Jack's Field Trip

Jack had a hands-on field trip this week at his school! Camp Flintlock came to run a 4 hour program for the kids to really make colonial items and play colonial games!  They had 5 stations - a leather notebook making station where they had to nail holes in the binding and sew it up with a whip stitch (Jack had to help four other kids sew), a candle making station where there were 2 pots of melted beeswax and two pots of water - you dipped your wick in wax, then water and repeated it continuously, there was a colonial games station where they learned to play colonial games, a dress up and shop station where they could buy colonial items with real money to take home and an Indian bead making station that I got to help with! 

The group of 4 instructors set up the tents the night before on the school fields. 

The candle making tent!

The Indian necklace making tent!

Jack shopping :). He bought a replica musket ball, an arrowhead and a real (gross) fox tail! 

Ben, Blake and Jack dressing up!

All with coonskin caps on!

Showing off their candle making skills!

Playing Buffalo Ball

And catching it!

Making the leather journal!

Using the nail to make holes on the side to bind it!

The Indian bead making station!

What a completed necklace looks like. 

Me and my Jack!

After they had gone through all 5 stations, they were given a "pop" quiz - and would get prizes if they answered correctly! Jack won another arrowhead for answering one correctly!

And these little cuties were at recess, but not allowed to leave the playground during the pop quiz time, but desperately wanted to see their moms and brothers on the field trip on the lawn!

Camp Flintlock!

Friends!!!

We met up for lunch with friends of ours that we were close with in Bangkok! They were passing through the area before flying out to the country they currently live in :) It was great to catch up with them for a little bit and hug them since we hadn't seen them in almost 3 years!  We didn't get to see their oldest, who is in college, or the husband who was already back at work - but it was great to see Becky and the kids!  They were like family to us in Bangkok and we are so thankful for their friendship! 

The whole gang at Anita's :)

Happy Easter!!

 Happy Easter from us!  We had a great and very busy day on Easter!

We started out waking up at 6am to get up, shower and have Easter baskets.  

We attended the 7:30am Easter service at church together as a family and then working the 9am service. 

 Dan brought along our Resurrection Eggs and he worked through all 12 eggs with our class - having a kid come up and open the next one, having them take a stab at explaining what was inside and reading the corresponding verse that goes along with it - then Dan talked a little bit about each one!  It was great and he did a great job - and it's a really good way to walk through the highlights of the Passover/Good Friday/Easter stories!

 The Thursday before Easter we had Sarah, Max, Grammy and Grandad over to decorate Easter Eggs!  Our kids had never decorated them overseas - I don't think.  The eggs in Thailand were brown (so no decorating them) and in Kuwait they were white, but still had chicken poop and feathers on them, so I didn't really want to hard boil them!

 They turned out so pretty!

 Our sweet kiddos ready for church!

 Our Family after church on the hillside

Me and my Easter Tweeter

We ran home to finish making things for Easter lunch and then went to Tasha and Todd's home to celebrate!  They are so kind to host this group for the last couple of years and this year we were able to join them!  We had lots of delicious food, lots of great conversation and lots of extended families!

I made homemade hummus and veggies and then lemon bars and chocolate chip shortbread cookies for dessert!

Our Family

 Megan and Mary Kate

 Dan had to head out from there to a week of training!  In his awesome truck!

 The kids and I stayed to enjoy the traditional Easter Egg hunt :)  Sharon and Dick were so kind to fill all the eggs for all the kiddos!  They had the little boys go first (the 3 and under crowd) and then the big kids got to hunt (the 5-13 year olds)!  Todd hid them WELL!  They were HARD to find!

The big kids got to find 4 and then come back and when everyone had found 4, then they could all go find 4 more and then more if they could find them!  There was one "golden egg" and it was found by Porter for the 2nd year in a row!

 Me and Megan

 Me and Jack

 Me and Kylie

Getting instructions from Dick on where the golden egg could be!

 Then I came inside and found these two sound asleep on the sofa :)  Just for a couple of minutes, but I'm sure it was much needed!

 These 4 cute boys play well together - and play hard together!  Jack LOVED being over at Stone and Porter's - playing hockey in the basement, playing outside on the playground, shooting hoops - so fun!

And these cute girls posted this later that day - yay for cousins!!!

Spring Break

 We started off Spring Break by going to Great Country Farms!

It was just the kids and I because Dan had to work all week, but we had a great time going there!  

 Megan wanted a picture of her milking the cow :)

 Scary, scary picture of our 3 little piggies!

 Looking at (and smelling) little baby chicks!

 The four of us getting ready to explore!

 Kiddos on an old tractor

 And riding a buckin' bronco together!

 Posing behind a cow - which Megan was grossed out by, because it shows the cows 4 stomachs in detail on the back side :)

 Loving the jumping pillow - like a huge trampoline!

 Swinging in unison on the foot swings!

 Sliding down the cool slides!

 Riding pedal go carts!

 Jack's highlight for the day!

 Scootering around

 Kylie and Jack in the stocks and Megan looking on smugly :)

 Being animals :)

Looking at the peacock

And sharing a bottle of Black Cherry soda after a fun morning!

Megan (our big front seat rider now at 12 years old) and Kylie passed out hard on the ride back home!

 Snuggled up!  We played a lot of Little Alchemy over the break and all started new games on it!

 And they got to sleep together 2 nights in a row!

We spent almost every night at church during spring break because of this:

We worked in the kid's program as a family Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  We attended Conversations with Grammy and Grandad, Mark and Heather and their family on Thursday.  Megan got to also attend on Wednesday with her small group!  It was amazing!  My friend wrote this up on her facebook page to let people know about it:  

Consider yourself invited! Our church is putting on a show this week...every night (mon-fri) at 7:30pm. It's not your "traditional" Easter show. It IS going to be hilarious, will have great music (think Beatles and Rolling Stones), yummy snacks before and after, is free and will leave you inspired and touched by the stories shared. You won't be asked to give ANY money or sign anything or raise your hand. Just come, enjoy and be blessed! Child care for age 0-10 kiddos is free and available! We are planning to go either Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday if anyone wants to join us! I promise you'll be glad you did! 

It made for late nights the whole week (home around 10pm every night), but it was a great way to serve and spend our week!