Primary Easter Egg Hunt

While Jason and Brendan were at the Lego convention, I took the girls to our ward's Easter egg hunt. It started with fun games in the cultural hall. We got a picture at the dress up booth.

The actual hunt took less than 5 minutes. There were so many kids that they cleared the field fast.

But everyone had a great time. The girls enjoyed their loot and were quite proud of themselves. 

One week in Spring

Jason here.

As our time is winding down here in Fayetteville, I wanted to make sure I captured a few things. 

One of those things is that one of my best friends in the world, a friend I have known for over 15 years, lives a mile or so down the street. We get together with the Andersons fairly regularly, but with schedules and life being what it is, its not often enough it seems. On Monday we had an FHE where we essentially just hung out, burned wood, supervised crazy kiddos, and generally had a good time.

Thursday I came home and Christine put Eva up to the task of asking me to head back out and buy some better support slats for her bed. We went last Saturday, but I measured wrong and the boards were just a hair to short and kept falling down. Eva spent the last night sleeping on a mattress on the floor. So we went to Lowes and cut some boards and came home. Just an errand, but it was nice to have them along and to teach them the value of the carpenters maxim of measure twice, cut once. Darbs came along too. They were pretty good at the store, so we got treats.

Saturday I surprised Brendan with a trip to Raleigh to attend a Lego convention. It was basically expensive admission to a Lego store. But Brendan was loving it. He was walking around soaking it in and shopping. His prized find was, of all things, a lego fish thing he had lost some time previous. He also ended up picking out another few things. I enjoyed the minifigurines and the general nerdiness of the place. 

Today (Sunday) has been a beautiful clear sunny day. A bit on the chilly side, but still nice. The spring blossoms are out in force as well. The girls looked pretty in their dresses, so we went outside to get some pictures. Here Eva is freezing, but Paige is loving it. Have we ever mentioned that Paige is immune to cold? She seriously is. The house can be less than 70 degrees, and she will be happily strolling around in her diaper. Crazy little thing.

Texas . . . No, Virginia

As residency comes to a close, we were expecting orders soon. We got the word that we would be going to Fort Hood in Texas. We were kind of excited since it is a large base with nice houses, lots to do and good schools. I spent all week gathering information and looking at areas to rent in. And then we got the word. Denied. EFMP denied us due to something in Brendan's paperwork. His psych had written that he needed to see a child psychiatrist every month. He hasn't needed that for over a year when we were trying to finalize his med dosage.

We worked on getting that straightened out but the Fort Hood assignment was already gone. And so we waited to see what was in store for us. We ended up getting Fort Belvoir, which, at first glance, we were not excited about. Its in Virginia, close to DC, so there is BAD traffic. That was a big turn off. But the more we looked into it, the more w saw that as one of its only flaws. The schools are reported to be among the best in the country, the housing is beautiful (even on post), and its a small post but with lots of amenities. There is also SO much to do in the area and the weather is very much like here in NC. We are on the waiting list for housing (we qualify for 5 bedrooms at Belvoir, which is the case at other bases) as Jason wants to avoid traffic as much as possible.

I am getting very excited about he move and so its Jason. We would rather stay but if we have to move, at least its to a garden spot like Belvoir.

The end of an era

Jason here.

After 10 years, no more cribs. For the foreseeable future, we are officially out of baby land. Paige is now in her "big girl bed" and loving it. So in with the bed, which we purchased recently, and out with the crib, which was disassembled and packed in the garage. As we made the transition, Christine and I talked about it and agreed that this was a significant, if somewhat minor transition.

I couldn't help shake the melancholy feeling that our little ones are growing up so fast and that somehow, someway I was seeing and experiencing something that I would miss very much in time. But that is life I guess. Babies become toddlers, toddlers become a little boy or girl and go to school and grow up and so on. From utter helplessness to the eventual day when they strike out on their own power, parenting is an exercise of gradually letting go and stepping back. But the heart will never really let go, neither does it seem to forget those first days when they were totally dependent on you for everything.

