Announcing the Runner up... Zach Anderson!

Yesterday was the pine wood derby for the scouts. It was a tri ward event, and there were about 30 boys racing their cars. I'm pleased to announce that the 2nd place winner or "Runner up" for the whole event was Mr. Zachary Anderson. His car raced and won every heat but the final one. He was overjoyed! Each and every heat, we witnessed his thrill and excitement by the humongous smile on his face, and his own congratulatory "I'm pumped" arm signal. He was in the championship, just he and another boy waiting by the sideline watching their cars speed by. The other boy's car took the lead in the final second. Zach was disappointed but showed great sportsmanship. I was so proud of him, he walked of the stage with head hung low, but still feeling like a winner. It shouldn't go without saying that Jeff (with a bit of help from our scout) worked his hiney off making Zach's car. Actually, Zach and Juan's car. Juan is a little boy in our ward who wouldn't of had a car to race unless Jeff made one for him. After the event, Juan was one happy boy who I'm sure will treasure his derby car. Thank you Jeff, for showing us an example of love and willingness to help others in need.

Here is Zachy walking back to us whispering "Yes, I did it."Zachy and the other little boy right before the final race. Zachy watching one of the races. Since he couldn't see the finish line, he waited for the announcement of his name (or sometimes I shouted out to him...you won, buddy)

Rejoice and celebrate Easter

We certainly did. I love to celebrate Easter! It's a time for Spring weather, new dresses, flowers, Easter candy, pastle colors, dying eggs, baskets, Sunday dinner, but more than that, it's a time to celebrate and rejoice in our Savior. I'm thankful for the gospel and the happiness it brings to my life.

Ooooh, I love to color Easter eggs. I still recall the memories of dying eggs as a child. Through the years nothing has changed...I still love it. Avery colored her eggs in record time, 1 minute and she was done. I guess the whole "design and decorate" each egg is lost on a 4 year old.

Bright and early, we started our hunt for the eggs and baskets. The easter bunny really tricked the kids this year. In the end, the children loved their baskets. They each got an umbrella, and new outfit among other little items. Yep, lots of candy.

Sunday morning, Avery all decked out in her new Easter Dress. The Easter bunny brought Lucy(her American Doll) a matching dress. Avery loves Lucy and I love hearing Avery's sweet conversation with the doll ALL DAY!After church, and after dinner, we all went over to the Fenton's home for an egg hunt. We joined in on the fun with the Enlows and the Passey's, as well. It's so much fun for the children to hunt with their friends. They had fun searching hi and low for the eggs-especially the ones filled with money! It was so cold outside, we sported our winter coats. Now, I know Easter was early this year, but really...winter coats for Easter, Yuck! Oh well, even the wind couldn't stop us from having a truly eggcellent egg hunt! We are thankful for such a great group of friends we have here in Omaha. We always have fun together! And, we appreciate the Fentons for their hospitality and hosting the egg hunt this year.

Notice the Target bag...Yes, we forgot to bring our easter baskets AGAIN this year!Avery scanning the yard for the pencils that were tossed among the blades of grass.

Zach and Spencer. Zach couldn't wait to get started on the candy...Oh, look he has a big wad of blue gum in his mouth.

It's been a GRAND week for us

Whew, finally a chance to catch up...we've had a fun but busy week. Grandma and Grandpa came to town last week and helped us celebrate Easter. We had a wonderful time playing and enjoying their company.

Our kids love to go out to eat, especially with grandma and grandpa. Red Robin won the vote. Jeff put in his request for a restaurant with a T.V after all, it is March Madness.

While Grandma and Grandpa were here we played games, watched a movie (1/2 of Black Beauty) baked treats: friendship bread, peanut clusters, animal pancakes, and watched T.V. The kids lucked out with windy weather and flew their new kites. Chances are good they can fly these kites EVERYDAY...I've never known so much wind. But, most importantly especially to Zach, much time was spent snuggling!


First thing in the morning, all the kids love to climb in bed with Grandma and Grandpa for a snuggle fest, sometimes even before the sun comes up! Let's just say grandma and grandpa don't get much sleep when they are in our home.

