Mary Poppins

Last week Eve and I were able to go see the musical Mary Poppins at the Kennedy Center. We were on the very back row of the balcony and, like all real plays, it didn't start until late so I was worried if Eve would make it through the full two hours.

I needn't have worried. She was literally on the edge of her seat clutching her playbill the entire time. It took a few days to recover from her late night but we both had a magical time.

Eve wanted to say something about the play too. Here it is:

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Summer Peaches = Happy Kids

Blog Revival

This picture was taken at the airport a few weeks ago right before my parents flew to Moscow, Russia where they will be living for the next 3 to 5 years. My Dad was recently offered the position of Area Legal Council for our Church for the Europe East Area (Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Kazakhstan, Bulgaria, Albania, Georgia, Turkey, more "stans" that were formerly part of the Soviet Union). So far things are going well for them despite not knowing the language and being thrown into a city of over 10 million people.

Now to the point of all of this, I will be putting a lot more family photos, videos and general updates on this blog mostly for the benefit of my parents. They will be able to come visit a couple times a year but 5 years is still a really long time.

Tacos, Frogs and Sparklers

Here are some pictures from our trip to Pittsburg last weekend. As you can tell, we had a great time. We got there Friday and let the kids play around and then had an awesome BBQ. Cindy made two different kinds of potato salad (Scott was in heaven) and then Joshua made some homemade hamburgers using their grass-fed beef which were quite easily the best burgers I've ever had. After that we packed up and went to an outdoor concert (a classical guitarist) where we mostly watched the kids run around.

On Saturday we went to the Strip District and got some sidewalk stand tacos and Scott and I were able to buy some great olive oil. At that point the kids were tired from being told to not touch anything so we headed for the Frog Pond. So relaxing. We had a picnic lunch, picked mulberries, raspberries, chased geese, collected feathers and, of course, watched the frogs. Joshua even caught a tiny one that they took turns holding.

Once we realized we were playing right near a thicket of poison ivy we went home and for the next couple of hours before dinner we watched the kids doing tricks down the slide. Emil won the prize for the most crazy. Big surprise there.

That night after we put the kids to bed Cindy, Joshua, Scott and me went outside and watched a movie using their projector. Those Schkros know how to have fun I tell you what.

We drove home the next morning and then still had the rest of Sunday and all of Monday before Scott had to go back to the salt mines. The Hardy's had us and the Crittendens over for dinner Sunday night and then we watched fireworks and fireflies from their patio. Eve was our own screamer firework. Just a bit excited.

Monday some friends of ours and the Hardy's invited us over for a BBQ and swimming (they have a gorgeous pool and backyard). We finished off the evening with homemade ice cream and sparklers. By all accounts, a perfect weekend.

Christmas in Phoenix

Our family according to Eve

yellow horse: Eve

gray horse: Scott

brown horse Rebekah

bug: Oak

She goes by Maria