The Extraordinary Life of an Ordinary Mother

{this moment} from Soulemama...www.soulemama.com   {this moment} ~ A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.   Breaking the rules a bit...couldn't do "no words".  This week needed a few words. What a week...standardized testing for 2 days (both a teacher giving the test and a momma with kids taking a test,) plus the most horrifying experience I ever faced as a teacher and a parent...a threat against area elementary schools claiming mass violence was going to occur on April 24.  Thank goodness, it didn't and the district went above and beyond to provide safety and protection...SO, I was so grateful today was a school holiday and I spent the day with my own four kiddos.  Jonas and Lorelei were ready for a walk to

Easter moments 2014... Family traditions...  Prep work...    Now that's a lot of eggs!   Some Bunny came to town. ;)   Easter basket aftermath.   Framily...   The Bunch!  Helping hide eggs. Action shot! Not too big to hunt yet! Dainty girl tiptoeing in the flowers. She's got the loot! Sporting his first bow tie! It was a delightful day, despite the rainy, drizzly weather.  Hope everyone had a Hoppy Easter too!

And I'm by no means complaining about it either.  Seems strange though, to have two weeks straight of nothing extra!  No track, orientations, concerts, competitions, no after school extras.  Of course, we still had some of the regular activities, like Lorelei's gymnastics and Bailey's Sunday rehearsals for YOSA...but those two activities are part of the weekly flow.  I've even been able to be extra organized at school and have been getting home by 4:00 each day! Plus the extra hour or so of daylight really makes the day truly seem longer, which means time after dinner outside just relaxing. I love the simplicity of daily routines, with nothing extra thrown in.    My two little readers are ALWAYS reading in the evenings.   You can't really see...but Jonas is sewing a tiny beige felt bag while listening to Lorelei read, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. :)    Love that face...like "hey you, don't take my picture!"   We finally