Mommy and Avery Day!

Avery is my buddy!  

I love all my kids.

They each have a very special place in my heart

and I love each of them uniquely!

But, there really is something about that baby!

Just like there is something about my first born,

something about my delicate Ella, there is something

about the one that loves me so completely and endlessly!

Avery and just love hanging out together.

She adores me and I find everything about her

adorable and hilarious!

As much as we love hanging out, it's rare that we get

to do it just the two of us. However, this past Saturday

we found ourselves with a few hours alone.

So, we headed to the mall for a good time!

I took Aves to make her first Build-a-Bear

all on her own.  We used to do this with Claire and Ella

all of the time, but I don't remember doing it with

Avery.  What a fun time and great memories!

I am so blessed to have each of my children.

They each bring something special to my life and I 

am so grateful for all the great times and great memories

I get to have with each of them!

Shocked she chose the pink bear! 

"Bringing her to life"

Warming the heart in her hands...

making a wish....

giving it a kiss...

and in it goes!

A quick little air bath!

Butterfly Heart is born!

Avery took this Instagram photo of herself and Butterfly all by herself!

2012 Swim Team Banquet

We spend a lot of time at the pool and a lot of time with 

our swim family.  So, one of our favorite events is the

annual Swim Team Banquet.

We had a great time this year, and a couple of 

fun surprises.

As we settled in with some good pasta and friends,

a storm came rolling through town.

About half way through a great awards presentation,

the power went out!  Being the tough Dolphins that we are,

the show went on!  Everyone grabbed their cell phone

flashlights and we had a great time!

The second surprise came when Claire was announced

the winner of the 9-10 girls Most Time Dropped award!

That is very exciting and well-deserved, as Claire worked

very hard this year!  She is very proud of her little trophy!

A great time was had by all and I was reminded again

of how much I love this team and what it is all about!

8 and under girls. What a great group!

9-10 girls. Another great group of girls!

Aves should win the "best little sister" award.
She is such a trooper and loves hanging out
with her swim team friends!

Getting her year-end goodies from Coach Kim ~

A big hug from Coach Kris ~

It is very easy for me to get wrapped up in the competition of

competitive swimming. But, when I get the chance to hang out

with these families, coaches and kids, I can't help feeling 

 so grateful for the love and support we have found

on this team.  

I forget that when Claire started swimming 5 years ago, she 

was a shy girl with just a shadow of the confidence she has now.

Joining this team and swimming has done so many wonderful

things for her, and not one of them has anything to do with 

how fast she swims.

I am so grateful to be a proud mama on the 

Walnut Creek Dolphins Swim Team!!

Easter Eggstravaganza!

As you know by now, I'm big on traditions.

So much so, that if I can't do something "like I've always done it",

it just may not get done.

Such was this year's Easter plans.  It all started with my

mom being out of town over Easter.  Then throw in a lot

of travel in March, Easter coming early in April and the next

thing you know, I didn't plan our annual Easter party.

Now, this may not seem like a big deal, but let me tell you,

it was!  We've been hosting the Rousehouse Easter Eggstravaganza

for 10 years! 10 years of tradition, out the window.

As you can imagine, I was quite sad.  I was angry with myself

for not being superwoman and getting it done.

What I realized was that I didn't get it done because I didn't 

think I could do it perfectly.  Luckily, I have fantastic friends

who love me, encourage me, and don't want to dye eggs at their house!

So, days before Easter, plans were in motion.  Our dear friends,

The Keplingers, invited us to their house for Easter dinner.

I even made homemade mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes

all by myself (minus a few texts to mom!)

We had such a great time and felt very loved, welcomed,

and full!

Next, our best family friends The Liskeys,

and of course GiGi and PaPa and Boppa, came over and we

threw together an abbreviated Easter Eggstravaganza!

I'll tell you a secret, Dave and I both thought it was the best

Easter party we've ever had!!

We didn't have cupcakes, we didn't have games,

we didn't have the fabulous craft, but we did have fun!

