The Plumpton Zoo

The weather held up enough for Noah and I to enjoy his field trip to a local zoo without facing a downpour. In years past when I have attended this particular field trip with the other kids, we have basically wandered around the small zoo, checking out the animals in their poor habitats and small cages, and feeling sorry for them. Fortunately for the animals the zoo is under new management and they are making great strides in improving the welfare and environment for the animals there. And this time we even had a tour guide who filled us in all kinds of great facts about the animals. We had a lot of fun!


Noah was extremely bummed that he didn't get to feed the giraffe.

This donkey could have been the inspiration for the character in Shrek!

The highlight of the day for Noah was getting a little cup of food and feeding the various animals - donkeys, goats, deer, and some pigs.

This one got ahold of Noah's cup which Noah and his friend Cael thought was pretty funny.

Easter Bunny Day

Artwork courtesy of Mr. Alexander Nicholas Pierce...not too bad.

Friday night we all colored easter eggs in preparation for Easter Bunny day. Noah enjoyed it so much that we had dye everywhere - he just couldn't contain all that excitement!


Each year the kids have to make a dragon egg so here is a picture of them showing off their special eggs.

Saturday morning - Happy Easter Bunny Day! The loot that the Easter Bunny left - Savannah got a cheerleading outfit for her Monster High dolls and Xander and Noah both got Star Wars Galactic Hero guys.

Empty easter baskets are ready to be filled. Unfortunately it rained Friday night and Saturday morning so the Easter Bunny could only leave eggs in the house. I don't think the kids minded.





Checking out all their yummy Easter candy...Easter candy is definitely the best!

This year the Easter Bunny did a much better job of finding things other than just candy to put in the eggs.

We had a fun time Saturday morning and then Sunday we celebrated a beautiful Easter Sabbath as we remembered the resurrection of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Noah's Spring Party

Noah and I had a fabulous time at his preschool Spring Party. Each of the kids got to decorate bunny ears,

then got a bunny face,


and finished it all off with a cute bunny tail that they wiggled for all the parents. Too cute!

Before the Easter egg hunt, Noah got to decorate a basket to hold all his eggs and goodies.

Next was the parachute game in which Noah got a little crazy...

...but he sure had fun!

All the cute little bunnies!

Searching for eggs.


Another fun party!

Happy Birthday, Noah!

On Tuesday, April 17, 2007,at 6:00am David and I headed into the hospital not knowing whether we would be bringing home a little girl or a little boy. Just after 8:00 that morning our little Noah Calvin was born, all 8 pounds, 10 ounces of him. Our lives have never been the same!

Meeting Savannah and Xander.

Here we are, four years later.

Four facts about Noah at age 4:

• Unlike the rest of us who are quiet, shy, and a little reserved, Noah is extremely social and outgoing. He has the best smile and seems to just attract people to him with his affable manner.




• He loves to dress up. Every time he shows up at school his teachers laugh at the various costumes he wears; one day he's Spiderman, the next he's the swamp monster, and another day he'll be decked out as a pirate. Along with the costumes come his arsenal of weapons which include light sabers, guns, daggers, and swords.




• Our Irish ancestors would be proud - Noah has one heck of a temper! He will yell and scream if he doesn't get his way or what he wants. He has also been known to throw a punch or two.




• I don't really know how Noah survives on what he eats - this kid is one picky eater. Instead of making a list of foods he doesn't like, we thought a list of what he actually will eat would be much shorter: mac and cheese, pizza, hamburgers, chips, waffles, rice, butter (just by itself - gross!), apple slices, and corn on the cob. Oh, and of course, candy!

Probably the best gift Noah received on his birthday, though he didn't recognize it at the time, was shaking the hand of an apostle of God. Later that evening we had a little family party with presents and cake.


Noah is always extremely grateful for all his gifts, an aspect of his personality that I love and appreciate.

More Star Wars guys from the Clarks.

Check out the cool Yoda slippers from Grandma and Grandpa Schaeffer.


Happy Birthday, cute little Noah!!!

Noah's Favorites at 4:

• Color: yellow



• Food: hamburger



• Movie: any Scooby-Doo movie except Scooby-Doo and the Goblin King (he thinks it's too scary)



• Book: Papa Bear (The Berenstein Bears)



• Toy: Star Wars



• Animal: tiger



• Sport: football



• Thing to do: play with Star Wars guys



• Fruit: bananas



• Vegetable: corn



• Holiday: Christmas and Halloween



• Candy: Swedish Fish



• Dessert: cake and ice cream



• Favorite Scripture Hero: Jesus



• What to be when he grows up: Construction man who digs



• Best Friends: Abby, David, Brody



• 
  

Wonderful Weekend

Our weekends are usually very relaxing and uneventful but this past one was an exception. I felt like Saturday I ran from one event to the next but they were all worth it! Saturday I got to attend the wedding of one of the young women I was over when I was Young Women president a few years ago. Towards the end of high school she became inactive for several years - but then, a year ago, she was introduced to a recently returned missionary in our ward and the rest is history. Through his influence she was able to come back to activity in the church and, needless to say, I was overjoyed to attend her temple wedding. It was beautiful! There is nothing better than watching a couple start off their lives together in this way.

When I got home from the temple David headed off to church meetings and I got the kids ready to go to the wedding reception that was held at our church building. When that was over we swung by to pick up the kids' babysitter for the evening, I dropped them all at home, and headed down to our Stake Center for the adult session of Stake Conference. The biggest treat of the night was listening to an apostle of God speak to us - Elder Neil L. Anderson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

Both Saturday night and Sunday, as I headed down to attend these special church meetings, I couldn't help but think how lucky I am to have the gospel in my life. Here I was, blessed to be able to listen to an apostle of the Lord, and most of the people in Baltimore weren't even aware of this special person that was in their midst.
And of course the best came on Sunday as we celebrated the birth of our little No-No! What joy he has brought to our family! He is definitely one of a kind and we love him so much!

We love Spring!

We're finally getting warmer weather and seeing some more green! The kids are taking advantage of the wonderful weather we've been having by spending as much time as they can outdoors.

The scooters have come out of storage!

Xander and his special friend Ella. Climbing trees is part of the warm weather fun.

April Keepers

"She stretcheth out her hand to the poor; yea, she reacheth forth her hands to the needy." Proverbs 31
Service was the theme of the night. First we all discussed ways that we can provide service to others. Next, the girls helped prepare a dinner to take to a family in need.


To end our night the girls made a no-sew fleece blanket to either donate to a shelter or a hospital.



What a great group of girls! Another fantastic Keepers meeting!