March!

Pierce has been treating us with the most beautiful song...The Miracle. It melts our hearts. 

On one of the nice March days, we met Grandma and cousins at the zoo. It is still Pierce's absolute favorite place.

We celebrated grandpa's 60th birthday with him. We all chipped in with 60 reasons we love him. The kids were so sweet!

Sometimes we catch them being especially sweet.

James had a baseball tournament in St. George and we had a blast in the beautiful weather together!

A heated pool = hours and hours of fun. Thanks Gramps!

Pierce started the trip with the stomach flu. It was so sad to see him feel so sick, so we were all thrilled when he perked up!

This little boy could swim all day every day.

Jace is officially obsessed with the moped, asking people to ride it with him during any free moment. Toward the end he got really good and even took me on a ride. Riding alone, alongside an adult was the highlight of his trip.

We watched lots of baseball. The boys were rusty, but they had a good time together!

Such a cute little team. they have the best time together!

And awesome coaches who are so willing to sacrifice so much time.

The baseball boy and the birthday boy!

James' biggest fan.

That night, my boys really lucked out and came with us to Anasazi to celebrate my dad's 60th birthday. It was their first experience with fondue which they loved and they devoured their steaks. So yummy!!

His present was a hit. Mike was so incredibly thoughtful with this one. My dad had mentioned months before that he liked one of Mike's Spider jackets but wanted it in black with a Ferrari insignia...and Mike made it happen. My dad loved it!!

Is there anything more fun that March Madness? We recorded a million games and sometimes even watched two at a time. With money on the line, everyone was interested!

Since James' team didn't end up playing Saturday, we got to do a little hiking at Dixie Rock, until Parker decided to throw up and end the party. James also had felt sick the day before and thrown up, but said a little prayer and was better before game time. The sickness was so strange, just short and mild, but no fun!

My favorite photo from the tourney!

His solo ride!

To end the weekend, my mom got tickets to BYU's Vocal Point and Noteworthy groups performing at Tuachan. I would say it was a highlight for everyone, even Pierce. They were SO awesome and everyone was singing and dancing along. Pierce talked about it for weeks after he loved it so much.

One morning Jace came down in this outfit. I told him quite a few times to either change the shorts or the pants. He refused, saying he liked the way it looked. When he came home that afternoon, he was cracking up, telling me that all of his girl friends were dying...asking him to go change and telling him, "No, no no!" We were both cracking up as he told me all of the stories from that day. When I asked him what he learned, he said, "Never wear plaid with stripes, and always listen to your mom." I love his open and funny personality!

One morning as I was bustling about to get things done and putting in a load of laundry Pierce pulled out his Jesus cards that we had been talking about the last few days and sat and told me all about each card. When he saw the picture of Jesus with the crown of thorns, he told me, "I don't like this one. It makes me so sad." To hear his tiny little testimony growing was such a beautiful moment to share with him. It reminded me to slow down and focus on the small, wonderful moments. I love being able to stay home with him!

Try outs for the top Jr. High choir were in March and Jace did NOT want to try out. We fought about it. I begged him to prepare. He refused...said he did not want to or that he wasn't good enough. He refused to practice until I told him it was not an option and he WAS trying out...that Heavenly Father had given him a gift and expected him to use it. Two days before he went to learn the song with our piano teacher and found a song and music track on the radio we could use. He practiced and prepared. I went into the audition with him and he sounded amazing. He nailed it all and the teacher was thrilled, I could tell. On Friday he found out that HE MADE IT! He was one of only 4 7th graders who made it and he was so proud and happy about it. I was thrilled for him. He is the kind of kid that needs a push and then really does amazing things!

James is such an awesome brother to Pierce. He is the only one who still really loves to play and is always up for everything. Because of this, they also fight a bunch, so I love these little, happy moments that I capture every once in a while. They are both so curious and love learning about everything.

James had his 3rd grade wax museum and chose to be Andy Warhol. He just cracks us up...what third grader chooses Andy Warhol? He is just so awesome.

We love this little Parker of ours and we were happy to celebrate him. We brought treats in to the classroom and saw him get spotlighted.

We were out of school on his birthday, and he chose to go to Chuck E. Cheese. It was a great afternoon, but he was so funny....he said it wasn't quite as cool as he remembered it ;).

This little guy thought it was the coolest ever.

Grandma came to spend the afternoon with us!

We then headed to Cherry Berry for birthday dessert. Yum!

Loving the cash he got for his birthday!!

Later that day we decided to dye Easter eggs. Everyone is getting so old!!!

Parker also had a bunch of his friends over...they were noisy and fun and full of energy. So happy he has such great friends!

Unwrapping his birthday fit bit. He LOVED it.

Our neighborhood does the coolest Easter Egg Hunt, broken up in areas depending on the age of the kids. Pierce could NOT wait. He LOVES Easter so much. We were wishing it was a little warmer :) but at least no snow.

Later that weekend we took the boys bowling and had a blast. It is a favorite family activity!