And, most importantly, we dyed eggs and did our famous

Easter Egg Hunt!  Dave and I threw together 150 plastic

eggs the night before and 149 were found!

We also threw in a new twist: grilled burgers and The Masters!

What did I learn from all of this?

I'm not perfect and no one wants me to be.

Our friends come over to celebrate Easter because they

love us and because we want to take a day to laugh together,

to play together, and to enjoy the wonderful gift that Easter

has to offer: love and hope.

So, traditions are important and I will never stop 

harping on that.  But, good friends, open doors,

and flexibility are important too.

Many blessing to all of our dear friends and family.

We love you all!

Here are just a few of my favorite pics from the party.

Enjoy ~

10 kids coloring eggs ~ amazing!

Not sure what's happening here, but I love the expression!

Aves loves her Miss Wendy!

Great group of kiddos ~

Avery is serious about egg hunting!

15 yet Claire?

Beauty!

Everyone checking out their loot ....

and eating it as fast as possible!

Midwest Regionals

Finally, the last meet of the year.

The one we've been waiting for.

The grand finale, big show, last call.

Well, really, just one more meet!

Grammy and I packed up the girls and headed

to Minneapolis for the 2012 Midwest Regional Championships.

What a huge honor that both girls qualified.

I'll admit, sometimes I forget that.  I forget that it's hard to do.

Not everyone makes the cut, not everyone is brave enough to do it.

Just making it is an accomplishment on its own.

So, I shouldn't care how they do, right?!?

Well, I'm still working on that!

But, besides my expectations, everyone did great

and more importantly had a great time!

Claire qualified in 6 individual events this year!!

Ella qualified in 1, very impressive for a 7 year old!

They both swam in a relay as well.

Both did great!

Claire got personal best times in 2 events

and some okay and what happened times in a couple others.

All rounded out, not a bad showing!

Ella swam without getting disqualified in the

University of Minnesota pool at a high-competition meet.

That is success in itself!!

I had a painful growing experience that my expectations

are my problem and should be no one else's problem.

I was reminded of why we swim; because it's fun, we

love it, and it's a great sport to be a part of.

In the end, we all walked away from the weekend 

with good memories and goals for next year.

The best part: Walnut Creek Dolphins walked away

the the title of 2012 Midwest Champions!!

and the Spirit Award for good sportsmanship.

I could not be prouder of this team and my girls!!!

WC Dolphins!

My sweet Claire bear

Relay team getting a pep talk from Coach Kris

Claire getting ready for her leg of the relay. She got her best
time on her split!

She shot off the block with perfect timing!

Coach Kris is the best!

Claire qualified in the 100 IM, 200 IM, 50 Breast, 100 Breast
50 Back and 100 Back.  Busy girl!

Ella and Avery enjoying some chocolate muffins for breakfast.
Avery was amazing.  She cheered the team on for 2 straight days
and was so good.  That girl is awesome!

Ella's turn came on Day 2.  Coach Kim giving her a pep talk
before she takes off for her leg of the relay.

Get ready Ella ~

Free is not Ella's favorite stroke, but she did great!

We were very lucky to have a very special treat waiting

for us in Minnesota.  Aunt Rachel and Uncle Dean welcomed

our new baby cousin, Arwyn, just days before the meet.

We were so lucky to get to spend some time with them Saturday

evening.  She is beautiful and mom, dad, and Sophie seemed

very happy, if not tired! : )

Me and my new adorable niece!

Between all the swimming and baby snuggling, we did manage

to have some fun at the waterpark!

Ella went down the waterslide! That's a big deal!

Claire loves the waterslide!!

Aves loved the water sprayer!

We spent a lot of time here ~

She would make it spray, then jump down and hide.
Silly Avery!

Thanks to Grammy for coming with us.

Thanks to all the great friends that were there

to cheer all of our swimmers on.

Thanks to my amazing sister-in-law and brother

who graciously had the baby in time for us to meet her!

I love swimming.  I love the meets, the team,

everything about it.  But, I will admit, I'm ready for a break!

We're off to the softball fields. See the pool again in June!