We are so thankful to Grandma and Grandpa for taking time and coming out to visit us. We appreciate the love and attention they give to our family. This will be a busy month, as Grandma, Grandpa and Gigi & Papa will all be back out in town mid April. It's party time in the Anderson home and they will help us celebrate Jeff's and Z&E's birthday. Zachary and Ellie are turning 9. Wait, doesn't it seem like just yesterday that they were baptized? We look forward to the celebrations -let the good times roll!

Adorn your sweet pea...

With the pretty petals of a Gerber daisy! I am now selling these hair accessories for little girls. Although, I've thought about it many times, I've never really had enough desire to "sell" the things that I enjoy making. Mainly, because it never seemed profitable to me. I typically, get frustrated with the project if it's not just perfect and then spend more time on a" redo". So in respect to " time vs. profit" I didn't imagine it worthwhile for me. These flowers are a different story...they are so easy to make. I can make one during the commercial break of American Idol! Literally, it takes 2 minutes to make. My original plan was to make some for just Avery. I had searched high and low and all around Omaha with no luck in finding flower hair accessories for little girls. I found one online but it was too pricey for me! So, it was after that I decided to make them myself. So, here I go... I have an appointment to drop some off a consignment sale, I'm trying to get them in the little boutique up the street, and ebay.

Happy Birthday Papa!

It's a special day...it's papa's birthday! We will see Gigi and papa at the end of March, so we will celebrate then. We are lucky to have such a great papa (& dad) in our lives. Papa loves his grandchildren, all 6 of them. He plays, sings, snuggles, laughs, tickles, and reads stories to them all. He is always eager to see them and hear about the latest and greatest moments in their lives. Papa brings so much excitement and energy to our home when he visits. He is silly and fun. Papa also helps our family in many ways. We can count on him every step of the way. Papa is a computer guru, has turned shopping into an "extreme sport", he is full of knowledge and advise and is willing to share. And we are thankful to him. You can always expect a movie run, complete with popcorn when papa is around. We love that, and we love Papa. Happy Birthday, dad- hope it's a good one.

How does a visually imparied child do an easter egg hunt?

By listening to the beeping sound inside each egg. Every year we are invited to the Nebraska Foundation for Visually Impaired Children's Easter egg hunt. This is a fabulous organization that provides many special opportunities for the children and their siblings. The idea is this...They hide the eggs which make a quiet beeping, so the low vision and blind kids can experience the thrill of the "hunt" and look for the eggs. At each egg is a basket full of treats. Aside from the many treats, each child gets a stuffed bunny to take home and the family gets a hardcover story book. The Easter Bunny makes a stop here to visit the kiddo's. It's a great day for all. Two of our local news stations were on hand to broadcast the event. I never want to be on T.V, so I stayed far away, but they did interview some of the parents. I am so thankful for this organization and others that are similar. They provide entertainment and fun times for kids with disabilities. Certainly, finding Easter eggs isn't a necessity for anyone...but, it's fun and exciting and all children deserve the chance. They make each event a family affair and and invite siblings to participate as well. I am thankful for the volunteers, which make these activities possible. I am amazed by the love in their hearts and their willingness to share with each of us. Thank you to NFVIC.

Lovin' the locks

Yesterday we went to the salon for a trim and came out with a new hair style for Ellie. She loves it and so do I. Well, actually this is not a new look for her, as she has had the good 'ol bob most of her life. I think it's suits her well. As much as I have wanted her to cut it for some time, I let her make the decision (I only slightly encouraged the change.) As we left the salon, she said "I can't wait to show off my new hair, it's soooo pretty." She's lovin' the locks.

It's a milk and cookies kind of night

Comfort. Delicious. Fulfilling. In more ways that one, this describes our night. Of course, milk and cookies are a treat. But, enjoying the night together is especially rewarding. We had "family home evening" tonight. The children take part in the planning process. And, infact each of us in charge of one aspect of the night. Avery planned the lesson. So cute. She thought about it all day. First, her idea was to talk about "what makes a nice family." But, ultimately settled on "love everyone." She had us write down special things that we love about each other. Then we shared out list. "Wow" everyone came up with some really great qualities. I might mention that Zachary didn't give us any grief, and gladly listed special qualities about his sisters. Posting this list will surely help me remember in the years to come the sweet words that were said tonight.

