Easter 2009

In an attempt to go back to where I left off and get all caught up, we will start with Easter...of 2009! My little sister, Loni, had given birth to two beautiful girls the previous November, one of them being born with a fairly large whole in her heart that could only be repaired by open heart surgery. Knowing that her surgery would most likely fall right around Easter, I made plans to be there for the holiday and also to be of any help and support that I could be to her. I wanted to make Easter a fun and memorable one for the kids, since most of the cousins would all be together. The cousins getting ready to hunt for eggs
A few pictures of the big hunt and the bunny sack races. The races were hilarious to watch! Malia came in dead last, but she was so determined to finish, it was so cute! We then had the guys race. I wish I had pictures of this race! Funniest thing I had seen in a long time! After the guys race, us ladies took the racing stage. It was so much fun, I laughed so hard, I could barely hop! When I was a kid, my Grandpa Cowley wore this bunny suit every Easter and hopped into our Easter egg hunts and gave us a little sack of goodies. My dad wanted to keep the tradition alive, so he wore the bunny suit and scared all the little ones and had the older ones guessing who was in the suit! It was a great day!
My dad and his wife, Dena, reading to Brinley.
Malia, Brin, Abbie, and Izza watching movies together. I asked them to show me who could smile the biggest, I think we can all see who the clear winner is!!
Sweet baby Emily after her open heart surgery. Her surgery was successful and she recovered quicker than I thought possible. She is one tough little girl!
On one of the days that we were in Utah, I took Malia and her cousin Abbie to the dinosaur museum in Lehi. They had so much fun together. It's a bummer that we don't live closer to our family, but that makes all the time that we get to spend with them that much sweeter!