Happy Easter Weekend!

Tomorrow is chocolate bunny day here. We are going to do our egg and treats day on Saturday. We will celebrate the real meaning of Easter on Sunday. I love Easter candy. The best are Cadbury eggs, I never get them but they are my favorite. : ) We will see what we do for the kiddos. I do not want to overload them or anything. They do get to go to an Easter egg hunt tomorrow at the church. That should be entertaining.

I have this special tree here that I love. I have been told that it is a magnolia tree. It is my absolute favorite. It blooms with beautiful bright pink flowers - so pretty. The other day I walked by it (it is on my normal route) and it is starting to bloom! Hooray! It made me so happy. I will make sure and take a picture of it as soon as it is in all of its glory.

I have still been walking almost daily. Charles has been coming with me after work and we go about 3-4 miles. I feel great. Yesterday, I was feeling so good I decided to see if I could still run. It was SO funny. I ran for about 2 minutes and all I have to say is jiggle, jiggle. I felt great, my breathing was great, my legs felt great, but my lower spine had way too much pressure on it at this point. But I did it, I ran, and it made me think that my running days are not too far off now! I cannot wait to feel the wind in my hair again! : ) Soon enough.

We are going to be purchasing another jogger stroller. We cannot afford the triple which is about $700.00 so we are going to get a single. Charles will push Daniel and William in the double and I will push Sammi in the single. We should be quite the sight and quite the road hogs! Oh well, we gotta do what we gotta do. Exercising is a priority for me. I will run again by myself when Sam goes to first grade all day. I will just take the boys out. Fun times!

Sammi told me the other day she liked it when my tummy was sunken in - not poking out. She said she was glad we are having a baby but that she wants me to be normal again. It must be weird for them to watch me expand. Especially for Daniel who I think must think it is not real. Soon enough, it will be real and their little worlds will change! We are teaching them about loving the new baby and helping him to feel welcome in our home and family. They have been praying for William a lot lately. They say things like, "Help William to be a good boy." Also, they pray that mommy can get him out of her tummy soon. I love that one. I feel the same way! They are so sweet and they always give my tummy, or William, a hug and kiss goodnight.

Yesterday during scripture study we were in Helaman reading about how people loved their riches and that they and their riches were cursed because they set their hearts upon riches and not God. We talked to the kids about what this meant. We talked about what the most important things are, and that is our family and Jesus. Sammi even said, and understood, that Jesus is THE most important thing - even more than our family. I was so amazed that she new that He comes first. I then went on and explained to them that we do not always need more stuff, and that stuff will never make us happy.We really need to be happy with what we have and be grateful for it. I believe if you are not happy with what you have - you will never be happy. So last night Daniel prayed that he could be happy with what he has. It was so sweet - he listened and understood. A great moment in a parents world. I love teaching them the gospel. Children have such an innocent understanding of it, without all the doubt and questions that adults like to throw into the mix. Perhaps that is why we are told to be like little children. : )

Anyhow, baby time gets closer everyday. Sammi helped me pack my hospital bag last night, it was cute. I starting feeling excited about it. I am so tempted to eat curry tomorrow but I still think it is a little too soon. Easter would be a nice day to give birth. : )

Well, that is all for now. It is a beautiful day today here at 70 degrees! Yahoo! The grass is green and trees are coming alive. I love it. Last night there was a frog right under our window and I listened to it all night long. Normally, we can hear tons, like hundreds of frogs in the neighborhood but last night it was just one. I love the sound of frogs. : ) Ribbit! They hang out in the ponds around here.

Lots of Love,

Mari