Still in Michigan

Saturday, 7 April 2007 and Sunday, 8 April 2007

Wow, how time flies when you are having fun! We woke up Saturday to a light dusting of snow. The kids were thrilled! The oldest and youngest two went outside and played for a good bit, but there was no convincing #2 that the snow and biting wind would be fun. Not even a bribe of hot chocolate could change his mind. It wasn’t long before the other three were back in the house, shivering and laughing. It continued to snow off and on all day, leaving behind about an inch of the white stuff.

Saturday was quite relaxed. Our little horse lover got to help with feeding the horses, giving the horses vaccinations and other “horsey” chores. She has been thrilled with the chance to learn and experience all she can while we are here. At one point we ran errands and I took the opportunity to purchase a few more long sleeve shirts for the kids. Funny how I don’t feel like we need the shorts and short sleeve shirts I packed. Or the sandals. Not when the high during the day doesn’t reach freezing.

Sunday, we woke up to more snow, but less excitement from the kids. I think the novelty is wearing off. My poor car, though. It was wearing a blanket of frozen fluff this morning. It may be a first, as well as a last. Remind me not to vacation in Michigan in April. It’s just cold up here!

Most of the kids were up early to see what the Easter Bunny brought them. They were very excited to look though their baskets. Well, actually, we do sand buckets and shovels stuffed with stickers, balls, and other novelties. Really, when you live in southern California, sand buckets are much more useful than baskets, so that’s what we go with. There was much eager anticipation as they waited for the magical moment of hunting Easter eggs. Unfortunately, our oldest boy decided to get as much beauty rest as he could, so the hunt didn’t start until he woke up after 10am.

Are you ready for this? We hunted Easter eggs in the snow! Oh, the kids had a blast! It was so much fun, and so neat to hear them helping each other out in finding their eggs. The little guy was a bit frustrated at his inability to pick up the eggs with his tiny mitten hands. And he didn’t quite grasp the idea that he could use two hands, so I followed him around corralling his discoveries. After trying unsuccessfully several times, he would approach an egg and simply yell at it until I picked it up. It was definitely amusing to watch the antics of them all!

The best part of the day for me was learning how to roll egg rolls. Emily is an amazing cook and does a wonderful fried rice, egg rolls, stir fry, pork chops…we’ve definitely been eating well! There is definitely a learning curve to rolling egg rolls, but the end result was well worth it. Who knows, I may get brave and try these on my own someday!

We had dinner with Emily’s family at her parents’ house. It was a wonderful time, and the kids definitely enjoyed themselves. We’ve had such a fantastic time here, and we’ll be sad to leave in the morning. The good news is that Emily and her kids are coming with us on the next leg of our journey. So after 3 nights in the same bed, we will bid farewell to the cold Michigan spring and the warm Michigan farmhouse, and begin our trip south.