Happy Birthday Hannah!

Happy Birthday Hannah! I can hardly believe you are 10 years old. You have grown and learned so much since you entered our lives back in 2000. You are truly sweet and gentle. You have a large heart and love to share it with those around you - especially children. Izzy particularly loves you because you nurture her and treat her so well. You are talented and have learned how to develop those talents. I always know that you will bring home excellent grades. You work hard and love to learn and complete your work. As the oldest, you are a great example to your sisters. We are so lucky to have you in our family.

Happy Birthday!

Hannah shared her birthday pie (she requested coconut cream pie instead of cake) with her family and some close friends.

Hannah, Kiley, Izzy, Ally, Gabi, Paige

Best friend, Gabi

Tonight we get to celebrate Kirk's birthday. Three down (almost) and one to go! April is a busy month in our house!

Going to Haiti

If you have felt like helping out the people of Haiti but haven’t found the right opportunity yet, here it is… My brother, Mike, is a Pediatrician just finishing up his residency at the Mayo clinic. He and his family are moving to Salt Lake City to start a new job, but before he goes, he is off to give of his skills and talents to the children of Haiti. Please read Mike’s letter below and consider helping…

When I think of all the opportunities I've had and how much I've loved my life to this point, I can't help but feel the need to give back when the opportunity arises. I have the opportunity to spend some time in May helping the children of Haiti recover from the recent earthquake and I'm hoping you'll take a minute to read the explanation below and consider helping out.

As you likely know, the people of Haiti were devastated by a 7.3 magnitude earthquake on Tuesday, January 12, 2010. Many buildings collapsed, injuring and burying thousands of residents under rubble. Aftershocks measuring 5.9 and 5.5 have added to this epic disaster. Needless to say, the sadness, poverty and desperation that we witnessed on our television screens have left a strong impression all of us. The Haitians still have a long journey toward the beginning of a long recovery. As much of the world leaves and starts to focus on other stories, we cannot leave the Haitian people behind in despair.

I am joining a multi-disciplinary team of medical doctors and nurses from the Mayo Clinic to go to Haiti on a short-term mission trip in the last week of May (21-29) to help sustain the disaster relief efforts. In concert with the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative that is currently running The Disaster Recovery Center, which was established for survivors of the January 2010 Haiti earthquake, we will be performing operations, provide medical care, and deliver and distribute medical supplies.

This medical mission trip cannot happen with out YOUR support! The large amount of very necessary medical care being provided for the Haitian people at this critical time is being provided by medical teams just like this, each of them donating their time out of love for the Haitian people and relying on the generosity of people like you to make their travel to Haiti possible.

We need to raise approximately $20,000 to cover the necessary expenses of the trip. While one-time investments of $25, $50, $100, $250, $500 or more are needed in order to meet this goal as quickly a possible, anything that you can afford to give will add up. All money will be used directly for travel expenses, with any excess going towards the purchase of medical supplies specifically in short supply.

We guarantee that 100 percent of your donation will go toward this cause. All of the partners/donors to our mission trip will receive a DVD slideshow of pictures and videos of how your generous donations made a difference in the lives the Haitian people during our mission trip. For more information, contact me at emailmjohnson@gmail.com or Amy Heaney at ajheaney@live.com or 507-273-0316.

This is a team project and we thank you for being a vital part of our team.

We've established a non-profit charitable organization called "Clinicians of the World" to organize groups to respond to the disaster in Haiti, and future disasters as they inevitably arise.

You may donate with a credit/debit card by using the following link: DONATE

Or, send your tax-deductible gift to:

Clinicians of the World/Haiti 909 Nancy Court SW Eyota, MN 55934

Thank you in advance for your consideration. Generosity never goes unnoticed!

Mike

For more information about the organizations we'll be supporting while in Haiti, please see the sites for Haitian Christian Mission who operates one of the largest operational hospitals in Haiti:

http://www.hcmsupport.org/medical.html

And the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, who is organizing the best-run and largest field hospital for patients recovering from surgery, just next door to HCM:

http://www.hhi.harvard.edu/programs-and-research/earthquake-in-haiti/fond-parisien-disaster-recovery-center

Spring Break - days 3 & 4

We decided to do something a little new and different (for us) this spring break. We drove 90 minutes to Kellogg Idaho and spent two days at Silver Mountain. They have a great indoor water park. We picked the right days - there was hardly anyone there and we had much of the place to ourselves. We had a great hotel room - a novelty for our girls. The weather outside was crummy, but inside it was great. There was something for everyone... hot tub, water slides (big ones, little ones and some in between),

Surfing,

Lazy river swimming,

After arriving home and as I was kissing Paige goodnight she asked, 'Are we ever going to Silver Mountain again? I want it to be a family tradition.' Great idea Paige!

Spring Break - day 2

Today we did: Chores Errands Lunch at Joel's and... Cookies If you are in need of a good cookie, this is the one to try. Here is the recipe:

White Chip Island Cookies

They are amazing. Toast the coconut and macadamia nuts - it's worth it!

Spring Break - day 1

Spring Break is here! It is so fun to have the kids home for a week. Since we are mostly sticking around home, I've got lots of stuff planned to keep them busy.

Of course it's rainy and blustery outside today! It is spring, right? So today we went swimming at the athletic club and then hit the library. The girls will enjoy some extra reading time this week in between play and activities and maybe even a few chores!

Seriously?

Every year I have high hopes for our Easter Egg Hunt. I dream of blue skies, sunshine, birds singing and grass growing. It must be too much to ask for in N. Idaho 'cause what we typically end up with is rain, or snow, or both. Today was no different. In fact, I think it started raining a little harder once the eggs were hid. But the kids always have a good time - despite the spring weather. We have great neighbors who let us use their large yard as the neighborhood Easter egg hunt headquarters. All of the kids' friends come with empty baskets and leave with plenty of candy.

Who knows? Maybe someday we'll actually have some sunshine and get to have a BBQ with our egg hunt!

Happy Birthday Isabelle

Our little Izzy turned TWO yesterday! The time has flown and she has moved quickly from a sweet little baby to a busy, independent two year old.

She's been obsessed with her birthday for a few weeks now. Every morning she would wake up and ask, 'Birthday?'. Then she would ask about her 'cake?'. 'Yes', I would say, 'we'll have cake after your birthday dinner'. She was thrilled when we all woke her up with a chorus of 'Happy Birthday'. There were smiles and happy giggles all day as she enjoyed all of the extra attention. This was her favorite birthday gift. CAT by Mathew Van Fleet. She is all about cats these days and this delightful book has kept her busy for hours. There are furry tails, moving paws, squeaky toys and all.

We love you Izzy! Happy Birthday!