Katie and Curt in Cali: Spring Time! :)

Spring this year has been full of fun... My mom and sister came down unexpectedly to see us in January (okay, so not really spring yet), my parents visited us in February (super fun and mom was sooo wonderful helping me out in my classroom!!), and Kelli, Ethan, Alyssa, Lucy, and Maddie came down for a visit in March! Sad to say that I am not great about remembering to take pictures... so the photos start with Kelli and Ethan's visit over spring break.... Thanks to everyone for making our last few months so much fun!
Here's Lucy and Kelli eating out back at our place:

Here's Lu and Maddie posing for a picture (taken by Curt as you can see) :)

Cute little Madeline!

We also went down to San Diego with Kelli and Ethan while they were all here and checked out the beach, spent time with Uncle Todd, Aunt Jean, and cousins Kyle and Jackson (super fun!), and just soaked up the glorious weather... Lucy didn't so much like the beach however, no sand-n-surf between her toes thank you very much! :) (We think she might have liked it more but was a little tired... as you can see Lucy was quite content just to chill in mom's arms. It looks comfy to me!) -->

Madeline on the other hand LOVED the beach and all the sand! She even let Uncle Curt dig a big hole and stick her in it, so just her arms poked out -- as long as she could still use her shovel and dig away, she was happy! This is my FAVORITE picture by far!!! (please, can it get any cuter?)

Me hanging with Maddie digging away....

More sandy fun....

Curt and I:

We also hit up the zoo for a full day of fun in the sun -- my favorite was the big cats! Check out the teeth on this thing!! (reminds me of our cat when she eyes me hungrily... and if she was this big, she would eat me without question, trust me)

Cougars were cool too... but imagine coming across one of these in the wild. YIPE!

Family pose by the flamingos -- their beautiful salmon and pink colors always make for a hit!

Me and LuLu :) Love you sister!!!

This weekend (April 25th) Curt and I hit up the AV Poppy Reserve... and it was out of this world breathtaking!!! Sorry to say that this was the first time we had even checked this place out since we've lived here (4 years) -- and with all the rain we've had this spring, we've never seen anything quite like it! It was like God had reached down and painted the fields this vibrant orange in sweeping stripes and patches....

me and curt chilling in the poppies :)

This gives you a sampling of the color splashes -- but the pictures hardly do the views justice!!! We actually do live in an area with a great deal of beauty... we sometimes forget this when the desert is so hot in the summer months. This was a good reminder :)