My parents and my sister, Alanna, were here for a couple days over Easter. It was lots of fun! Every time we have family come stay with us, it affirms that moving to Spokane was a good choice. I had a list of things to do on Friday such as: dye eggs, get ice cream and make a bunny garland. These things were really important to our family. We needed some good family time, especially Greta. It was really fun! And I love ice cream.

On Saturday, we went to an Easter egg hunt at a local park. Everyone dropped off a dozen eggs per kid the week prior and then each child got to "find" 12 eggs. The candy was gone in about 15 minutes. We thought about going to another community egg hunt in the afternoon because we were out of candy, but opted not to and I think that was smart.

When Holly was almost 2, we did this big egg hunt for her and she threw up because we just let her have at it with the candy. We've learned since then... Now our tradition is to do a scavenger hunt for Holly and Greta. I'm not sure when Conor started drawing these great picture clues but I love them. At the end of the hunt, the girls found a little basket of treats and some hair things. Small, simple, satisfying.

All the fun and candy can really tire a girl out. Greta flipped her lid and then fell asleep. I too crashed Saturday afternoon on the couch. It was a lovely weekend.

Some pictures of my wild little morning girls. Greta's hair is always "done" so on the rare morning she wakes up with it wild and free it's adorable and special and tangly. Holly's gap in her two front teeth is my favorite thing ever. Her gappy grin makes me smile. Is it bad for me to hope it stays gappy? I guess I'm the one who will one day pay for the braces... I just love her smile.

Today was patch day. Greta's bunny needed a new patch on his nose - she's worn right through it! I replaced it with the same size patch in the exact same spot. Holly's duck had spring a leak so he got a little patch too. I love how much these girls have loved their special things ever since they were wee babes. I have so appreciated having a special item that I can give them that gives them immediate comfort. The girls both sleep with bunny and ducky every night. Greta now also sleeps with a stuffed koala that Holly gave her for Christmas. It's the sweetest thing.

Long live childhood.

January has felt kind of blah and stressful. The grey skies are killing me! Must pick up more houseplants! We'll be painting in the next few weeks to cheer things up inside the house. The girls are as cute and spunky as ever even when they have colds. Holly has begun reading to Greta without even being asked to! Every now and then we tell them to read books to each other but it just about melts my heart to see them snuggled up on the couch reading together all on their own. I've said it so many times, these girls have something really special. Greta went to a superhero birthday party and I had to capture a pic of how adorable she was. And then it was worth being a little bit late to Stake Conference to catch these pictures of my darlings. And, the last picture is of Holly. She thinks that it's crazy hair day at school day. Whether it is or not, the kids got crazy hair! I like her hair short but sometimes I miss seeing her full face.

Looking forward to spring, planting a garden, some travel, hopefully some house guests, making some house projects happen, Greta's 5th birthday (gasp!)... Lots to look forward to and honestly, lots to enjoy right now. Sometimes I too easily forget how good I have it.

This Christmas, we had the special privilege of playing hosts to Conor's parents and to Conor's friend from Scotland. It was a really fun week. So many wonderful activities and memories were made last week, but one of my favorites was finally riding the Looff Carousel at Riverfront Park. It was really fun! I have a soft spot for carousels (seriously, baby Greta on a carousel is a memory I love), but everyone enjoyed this activity. I can see the girls and I coming for a couple of rounds on the carousel and then playing at the splash pad in the summer. If you're coming to visit us anytime soon, we'll probably take you for a carousel ride.