kicks' last game

tonight was little sister's last soccer game, and none of her teammates showed up. :-(

i think this game had some last-minute schedule changes, and no one noticed on the official schedule website but me.  but little sister did not let that stop her from having a fun time.  she warmed up with the other team while we were waiting for our team to show up, and then they all scrimmaged together and got in some playing time. 

the other team even shared their after-game snacks and drinks, so she was a happy girl on the ride home.  what kid wouldn't like a brownie and lemonade at 8:00 at night??

in full bloom

 the lilies in our front yard started blooming easter weekend.  they are all open now, and some have started to fade already, so i thought i had better take our annual lily photo.  the girls were a bit grumpy at the start but soon their moods improved.  daddy's tickles  may have had something to do with it, i think...

happy easter!

ride 'em, cowgirl!

today, grandma & grandpa got all the kids and cousins together and treated us to a horseback ride at black mustang ranch.  the ride only lasted about an hour, but big sister has been talking about it ever since.  and i have a feeling this experience will be the subject of a few pictures and writings coming up this week at school.

little sister was not thrilled to have to share a saddle with me, while big sister got to ride by herself.  i bought them cute cowboy hats for the occasion, not realizing they would be required to wear helmets instead. (safety over fashion)

 on the trip home, wonder if they were dreaming of horses...

egg hunt

we stumbled into an egg hunt while on a quick trip to the grocery store this morning.  it couldn't have worked out better - since the girls have been begging to have an egg hunt for about a week now.  we didn't have baskets, but their cowboy hats worked just fine.

sugary sweet smiles

the girls did not let me break what is quickly becoming our tradition - birthday morning donuts!  happy birthday, daddy! 

april innocence

these girls tried to “april fool” me today.

they woke me up to tell me it had snowed.  they were so excited about it.  i played along and let them “trick me” into believing it.  they were very pleased with themselves.

luckily, the snow melted quickly (wink, wink) and we were able to enjoy a beautiful 85-degree day.  since big sister’s first communion is coming soon and they don’t allow pictures at the ceremony, i decided to do a mini-photo session with the girls at a local park to commemorate the occasion.  big sister looked and felt like a real princess in her dress, veil, and gloves.  not bad for this amateur photographer – plus it helps to have such cute & cooperative subjects. :-)