Spring Break

We have 2 weeks of spring break this year. Last week Ryan was off school and Sam came down to visit. This week Maddie is off school and Jake came to visit. Sam finally made it after a flight cancellation Monday night and LONG delays on Tuesday. Her flight ended up being diverted to Longview and Mike drove there to pick her up. The plane went back to Minnesota so the people who got off in Longview couldn't get their luggage. American flew her bags here Weds and it was yet another trip to the airport to pick them up. She laid out in our sunny weather (a little too cold still if you ask me but she's used to it) and got sunburned. The little kids and I drove to SA for 2 nights and stayed with the cousins so Sam and Dad could have some quality time together. They went out to eat, shopped, watched tv and played cards. She went home Easter morning and we all miss her.

Jake arrived yesterday and has been bombarded by Maddie and Ryan ever since. They are constantly asking him for horsey rides, piggy back rides, to play hide and seek and so on. He is SUCH a good sport. We went to to zoo today and had a good time. I think the highlight of the trip was the ride on the merry go round.

Keller

My friend Cynthia lives in Flower Mound and posted some information about her city on her blog. Not to be outdone, I decided to post some information on my city on my blog. The funny thing is, (shhhhhh, don't tell anyone), I don't REALLY live in Keller. I live in one of those crazy areas that has a Keller zip code, Keller mailing address and Keller schools but city of Fort Worth water, police and trash service. Faux Keller. Keller on the wrong side of the tracks. (literally the wrong side of the tracks, our side of the railroad tracks is Ft. Worth, the other side is Keller.) So read on for information I copied from the City of Keller website.

On Monday, July 16, Money magazine named the City of Keller as one of the top 100 "Best Places to Live" in the United States. Keller was ranked number 50, the top rated city in North Texas, and among only six cities listed from the entire state.

This ranking reflects many years of vision, cooperation, and collaboration between elected officials and the city staff who have worked tirelessly to create a community that has unique country charm and all the convenience of a big city.

Some of the items that put Keller on the top of the list included our extremely low crime rate, access to an excellent recreation, park and trail system, and diverse housing opportunities. Keller can honestly say that we have "something for everyone."

The city's park system is highlighted by an extensive and beautiful trail system that continues to be expanded to offer recreational opportunities for all our citizens. The city is extremely proud of the award-winning Keller Pointe, which offers affordable fitness, recreation, and aquatic facilities for all of our residents. Finally, the "Imagination Station" located at Johnson Road Park attracts families of all kinds to its huge playground with equipment for children of all ages. The playground was built using donations from corporate citizens and the hard work of volunteers from throughout the community, including the Keller Rotary Club, Lions Club, Greater Keller Women's Club, Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops, and neighborhood residents who simply wanted to lend a hand.

In the area of public safety, our nationally accredited police department can boast on being having one of the lowest crime rates in Tarrant County. Our fire department is continuing to expand and the city is looking forward to the opening of a new fire station in the fall of 2008. This expansion will continue to improve on the impeccable service already being provided to our residents.

This ranking confirms what those who live in the city already know - Keller is truly a great place to live!

For more information about the 100 "Best Places to Live," visit http://www.CNNMoney.com.

Our weekend

Saturday we went to our neighborhood Easter Egg Hunt. Tori did not do as well at this one. At first I thought it was because it was too crowded. She kept falling down as she was trying to get the eggs. Later, Mike realized I had put her shoes on the wrong feet. Oops! Maddie and Ryan both got lots of eggs. Afterwards we couldn't get Ryan to go to the cookie table to get some cookies. He was laying hunched up on the ground. I thought he had to go to the bathroom but it turns out he was scared of the Easter Bunny. Poor little guy, he was practically in tears. She was kind of scary looking. (see pic)
Later that day Mike and the twins cleared out the front yard for spring flower planting. Then he took them to Braum's for ice-cream.







We have ice-cream at home right now too. The other day Mike and Maddie couldn't even wait to put it in a bowl.
Sam comes in town later tonight and we're looking forward to her visit. See ya soon Sam!

Fun Run

Ryan was in a "Fun Run" at school today. He ran 21 laps! He had so much fun and was very proud. The best part though was the glow in the dark frisbee he got for participating. He's sleeping with it right now!

Spring Clean

My spring cleaning is DONE! I made enough Ebay money to pay for someone to come do a deep clean. (Well, almost enough money, thanks for covering the rest Mike!) I used the person who cleans 2 of my friends' houses. She came out with a crew of 10 (yes, 10) people. The house was done in 55 minutes and it looks great. I only noticed a couple of things that weren't done to my satisfaction. I'm kind of picky! I'll definitely use them again.

Does the Easter Bunny die?

I thought this was a cute pic of the girls the other morning with their dolls.
Maddie has been asking A LOT of questions lately. "Does the Easter Bunny die? Where does the Easter Bunny live? Is the Easter Bunny just a person in a costume? Does the Easter Bunny live with Santa? Does Chuck E. Cheese die?" I told her that Chuck E. Cheese wasn't real. He's just a person in a costume. She was shocked. "Chuck E. Cheese isn't REAL!?" she asked. "Is the Easter Bunny real?" I told her that the Easter Bunny at the mall was a person in a costume and tried to leave it at that. I think someone must have clued her in on something. Hmmmmm.

Church Easter Egg Hunt

Our church had an Easter Egg Hunt on Sunday. Tori picked up on what to do right away. She was running all over the place, picking up eggs as fast as she could and putting them in her bag. When Ryan was her age he would get one egg, stop to eat the candy, and then slowly move on. Maddie was quicker but not as fast as Tori. Maddie and Ryan did good in their age group hunt also. Each kid was supposed to get 25 eggs. Maddie got 40 so we had to put some back.

Snow Day!

It finally snowed and stayed on the ground overnight. Here are pictures from yesterday and this morning. The kids made a snowman next door with the neighbors but I don't have a good picture of it. We don't have good snow clothes so they had to come inside twice to get in dry clothes and to get new gloves. Maddie didn't last as long as Ryan outside. She must be like me. My sister says that when were in high school it snowed and I refused to go outside because it was too cold. I have no recollection. Enjoy the pics and yes, be jealous! (Except for my Alaska and Minnesota readers who won't think this is a big deal. Other good news is Mike's flight got cancelled due to the weather so he got to come back home last night instead of leaving town!






These last 2 pictures are from this morning, the rest are from yesterday.

Is Ryan the next Picasso?

Ryan has been doing a lot of drawing lately and loves to have pictures taken of his artwork. Tori likes to help when she can.


This is what I walked in on in my bathroom last night. They were "washing their feet."