{Easter}

Hello everyone! I hope you all had a nice Easter weekend! We are usually boring around here but this weekend was packed with fun things and places to go for the kids!

Friday night we celebrated Cody's brother Dustin's birthday and went out to Macayo's and then back to their place. They made cheesecake in their pressure cooker, it was really good!!

Saturday morning we went with some of our fun friends from the ward over by Lake Pleasant (about 40 minutes away). We found a shaded area (away from water) with some trails for the kids to hike and a wash with sand to build sand castles with. We bar-b-qed and then hid Easter eggs along the wash for the kids to find. It was so much fun, the kids just loved it! they were hiking all over, having fun throwing things in the fire, and eating lots of Cheetos! Especially Kade! He just stood by the bag saying "More? More?"

The Cox's showed us their fun family tradition of having an egg roll down a steep hill and the kids loved doing that. Even more fun was having an egg fight after and throwing the hard boiled eggs all around. We came home dirty and happy, and hurried and cleaned up for a ward party. It was a luau theme with games for the kids and dinner. We skipped out a bit early and headed over to the annual city Easter Egg hunt.

We met Dustin and April there, and their cute kids and had fun going on the carasol and big bouncers. The kids waited their turn for their age's egg hunting group and then ran all over the baseball field picking up eggs with treats and surprises inside. It was lots of fun :o).

Today I dressed the kids all up in some clothes I bought a year ago online at some big clearance. They all fit so I was happy! Church was so nice, it was a great meeting. I am loving being in primary again, my girls are so cute. Kade got to go into nursery a few weeks early (he'll be 18 months in 2 weeks) and he loves it in there! It's been so nice to be baby free for those last two hours!

This afternoon we went over to Dustin and April's for a yummy dinner. As we were driving over I was telling them that April's sister would be there too, and their little boy Joseph. "I know Joseph!" Ethan yelled excitedly "I do?" I said. "Yes! He's our prophet! I'm so excited to see him!" Cody and I laughed. "Joseph Smith won't be here," I said "it's a little boy who's 2 named Joseph". "Oh, little kids can't be prophets. Maybe when he's bigger." Ethan said. Funny boy.
Well I hope everyone's doing well and had a nice Easter.

XOXO
Brooke

{Update}

Nothing too new here at the Ashton household - we are just happy to all be healthy! I was sick last week for a couple of days - that doesn't happen often and when it does it's not good!! I had a midterm I had to take on Saturday, not good! Oh well, I got through it and felt much better on Sunday. I was so happy to be better and able to snuggle with my boys again, and eat normal food. Here's some videos of the boys singing: (we were playing American Idol)

Rhett singing Follow The Prophet with some interesting hand movements:

Ethan singing his favorite song: I am a Child of God

Well there is nothing too new. We are excited for Easter coming...and sad to see Grandma and Grandpa leave for 9 days to Hawaii! Wish we could have snuck in their suitcases!

XOXO

Brooke

{He's 4!}

If you've been around Ethan this last week then you've heard him proudly proclaim "I'm 4!" with his fingers in place. He is so excited to be four!! He had a fun birthday last Sunday. Highlights include: *being sung to in Primary *sugar cereal for breakfast *no nap *Grandma, Ally, & Brittany coming for dinner (spaghetti, his favorite) and birthday ice cream pie *fun presents like 2 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, a frisbee, legos, and a remote controlled truck.

We had to take a family picture in our normal spot...

Aunt Ally (12), Brittany (17), and Grandma Flake came to par-tay :o)

On Monday Ethan's party was at an indoor play place new here in Surprise with big blow up bouncers and slides. I took a million pictures, intending to send them to the parents in thank you cards. I got home, downloaded them, and they are all CRAP. My camera is so junky. It weighs like 10 pounds and it takes horrible pictures. So if anyone wants to give me a new one I'll be their best friend. Promise. Here are the better of the blurry pics.

Mallory (who gave Ethan a birthday kiss...woo hoo!) and Ethan

Chloe and Ally

I had to put this pic of Jalen...so funny! This is how he went down every time.


Cutie-pie Carter

All the kids singing to Ethan. I don't know why I didn't have him and Rhett sit with all the other kids? Crazy momma.


Thanks to everyone who came, we are so lucky to have so many fun friends!!!

Okay let's end with some Ethanisms and Rhettisms. This may only be funny to me, but I don't want to forget them.

I've had a dry cough for a few days, very annoying. I was reading Ethan a story and coughed. He looked at me and said "That's not a real cough mom." It made me laugh because that's what I tell him when he fake coughs trying to get a cough drop.

Rhett brought home a dinosaur book from the school library. The cover has a big T-rex with blood falling from it's teeth. Inside it is equally bloody. I was reading it, and I said "Wow, this book is really graphic!" Rhett said "I choose this book because it was so graphic. The graphic pictures are amazing". Hee hee don't think he knows what graphic is but everything is "amazing" lately to him.

{Ethan turns 4!}

This post is dedicated to my cute little Ethan :o). You are four years old today and I can't belive what a big boy you are! You have become my big helper these past few months while Rhett has been in school, and you have taken your role as the big brother very seriously! You have so many great qualities that make you "you". You are a social butterfly, with so many friends who you always want to invite over! You have the best ideas, you always tell them to me with your plan that I can't resist. You are so nice to Kade, even when he bonks you on the head with a car or wants to copy everything you do. You are our jokester, always making us laugh. The picture above is my fav picture of you, you fell off your bike and wanted me to take a picture of you with your "crazy eyes". We love you Ethan and are happy you are four!! Here are some fun pictures of Ethan from the past 4 years...