I do recess duty a couple times a month at the kids' school and get to witness playground fun like this!
I woke up one weekend morning to find Jack had made a speaker. That kid amazes me!
I took Patrick and Jack to a chess tournament one Saturday. They both did great!
Both boys earned a spot at the championships later in March.
Patrick earned a medal!
I went out to my annual dinner with my high school friends.
Maggie with her preschool teacher:
Jim's band played music at my parents' church's fish fry and we went to enjoy the music and food.
This is what Jack thought of the band.
Maggie was exhausted by the time we got home.
Chicken Pot Pie to celebrate Pi Day!
Charlie loves to climb trees.
An Irish (colored) lunch for an Irish lass.
Spring break began with a trip to a restaurant with hundreds of games.
Our motley crew outside the restaurant.
Maggie and A played Hungry, Hungry Hippo. We played several games and had a fun night.
The next day we went to the St. Patrick's Day parade.
We went to Elephant Rocks State Park.
So many opportunities to climb!
And jump!
This girl is so strong!
After Elephant Rocks, we went to Johnson's Shut-Ins State Park to camp. The kids wanted a walk-in site so we were more secluded. There were not a lot of people camping in mid-March, though.
Our campsite:
When we woke in the morning, our water was frozen. It got well below freezing in the night. We went to Taum Sauk Mountain State Park for a hike the next day. I wasn't feeling great, so I napped in the car while Jim took the 5 kids on a hike.
Charlie at the highest elevation point in Missouri:
Maggie took gymnastics classes with my cousin Emily and loved it!
On the final weekend of spring break, we took the family to Pere Marquette State Park and met several friends.
I was lucky enough to sneak away for a hike with a couple moms (and Charlie who did NOT want to hike).
Patrick loved the huge chess board in the lobby.
Lots of fun was had by all!
Indoor fun in the pool!
We came back from Pere Marquette a day early so Jack and Patrick could compete in the chess championship tournament. Patrick finished 8th in his division and Jack finished 20th in his!
Some friends came in town for Mason Jennings concert. We had dinner before the show...
...and drinks after the show.
We celebrated Jack's 12th birthday a couple days early with the family.
Then we celebrated again on his actual birthday.
Maggie was so excited for the Daddy-Daughter Dance. It might just be her favorite day of the year.
While Jim and Maggie enjoyed the dance, I took the rest of the crew to Steak n' Shake.