Zachary said," Mom is ...Gorgeous, kind, nice, pretty & generous. Ellie is pretty, when I look in her eyes I see hearts. She plays with me and is kind. Dad is nice and hard working for his family. Avery is adorable, kind, and has pretty eyes. "

Avery said, "Mom is sensitive, nice and sensible. Dad is so kind I can't believe it. He plays with me. He is my favorite guy in the world. Ellie is pretty and has a pretty smile. She makes me laugh. Zachary is kind, loves his "kiki" and GI Joes. And, now he loves school. Also, she said about herself...I am special because I have pretty clothes, and I'm always funny."

Ellie said, "Avery is special, she lets me play with her. My mom and dad are so helpful. I couldn't function (she mentioned liking this word choice) without them. Zach is perfect. I love him. He is sometimes mean but I manage. I absolutely love them all. I am glad we live together. They make my life perfect."

After the lesson we had our activity which was planned by Ellie. "Duck, Duck, Goose". We giggled and stumbled around the circle. Zachary was in charge of the treat which is his favorite part. Ohhh, warm cookies just out of the oven. Comfort, delicious and fulfilling...How sweet it is.

Notice the milk moustaches on the kids- this scored the biggest laugh of the night. They loved 'em!

Hip Hip Hooray ...It's Breya's Birthday today!

A big birthday shout out to my dear friend. Enjoy your day, induldge, eat cake and shop! Breya and I have been friends since we first met in Denver. We connected immediately and our friendship blossomed. We have the kind of friendship that was just "meant to be." Our husbands are friends as well, which makes our double dates so fun. Dax and Jeff bring out the "little boys" in each other. They tell jokes and laugh non-stop! I think they save up some of their best "irreverent" jokes for one another. We had a blast together in Denver, we lived in same neighborhood and ward. Z&E were very small and BUSY then. I guess our "terror twins" didn't scare them away from having their own children because they now have 2 beautiful kids who look just like Breya. (Ha, Just making sure you are still reading.) They have since moved to Boise and we soon after moved to Omaha. Breya and I have planned a trip to see one another every year since we moved apart. Sometimes it's SLC or Denver, Boise and now Disneyland. We plan on keeping up with our tradition year after year. Memories are made of this...good friends that last a lifetime. Make a wish and celebrate. I love you, Laurie

A giggling girl is sunshine in the home

"Oh" the joy you bring me, happy child of mine. As I sit here tonight after a special fast in behalf of Zachary, I can't help but also think of Ellie. We fasted this day for Zach, as we have many times in the past. Heavenly Father has blessed us with so much and we know through Him all things are possible. This morning when Jeff was saying our family prayer, he mentioned a prayer for Ellie, that she too know how important she is in our family and in our lives. He asked that she be aware of the sunshine she brings into our home. He asked a prayer to be with Avery that her sweet soul continue to love and grow. Later, Zachary was given a priesthood blessing. This too, has happened many times in his little life. I wonder what it is like for a twin, with a unique bond to have her brother in need of so much extra attention and help. She handles it beautifully. She always has. Sometimes, I feel she is wise beyond her years. I took time tonight to hug her a little tighter. She is my sunshine.

I was looking at some fun, random, pic's I took yesterday while El's and I were hanging out in the office. She doesn't particularly like having her picture taken but since it was all in fun (with no pressure for the perfect one) she participated. I love these photos of Ellie with big bellie laugh.

Fireridge Carnival

Saturday was the annual school carnival. Not my favorite event but, surely one of the kids'. It is a fundraiser and all the proceeds go to our school. Lucky for me, (just kidding) I had a women's conference in the morning so I met the fam at the carnival and caught the tail end. They had a blast. Games, prizes, food, friends, and all the goodies. Jeff mentioned now that the twins are older it makes for an easier "shin-dig" to attend.



Zachary was the lucky recipient of this prized "Husker" basket. He bought a ticket for the raffle and chose this basket. He squealed with delight when the Principal called his name as the winner. "Eww" blue hair for Ellie. Hair paint is definitely not my favorite, but the kids love that as well. Looks like another tub for the kiddos tonight.
"Granny" Avery (white hair paint) hula hooping it up! On a side note: Kudos to Jeff for fixing Avery's hair with cute ponytails.