Update

We have had a very busy past couple of months. This time of year always seems to pass me by before I even know it. We've crammed in a lot of fun activities and trips and some heartache along the way. Sounds like life.

Ashley is doing great in 3rd grade. She is happy for it to end and for summer to start. She's had a great year with Mrs. Clark and making new friends in her classroom. She's been on fun field trips to the Denver Science museum and to see the Wizard of Oz in Denver as well. She is still quite shy, but has learned to raise her hand in class and to contribute to conversations. She is empathetic, kind, and an amazing help to me. She is a natural at the piano and is playing stuff just beyond my sight reading level already. She has a great relationship with her teacher and practices diligently with mild complaining. She recently started gymnastics and had her first (and most likely last) private lesson. She loved it. She passed off her front and back handsprings, a cartwheel on the beam, a front limber and front walkover, and almost has her vertical handstand. She has a lot of room for improvement in her strength. She loved it all. I told her I would buy her a new leo if she would talk to her coach about what she is capable of doing and let her know what her goals are. This frightens her. She is not one to let her needs be known...she just cries and mopes. So I'm hoping she does it. I am constantly reminding Ashley that what we think can effect how we feel so that if she chooses to think happy things then she will feel happy. A life lesson for us all, but especially important for her. She is a wonderful girl. I feel blessed to have her.

Katelyn is doing great in 1st grade with Mrs. Hawkes. She's had a great year. She went from reading at a basic level to reading at a 3rd grade level. She excels at math and has overcome some of her shyness. All of the girls like her and want to be her friend, but she's a bit too shy and says she'd rather do the monkey bars back and forth at recess then play. She's lost a lot of teeth. She has spent a lot of time at gym and is doing amazingly well. She is dying for me to let her do a private since Ashley got one, but I feel like 7 hours a week at the gym is enough. She is the planner of our house and is constantly organizing games. She loves to make forts, obstacle courses, and design rides from Disney World. She loves games and is a natural at them. It always amazes us when she wins Settlers over and over again. She makes me smile.

Justin has more or less enjoyed his last year of pre-school. He says it's just boring work and no fun. He can't be bothered to write his whole name on worksheets and will just draw a big J randomly over the page. I'm a little worried he's going to hate kindergarten, but it'll be good for him. He spends his life looking for friends to play with. He never looks very long. He is a good friend. He is doing soccer right now and really loves it, which surprises me. He missed all of my need to win and be the best and is content to just smile and run around and maybe kick the ball once or twice. I hope he stays that way. He loves everything about Hans and I love hearing them talk together about things. He wants to drive airplanes when he grows up.

Mia is Mia. She's had a great year and has grown up so much. She will now go to pre-school and playgroup and with bribes will go to gym childcare without crying. She starts "real" pre-school next year and is excited to be big. She has loved gymnastics although she is done with that now and can't wait to start again. She follows me around all day and I'm grateful for her. She makes me laugh and scream practically all in the same moment. Today at church she asked me if it was time to leave and I told her there was one more speaker to which she said, "Is Jesus going to be the speaker? I've never seen Jesus." She has immense faith.

Hans is doing well at the office. He sold some of his old x-ray sensors he hated on ebay for a lot of money and is so happy about it since he'd already replaced them with better ones. He's keeping busy and the practice is growing. He says he needs to find some hobbies so he has more to talk about then just dentistry, but I think he has more hobbies then he thinks. He's been hiking the incline with friends, which makes me happy. He is good to me. I appreciate him.

I have been stressed out. I was feeling a ridiculous amount of guilt over leaving Villa since everytime I saw my boss she was so nice to me and gave me a raise that I had to quit sooner then I wanted to. I decided to move over to teaching at Life Time since they hired Melanie and Laurie and Kim changed as well. I'm glad I did, but it's been so busy. There have been hours and hours of trainings and now it is just barely settling down. I teach my first class there tomorrow and I'm excited. I feel a little rusty since I haven't taught in 2 1/2 weeks, but I'm sure it'll be awesome:) So many friends and neighbors have joined so I'm happy about the switch. In the middle of all this I discovered I was pregnant, to my great happiness and excitement, and then miscarried 2 1/2 weeks later while we were in Disney World. It's been an awful, tough time. I've had a lot of support and love, but I've learned that I am a terrible coper (a word?). I am just now starting to feel better. It's been a great mother's day. I'm so grateful to be a mother and to have Hans' support of me in this role. I get frustrated sometimes that it's not as fulfulling as I want it to be, but I wouldn't trade it for anything.

And I think that about covers it.

More to come about Disney World and our Easter celebrations!