Lorrie's visit

After spending the night in Kamloops, we finished the drive and arrived home Sunday evening, May 1st. It felt oh-so-good to be home again. Monday night we did a little birthday celebration of our own for Josh.
Hopey-Doodle knew what was supposed to happen with the candle!
Drinking tea with the rest of us. (peppermint tea cooled with water)
Meanwhile, Joy thought she'd sample the tissue paper, until Grandma pulled it out of her mouth, that is. :o)
Hope thought Joy needed a hug, nevermind that Joy was in the Bumbo at the time. :o)
The rolly one rubbing her eyes...
But watch out!!!
Why oh why does she always reach for Hope's hair?
Yes you - JOY! Hope's in a daze.... :o)
It was so sweet to watch Lorrie interact with both our girls. :o) She really is a young-looking Grandma, don't you think? :o)
And so beautiful!
Upon Lorrie's suggestion, we raked the front and back lawns one day.
Hope was delighted to get out and play around with us.
Joy, however, was not so sure about the whole idea. She did good, especially when she was sleeping or being held, but she wasn't so sure she wanted to be in the stroller for too long when she was awake. :o)
Little Hope in imagination land with one of her books.
Joy's almost sitting up on her own. The couch corner works great as a support.
Hope wanted to rock and wanted to have Joy beside her, so I did what moments like that call for - took pictures of course!
But I didn't manage to get one of both of them looking at me at the same time. Oh well.
Josh and his girls, and does he ever love them! He's such a great Daddy. His endless creativity with Hope blesses my socks off!
Playing around with Grandma.
"Okay Grandma - we're watching you! Make us laugh!!!"
We went for several park outings/walks while Lorrie was here, and here she is trying her hand at pushing the awesome double-stroller she gave us.
I was needing to do a few things to prepare for the arrival of Lorrie's parents, so I asked her to play with both the girls for a bit so I could work quickly.
And play both of the girls did! Lorrie said Joy was harder to keep up with than Hope with the blocks!
What goes through her little mind? :o)
Grandma and Grandpa Neufeld (Lorrie's parents, from Swift Current) arrived Friday afternoon around 4:30 and stayed till Sunday morning with us.
They brought some well-loved outside toys for Hope, scrubbed clean by Grandpa himself.
Hopey-Doodle was thrilled!
She set about playing with them right away.
It was so sweet to have them here and get to spend time with all of us. They hadn't met Joy yet, so it was extra special that they came.
Grandpa held the littlest one for a bit while I got dessert on. I think Joy's active-ness surprised him!
More tea...
And of course.... Scrabble. This is part of the daily routine when you're around G&G and Lorrie. I've grown to quite like the game thanks to them.
And Hope loves anything with letters! Here she was looking at/reading the list of 2-letter Scrabble words - very helpful for getting the most points out of your letters!
Saturday morning we made pancakes, bacon and eggs for breakfast, but Hopey got hers first, as it's not fair to make little ones wait, nor is it pleasant to hear them whining when you know they're hungry!
Happy times.
Precious memories. (even if it's a bit blurry...I was snapping quick because I was cooking...)
Happy together. And they both sing along sometimes too, which is oh-so-sweet!
Lorrie and her folks went out for a bit in the middle of the day on Saturday, so Hope and I did stickers and colouring together while I fed Joy. Hope and I like to do that.
Looks like I have two girls interested in the stickers!!!
Saturday evening I wanted to make a nice meal as a Mother's Day gift for Lorrie and Grandma, since they were leaving first thing the next day, which was Mother's Day.
It was nice to set out the china all pretty. We don't use it that often. I served honey-glazed carrots, rice with sauted green onions & mushrooms, lemon pepper salmon, green salad with fruit, Grandma's buns and Grandma's apple pie for dessert.

By the way - Ocean Spray's Blueberry Cranberry Juice Blend is highly recommended! That's what we drank that night, and it's very tasty!
Sunday morning everyone was packed up and ready to go. Hope got to deliver a gift to G&G that Melody had sent along with Lorrie.
Hope knew exactly what it was and really wanted Grandpa to open it right up!

One last shot with Lorrie before they left. Thanks for staying with us, Mom! You are a continual blessing to us! We hope we have as much energy as you do when we reach your age and stage of life!!!