Closed Blogs!

So I must admit that I rarely go blog surfing. It's not that I don't care, but I just rarely have the time. That said, I clicked on a few of the "friends" below and found that a good chuck of them are open to invitees only. So I pose this question to you all: is it really necessary to close our blogs to members only? I can think of some cases where that would be necessary--perhaps when someone is a public figure and wants to keep some information private or perhaps to keep information out of the hands of other person who who is targeting their blog for whatever reason (i.e. a bully at school or some other stalker). But is it really necessary for 99% of us? Tell me what you think? If you don't respond, maybe I'll block you from being able to read this blog in the future! :)

Amy's Kids Visit

My little sister, Amy, and her husband decided to take a well-deserved cruise with some friends so we offered to watch their two kids for six days. Luckily our kids get along well together!

As you can see, they wore each other out!

Cute Hannah and Beckett.

Riding Shamu

Andrea and the boys went to SeaWorld again...this time with some friends. I had a quasi job interview, so I missed most of the fun, but was able to make it for the last fun of the day.

Mackay riding on the mini Shamu roller coaster with his friend, Drew.

Nothing like being up close and personal.

Harmless Snake, Right?

Andrea and the boys were outside playing when Andrea notice a little "friend" crossing the driveway. She quickly came to tell me the news. The snake was only about a foot long, but not knowing much about snakes, and not wanting it taking up home in my front yard, I decided the whack it in half with my shovel (and to give it a second whack closer to its head after the first one left it with enough body to continue to flee!). I don't think it was poisonous; the only deadly snake I thought it might resemble is a a Copperhead, but my guess is that it was probably a harmless gardener snake. Perhaps one of you knows something about snakes and can set us straight as to what type of snake we found.

It decided to open its mouth wide for the camera. Look at that bloody mess! Poor guy.

Easter at the Ranch

We had a great time celebrating Easter at Andrea's parents' place. Her older brother, Cory, and his family were even able to visit. For more, see Andrea's blog.

Coloring eggs is fun!

Cleaning up spilled egg dye from the Czech Republic (where they don't sell the standard washable dye like they do here in the US)--not so fun!

Finding eggs filled with candy and other goodies--fun!

Playing with a cool "lightsaber" that lights up--priceless!

So handsome!

Surprise, Rochelle's pregnant too!

Sweet Garden

Andrea's parents came by to help us make a sweet raised garden. And they're not just two normal grandparents coming to help. Her dad is an organic agronomist and her mom is a "master gardener." It was pretty simple to make really. We created boxes out of 2x12's, added high-end soil, added awesome organic fertilizer from her dad (we're now "distributors" if anyone wants to buy some--it'll make your plants grow REALLY big...seriously), added seeds and water, and presto! I think Andrea took some more recent pictures. Trust me...the plants have gotten huge!

We Love Our Sharks!

Mackay had a fun first season of soccer with Andrea as his head coach. The kids decided to be the Sharks. Andrea of course did a great job getting the kids to run around the cones, teaching them to dribble, and actively coaching them (i.e. running around the field with them) during the games. All of those years playing soccer combined with her natural teaching skills sure came in handy.

Here are a few pictures from the season, which ran from February to early April.

Their first practice back in February.

Some ball-handling drills.

Throw-in drills. The kids trying to make it in the bucket.

I think this was their first game. It was tough that first week, but they definitely showed improvement.

Happy at a game in early March.

Last game. Go Sharks! (Notice how the grass has finally greened up.)

Nothing rounds out the season like a good-old medal! Way to go Mackay! We're proud of you! And way to go Coach!