Whirlwind Recap

Spring is always such a busy but beautiful time of the year around here.  I took tons of photos, but didn't have time to ever post them.  So, here is a whirlwind recap of the menagerie of memories we made this Spring...

Seeing the first bulbs silently burst out of the ground in the Spring made my heart burst for joy 

(and run for my camera) :)

Each new leaf budding from branches that appeared dead days before 

was like a declaration of hope and survival.

These raspberry leaves prove that darkness and ice cannot prevent the promise of new life.

I planted tulips last Fall to remind me of my holy Grandma from Holland :)

I was so happy when they actually came up after a long, cold winter.

Tulips can't help but make me happy.

I think I need to plant more of them :)

Spring also brought trips to the carousel for rides and ice cream for our Spring birthday boy.

Oh how happy my boys were to finally play at parks again!

Our silly monkey hanging from monkey bars :)

Got chicks?

We do.  16 to be exact.

We kept them indoors for a couple of weeks, 

which was fun to hear the "peeps" throughout the day... 

But soon they were moved outside,

growing faster than our grass.

It was fun to watch their new feathers and true colors emerge.

We bought all Americanas which lay the pretty blue-green eggs,

so we were surprised to see so many different color variations of their feathers.

Chicks are just fun.  Period.

Other big Spring news:  Nathanael learned how to ride a bike!

Boy he is cute on a bike.

Boy was he proud of himself,

and we were so proud of him too!

Spring also brought turkeys back into our yard.

This male turkey was sure trying to impress this hen 

(or protect her from the crazy camera lady).

He puffed up extra big, hoping she wouldn't notice his missing tail feather.

(how embarrassing) :)

The variety of colors is sure impressive.

Did you know that Benjamin Franklin proposed that the wild turkey be our national bird instead of the bald eagle?  Now that I can see them up close, I understand why.

Michael graduated into high school this Spring and even had to give a speech.

He did awesome, and we are so proud of him.

Memorial Day is always bittersweet for our family.

We remember our 3 sweet babies in heaven,

as well as Paul's dad and other family members who have gone before us.

The boys picked wildflowers to honor their siblings in heaven.

We are grateful for our 3 baby intercessors who are praying for our family,

and someday it will be such a joy to see their faces and hold them in our arms.

Divine Mercy Sunday happens every Spring.

One of my favorite feast days for a variety of reasons.

A reminder that no sin is greater than God's mercy.

Our first fishing trip once the weather got nice.

Michael caught a nice arctic greyling.

Our second fishing trip of the Spring,

Michael caught a bunch of brook trout.

This boy was born to fish.

We catch these at a stream near our house.  So much fun, not so much meat.

Good thing I'm a catch and release gal anyway :)

A sweet moment of Daddy bonding with his little boy in the sun.

Oh how I love those precious little fingers!

These are the memories that Spring is made of.

Now, on to Summer memories!!!