I thought that was how the saying went, but it seems April showers have brought... May showers?
Enough of the rain already!
The rain this afternoon has brought a few things to my attention: 1) I desperately need a covered porch, 2) Chicks are not smart and they will not get out of the rain and will instead attempt to suffocate one another in the fury of trying to hide in a massive pile, 3) I will never finish my planting because the ground will never be dry enough and 4) I so wish to have a lap top so I can sit out on my covered porch (my hypothetical porch that is) and sip my coffee and enjoy the warm rains that are keeping me from getting my work done.
Instead of spending my afternoon daydreaming I'm going to spend it enjoying a cup of coffee in the office and sharing a bit about my April. April always seems to be our busiest (and most expensive) month. I don't know if it is from shaking the hibernation of winter and wanting to do more or if we really just have that much going on, but whatever it is, we stay busy.
The warm weather means outdoor projects so we started April off with a bang (literally) when we removed the lower portion of our back deck. It was built around the above ground pool that met its fate last year and is now residing in the local dump. I knew I wanted to remove the deck since the pool collapsed, but getting Andy on board was another story. I think his hesitation was in part due to the amount of work it would take and in part because he kind of liked the second tier to the deck. In my attempt to persuade him I insisted we at least take off the one set of stairs that were rotting to the point of being a hazard. With one half-hearted push the hand rail gave way and with just as little effort the stairs were torn off. Once we realized the whole deck was in that poor of condition, it was game on. Many, many hours later we had removed the lower deck as well as the stairs from the upper deck. The screws and nails we removed filled a mens shoe box to the top! It was so much work and means we now have the bigger task of replacing the stairs and filling/leveling/seeding the ground where the deck and pool once resided, but it was so worth it! It means we are one step closer to having the back yard we want.
We celebrated Easter by spending the afternoon with family, hunting eggs and eating too much food. Amelia discovered the wonders of the deviled egg and all the eggs we colored were turned into them. She topped each with another discovery on her part: paprika. We have continued to consume these treats regularly, per request!
We made a big purchase this April when we became a two vehicle family. Andy finally got the truck he has been wanting and I'm one step closer to looking like a legit farmer-ha!
We celebrated the 30th birthdays of my sister Tracey and Andy, which means cake! And sometimes the cake is too hot to frost so you cut it up and make a sundae. Amelia wanted so badly to use her chocolate bunny for Tracey's cake so we melted it down and used it to decorate. It ended up being one seriously chocolaty cake!
We picked up our new family members from the post office when our mail order chicks arrived! The girls were so excited to have chickens again and they have kept us busy with their shenanigans. They seem to like spilling their water and more than one has been found stuck in the feeder. I guess you can only expect so much from chickens.
We spent some time with my brother-in-law who was home on leave and went to a Royals game and ate at various dining establishments. We save the hibachi grill for such occasions, which is good because if we didn't I fear I would spend a small fortune eating too much rice and sushi. I thought for sure there would be pictorial evidence of these things, but it turns out the only picture I could find was an awkward selfie that is too ridiculous to share.
Speaking of pictures, April was also picture day for dance! I put the exclamation point only because I survived. There is nothing fun about dressing small children up in costumes that don't fit into car seats, with eye make up they cry off on the way, to stand in a small room that I'm sure has exceeded max capacity per fire code. Now that it is over I can actually say there is something fun about it: excited children smiling awkwardly in their pictures! It was too much for Marinn, who passed out on me while waiting on sisters group to finish. I must say though, they were VERY excited to finally get to see and wear their costumes!
I feel like I passed some sort of test this April when I didn't cry when I took my kid to Kindergarten Roundup and I didn't ask any crazy questions in the parent portion. No small feat for the woman who continuously teared up and/or cried when discussing school starting. I'm still not sold on this whole day kindergarten bit, but it seems as though I'm going to have to get on board. You know who is wholeheartedly on board? The kindergartner. She perched herself next to the mascot on the way in for a picture, ditched me at the first chance to go color and explore, and was sitting next to the teacher when I came to get her. Instead of rushing to me when she saw me like other children were there parents, she sat in place and only raised her hand when she heard her name called. She reluctantly said goodbye as she was told it was time to go. She made me so proud! Now I just need to slow down time so August doesn't get here too quickly!
Also in April we had an impromptu lunch with my sister Caley, whom we do not see often enough! We met up with them at a pizza place along the highway while they were making the drive home from visiting her in-laws. We put five kids who hadn't seen each other in a while together in a restaurant. We're crazy. Tracey, being the great aunt that she is, got them all bouncy balls and entertained them. She's pretty awesome like that.
At the end of April my cousin finally went into labor and I got to be present for the birth of her baby girl. She's the only one who has taken me up on the offer to watch them have a baby! (I probably scare people with such comments) I wasn't just hanging out to watch the show, it was more along the lines of a birthing coach and point and shoot photographer. There is something so fascinating about child birth to me and to be able to help someone have the labor/delivery they want is a pretty cool feeling. It's a story I hope to share in more detail, but as for now it's not my story to tell!
Now onto the month of May, which seems to want to prove me wrong about April being the busiest....
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