Easter

Easter this year was a little different than others - no church because of general conference, no Chris because we scheduled his trip to AZ without realizing it was Easter weekend, and no sun because it's springtime in Central Oregon. But we didn't let any of that deter us. We had our own little Easter egg hunt indoors Sunday morning, watched conference while eating yummy cinnamon rolls, and then headed to Grandma and Grandpa's that afternoon. Easter dinner was at Jann and Alan's and was delicious. Then came the big egg hunt - thank you Lark, Steve, Jenny, and Ben for filling 200 Easter eggs! We got all bundled up:



And off they went!




On another note, I ran into a friend the other day. We were laughing about Jonas' naughty antics lately when she told me about the headaches her son is giving her. He's 18 so you can imagine his actions are a little more serious. She reminded me that he's only 3 - still learning, etc. That afternoon this is what I found in his room on every blank wall space he could find:


I thought about my friend and scolded him while trying not to laugh, got the camera, and then some rags so we could clean it up together. Thought I'd share in case someone else needs a reminder about perspective.

Spring Break 2010

Big happenings at the Earnest house this spring break! We started off with Quinn learning to ride her bike without training wheels. I've put off teaching all of our kids to ride a bike - I like to use the excuse that we live on a huge hill. So, yes, we take them to the cemetery to learn to ride - it's a nice flat half mile loop and very peaceful.


Then Beth and kids came to visit for a few days of fun. My only sister and her family have lived in the Portland area for the last five years and we've had great visits on both sides of the mountain. Sadly, they will be moving to Pennsylvania when school gets out so this will be the last spring break we ski with the Battens. So I decided it was time I tried skiing again (after 20 years). Chris has taught the first 4 kids how to ski and now it was Jonas' turn:



Nothing cuter than a 3 year old on skis! It didn't take Jonas long to be brave enough to let go of Chris, His method was to go straight down the hill with his knees bent - no pizza wedge for him just straight down. When he wanted to stop, he sat down. I tried to take a video but I couldn't get one without falling on my own behind. By the end of the afternoon, he had started to get the hang of turning.


Meanwhile, I hung out with Quinn and tried to overcome my slight fear of heights on the ski lift. And ignore all three of my girls making fun of me.

Beth took the girls, Mattie, Lauren, Tyler, and Hannah, up on the more intermediate lifts and we let the three big boys ski on their own. I questioned the wisdom of that later that evening when Sam was telling me about skiing "the bowl" - really there are some things I just don't need to know about.



It was a beautiful day on Mt. Bachelor - sunshine and fun!

Swimming at the Madras Aquatic Center - also a must:



It was a fun Spring Break!

Deacon Jack's Gospel Shack

Sam turned 13 last week! Hard to believe we now have a teenager in the house. At 13 he:

• wakes up on his own every morning at 6:00
  
• has figured out how to set off each of his siblings
  
• eats a diet high in carbohydrates
• is great in the car, especially if he has his ipod
  
• is very creative
• is getting taller (5' 2"), but his patience seems to be getting shorter
• can babysit!!!
• serves as the Deacon's Quorum president
• gets straight A's
• can be moody
• plays a mean baritone saxophone (see video below)
• is well-loved by all of us!

Here's a link to a video of Sam's improv solo at the jazz festival last weekend - "Deacon Jack's Gospel Shack":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNo2soA--dI