It was so beautiful yesterday, and playing outside was on the agenda. C & C made a house under our swing.

Caleb grabbed the camera while we were doing school.

Here's our lizzard. Can you see him in such a great jungle environment? A few days ago, Caleb was "helping" me with my hair. He kept asking if it was "comfyble." (Sometimes he's a little rough with me, so I tell him to be gentle.) When he was all done making me look beautiful, he said, "You look like my best friend!" What a sweet boy!

This afternoon Samuel goes off for more camping with scouts. The weekend will be full for those left behind, but lots of fun for all.

Off to the school room...

Last week, after much thinking and hesitations, our 16 year old cat went to kitty heaven. I had such a dilemna about him about a year ago- making messes he never made before, frequently. I knew he was getting old and that his time was near. I tried him on some psych meds that seemed to help. All was well. Crisis averted. However, after we got Sammy, we knew we couldn't keep Nikki at our house anymore. He was too old and didn't like the trama of a dog barking at him when he went about daily life. So, to my parents he went where it was much quieter and he has a tea cup poodle to contend with. He was such a great cat- full of personality, still acting like a baby in ways, that he won my dad over. That's saying a lot because my dad is NOT a cat lover or even a cat liker. They got to be good friends. However, he was getting really cranky, losing weight, just not himself, and making messes again. I think he was having kidney failure. It was time. I'm really thankful that I had time away from him before he was gone, otherwise it would have been really hard. I'm thankful for all the great memories and all the years of companionship he provided. I knew him longer than anyone in the Wright household. He is missed!
On a happier note, S, C & I were playing Yahtzee tonight when, all of a sudden, Samuel spotted Catherine's lizzard in my philadendron! How long ago was that that he escaped? How did he survive that amount of time with no crickets to eat? He did look a mite thin, but still full of energy. I think the enclosure may be a bit for him to get used to after freedom in the house. Where was he that we never saw him/ vacuumed him/ swept him up? Or that Sammy didn't get him? Makes me wonder what else I've missed around here...

He is Risen!

And because He is, life is worth living.
This is how we started the morning. Who is the biggest character in our family?

We had a wonderful Easter service, followed by lunch at my parents' with some friends added in. We did an inside, one room egg hunt, and even Samuel enjoyed himself.
Looking over the spoils... They had such a good time finding the treasures.

Caleb was so tired, he fell asleep with his "back pack" clutched in his hand before we'd been gone 10 minutes.

We went to the zoo on Friday with H's class.

Look what these silly boys did with soapy water! Those were supposed to be eyebrows on S.

Enjoying the resurrection power that can change lives and transform our days. May you enjoy it, too.

This is a rare smile from S. I really enjoyed seeing it. They both look so big!

From our kite flying adventure, just before the kite took off for other destinations.

This is typical C- always on the go! H can handle some jumping now when she's on the trampoline.

H is done, and C is still going!

Look who got out! We came home from church and little guy getting busy exploring the outside world. He gave S quite a chase and didn't want to go back home.

This morning I grabbed my camera so I wouldn't miss yet another moment. She really likes the bus, and the ladies are really nice. Sadly, those are about the only pictures I've taken in the past few weeks. My camera is having moments, so I know it won't be long until we need to get another. Hold on, little camera!

Saturday sneaks up on my so quickly sometimes! Blink and the week's gone. This week we had S & H's Dr's appointments. S, so he can go on scouting trips, and H, for an orthodics referral. We're looking for some shoes that will support her feet, cushion them, and allow for continued movement as they loosen up, which they are. We have our appointment with them in 2 weeks. I'm excited to see what they can come up with. H started riding the bus Thursday. It's pretty fun to watch her get on, but it's about 15-20 minutes earlier that we would normally leave the house, and the times are different on different days! We'll get it down. Thursday was therapy, so no bus ride home. Friday, she got home at almost 4:30. It took her a bit to recognize me, but she got really excited once she did. She wasn't home long and off we went to our closing ceremony for CC. School is not out for the summer, but we're done with CC, so they got to do a song and history sentence for family and friends. This morning we took S to a scouting job- he gets to work at a dog show and earn money toward scouting equiptment. Very exciting. He will be in for a long day, but it should be a good experience for them. Meanwhile, it's off to dance and then a nice relaxing day at home for the the rest of us. There are a few cleaning moments we could/should have, but that won't take long. By the way, our great little peat pots were left out last night (my fault) in the cold weather. Some parts aren't looking very good right now. The troopers are the peas, apple trees, and tomatoes. We shall see what survival of the fittest 2011 end up like!

