Lego Club, Picnic, and Playtime

One late afternoon at the end of April, I took the kids to Lego Club at the library.  While the big kids built their creations, Anthony and I hung out in the library. 

He got the computer all to himself.

After a while, we went to check on the big kids.  The theme of the day was Space Stations.

Anne with her creation.

Joseph worked on finding just the right pieces.

Catherine and Dominic built one together.

When Lego Club was over, I took the kids across to the picnic area so we could eat our picnic dinner.  They had swimming lessons an hour and a half later, so I wanted to just stay in town.  The kids loved eating dinner at the park.

Chicken pasta salad in a cup!

Then we had some time at the playground:

The big spider web contraption is very popular.

Anthony got the hang of it.

He was very proud of himself.

Big enough for everyone.

Upside down Anne.

Weird Weather In April

One day towards the end of April, we had some strange weather.  It was rainy, but then it just poured down so much rain all at once, that our yard was flooded.  We had streams circling all around the house and almost a pond in the backyard.  The water all joined together to the west of our house and streamed its way down to the real pond.

The flooded backyard.

 Then it started to hail:

It got quite noisy.

No lounging that day!

After the hail stopped, this intense fog rolled in.  It did not last very long.

What a weird sight.

Then the sun came out briefly:

Sun shining on the "pond."

Looked like snow on the deck!

We just watched it all and marveled.

Definitely a weird weather day!

Zoo In April

One day in April, we met a friend and her son at the zoo.

The Three Amigos

The jungle.

And why are my kids the ones on the fence?

The tapir, an animal we've rarely seen.

Everyone barely fit.

The red panda, also an animal we rarely see.

Anthony got a little help from big sister, Catherine.

After a bit, he did it by himself.

Joseph

We played May I Take Your Order?

This giraffe got as close as he could to the side.

What do we have here?

Giraffe vs. goose, and the goose won.  Interesting place for a nest.

Joseph's Birthday!

Last Thursday, Joseph turned six years old!  We had a fun day, starting with toaster strudels for breakfast and opening a present afterwards:

A set of superhero costumes!

My little batman.

Then he got to open another one:  a superhero book.

At lunchtime, we met some friends at a park for a picnic and playtime.  What fun!  After that, we came home and I decorated Joseph's Superman cake:

After a dinner of sausage and sauerkraut (really, his request!), Daddy lit the candles on the cake:

 

And we sang the Happy Birthday song:

Then two more presents:

Joseph got a marble run set.

And the Joker House!

And he got right to work!

First Communion Celebration

After Dominic and Anne made their First Holy Communion, everyone came back to our house for a party! 

One last pic of the twins in their finery outside of our house.

Dan's brother grilled chicken, brats, hotdogs, and ham steaks cut from the biggest ham I have ever bought.

The girls were excited to play together and drink pop.

The cake with matching cupcakes.

There was lots of chalk drawing.

And bike riding, and talking to Grandma.

And baby watching.

And gift opening.

And time with grandparents.

What a great day for Anne and Dominic!