March 2012

As you can see from nearly all the pictures below March was an amazingly warm and delightful month. We tried to spend as much time outside as possible enjoying the sunshine and warmth. And it would seem that the few moments spent indoors were in boxes....it doesn't really matter the shape or size of the box at our house...kids will get in it and find pure enjoyment in it. My favorite is seeing Ben try to crawl inside boxes the size of a shoe-box or something...he keeps us laughing:)

 LucyMae has been doing AWESOME at the violin. She begs to practice every day. And I am usually able to get 30 minutes of practicing out of her before she starts complaining about being tired and wanting to be done. She is super motivated and picks things up quickly...just look at the beautiful bow-hand!

 Sam and I started the month off with a Symphony concert that we both played. It was a great concert....through the magic of some great people here in Rapid City, the Black Hills Symphony Orchestra was able to convince David Kim, the concertmaster of the Philadelphia Orchestra, to come solo with us. He played the Saint-Saens violin concerto and was simply amazing. He is a SUPER nice guy. He did some master-classes with students here and a question/answer session too. We enjoyed meeting him and getting his contact info for the future when we move to Philadelphia. He said he would be happy to help me find the best teachers and stuff for LucyMae when we move and help me get my foot in the door in the music community there.

On another note, can you get any idea from this picture of how in-love this kid is with his blanket? This kid LOVES his blanket more than I thought possible for a kid his age. And he's been in love with it since he was about 8 months old.  His new favorite thing is to have you wrap him up in it like this and he just goes wandering around wherever he is....this is at LucyMae's gymnastics lessons.

 Sibling love in the sun at the park! Their facial expressions are strange...but, hey, so are they sometimes. They are so good at playing together and pretending and imagining. I am in awe that Ben is already displaying signs of a very active imagination.....siblings can teach you a lot more than moms I think....

 My goal was to get LucyMae out on the snow 2 more times in March before all the snow melted and the ski resort closed. Well....IT WAS PERFECT!!!! I took her one Saturday morning, and Sam took her the next Saturday morning. We were able to borrow our friends' little skis and all we had to pay for was a ticket for the adult to use the novice hill. After the first day with me LucyMae was able to stop on command, turn on command, and was in heaven! The weather could not have been better for a kid to be learning to ski. By the end of the second day with Sam, she was doing it all without the edgy-wedgy and still in PURE HEAVEN!!! I am so excited that this little girl is learning to LOVE skiing. And it was seriously so fun to be with just her for the entire morning. She is such a delightful little child. So full of conversation and questions. So eager to learn and please. So excited about being independent and feeling more grown up. Both Sam and I were elated at how much fun we had our "dates" with her. Videos of LucyMae skiing below.

 More fun in the sun at the park with friends. I cannot believe how fun it is to be a parent to these kids this year (a great deal more fun than it was at this time last year). They play so well together. And it is so fun to watch them play with their friends, letting their imaginations run wild.

 Ben is seriously trying to get in on all the action too....He is going to be running, skipping, and jumping, and riding his big-wheel by mid-summer if he keeps up at the rate he's going.

I failed to get a picture of my own (but am hoping to get a copy from those that did) of the fun night we had with a huge group of couples from our ward. We went to dinner at Alpine Inn and said farewell to the Blackhurst family before they moved to Colorado. We have met some really awesome people here in Rapid City and are so grateful for the wonderful friendships that have developed while we've been here. We are starting feel real roots in this place, just as we are likely moving...

Sam got home from his scout campout one weekend in time for us to go rock-climbing with our friends, the Washburns and Baums. Dirt, rocks, trees, outdoors, hiding-places....this is heaven for them. It's fun to watch them and sit back and remember being a kid....those memories seem so distant and dusty, but these moments bring them back out of the closet for me and I love it!

 Ben isn't the best age for these climbing excursions right now. He can't navigate the terrain on his own safely yet. And he HATES being confined to this thing the whole time (although he does love being in here if someone is wearing him and moving). But he's getting better....slowly....yet so ridiculously fast.

 Fun climbing behind Mount Rushmore....Wrinkled Rock is the name of the area.

 The kids even had a go at it....and did really well

 well....most of them....Samantha didn't get any higher than this:)

 There's a new awesome Game, Fish, and Parks building (the Outdoor Campus) just a few blocks from our house that we are trying to enjoy as much as possible too. It's the closest thing to a Children's Museum here in Rapid City, and we love it! Ben is always thoroughly enamored with the fish-tank every time we go....

 And to finish out the month I helped my friend, Melanie McIntire, pull off an awesome party for the Baums to announce to them what the sex of their soon-to-be-born baby is....kind of a shower, but more just a party. We decided to do it as a couples date-night shower. And thanks to the amazing talents of Melanie it was beautiful and classy and super fun. When Amberly suggested this idea to me I decided that Melanie had to be roped into helping because she is so amazing. I like to socialize and organize gatherings....but I am not a party-thrower....Melanie is! Isn't it beautiful?

 And they're having....A BOY!!!

 These 2 are only 14 days apart in age....and they are so stinkin' cute together! Love the age they're at....so adorable and hilarious and frustrating....

 More fun times at the park.....Ben can now get on and off these horses by himself....

 LucyMae is a master-pumper now....she gets herself going pretty high. And she even jumps off the swing every now and then....getting brave....

 Samantha is just as cute as ever...still likes to be pushed in the baby swings and smile at Ben across the way...