Today was a big day at our house. Memory Master testing. The test of all the material we learned for 24 weeks of meeting at CC, in random order (unlike I've been quizzing them at home) and with a different person. At home, all was good. At testing, we had some difficulties. C was a huge rattle-it-off kind of girl, but had some hiccups. As she got more upset, she couldn't calm herself and got even more upset. Rests were given. Coaching from me. Lots of encouragement and support. Another chance. By then, nerves were shot, but she refused to quit, given the opportunity by me and another tutor. Finally, we called it quits. Associative, commutative, identity, and distributive laws were all jumbled in her head and would not come out. How old was I when I knew Newtons 3 laws of motion and 3 laws of thermodynamics? 40. She knew THOSE, but those math laws wouldn't come out. It was painful for all involved. I so admire her tenacity and desire to get it. (She's a bit like me.) I can relate to the pain of feeling like you just couldn't quite live up to the ideal. We are separated by 31 years, but we still feel the same feelings and have to go back to those same basics- We are loved, we are valuable, we matter. We fail, but God is faithful to love us in spite of what He already knew we'd do and be. The lesson of relying on Him for strength when we feel we can't go on, instead of falling apart while we try to make it on our own is one needful at all ages. And of remembering His love for us is greater than anything else in life. May we (she and I) learn it once and for all. And soon. And so, lots of tears and hugs later, we went to Big Lots. Yes, the land of a good bargain, and many times an organic snack for cheap prices. We happened upon something I think is called Rob's Good Stuff- blueberry flavored tea and Brazilian orangeaid. MMMmmm! After the little ones were in bed, we celebrated more with apple oat bars and coconut milk chocolate ice cream while we watched Little House on the Prairie. (We only have 3 episodes left! What will we do next?) Some fun Hannah things- she literally ran out of the house, and down 2 steps in our garage without pausing Sunday morning when we left for church. She put her shoes on by herself. She didn't cry when I told her we needed to leave and she didn't have time to finish her breakfast. She's had smiley faces everyday at school, imagine that. By the way, Samuel passed his tesing, although he was quite concerned about 13's, 14's, 15's, and cubes being asked in random order. I appreciate his calm, cool approach to things. It's all under control. Going to get through it just fine. For the most part. He was very sweet and encouraging to Catherine instead of boasting or rubbing it in. Handled very nicely Where's Caleb in all of this? Back at home with us. Being the funny kid he always is. Today, he spent most of the day in his doggy hat. The one that's supposed to cover his mouth. When a mouth moves as much as his does, it's difficult to keep it covered! I told him at lunch that he needed to finish his apple and THEN he could have a few chips. He finished his apple. I was outside reviewing with the big guys when he came out with his many chips. He could barely see from under the bill, but he was so pleased with himself. That changed quickly. Oh well. One of those things. And Sammy. Oh my. 3 days, 3 times running around the neighborhood. We found the hole and fixed it for now. I'm so thankful the collar is still attached nicely so kind people can call me and let me know they have my cute dog. Cats are decidedly easier, but what would we do without this guy?

