Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Mother's Day

For Mother's Day, our family took a little trip out to a ranch near Glen Rose, TX wanting a relaxing time connecting as a family. And thankfully, we got just that. The kids were excited to see the horses as we pulled up to the ranch and were even more excited to see the cabin we rented. The thing they were most excited about was the loft portion of the cabin which was at the top of a ship's ladder. The big kids got to sleep up there which they thought was quite awesome! They spent a lot of time climbing up and down that ladder which gave them tons of joy and mommy mini-heart attacks pretty much every time. But I am happy to report they are good climbers and there were no ladder accidents. It was a warm weekend so we had fun taking a hike using our map, exploring the backyard area of our cabin, and having family movie night at the cabin. It was the perfect size for our family and was decorated in a Texas theme which was very cute and fun!

The bird feeder on the front porch


Gabriella trying out the porch swing


Melia found the bathroom for us!


Going exploring!



Oliver at the top of the ladder!


Mother's Day!!



The next morning, we did a "Who Done It" scavenger hunt around the ranch searching for clues as to who robbed the bank in the little western town near the ranch office. After following the map and gathering all of the clues, it was determined that the two ranch pigs did it - Butch and Sundance! We made sure to visit them in their pen on the way out and feed them our leftover food.

On our way home we drove into downtown Glen Rose and ate lunch at a yummy restaurant there called the Green Pickle. We played at their awesome outside garden for a bit before heading to Big Rocks City Park. Our neighbor Brit recommended this place and it was truly cool. The whole family enjoyed exploring and playing in the cool river on a hot day. And thankfully, the water was slow moving and mostly shallow so the kids could play without too much worry!






It was a great weekend and such a blessing to spend time enjoying conversation, laughs, and making memories with the people we love most!

Thursday, May 5, 2011

He is Risen!

Happy Easter everyone!

We had a nice long Easter celebration that started off with the kids' Easter parties at preschool. Melia and I were able to attend both of them. We LOVE our preschool Graham Cracker Express and are so thankful for our awesome teachers and friends.

Gabriella with her Easter cross craft


Hunting eggs inside - it was a rainy party day!


Nothing better than listening to the Easter story in Ms. Cheryl's lap! We love Ms. Cheryl!


With her best buddy Olivia


Oliver making his Easter craft


Showing it to his friends


With some of his best buddies after the egg hunt!


We celebrated our Easter weekend with most of my family which was such a treat. The kids love having everyone around and I think the feeling is mutual. We are so blessed to have such a close-knit family. A blessing that I count very often.

We started off the festivities with a "Beck Family Bunny Run 5k." The sisters even made matching shirts:



Aunt Natty took the cake by running the whole way:



Matt and Bossy rode bikes with the kids... and Oliver rode all by himself for the first loop (1.6 miles!)

And Dad walked the whole 5k!


While Meme and my grandmother Nana held the baby!



Next was an Easter Egg hunt in our backyard:





We ended the weekend by celebrating our Risen Lord at our church with my family that was still in town. Here we are all ready to go:

Happy Easter!