(Stay with me as I try to improve the quality of some of these pictures.....I'm in the process of trying to talk my husband into letting me use his nice camera once in a while, fingers crossed!  )

 The first two photos are from our Easter weekend. The kids had a great time, but I think I may have over scheduled it a bit. You know, I had certain things we HAD to make. 3 Easter movies we HAD to watch. Places we HAD to go. And well, you know, lesson learned. We DID start a new family tradition of making a little tomb a few weeks before Easter and rolling a rock in front of it. We read scripture accounts of the days leading up to HIS death, along with bible videos, until finally Sunday they got to wake up and roll the rock away. I think the girls really GOT it this time, so we'll be continuing this for years to come.
The kids woke up early Sunday morning to baskets at their door. Each had a fun magnifying glass, Easter socks, a drawing book, and a handful of healthy (ish) snacks. They also grew their own grass for their baskets which was a fun project.
But by far, the best part of that weekend was conference. I didn't appreciate it much as a kid, but nowadays they are my favorite times of year. Especially this one. I loved the talks by Elder Oaks and Christofferson (I always call him Christiansen though...). So so good.

The third photo is of my crazy girls posing for in their dance recital outfit. They LOVED them. They jump and twirl and try to teach me their moves, and they're just so funny. I love those crazy crazy ladies. The recital is in June, for anyone interested!

Photos 4 and 5 were taken at a sandy volley ball court (?) near our house. Nobody ever plays volleyball there, so the kids decided to make castles and sand angels and soak up some sun. They ask to go back pretty much every day now (not the park!) and bring toys along. The weather has been so nice lately (despite a few crazy days of snow recently) so its hard to say no!

Photo 6 is the kids headed to career day at their little Montessori school. Logan wanted to be an architect, and the girls wanted to be an astronaut and librarian. But then they decided that they wanted to be mommies too, and that it'd be much more fun to dress up as a mommy 'cuz they get to push strollers.

Last group of pictures was taken last Wednesday (Tuesday?) during a freak snowstorm. The kids woke up, scarfed down breakfast and then got their snow clothes on at lightning speed so they could enjoy all of the fluffy snow before it melted! Joke was on us though, because it ended up snowing 24 hours straight!

An apology

So before I do another update, I want to talk about something that's been weighing on my mind a bit. Quite a few of you were upset by our "VanderLinden's Downsize" post. Particularly the part where we asked if you could refrain from buying our kids any more toys, and that any extra toys gifted would probably be sent to goodwill.
I'll admit, re-reading it now it does seem a bit harsh. That wasn't how it was intended though. I apologize to anyone who's feelings we may have hurt.
Its a hard thing, being a parent. You're constantly seeking to do what's best for your children; to be a better parent for them. We're always trying new things, trying to find ways to make our days at home more harmonious.
I want you all to know, we didn't write any of that because we disliked ANY of the gifts you have gifted to the kids. WE LOVE THEM! You all have been so understanding about our household toy rules (no noisemakers, character toys, or plastic junk.... I know, we're crazy ). Seriously. And we love you all for loving our kids so much. Thank you, for always thinking of them. Really.

Just so you know,  wrote it for a number of reasons. The biggest, was that we are completely 100% stuffed to the brim in this house. I just don't know where to store more toys. We already have tons of toys in the basement to rotate out in between seasons too! And the other main reason, was that we wanted them to learn to enjoy experiences more than possessions. To enjoy the actual birthday party, and the fact that people came out of town to see them, instead of wondering , "What am I going to get!?" the whole time. You know?

But, having said all of that, we've decided to go back on our initial request. We are still trying to minimize, but we will just find a way around the toys. We know how important it is to you all to be able to give gifts; that they come from the heart, and in the end we just don't want to be the grinches that take that away from you! So give away, haha!

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