artist in the making

this evening, we attended hampton's art fair at eastminster preschool. on display were her wonderful works of art, including a painting, pic of herself, life sized flower, pink clay bird, and a day with grandparents rendering. i am quite certain you will be able to guess which work of art me-ma assisted in! they were all wonderful...each in its own special way! hampton absolutely loves "the arts" at this time in her life...dancing, coloring, and singing to each and every beat of the moment. it is amazing to see her masterpiece unfold!

easter day

according to "morris family tradition" candy is hidden for hunting early in the morning! hampton arrived at our bedside by 7 o'clock, followed by coleman...then austin, who required awakening! the kids enjoyed their easter bucket treats, followed by a hunt in our home! yes, tradition...we chose to begin it, and suppose we must continue it! we typically have candy left for many months to come (but it was fun while it lasted, huh)? we then ventured to church, where (though we were "ahead of time") stood and eventually sat (hallelujah!) at the back of the building for the service. we then went home to prepare for the grand number of 27 at our home for lunch and yet another egg hunt (inside, of course...thanks to the rain)! woo hoo! we all had a fabulous time! gaga gave each great-grandchild a gold coin...wow! gaga (in her 90's) played the piano, as hampton sang every song in her repertoire from the nearby piano bench, that is, after fun with olivia (my cousin lisa's daughter)! the cousins had fun hunting and playing! i am finally sitting after the hostess job...and must say i am happy to be doing just that! (hosting...then sitting)!

easter tradition

for twelve years now, we have continued the tradition of dyeing eggs the day before easter. the slight difference is the fact that austin (my 12 year old), chose to pass on the event! oh my, how time flies! coleman and hampton had great fun choosing their colors, and making neat patterns. hampton's favorite color was pink (no surprise), and coleman enjoyed the blue and green most! by the time we finished, we were all wearing a bit of the dye! it won't be difficult to recognize what we were busy doing today, when we get to church tomorrow! best wishes to all for a blessed easter!

hippity, hoppity...easter's on it's way

 
 
 
 our good friends, the jargo's, invited us to a special party at their home today...including an easter egg hunt, yummy snacks, lots of candy, and fun with friends! ausin spent the day in el dorado with dad, for a basketball tourney, while coleman joined in the fun for the hunt, helping hampton locate eggs, much to her dismay! hampton was overly excited to open the eggs and indulge in the candy (lots of it)! coleman had to leave the party early, to attend another party for a friend...as hampton relished in the play time with friends, and more sugar! she has now crashed from the sugar high...and i must say that the quiet is divine!

eight candles for coleman

today was the day, my middle "baby" coleman, turned 8! i still recall the day he was born like it was yesterday...including his lively demeanor and deep dimples, both of which are still present today! he is the happy-go-lucky one of the bunch...kind-spirited and fun, yet incredibly compassionate. we had planned to celebrate his big day on friday evening, upon the opening of the "monsters vs. aliens" movie; however, the party was postponed due to inclement weather conditions! needless to say, coleman was slightly disappointed when he arrived home from school early to discover that this was indeed the case! we exchanged our movie tickets, purchased new balloons, and welcomed many friends and family to celebrate on his actual birthday, sunday, march 29th! mema & papa, uncle t, aunt ju-ju & evie, big brother austin, little sister hampton, evan, gunner, drake, scott, gage, dylan, nickolas, benjamin & andrew all joined in the fun! we went to see the movie, then returned home to play, eat pizza, open presents, and eat cake & ice cream! a spectacular day was had by all! happy, happy day coleman!

spring storm

on friday, kansas was blasted with raining ice that continued through the night, and into saturday morning. we had to reschedule coleman's birthday party, and basketball games were cancelled. most of our trees bowed to the ice, and kept us awake very late, as the ice coated branches loudly tapped the windows. around 10 o'clock on saturday morning, the ice pellets subsided, followed by a tremendous snowstorm. coleman and his friend, gunner, were the first ones anxious to play in the snow...closely followed by hampton and austin. dodger (our new puppy) has enjoyed it since last night! just last week, i was sitting out in the sun, enjoying the first buds of spring color. today, i feel like we are in another world. hoping it will all melt away soon, and that spring will come and stay!

spring break in dallas

late wednesday night, we made the decision to get out of town for a few days of the kids' spring break...and the great state of texas was the choice! dallas, to be exact! the idea of a spontaneous getaway is sooo against my grain...but i have to say, it all worked out, and we had a fantastic time! we left dodger with my parents, and headed out on thursday. we experienced six flags, and some shopping at the galleria, in addition to lots of great food, and an occasional swim (austin chose to watch march madness instead)! at six flags, austin and coleman won two basketballs each, after hampton won two stuffed toys! we left the park with only two balls, as the boys were generous enough to each give a ball away! the boys stood in line to ride the texas titan roller coaster for a mere two hours, while hampton and i visited 4 characters (twice), rode several rides, and had ice cream. hmmm...i think the girls had more fun! we spent (what coleman would say...was waaay too much) time shopping at the wonderful dallas galleria, the following day. we all "experienced" the american girl store, where hampton chose a new american girl doll, among other things (she has her daddy wrapped)! the boys found new shoes and clothes, much more quickly...and look forward to sporting their new duds this week! what a fun time with the family! back to a schedule tomorrow!