April Fool's Day 2011 found me wondering which one of the six kids had something "special" planned for me. Much to my surprise, no one had even given thought to the holiday. I was shocked!! Especially since it's the one time all year that "legally" they can pull pranks on David and I without getting reprimanded. To my benefit, Friday, April 1st also happened to be the first day of spring break and the day that we would travel, as a family, to Salt Lake for a big family get-together. I think they were all more focused on the other reasons to celebrate, forgetting the once-a-year opportunity that was right in front of them. So, once lunch was over, I considered myself lucky and breathed a sigh of relief - inwardly, of course, not to give anything away!

Around 3:00, we headed south for the big city. We had planned on meeting at my brother-in-law's house at 5:00, and figured we would make it just in time. The one thing we forgot to plan on was rush hour traffic!! URGHH!! The children were not the only absent minded people that day..... A usually two hour trip was now turning into more of a three hour excursion. No joke - or maybe this was the universe making sure that I didn't get off scott-free on this, the day of practical jokes. Being from a small, two stop-light town, we are not used to this kind of torture and we were all feeling a little picked on. There are, at times, thoughts of a desk job and weekends off, that the "grass is greener on the other side". This was different. This was a time that we found ourselves truly grateful for our own green pastures, peaceful, quiet moments, and the slower pace at which life on the farm moves.

Once we arrived, we were greeted by all but one of David's siblings, their kids, and his parents. This hasn't taken place in quite a few years and being all together is really so much fun. Some of the cousins have grown and changed sooo much - some not so much, but the one thing that doesn't change is the love of family. We took pictures, played a family game of basketball, talked a lot, laughed a lot, ate a lot, and loved a lot. Family is definitely what it's all about!! No joke!!!

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