Good Friday

Today started out...ok.  I was tired and in a mood.  Luckily, Ben was home and let me have an early nap.

Isaac had a half day today and then started spring break.

We went to the Good Friday service this evening.  I wasn't sure how well it would go, since Isaac hasn't done so well in church in the past.  But it is also an important day in the church calendar, so we went.  Isaac led us to our seats, in the second row.  'oh boy," I thought...this could go poorly.  However, I think it actually helped things go better because it was easier to see the front.

Joshua fell asleep about half way through. 

Isaac did some of the things I brought and then colored a little bit.  "I love Jesus more."  It makes my heart happy.

Wednesday: Joshua

We were reading a Star Wars book...sort of...and I found out that Joshua thinks Yoda is a turtle. :D

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Yesterday Ben came home and Joshua immediately asked if [Ben] had gone by the Bear Castle.  Ben said no, but asked what would have happened if he did.  To which Joshua responded that bears would have been chasing him.  (Note: this is what normally happens after we pass the Bear Castle.)

image from here

Today we went by the Bear Castle. 
Ben: Joshua, do you see what we're going by?
Joshua, in an ominous voice: Bear Castle
Joshua: Isaac, how many bears are chasing us?
Isaac: One thousand.

This is a fairly regular conversation too.  Joshua gets to decide what is in the castle (he always chooses bears) and Isaac gets to decide how many are chasing us.  We tend to throw bombs at them to get rid of them.

Tuesday: oats peas beans and barley grow

On the day we left for vacation, Isaac kept singing, "Oats, peas, beans and barley grow!"  It was a bit odd, because he doesn't sing all that often.  It was a song that they sang in music class and it was stuck in my head.

I then remembered the song from growing up and it got stuck in my head.

Sunday: Hosanna

Happy Palm Sunday!  The kids waved palm branches to the front of church during one of the songs as a reminder of Jesus' entry.

Well...Isaac waved a branch.  Joshua freaked out a bit and so was carried by the teacher and didn't wave a branch.  Grey Bear also heralded in Jesus, because no celebration would be complete without him.

(Isaac is in the middle left in a green and white striped Tee.  Joshua and Grey Bear are in the lower right.)

We also had a going away lunch for some friends.  They are moving to California in two weeks, but due to Spring Break this was the best day.  It was sad, but it's also been a bit since we've sat down with this group of friends, so that was nice.

Saturday: life

Joshua managed to clean his bedroom again today, although it was again a bit of a struggle.  I thought we had it this morning as he cleaned about half of it, but then stalled out.

We got our mail today.  There was a sad amount of junk.  We had one bill and it was almost exciting as it was actually something relevant.  But still a bill.

Isaac got a good amount of homework done today.  He's right on track for finishing tomorrow.

I got everything unpacked today.  This is quite the achievement for me, as normally it takes a week or two to get the last things unpacked.

Friday: home again

We're home again.

Isaac went to school.  He has quite a bit of work to do this weekend to 'catch up', but we knew it would happen.

Joshua went to school.  He had a hard time in the morning, as normal, but I felt a bit more sorry for him than normal because he's a bit low on sleep.  He played very well after school (and the library) making duplo and lego houses.

Ben didn't go to work.  It was nice to have a day without kids.  He made a few phone calls that I needed him to make.  Since I don't like to do it.

I worked in the morning to get caught up on grading.  Ah...grading.  I've encountered some funny things while grading this semester.

Everyone was content this early evening so we ended up having a late dinner.  It's rather nice because then we finish and it's already time for bed!

vacation

We're home.

Here's a bit about the last few days...

We went to a playground with a splash pad.  Isaac had a great time.  Joshua had an ok time, and then he slipped in the splash pad.  That was the end for him and he sat with Ben or me the rest of the time.  There was an excellent cafe near the playground and we enjoyed lunch there.

We finally got Joshua in the pool again.  It turns out that he thought the hot tub was too hot and the pool too cold.  Since we had adjusted it since the first day he was willing to try again.  He sort of pulled Ben all around the pool.  Ben helped by giving a bunch of super boosts.

We continued work on the castle.

The boys decided that they really just liked playing with the pieces and made an assortment of things.  (Also, I think that this might have been the last vacation with Duplos.  I think I can bring Legos in the future...and they'll be smaller.)

The last few bags of the set went together a bit faster than expected.

We also visited the small playground down the road.  Joshua pushed everyone, but often stepped in a bit to close.  Luckily, he also couldn't push very hard.

He put his shirt on backwards, which is rather normal for him.  But the saying on it worked so well.

This one might be the best though...He rolls with his shirt backwards, sunglasses, and Grey Bear.

We went on a boat ride to the Bubble Room, which has excellent desserts.  And Gorillas.

Isaac did a really good job steering the boat for a while on the way home.

The castle was completed!

I think this is the only one we have of the completed castle, but it was pretty cool.

And then we came home.  The trip home was rather uneventful, for the most part.  We hit some rough air and I wasn't feeling great, but managed.