Without my usual wake up from Caleb crawling into our bed at some unreasonable hour, I overslept! No big deal normally, except Hannah has to be at school! We made it with a few minutes to spare. Whew! It was so quiet with 2 little ones gone most of the day. I did pick H up early from school for therapy, so she missed out on recess and other activities. I'll have to see if we can switch her times up a bit so she can be at school longer. When it was time for bed I asked her if she wanted me to read her a story or to just go to bed. She did not want a story and hopped right into bed. After therapy we were going to head to the library. However, we saw the town museum was open. After living in this town for 12.5 years, you'd think we would have already done that. But, no. What a nice little place it was. The fun part was there were cool things from WW II, the Civil War, things from the 1800's. Just good fun. Then we went to the library for the first time in months. Something about the book that disappeared while I was in ROG and the fine that resulted made it not so fun to go. Got that cleared up and we can now begin enjoying the benefits of it again. On a funny note... Last night I watched Hoarders, which is absolutely shocking. After that I watched Extreme Couponing. Hmm... they looked kind of similar...

Hannah had her first day of school today and did great! She was ready for anything, as usual. I sent her in a zip up sweater- it was cooler and very windy, and she refused to take it off all day. It ended up being in the 80's and she had nice rosy cheeks with her sweater all zipped up! She told me she ate and played, and the people there were teacher and teacher. (I think there are 2 helpers plus the teacher with her all day.) She said she was tired, but made it through the evening just fine. (The picture is on my phone.) My mom came to watch the kids while I did errands and hung out with Charissa for an hour. Caleb wants to go to Grandma's house most of the time that we see her, so the plan was for her to take him home for a while when she left today. Hannah was so confused about it all. She was sure she needed her "b" and some clothes, that she would go to school at Grandma's. No fussing though when Grandma left. I think she was too tired! Tomorrow is another day of school and therapy, so it will be full for her. A few things she's progressed on lately- she took a shower with no crying and is doing her full potty routine with no help. I still have to tell her when to go, but after that, she's doing is all. I put up a picture in the bathroom with the steps for her to see, and I think that finally made it click. What great progress.

We had such nice weather over the weekend! We decided to go to the park and try out the kites. However, it was REALLY windy, and Caleb wanted to fly , Samuel's. Sadly, the handle broke for me, and there wasn't really anything to hold onto while the string wanted to keep unwinding. The first time it flew over the fence, Samuel was able to climb over and get it. The second time, the kite went into a backyard- 3 houses from the park. We really had a nice time in spite of it, and were able to retrieve the kite. The kind people put it in front of their garage and secured it with some rocks. We saw a lady who had come by our 1st garage sale, way back in 2009! It was fun to fill her in on what has happened. She was so happy to see Hannah in the flesh! Monday was our last day at CC, which was really sad for us! We enjoy our group so much and look forward to it. It helps us keep our focus in schooling. Although we'll still get together, it's just not the same as having the whole day Monday together. Both Catherine and Samuel tested for memory master, which is when a student can recite all the "pegs" of information they've learned over the school year, which ends up being somewhere around 500 facts. I was happy to see how well they both did. We have one more week before our final testing, so we'll have to get cracking. As promised, we stayed after to play and didn't get home until when I normally would have put the little ones to bed. Fun times, but a little messy with tears (Caleb) when we got home. This morning, I had the IEP for Hannah. The ladies were all very sweet, and I look forward to the benefits she'll receive working with them. H will end up being in regular Kindergarten for about 40% of the day, and in her special class for the rest. I'm sure she'll have fun and make even greater leaps. Amazingly, she'll start in the morning! In a while she'll have the bus coming to pick her up at the house, but for now I'll take her. Fortunately, she'll have 2 familiar faces in her class, since 2 of the Urbans are in the same class. Now, to get her school things. What's kind of funny is that I dread having to get up and plan lunches and have ourselves decent by 8:15! We'll still take her to her therapies twice a week, so she'll miss some school, but it'll be ok. I made an appointment for her to get some orthodics while we're working with her feet so she can have better shoes. She drags her feet a lot and wears out her shoes quickly. We have an appointment coming up soon, so I'm looking forward to what they can come up with. Dance and scouts tonight, then staying home tomorrow! Looking forward to that very much.