"Don't pick the green ones!"

Thankfully I'm not talking about them picking their noses!!

Yesterday was a beautiful day so Sarah drove us out to Lane Packing Co. to pick strawberries!! It was a great day. The kids grabbed their buckets and we took off the the strawberry fields. Of course they wanted to pick everything in sight so we quickly had to make the rule: Don't pick the green ones!! Only the big red ones :-}

Hailey said she picked "20 30" (that's her own special number)Jack said he picked two! And he's probably right :-D He was just fine with Mommy picking them and dropping them in the bucket for him! Ralston did awesome! He was picking like crazy...I think he picked more than my two combinedAnd then little Riley...he was a little behind but his mommy stayed with him. I think he really enjoyed it though :-}We even saw a really cool tractor that was plowing more rows for strawberries!! He was only like six or eight rows away from us :-DWhen we were done we said lets see those berries! But we couldn't see their faces! Then when we said put your buckets down a little Jack started to put his all the way down on the ground...okay...picture time is over :-P Time to play....The playground always wins!

After lunch we played a little more and then it was time to go. But on the way out we had to do one more thing...Hailey Lynne...Ralston Douglas...

Jack Brayden...

All had a "berry" good time at Lane Packing

And both their mommy's survived the day with no major casualties :-D

Happy April Fools!

So I don't have any pranks to pull, (like Amber!) Just catching up on my blog :-} Hope everyone had a great weekend. Darren was off ALL THREE DAYS! It was amazing and kind of wierd at the same time :-) But even though he was off I think they tried to call him in about 5 times just on Friday alone! Ahhhh the life of a cop....we even got a call at 3:47 A.M. Saturday morning wanting him to come in due to a fatal car accident. He was so asleep he doesn't remember me giving him the phone and him saying, "no, that's okay" Luckly it was optional whether or not he wanted the overtime because he did not get up and go in. I had to prove it to him on the caller ID the next morning :-}

Today was fun! Ralston and Riley came over while Sarah went and got her hair cut by Melissa! It is so cute!! I can't wait till she puts a picture up on her blog so everybody can see it!! I'll just say it is so different that Jack stood in the hallway and just stared at her...he didn't recognize her! I love it :-) She looks so good!!

Ralston, Jack, and Hailey riding in the Jeep. Ralston did get to drive and had so much fun!

Little Riley had a blast running after the kids!

He caught up when the Jeep ran out of batteries and hopped right in :-)

Here's my Pedro catching some sun.

We finally figured out what the three little trees were in the back yard. They are cherry trees! They are blooming right now and are so pretty! We still have two mystery trees that I'll have to wait till their leaves come in a little more to figure out.

I caught a blue bird through the kitchen window this morning. Looks like he was gathering some stuff to make a nest :-)

And all the azelias are blooming like crazy...really pretty...too bad they only stay that way for a few more weeks and then it's just green bushes for the rest of the year. But maybe we'll get surprised with something else that pops up in the yard. It's been fun seeing what happens next.

She heard it on the radio!

We were waiting in the credit union drive thru lane and a familiar song came on the radio. I haven't heard these guys in forever and I guess since there is supposedly a "comeback" in the works they are going to start playing their songs more. So anyway....The Right Stuff by New Kids On The Block...you know..."oh, oh, oh, oh-oh, oh, oh, oh, oh" I'm just listening away all the words coming right back from when I was probably 9 years old! And what do I hear?? My little Hailey in the back of the van singing all the little "oh,oh's" and "the right stuff!" I just had to laugh....I don't think I would have ever thought that my four year old would be singing a NKOTB song! I mean she love's Kelly Clarkson and Alicia Keys, but I never thought she'd sing along to these guys :-) Too funny!

Happy Birthday, Daddy!!

My dad's birthday was Monday...but with all the Easter hoop-la I'm just now getting to this post. I went through some old pictures last night and wanted to share these.

This is "little Steve" playing with a neighborhood friend. I think he's a cowboy/fireman!I know this is sometime in Elementary school...My dad is the youngest of three girls. The oldest is like 20yrs older than him and the youngest is about 8yrs older....he was definitely the baby of the family....they call him "baby Hewie"Here is his Senior picture. He graduated high school in 1974. He got his blond hair from working in the Orlando sun at a local car wash. Here's my mom and dad...And this is probably one of my dad's favorite pictures. He keeps it in his Bible. It's got his favorite girl and favorite car. He had to get rid of this GTO when he got stationed to Turkey. Early AirForce days....This was before he became an OSI agent. He served 20yrs and retired in 1996. He loved being an agent. Teaching me how to sing...I was telling him I wanted him to lead Paradise Valley :-) My dad is a very talented song leader and does a great job singing at church. This was in the Philippines (1991)

I could say a ton of things about how great my dad is but I'll just list the top 5!

5. He's very calm and doesn't over react. You can tell him anything without fear that he'll freak out. And when times are hectic he's always the best to have around especially during emergencies!

4.He's very tender hearted. He crys when I give him cards and during sweet commercials or movies. I love that he's not afraid to show his emotions.

3. He's a great husband and father. He has been a wonderful example of what a man should be and given me and my brother a stable home life. My husband grew up without a dad so he looks up to my dad too for guidance and direction on being a husband and father.

2. He's very through. When reading directions he reads them over and over and in every language before starting a project or going on a trip :-) {just kidding} But he is very through!

1. He's a wonderful Christian example. I was blessed to grow up in a home where we went to church every Sunday and Wednesday and lived a Christian life everyday in between. He continues to show me even today how to grow and love the Lord and be thankful for all our blessings. And I'm definitely thankful for him!!

And this is what he does now....plays with my kiddos...now he's the best dad and papa!! This was his birthday last year, we went out for Chinese this year (but I didn't take my camera!)

Happy Birthday Dad and Papa!!

Love,

Darren, Sissy, Hailey and Jack

Easter Day Pictures

My mom made this centerpiece for me. Isn't it pretty?!?

Easter morning was fun. Daddy was working so the kids had fun telling him all about it after we got back from church.
Hailey got a new Bible from the Easter bunny and Jack got a cool bubble blower!
We did a quick photo shoot in the back yard before Sunday school! Talk about Mommy stressing out!! Between only having like 5 minutes to spare, the dog wanting to jump on us, and my heels sinking in the grass it was so much fun!!!
They were very cooperative though....I was very pleased. I even convinced Hailey to touch her brother :-)
Hey mom, what's the dog doing?!?