Maddie & Jilly had fun playing with colored bubbles at Grandpa & Grandma Allred's Easter dinner
Kylie & Maddie at Nany & Ba's Easter dinner, we had on Good Friday this year
The annual Mardon Easter Egg hunt: cousins Kylie, Jett, Cade, Jace & Maddie
And now onto the kids...make sure to read the bottom of this post for some exciting news!JACE:
He's our busy 1st grader. Finished basketball in February, what a fun season with lots of friends and my coach from high school spear-headed a bunch of 1st grade boys. It was so fun to watch, those boys really showed some improvement over the season. His claim to fame lately has been his joke telling ability...he performed (quite well for that matter) at the school's talent show in February, telling a few jokes to a crowd of 700! He moved onto soccer and we watched his games from our car since our weather this spring has been so crummy! Soon, he'll be playing baseball, which is his favorite sport. He's doing well in school, latest report card had us grinning from ear to ear and he earned himself a book at the book fair for his hard work, choosing "Predator Showdown". He and Cade have loved looking at that book, trying to figure out which animal claims victory over another. They sleep together every night, not in their own beds which are in the same room, but in our guest room. I like it so I don't mind; it won't be long that they'll want to share the same bed. Someday they'll use their cute bedroom. They'd rather sleep in the mix-n-match, undecorated, spare bedroom. Jace is a great big brother, constantly coming up with games and things to play for he and Cade, always including little sis in the mix, even if she's not up to par with what they're playing. He and Caden loved going down to the ranch for branding this year, they even got to ride a couple of calves. He's growing up too quickly!
CADEN: Just finished preschool! He's officially graduated and registered for Kindergarten this fall. I loved teaching Cade in preschool this year. He is a very bright boy and quite the perfectionist. Artsy too. He's constantly drawing pictures, using up stacks of sticky notes while sticking them all over the house. Cade is our kid that never says "I'm bored." He finds things to do, makes plenty of messes, and is so creative in his play. Being the middle child, he plays great with kids but unusually well on his own too. He plays on his terms, so I'm sure that's why he's quite good at self-play. We've been so impressed with how much he loves and cares for Maddie. He talks to her in the sweetest tone, getting her toys, tries to lift her onto her swing outside, helps carry her up the stairs. She's a lucky girl to have Cade as a playmate and protector these days, boy is she going to miss him when he's off to school this fall. He's enjoyed riding a few times this year, only on his favorite horse, "Sparky Boy". We enjoyed a fun spring break horse back riding excursion with Derek & Carly's family on the ranch. Cade was a pro. Oh, and I must mention how tough he is...just had his shots for Kindergarten, 4 of them in all and he didn't cry, not even one tear. Also had two warts frozen off recently and never even blinked. Yes, he's our superboy and determined to be the tough guy.
MADDIE:Prefers to not be called "Maddie Moomer" anymore. She corrects us if we say this by saying, "my name isn't Moomer, it's Maddie Grace Allred!" She's really a talker, loves watching herself in the reflection of the oven or dryer, chatting up a storm as she brushes her hair from her face and smiles. She loves to help me...especially with dishes. Water, bubbles anyone? I'm yet to master how to incorporate her help, while still getting my chores done and without the watery mess. She loves packing around a stuffed animal or baby, rocking them in her rocking chair, patting and singing to them. She discovered that her baby doll's eyes open and close, and whoa, "Molly her baby" took a lot of naps yesterday. Maddie loves to take baths, has constantly had rashes this winter; her recent rash was ring worm, which we have no idea where she got it from. She and Caden are just getting over a lovely case of pink eye too. Her nose has been runny most of the winter/spring and she's been on a couple of rounds of antibiotics from ear infections this late winter. She's currently healthy (knock on wood) and on "house arrest" now, not venturing out in public or in any groups of people for that matter, so we're keeping busy at home with projects and play. We need to keep her healthy for surgery. She and I were recently baptized at our church, First Presbyterian, the week after Easter. It was such a wonderful evening and having this sacred experience with her will always be a special memory for me. She was precious and my heart was so full.
and our big news is...WE'RE EXPECTING!!! I'm 14 weeks along and baby is due Nov. 6th, though with the c-section, looks like sometime around Halloween. We're all very excited!
