and when they spotted Katie dog they laughed and squealed. Then they ran around, room to room looking at everything while Connor said "Home sweet Home" (repeatedly). Nothing like a vacation to make you appreciate your stuff back home. It was a great trip and we will have lots of memories.

Lego Land

Next stop was beautiful Oceanside, California which included more camping and.....2 days of Lego Land!!!

Camp Life

Aaaaah, playing in the warm desert sun. We swam, rode bikes, ate strawberries (and lots of other goodies), walked and relaxed. But for the huge wind storm the first night (that I thought was going to take the entire Bandeaux family away) it was perfect weather. We love camping!

Spring Break, Part One

We had a great trip to California over Spring Break. Not only did we celebrate the return of the sunshine and take a much needed "recharge" break, but it was also a special birthday for Lonny's best friend, James. We won't say how many years, ahem. So the first leg of our trip was spent in the desert. We loaded up the kiddos and hit the open road in our RV. It did take us 10 hours (you read that right) to get to Vegas, but eventually we hit our destination, 29 Palms. We went to Joshua Tree National Park and had a great hike with James, Jeaninne, 'Sedes and Trini. The girls hiked in style in back packs carried by Daddy and Uncle James. Connor went exploring and watched out for snakes. It was a perfect weather day and the hike was just amazing. A great start to our trip!