Easter Traditions

There are a few things you always have to do at Easter time.

Dye eggs

Go to the Unguren's Easter Party. Sorry if you haven't heard of it... you are missing out! You may have to make friends with them just to get on the invite list.

They have an enormous egg hunt-- 200 real eggs numbered for prizes and money, plus candy eggs! It's intense.

Maddie and Laney were connected at the hip and loved the tramp.

Ella met a new friend and connected with him like I've never seen her do! We're already lining up a date for sweet 16.


Speaking of buddies, Mike and Blake are two peas in a pod.

Discover treats from the Easter Bunny

Don't mind Maddie's Christmas attire. Who knows. Ella was so cute this year!

Attend church (in pretty dresses)

Mike attempted to get a good picture of the girls in their Easter dresses while I was cooking. I got a good laugh at their poses when I looked back.

Have a feast!

We got to host our first great big family gathering at the new house (32 people came!) and loved having all the space!

It was a Happy Easter.

Butterflies, Picnics, and Wheelbarrows

This week was spring break so we tried to do some springy things with our extra time.

One day we had a picnic on the Timp temple grounds. My girls have their mother's heart and love everything about spring. They were thrilled with the blooming trees, the colorful flowers, the robins hopping around, and the delicious sunshine.

We did a butterfly craft together to bring spring indoors. It has been awhile since we crafted together and they ate it up.

Another day we went to the Bean Museum at BYU with Dana and Daxton. Speaking of butterflies they have a gorgeous display of them! Ella was especially enthralled.


We had to hit up the BYU creamery while we were at it.

The week ended with a glorious Saturday. We spent 3 hours at Home Depot buying trees and flowers, paint, and household necessities--like a wheelbarrow. Every kid needs a wheelbarrow to ride around in right?

A Little Tour

To Mom, Noelle, Emily, and anyone else who hasn't seen it... here are a few pictures of the house! I still have a to-do list a mile long, but it's coming together. Mike hung the toilet paper holders last night and now I feel like we really live here. *Note: Mike just commented that all these pictures have a smudge. What can I say, Ella loves the camera. Sorry!*

When you open the front door the little living room is on the right. We put our bistro table in there for now because we had nowhere else to put it.

To the left is the entry table and teeeeeny tiny coat closet. It's kind of a laugh but Mike likes that he doesn't have to excavate for the vacuum.

Just past the closet are the stairs to the loft.

Straight ahead is the kitchen and gathering area. We just got our barstools put together so it feels more finished. They don't match our table but we're going to paint one or the other eventually.

More detail of the kitchen... I love it!

A closer up of the dining area... we love having room for the table to stay extended. The door on the right leads to the deck.

The living room gets awesome afternoon sun! I'm not a fan of the sectional here (I wanted it in the loft but we would need to recruit lots of muscles) but it's on loan from Mike's dad anyway, so we'll see how long it stays.

Oh, the TV and stand are on loan too. Aren't they great?

I love the nursery already. Sometimes I just go in there to sit and look and dream. We're going to add board and batten to the walls and I still need curtains and some finishing details, but it's about ready for a little boy to arrive in 8 weeks!

This weekend we have big plans to paint the girls' rooms and shop at IKEA for playroom organization and seating. Wish us luck!

Just Living

We have been busy settling in around here... and I will post pics soon Mom! For now I wanted to document a few of the little things that make my world go round. These girls are my everything. I can't imagine life without them.

Swimsuits and musical chairs.

Push toys in the basement.

Hoodie towels and yummy, clean, kissable skin.

Socks in a jar... Maddie's addition to my decorating.

Pink bows and twirly toes.

New library books.

Not pictured: sunny spring days at the park, "porci-cones" (Maddie couldn't remember the name of pine cones), blue sparkly eyes, gumball pajamas, two sets of toes peeking out of the pantry, roller skates in the kitchen, and hugs from my greatest treasures on earth.

Moving Day

The new Andrews Abode!

Moving is hard. I'm going to keep it real and say it took herculean effort. Mike was gone late many nights and I thought I could do all the packing and cleaning myself, but I am thankful for people who were persistent and made me let them help. We also had great crews of family and friends to load and unload. Thanks a million times over to anyone who contributed time, babysitting, food, favors, and man-power! We couldn't have done it without you.

One of the hardest parts was the kids. We've been healthy most of the winter, but of course they both started feeling sick on Friday. That and having their world turned upside down was not an easy combination. Between taking three car loads to the house, meeting the cable guy and the fridge delivery truck, picking up the U-haul, and finishing the cleaning and packing, they didn't get the TLC they needed.

Despite their being clingy and whiny, we found a few happy moments. The weather was gorgeous and two of our daffodils bloomed in time to wave goodbye!

Maddie and her buddy Preston were good helpers unloading little things from the truck.

They loved finding all their toys in the new playroom. Now there are some happy faces!

Ella is still asking to go home to the old house. She is beginning to understand that everything (and everyone) she loves is at the new house now, but it was the only home she had ever known so it's taking some adjustment.

I am so proud of her for transitioning to a big girl bed! We talked it up a whole lot, so she was ecstatic to see it all set up.

She has done so well. She falls asleep without getting up (so far) and though she has needed some attention during the night, being sick and in a new place, she loves it! What a big girl!

Slowly we are resting up and getting settled in. I'm excited to show you around when it starts feeling a little more like home!