Happy Easter!

We had a busy weekend with Grandpa Jim and Grandma Sandye visiting for Easter. Grandma and Grandpa were tired of sitting around the house on their visits and decided take the bull by the horns and purchased tickets for the Callanwolde Fine Arts Center Easter Egg Hunt. They had three separate egg hunts for three different age groups and other cool activities for the children.

The egg hunt for Abigail consisted of 100 other 0-2 year olds and 3oo parents and grandparents elbow to elbow picking up eggs. The eggs were filled with candy and after picking up two eggs, Abby was distracted trying to get the candy out.

Our three Amish children waiting in line to meet the Easter Bunny.

"Jackson, Easter is really the celebration of Jesus' resurrection." "Yeah, I know that is wonderful, but you need to focus on the eggs over there!"

Nothing says Easter like face painting a cat on your cheek!

The pillow pets are such a big hit that each of the kids now have two. Why can't we invent something so simple?

We spent part of Saturday swatting our carpenter bees with tennis rackets...one of Stiv's favorite pastimes...Catie got a new habitat for Easter and decided to capture the maimed bees as pets.


Catie enjoyed the kiddie Sky Hike, especially the zip line!

Father and son time on the Sky Hike ropes course at Stone Mountain. It's kind of difficult to look cool when your harness fits like a massive wedgie....

At the top of Stone Mountain.... Below, the girls in the neighborhood playing dress up.

ING Fun Run

The kids all participated in the ING fun run on the Saturday before the half marathon and marathon. Jackson and Catie were very excited about the race and practiced the night before by running sprints thru the house. Jax and Catie were enamored with a chinchilla prior to their big races.

Catie is currently BIG time into lions and wanted to keep the lion balloon as a decoration. Just in case you are wondering, the fun run took place next to the zoo... hence the animal theme.

Abby warming up before her big 0.1 mile sprint.

Abster was very proud of the medal that she won (for having Ann carry her the 0.1 mile!)

Catie was all decked out in her lion outfit ready to take on the stacked field of 5 & 6 year old runners. Catie is kind of heavy-footed, so we did not know how she would take to the 0.25 mile run. It turns out she is quite the competitor and finished near the front with most of the 6 year olds.



Jax was excited for his 1/2 mile run with the 8 & 9 year olds. He started at the front and planned to go out fast and hold the lead....

He's looking strong with a couple hundred yards to go....

Ooops we spoke too soon! The wheels came off with about 75 yards to go and Jax had to dig down deep to hold on! He remarked after the finish, "My heart was about to explode!"

Everyone was proud of the effort they put into their race and loved showing off their medals.

Last week, we celebrated Stiv's birthday with a delicious ice cream cake that he tried to hoard from the rest of the family by handing out tiny pieces to everyone else!

It was a big weekend as Jackson was tested in Taekwondo by Master Taylor for his green belt. He had to demonstrate his forms, kicks and punches, and sparring. He also had to break a wood board (see below). He passed with flying colors....

Abby is 2 years old!

Welcome to the wonderful world of peanut butter... obviously Abster thinks it was worth the wait!

We decided to celebrate Abster's birthday with the immediate family at the old homestead. Of course, an Elmo theme was the only choice for the cake decorations.

It seems that every child in America has to have their picture taken in a laundry basket! So here you go Abby.

Jackson is learning about Dr. Suess at school. He has to create a poster with a time line of the author's life and present to his class. Of course, he is going to wear The Cat in the Hat outfit for his presentation.

Snow was forecasted for Atlanta the night before it arrived. We quickly ran over to Publix and bought out all the bread and milk to prepare for the winter storm. All you can eat french toast at the Schwartzes!!! All the schools and roads were closed the night before the storm just in case... Of course daycare closed in anticipation of the snow.... I wonder if they will give us our money back for the day???

Once the snow starting falling, the kids had a great time playing outside and throwing snowballs at Stiv! They even taught Abster how to eat snow (see the video below).




Notice how unprepared we are for this type of weather. Catie does not have a true winter coat to protect her from the elements, nor does she know any better.


Jackson looks like he is up to no good with his huge snowball....

Catie Cooper turns 5!!!

Once again, Catie and Bella had a joint birthday party. This year it was at 2 Crafty Chicks where they worked on a craft project. Due to space limitations, we had limit the party to a few friends from school. Sorry neighbors, hope no one is angry with the Schwartzes.

Ms. High Maintenance insisted on wearing a Chuck E Cheese crown and medal at the party.

Abster got her first haircut. No tears... she sat down and got right to business. She even talked the hairdresser into giving her a lollipop before the haircut instead of after!

Jackson sported his new shirt and tie for the mid-year academic awards. He got 2 awards... one for straight A's and the other for perfect attendance.

Catie enjoyed midnight bowling for a friend's birthday party... Thank goodness they had the gutter guards up!

We went to the Children's Museum and the kids loved it. They had a few new things since we were there last. Painting was a real hit. Below, Catie's picture of a lion.

North Pole "Wisconsin" Christmas

Christmas came and went so fast this year... it was a whirlwind. We started with our annual Stone Mountain Village trip to kick off the local festivities, then made the trip to Eau Claire for Christmas. The Trip there and back went smoothly, as only one kid barfed on the plane. Above, Catie loved her awesome Rudolph face painting.

If you ever want a guarantee for a white Christmas, Eau Claire is your destination of choice. It is always so snowy that we have the kids convinced that Santa lives only a short drive north of Grandma and Grandpa Moe.

Abby found the snow to be quite interesting and seemed to enjoy playing outside.

This picture of Catie was extremely difficult to capture because she only went outside for about 2o seconds the entire trip! She is not a fan of the cold and snow, nor jackets, hats, gloves, or boots!

Jackson actually loved playing in the snow and helping Grandpa shovel the driveway. Here Abster got into the act and was a natural.

Of course the trip would not be complete without sledding down Uncle John's big hill. Unfortunately, Jackson had a big wipe-out, complete with a giant face wash and that was the end of sledding for the day.

As usual, Christmas morning was an exciting time with the spirited Schwartz kids and all the presents taking over the room. Grandma and Grandpa always surpass expectations and make Christmas a special time for the kids...us too! Between Santa, 3 sets of grandparents, Uncle John and Aunt Ann, these kids have no idea how good they've got it.

The Pillow Pets were a big hit with all the kids... Abby demonstrating how comfy they are to sleep on...

The Chaos Water Park was one of the few places open on Christmas Day. The place was awesome, with 3 giant waterslides, an obstacle course, and a lazy river. The kids (and adults) had a blast! Only in Wisconsin would a water park serve beer. "Hey out of shape fat guy... have a dozen brews and while you're at it, go for a swim..."