Van Natter April/May

It's kind of hard to COMPLAIN about you guys NOT participating here when I'm not doing much better. I will make the attempt to improve. You can make the attempt too. ALL OF YOU!!

So April:

Addie turned 4 on the 4th. She had a Frozen party at Aunt Heidi's and invited cousins and friends. I didn't go but I hear a wonderful time was had by all. We had celebrated here on her actual birthday with balloons and cake and presents. She had been so excited to turn 4, and it was really special to have her living here for her big day. We gave her some princess dresses.

 Her Frozen castle with Anna and Elsa.

She got lots of gifts and was in her element opening them all!

I drank the KoolAid and got the iPhone. Have to say I love it and wonder how I functioned this long w/o it!
John's windshield was bashed in by a loose pipe flying down the freeway. He saw it coming and was able to angle the car just the slightest bit so it didn't damage the body, and didn't hurt him. There was a lot of glass on the passenger side but thankfully Ian had not driven with John that day.

Of course, General Conference was fabulous. The best weekends of the year!

This always cracked me up - Neil watching Sesame St with such intent, his hand on Mama's shoulder!

Our Sunday School class during our special Easter lesson. LOVE these kids!

This is hard to see I think, but it's the gorgeous mahogany nativity set Linda got me in Swaziland, decorated with the beaded bracelet and necklace she also sent. (Decorated by guess who?)

This angelic creature can be quite a grumpus so it's nice to see him sound asleep with his lovey.

Just when we thought Addie had unearthed every treasure she could possibly find in her room (Heidi's old room/my sewing room) she discovered Samantha - Heidi's American Girl doll, plus tea set. We had to change her clothes so she could have a tea party with Addie (still in jammies!)

During one of their last days here I gave Addie my camera and told her to photograph her favorite parts of Grandma's house. Of course, there's her mom, and her upstairs domain with Teepee, rice sensory bin, etc. Her baby brother (and all the living room mess) and Grandma's foot!

MAY: 

This was their last day here - May 4th. I fed Neil some yogurt, then he tried to eat the carton. Soon his mommy and daddy collected what they'd need to sleep in their new house and off they went.

May 4th was also our wedding anniversary - 37! We look like babies in this photo!

So not a fan of Mother's Day. But my kids gave me a gift that made me actually glad for the day - a Kindle! It is so much lighter and easier to hold while reading in bed at night. LOVE this thing. GREAT KIDS!!

John hurt his foot somehow and was really in bad shape for awhile. Probably from over-doing it at the gym.

Addie visiting us. Her favorite playthings are post-it notes and tape!

The 3rd week of May saw a bunch of reality show season finales. Our favorites won on Amazing Race - father/son team from SLC! Also our favorite, Josh Kaufman, won The Voice. My favorites, Maks and Meryl won Dancing with the Stars. We were okay with the American Idol winner, Caleb Johnson, but our favorite had been Alex Preston.

Somehow, I managed to jam a kitchen drawer so it absolutely would.not.open. Finally John cut an opening from underneath (it was the top drawer of 2, where I keep my pots and pans right next to the stove) and was able to reach in and move the pot lid that was causing the problem. A young man in our ward happens to work for the company that made our cabinets, so he cut a new bottom and glued it in, good as new. One day, years down the road, someone is going to take out that drawer and look at the underside and think, "What the heck?"

After just one week away from us, Neil started getting up on his knees. Now he's off to the races! We're actually glad he waited since we would have had to put up the gate at the top of the stairs again, and keep him away from all the non-baby-proofed areas of the house. Good timing, kiddo!

I wanted to show this badge because I am SO proud of it!! I made it (digitally) with a 'toolset' that incorporates brushes/actions/styles. I was making a page to honor the women throughout my life who have made me who I am, and I wanted to make badges a la Girl Scouts. This one is for Judy Bingham, my Seminary teacher for 9th-11th grade. I loved her, and she really taught me the gospel.

And thus ends May.
Truly do miss hearing from you all...
John & Kathi

From Grammy

Grammy won't write anything for the newsletter these days, but she did send the following and ask that it be printed it for all to enjoy.

You may have heard this, but it's worth repeating to help people understand Obamacare:

In order to insure the uninsured, we first have to uninsure the insured. To re-insure the newly un-insured, they are required to pay extra charges to be re-insured. The extra charges are required so that those originally insured, who became un-insured and then became re-insured, can pay enough extra so that the original un-insured can be insured for free.
--Dough MacKinnon, Des Moines

Greg Cottrell Family March/April

Most weekend nights this how the kids sleep. When they are fighting I have to remember these moments.

Field trip to the zoo with Adam. Try to imagine 6 boys racing through the zoo and two adults trying to keep up with them. We “saw” a lot of animals in just a few hours.

Visit from the leprechaun and Shamrock shakes to celebrate St. Patrick's Day!!

A couple of the days during Spring Break were nice enough to go the park and the zoo.

Lindsey and Sarah enjoyed Texas Roadhouse and the General Women's’ Conference with friends Keri and Lexie Hatch.

We’ve been enjoying the nicer spring weather and going on evening walks as a family.

The spring weather has been crazy. 70 one day and wet cold the next.

Adam enjoyed his last Pinewood Derby. His fastest time was 3.7957. We figured that he finished in the top three of the Webelos out of two wards and a branch. But we were confused since there was a different track and group running it this year.

Isaac precipitated in the Open Class for the pinewood derby also and ended up second.

We enjoyed a nice afternoon with the Cottrell family at CoCo keys indoor water park.

Isaac was determined to learn to ride a bike this spring. His bike was little heavy so we got him training wheels and now he can keep up with everyone else.

 

For April Fools Day we enjoyed making silly face pizzas and orange pop (Jell-O set up in cups with straws), it was funny to watch the kids try and drink it.

Sarah had a field trip the Children’s Museum and learned about weather.

Kids are the cutest.

Adam is enjoying spring flag football. He plays center often and is the top dog when it comes to pulling flags.

Adam enjoyed the Platte River State Park field trip. He got learn about bow fishing, NE reptiles, geocaching, cooking over a fire, and fire safety.

 

We enjoyed the Grigg’s Annual Easter Egg Hunt. There were 3700 eggs and about 55 kids so they moved the hunt up the baseball fields at the school near their home. Afterwards all the kids enjoyed playing on the school playground. The night before the Greg, Adam, and Isaac enjoyed the first camping and fishing trip of the season.

 

We always do our Easter baskets the Saturday before Easter Sunday so the kids can focus on Christ and the Resurrection on Sunday.

 

We recently had the missionaries visit and the challenged us to give away a Book of Mormon. Sarah was so excited that she gave it away the next day to a good friend at school. What a great example.

The school recently held their big fundraiser of the school year. Hot dog, chips, drinks, carnival games, bounce houses, raffle baskets, popcorn, prizes, and cotton candy as big as your head. OH MY!!!

The weather was finally nice enough that we were able to do Sarah’s Baptism photo shoot. (only about 5 months late).

BUBBLES are the BEST.

Isaac and Adam love playing sports together.

Adams team got 3rd today at the Math and Visual Spatial completion, out of 20 teams.