The Accidental Boilermaker

 Evelyn and I experienced our first Vera Bradley outlet sale. The sale happens every year but through girls on the run, I was received two tickets to the friends and family preview night. It was somewhat of an overwhelming experience. So many products and so many patterns and colors. But no crowds. People, yes, but long lines, no. I wanted a new bag for my new laptop so Evelyn helped me pick out one. She got a mini backpack and new headband for herself. We both had a lot of fun and were glad that we were able to check it out. 

 We had a busy but nice Easter weekend. Friday was day off of school, so met up with Bella and Millie for the afternoon. Saturday Jameson had two soccer games in South Bend and Evelyn had two basketball games in Fort Wayne so Nate and I split. We had invited Oma and Grandpa to come watch Jameson play soccer so I went to South Bend. Jameson’s team looked really good. They won their first game 5-1 and tied their second game 3-3. Jameson had 2 goals in the first game. Evelyn’s team lost their first game in OT and then won their second. She had one basket but Nate said she looked good overall. She’s playing in a co-ed league but not every team has any girls. Easter was a nice relaxing day. We dyed eggs before church and then made sugar cookies in the afternoon. I was not excited to make a big Easter dinner so we asked Oma and Grandpa if they’d bring us pierogi from Chicago. Fort Wayne just doesn’t have good pierogi. We had shredded beef, potato and cheese and sauerkraut ones with roast...

 Spring break was very relaxing. We mostly hung out at home, waiting for the cousins to arrive. And surprise! They came a day early! On Friday we went to the botanical gardens. The showcase garden theme was the floor is lava.  The kids were a little big for the play features but they still managed to have fun. The flowers were pretty and the colors very vibrant.  On Saturday, we went to our new climbing gym. It was somewhat busy when we arrived and the space isn’t huge so it took a while to settle in and see what was available. But the longer we stayed, people either spread out or left so that it didn’t feel as busy. The kids had fun and definitely said they would go back. It was fun to hear people comment on Isaac’s obvious climbing talent. Evelyn and Joshua finished first so I took them home while Isaac and Jameson climbed a little longer. When the weather was the nice, they all played outside.  Otherwise, we played some games and read and watched lots of college b...