Yeah! We broke out the awesome Christmas gift from Uncle Dan & Aunt Becky. So far, it is a huge hit. Jace loves the "Cycle". Yesterday, was the first time he got to try riding on the back of Daddy's bike. Today, he stood in the middle of the hallway, turning round and round, asking "Cycle go?" He couldn't find the bike. I told him that Daddy put the bike outside. He ran to the patio door and exclaimed happily, "There!"
So handsome in his new helmet.
Jace is spending lots of time at Palmer's house lately. I am so thankful that Joel is not traveling and that Gary and Elaine are so much help with Jace. I am frantically trying to finish the homework projects that I have for my ECE class. Luckily the weather has been good so they get to spend a lot of time outside. Grandma Elaine found a Jace sized rake and Joel taught Jace that the wheelbarrow can be lots of fun. Now it is often a screaming hassle to get Jace to come inside for important things like diapers, naps and food.
Just because I love taking pictures does not mean that I remember to charge the camera batteries. Our Easter was not properly documented but I did get a few images. Jace went to church looking super handsome in the velveteen outfit that Uncle Dan wore for Christmas 1982.
In the car on the way to church, Jace was playing with the bunny ears that were part of his Easter basket. After church Jace opened the rest of his Easter stuff. He got lots of toy cars and books. When he figured out that some of the plastic eggs had candy in them he quickly opened them all and stuffed his mouth so full of gummy bears I was sure he was going to hurt himself. The jelly beans were not as big of a hit. He would bite them and then spit out the gooey half-chewed remains. 
Jace got an early nap in before the Wyoming cousins arrived. We all enjoyed an amazing meal. The weather was beautiful so we spent most of the afternoon outside. The older kids played Frisbee while Jace marched around the backyard shouting at them. Jace spent lots of time chasing the dogs. He never really got the hang of hunting for eggs but he did understand that shaking every egg he found would let him know if they contained candy or money.
That was this morning and tonight all three of us are exhausted. I spent the morning observing a classroom full of 4 year olds. I was amazed by the tiny classroom packed full of supplies. It was obvious that this school has a much larger budget for supplies than the school I worked at. However, there is also only one teacher to twelve 4 year olds. Wow, that woman had her hands full. I realized how lucky I was to have worked with the amazing teaching team at Meadow Point.
I'm heading in to the last few weeks of the semester. I have so much work to do to finish this class. I love doing the classroom observation hours but I keep putting off the written reports. The first one is due Wednesday.
The weekend is a busy one for us even without the homework thrown in on top. Joel kicks off the sailing season tomorrow with an afternoon regatta at Cherry Creek. He is excited to be able to commit to sailing with Vern this summer, something his travel schedule didn't allow the last three years. Hopefully, this means that Jace and I will also get to spend some fun evenings at the Marina. It might also mean some camping weekends (that should be interesting with a 2 year old).
Sunday, of course, is Easter. Gary and Elaine are hosting a big dinner party. It sounds like the Wyoming cousins are going to make it down to help us celebrate. It will be lots of fun. Today, there were preparations going on at the house: cleaning, yard work, and shopping. Jace was in the middle of it all, "helping" Grandma rake the yard and move patio furniture. I think he even tried spray cleaning the windows. I'm not sure Grandma wants our help tomorrow. Especially after she caught Jace digging in her planters "puppy style". He was throwing dirt in the air and all over himself, just like Emma does when she digs in the garden.
Jace got cleaned up and changed into his third outfit of the day before we met Jessica and Don at Amigos for dinner. There is another family that has dinner there on Friday night that we have started visiting with because they have a 2 year old son, Sam. Jace and Sam have struck up a friendship that consists of saying hi, smiling at each other and chasing each other around the restaurant. It is cute.
Joel oversaw Jace's extensive scrubbing this evening. We danced to the "round" song. We said prayers, "Please let Jace settle down and get a good night's sleep. In Jesus name, we pray. Amen."
Joel and I colored some super cool Easter eggs. We got fun results with the Martha Stewart, electrical tape designs.
