Easter Sunday and Ohio

 As per usual the kids woke us up early Easter morning, excited to look for their Easter baskets. Penny is currently the only believer in the Easter Bunny, the rest have learned the truth and were not traumatized by it. There were notes with clues to help the kids find their baskets. Penny's was on the washing machine in the basement (so she could help mom with the laundry when Ruby is born). Lucy's was by the Shopkins toy bin (so she can make sure and keep these tiny toys away from Ruby). Ben's was near the homeschool cart (so he can help teach Ruby). And Steven's was hidden in the bathroom where he shaves his mustache. They were spoiled as per usual.

Ben got a funny shirt, a tie, a Super Mario Lego, a drawing notebook, water balloons, goggles, and a photo book.

Penny got fairy garden stuff, gummy bear necklace, mini brands, water balloons, goggles, and a photo book.

Lucy got "how to draw anime faces" book, a Veggie Tale movie, mini brands ball, gummy bear earrings, water balloons, goggles and a photo book.

Steven got a funny shirt, a Lego chicken, fancy mechanical pencils, a tie and a photo book. 

I got an exercise ball from the bunny (to sit on and help with my achy back) and Tyler got a book he had been wanting (Common Sense). After all the fun gifts were revealed I did some cooking and set out a platter of food for the kids- doughnuts, muffins, pancake sticks, and bacon. Everyone fought over the doughnuts so obviously I should get more next year.

After tidying up, I got myself ready for church and took our usual Easter Sunday pictures. This year Lucy asked for a romper which was nice because then I did not have to yell at her at church for not sitting lady like in a dress. The girls also wanted to wear makeup and I allowed it but Lucy's may have been a tad over the top.

At church we had a pleasant surprise, Lucy and Penny's friends showed up- Angelica, Luna and their mom, Cherish. I knew the girls had invited them but since I hadn't heard anything from their mom, I didn't expect them to come. The girls were excited to have them there, and that excitement made reverence a little tricky. Overall Easter Sunday was good. Each speaker seemed to mention the Mary Magdalene story which felt slightly redundant. One used a lot of Mormon terms which may have confused Cherish. 2 yw sang a really pretty duet. I think our visitors enjoyed it.

After chuch we ate our Jerusalem meal (fish sticks, pita bread, grape juice...) and then we loaded up the car and drove to Ohio. I came up with the idea to go visit Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio a few days earlier and Tyler surprisingly went along with it. We drove 3.5 hours Sunday afternoon to a nice (and cheap) airbnb in Fairpoint, Ohio. We got their fairly late so we just ate some easy macs that I had brought, played on the cool retro arcade machine they had, walked to a lighthouse just a few mins away, and then watched "The Chosen" before going to bed. 

The next day we woke up and went for a little walk to the nearby beach at Lake Erie. The boys had a lot of fun skipping stones. We also found quite a few dead fish which was gross. Ohio is often made fun of by teens for some reason and so the kids loved seeing the dead fish and commenting "Only in Ohio".

After our walk we headed to Cuyahoga Valley National Park. Our first stop was The Great Falls of Tinker Creek. The hike was short and the view was pretty. For a bit the kids thought the falls were called "Tinkle" insetad of "Tinker" so that was funny. The kids also found a tunnel which led you to a closer view of the waterfalls. I made a poor choice and followed them into the tunnel. Walking low while pregnant is no easy feat but I did enjoy the better view. 

After our little hike and exploration we ate our lunch (we had picked some things up from a grocery store) at a nearby picnic table. Then we headed to our next destination- Brandywine Falls. This walk was more peoplely, had a little more stairs than I would have liked and the food I had just ate had not settled well. Thankfully we got to the bathrooms just in time. Also, thankfully, they were nice bathrooms. 

Our next stop was probably one of my favorites, The Ledges. We hiked down to these cool ledges and were able to explore them. Everyone but me squeezed through a narrow opening. I went to a less squishy part and joined them. The kids really loved exploring and we didn't run across many people. Once they finished exploring the ledges they were all basically done and didn't want to finish the trail so we headed back to the car.

Our last stop was the Beaver Marsh. While we did not spot any beavers, we did see an old lock (from the days of the Erie Canal), a muskrat (I didn't get a very good pic of him), lots of turtles, ducks and swans. By this time the kids were getting hot, tired and cranky so this was not my favorite part.

Once back to the car we called it a day and made the drive back home. It was a good little adventure. Thankfully we had a smooth ride home. By the time we got home it was early evening so we skipped the kids' soccer practices and had a quiet night in.

Tuesday the kids went back to school and I spent the day cleaning. By the end of the day my back was so achy. I might need to start letting the kids do more because the constant ache really sucks. That night I had Bunco. This time there were some prizes I REALLY wanted so of course I had a mediocre score. The host had prizes for everyone but I literally got the last prize. It was a notebook and a bunny- wahoo. But Melissa was nice and had gotten a bracelet and cute casserole dish. She only wanted the bracelet so she gave me the cute dish. 

Wednesday was busy. The morning was school work with the kids. Then Penny had a Dr's appt to check her spine (it showed a slight curve at the last visit). The dr said she isn't worried. I also learned that this dr sees babies so I can take Ruby to her. That makes me happy because I really like her. After that I met up with Michelle to look at another house for Mariah's family. The house was great but their application was denied. Lousy. Then I ran some errands and when I got home I went upstairs to take a break but Fancy Nancy and Lauralyn came by to drop off some cute baby clothes for Ruby. It was really kind of them but I was so tired. After that it was soccer practice and church activities. Soccer season really amps up my busy level.

Thursday was decade day at the kids' school. Penny did the 70's and Ben and Lucy did the 90's. Basically they just wore what we could scrounge up.

Thursday was soccer practice for the girls in Milford so I found a nice picnic table at the nearby park and worked on seminary lessons. The weather gets super warm in the afternoons (80's) but by evening it is really nice again. There's rumor it is going to snow Monday though so who knows what this bi-polar weather still has in store for us. 

Friday my car decided to have issues. I swear it is always something with this car. Tyler fixed one problem but it is still having overheating issues when it idles. He plans to take it in (hopefully soon) because he thinks the shop is responsible for it- some problem from when they installed the engine. I really hate my car.

Saturday I had two soccer games. At the girls' game it was overcast and the weather was perfection. However, they did not win. At Ben's game the sun came out and I got a massive sun burn. His team also did not win. It's fun to watch my kids though. Both Lucy and Ben are good at defense. Penny, well she stopped twice mid game to tie her shoe but when she is not tying her shoes she does a good job chasing after the ball. Afterwards I picked up a bassinet, a stroller and an extra car seat base from someone off FB Marketplace. They were a great deal. I had also ordered a car seat off Amazon so I feel like I at least have the essentials now. 

Also, Saturday, Penny got her haircut to shoulder length. She finally got tired of the CONSTANT tangles. I am so glad and it looks adorable.

That night I went to Target with Melissa and Caroline and made a baby registery for the baby shower they are going to throw me in May. It was a lot of fun looking at baby stuff and they were sweet and both bought outfits for Miss Ruby. Afterwards we tried on sunglasses and hats because we are silly and then Caroline and I dropped by Culver's to satisfy cravings. When I got home I continued my baby kick and registered on Amazon too. I registered for more stuff than I will likely get but it was fun to look at baby things and dream a little.