I have come to understand that being a dad is less about biological contribution of DNA and more about the effort and sacrifice involved in parenting. Years of effort keeping little people alive and trying to civilize them are what develops the fondness and love in the heart. Much of that effort involves simple things like changing diapers, feeding, and putting them to bed and much of that is over with in our household, as represented by our getting rid of the crib. And so, yes, I am feeling nostalgia and somewhat mournful over the transition. Goodbye crib.

Warm Weather

Spring is here!! I love all the blossoms! It's been great to spend time outdoors.

Date with Darby

It's really fun to have a monthly date with one child, to devote all my attention only to that kid. Darby and I had a fun date last week. We ate ice cream and played a board game at Mellow Mango. Then she wanted to go look at the coloring books at a nearby store. As we entered she saw they also sold umbrellas. She picked this cute polka dotted one. She's so fashionable. :)

Wearing Green

Happy St Patrick's Day from the McDaniels!!

Darby had a green ring on and that's all she would wear in that color. Such a diva!  ;)

First Reader

Reading is very important in our house. Darby has been close to being a reader for a while. She can sound simple words out and spell small ones too. I knew she was just on the edge. Yesterday, while playing a reading game on the ipad, I heard her sound out a whole sentence. When I looked up at her she smiled.  She got very excited and pleased with herself. What an exciting time for her! Books are the best.

Pinewood Derby 2015

This year Jason and Brendan got started in the car earlier. Brendan designed it to be more aerodynamic, having learned from last year's mistakes. This time it was dark and sleek and looked like an arrow. Brendan said it was the Black Arrow like in Lord of the Rings.

This year's derby had way less participants but, as a result, only very serious racers were there. The difference from first place to last place was decided by less than 2 tenths of a second. Sadly, out of 11 cars, Brendan was 11th. It was very hard on him and I was crushed for him. He took it a little better than last year but still needed a walk with his dad to calm down.

The bright news is that he got second place in the Coolest Car competition. That lifted his spirits since he designed it all himself. By the time we got home he was feeling good. In his room he displayed his car and his award in his bookshelf. I am so grateful that there was some redemption in the competition for him.

Some Sweetness

We got heart attacked by our Primary Presidency. The kids loved it!

One day I looked back in the car to see this cute sight. Awww, sisters!

Silly Kids

Paige steals Daddy's socks for tights.

EVERY time we go to the school Paige HAS to "hug the kitty". I wonder when we change elementary schools if she will need to hug the mascot.

Brendan made a "turtle" out of one of the many boxes we received. He's always making something. It looks pretty uncomfortable if you ask me.

Sick

Paige spent an entire day throwing up last week. It started in the early morning (middle of the night clean ups are always such fun). She didn't keep anything down. Not even water.  I used every towel we owned and did three loads of laundry. I began to be concerned when she was lethargic and spiked a fever.

 A trip to the ER (short and efficient, thank goodness) revealed strep. They gave her medicine for nausea and she perked right up, back to her usual flirty ways with the nurses. We left with a prescription for antibiotics. They have been causing tummy troubles but probiotics have really helped. She went to bed early a few days in a row as he body fought it.   

She's now on her last day of meds. I'm grateful for modern medicine. 

Snow Days

Once again we have had a crazy North Carolina winter. Because it doesn't get below freezing here very often and rarely snows, the state is not equipped for it. Often this shuts the city down with Fort Bragg closing due to road conditions and schools cancelling. This is what a snow day does to the living room.

 We had one part of last month where the kids had school cancelled three times with a 2 hour delay other days.  The kids were very excited to wake up to snow.

The kids got all bundled up.  Paige especially was raring to go outside.

 She forgot that she hates to be cold and came back inside crying ten minutes later.

Jason got to stay home one day as well and we had a great time with movies, games, snowball fights and snowman building.

Once again it was short lived for Paige. Daddy set her up in the garage with the space heater. :)

I'm not crazy about snow. I don't like it. I hope wherever we move does not have snow. But I did enjoy the mini vacation it gave our family.