A Beautiful Easter Sunday!

We had a beautiful Easter Sunday this year! We started our day at church with a breakfast, Easter Egg hunt, and service. Emma wore a bright pink dress, and she was excited to see that many of her friends were wearing bright colors, too. When we came home, Emma found her Easter basket, which this year included a stuffed "Beanie Boo" bunny and a My Little Pony Equestria Girl doll, among other things. We had Easter dinner at our house, with 13 people enjoying the meal. Afterwards, Emma hunted for eggs in the back yard while everyone else enjoyed the 75-degree weather and sunshine! In all, Emma found 76 eggs! Luckily for us, not all of them were filled with candy, but with stickers, pony tail holders, etc. Still, our desserts were as elaborate as ever, with a birthday cake for Jason, Aunt Linda's traditional bunny cake, and an assortment of pies, candy, and ice cream! The best part of the day, however, was enjoying the company of friends and family!

Ski Trip!

When Spring Break arrives, most people think of sunshine and warmer days, right? Not us! We were itching to have one last romp in the snow with a ski trip to Canaan Valley, West Virginia! Last year Emma skied for the first time, and she was excited to go back. This year we went to Timberline Ski Resort just a few miles down the road from Canaan Valley State Park. With the help of a harness we borrowed from a friend, Emma built up her confidence again and eventually tried short distances on her own. Her crowning achievement was a trip down the two-mile "Salamander" trail, the longest of the beginner slopes. She wore her harness for it, but most of the time the ropes were slack, meaning she was skiing on her own (even if she didn't realize it)! We had a few spills and meltdowns, but overall she enjoyed skiing and said she couldn't wait to go back. Of course, it also helped that we stayed at the newly-remodeled Canaan Valley Lodge, complete with a beautiful room and a couple of trips to the indoor pool. We hope that someday we can take our whole family down there with us again! The minute we got home, Emma pulled out her notebook and wrote a story about our trip (see picture): "I went to a place where you can ski. I stayed at a really nice hotel and I skied down Salamander and I also went on really steep hills. I stayed at the hotel two nights. I came home today. I can't wait to go back."

Samantha and Sally's New Home

On President's Day, Grandma Sheila and Papa Norm came for a visit. We hadn't seen them since Christmas because they were on an extended vacation. Emma and Grandma Sheila made a "house" for Emma's dolls, Samantha and Sally, for a fraction of the cost of a similar playset at the American Girl store. Emma said it was even better than the store-bought one, because it was "more funner" to make!

Disney on Ice, Girl Scout Style!

On February 7, Emma and I went with her friend Jessica and her family to see Disney on Ice. We met her fellow Daisy Scouts there and sat in a special section set aside for Girl Scouts! We had been to Disney on Ice in previous years when we went to Toledo for Christmas, but this was our first time seeing it in Columbus, and the theme is different every time (see December 2012 blog). This time, it was "Princesses and Heroes", and it included all of Emma's favorite princesses, like Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella. It was also the first time Emma had seen all of the movies that were represented! While Emma enjoyed seeing familiar characters, I enjoyed the music, ice skating talent, and special effects. During the Sleeping Beauty scene, where Prince Phillip defeats the dragon, the dragon breathed real fire onto the ice! The Cinderella scene included her carriage (see picture), that lit up at the end with sparkling lights and even fireworks!

Plowing to Pittsburgh!

Since we had a couple extra days' vacation after New Year's this year, we decided to take an overnight trip to Pittsburgh. It's a beautiful city with countless good views and museums, so even in the winter it's a great place to visit. We started out on Thursday with heavy snowfall, but since we were driving east, we drove out of it within the first 45 minutes. We spent late morning and all afternoon at The Carnegie Science Center, with visits to the huge train display, robot area, planetarium, aquarium, water play, and more. We also saw their traveling exhibit about bikes, where Emma got to take her first turn on an old favorite of ours, the Big Wheel. We ended our visit with the sports area, where Emma got to race other kids on a track and take a turn on the trampoline. With the help of a harness, she was able to jump 2x her height and do several backflips!** After the museum closed for the evening, we took a trip on the Duquesne Incline, a trolley that takes you straight up Mount Washington and offers beautiful views of the city. It was dark and snowy, but it was still an adventure!**We went to Primanti Brothers for dinner (which serves delicious sandwiches, only in Pittsburgh), where Emma was treated to a balloon mermaid!**On Friday we spent most of the day at the Pittsburgh Children's Museum. The beautiful art studio housed areas to try screen painting, snowflake cutting, easel painting, sculpting, and collage making. Emma also enjoyed the two-story climbing area, and the "garage," a domed area with a skateboard ramp to test a car of your creation, launch a parachute, or ride in Mister Rogers' trolley. She also liked the water play area, where she used a water wheel to make the "river" flow through the whole play area, among other things. Her favorite part, though, was the "Tape Scape" temporary exhibit, where an entire play structure was made out of packing tape!**We ended our trip to Pittsburgh with a trip to Ikea Swedish Furniture Store for a dinner of Signature Meatballs in their cafe and a chance to explore their unique merchandise!