Life around the Farm

April always flies by because Jude and Selah celebrate birthdays this month, as well as a lot of our friends. It's also the end of the program year for our Classical Conversations co-op, plus the kids are getting ready for their piano recital, and end of the year state testing with our charter school. But even though it's felt quite busy we've also been making lots of time for playing outside because of this incredible early summer weather we've been having! I just LOVE it!!

This post is mostly just of my March/April iphone photos. Cell phone snaps often end up capturing some of my favorite little moments.

Picking lilac bouquets for the dining room table.

Watching the neighbor's cows over the fence.

We love that the chickens make a loop around the yard/orchard each evening, always ending right at their coop at dusk. They are so cute to watch. #chickenlovers ;)

We had our first fire pit night of the season. The kids loved it until it got too chilly, and then they went inside, while Josh and I hung out by the fire, hand in hand, until it dwindled to embers.

Selah read the American girl Kaya books and loved them. So much play spilled from her imagination.

Something about this pic made her look so much older than she is! Maybe because she looks like she's wearing make-up, even though she's not. I feel like I can see the future her.

We had family over for a dinner and movie night, and the cousins enjoyed playing together.

Nora kept going up on the couch to say hi to Granddad and Grandma during the movie and then back down to her cozy spot on the floor. It was so cute. She was so quick I could hardly snap a pic of her. 

Snuggling with my babies during the movie (thanks Gina for the pic)

I've always loved this view from the dining room...

Selah with her friend Selah at church. :)

We went for a walk out at a local vineyard some friends told us about. They have a scenic stroll you can take that's really pretty.

We came to this hazelnut orchard with a blanket of small purple flowers beneath it! It was magical!! The lighting that time of the day wasn't good and this cell phone pic is edited to death ;) but I loved that picturesque spot on the walk!!

I love being married to my best friend!

What a sweet dad! We were talking about how we don't have very many years left of being able to do this.

Selah with the girls in her class, and specifically with her BFF. :)

Learning about geology in school.

Playing with friends.

At a friend's birthday party...

I thought this pic was fitting of Benjamin in his class. ;)  They were learning to use a compass and about to embark on a mini adventure.

We attended a Mary Poppins play with Dad and Janet and it was excellent! They treated us to frozen yogurt afterwards. Yum! (Thank you!)

Jude was excited to meet Mary Poppins!

Josh and I had a fun night visiting Ivan and Hayley, eating yummy food and playing a game.

The kids did an early, indoor Easter egg hunt at Granddad and Grandma's.

Easter morning I woke up to this beautiful view!

Our darling Easter girl. We went out to lunch with Mom and Wayne and siblings after church, and mom surprised us all with Easter gifts. We had a great time!

Another fragrant bouquet for the dining room table, collected around the farm.

Snuggling on the couch with Joshy, watching a movie... he knows that a backwards hat gets me every time! Swoon. :)

Celebrating something with friends... I can't quite remember what, but I'm sure it was important. :)

Celebrating Jen & Jude's birthdays with ice cream at Dad and Janet's.

Tim and Lisa were in town for the weekend visiting and we loved catching up with them! They're so fun to be around.

One day I joined Selah outside while she was snuggling a chicken in the sun. She said, "Mom, it's like holding a warm pillow that's alive and super adorable." I had to write down that quote. :)

She and Ben also made this little world out of rocks and flowers. There's a campfire in the middle and two flowers tucked into sleeping bags on each side of the fire. I loved the symmetry. 

I'm not sure where these two were, but they texted me this pic while on a little daddy-daughter date. :) Loved it.

I hope you're having a lovely spring!