Firsts and flowers

We had the best Saturday. Seriously. The kind of Saturday where you just don't come inside, where you get a little too much sun, even in April, where you fill the day so full it is still brimming over and you don't get tot the blog until 10:45 on Sunday night... Before I tell you about it, though, lets back up a bit. These past weeks have been as full of firsts for our children as they have been of flowers. Did I tell you about Jacks little concert? How those kindergartner a stood up there so straight and yelled out the words to their springtime songs? I think I may have, but here's another picture for good measure.

And how about Ivy's brush with fame? Here she is, gracing the front page of the Plain Dealer Metro section. We've been receiving copies of the picture from people far and wide, as they recognize our girl. What fun!

This week also brought Jack's first week of soccer, with a practice on Tuesday and a game on Saturday. Yes, college-Amanda, you DO have a minivan AND a kid in soccer. Gasp. Not exactly sure how this happened to me. Luckily, not-in-college-anymore-Amanda is remarkably ok with it all. Jack is excited, particularly as he and Greg are on the same team. We've been blessed with good weather so far, which has only helped.

Oh, and today he attended his first bowling party. He wanted to just stay and keep bowling after the party ended, he enjoyed it so much. Jack will never find himself lacking in interests, with the way h seems to throw himself wholeheartedly into each new pursuit...

So.. Saturday. Seventy degree sunshine. Blue blue blue sky. Botanical Gardens in the morning. Never mind that we'd just been there the night before. It's the last weekend for the Big Spring attractions and there were so many lilies yet to smell. So many ribbons and butterfly wings and brilliant colors, rainbow arcs of tulips in full splendor. It was heaven. We could have stayed all day but for Jack's first soccer game... We were forced, poor us, to stand around in the sunshine watching little children run and play on the green gras...
It went pretty well for being our boys econd time on a soccer field. He contacted the ball a few times, even moved it down the field a bit, one time. During his first stint as goalie, he stopped the ball... With his nose. Actually, he dealt with it pretty well, and even got back into the goal box, meeting the fear head on. I was pretty darn proud. I don't care if he ever scores a goal.
Evening found us grilling out at a friends house, walking the kids around their lovely neighborhood, passing the time chatting and drinking beer as the kids played. Not a bad way to end the day. A delicious day, indeed.