Happy Easter!

This weekend we celebrated Easter with family, friends, good food, some egg hunts, and lots of playing outside.

The kids and I packed up on Friday morning and headed to Arlington so I could get my haircut and Nana and Pop could get in their playtime with Harper and Jack. The kids and I also got to go to lunch with some of my mom's best friends, ladies I've known almost my entire life. I know Nana was excited to show off the kiddos and they were both so well-behaved and cute and funny; I was so proud that the kids did so well. They ate their lunch, played with Nana, talked to the other ladies, and Jack even danced around the table when he got really bored.

We finished up the day with dinner and books and bedtime prayers....oh, and some crying...and some screaming...all from Jack. He hasn't been great about sleeping through the night here lately, and while I was out with friends, Nana had to deal with screaming Jack off and on for an hour- thankfully he decided to yell early this time (around 10) and Nana finally got him calmed down. Unfortunately, he also yelled when around 12:30 too and woke me up and Nana- the yelling only lasted a little while, but we're still looking for a solid solution to the sleep dilemma- more updates on that to come.

Saturday morning the kids woke-up excited to see Uncle Tanner, who arrived late Friday night, and to go to the Easter Egg Hunt at Nana and Pop's church. This is the same egg hunt I went to as a kid, so I was excited to be able to take Harper and Jack to this as well. The kids were more confident at this Easter Egg Hunt than they were at the first one we went to- they understood the "rules" and did a good job picking up eggs. Harper was out of the gate picking up everything she saw meanwhile, Jack liked to open his eggs before he decided if he was going to put them in his basket or not. It was nice to see friends I hadn't seen in awhile- some of the kids I grew up with were brining their kids to the Easter Egg Hunt and we had fun catching up. Before we left, the kids spotted the playground and so we spent a little while letting the kids run around and play.

Saturday afternoon Tony made it out to Arlington and Aunt Becky, Uncle Rex, and Great Granny came over for our Easter dinner. The kids were so excited to see the family and even more excited to play outside with everyone. We had another egg hunt- by this time the kids were pros and we could actually hide some eggs instead of just scattering them around the yard. Here are some of the best pictures from the afternoon.

We capped off the day with some great food, some very tired kiddos who splashed in the tub before giving everyone goodnight kisses and crashing for the night. Harper and Jack were so tired that Jack even slept the whole night without crying- it was an Easter miracle!

Sunday morning meant Easter dresses, seersucker shorts shorts, and church services. Tony and I went to church with Mom and Dad while Tanner went to Sunday school and the kiddos went to "the playroom" (the nursery). I was anxious about how they would do- especially since Jack has been pretty attached to me lately. All my fears were for not, though, because they happily played the entire hour and, when my mom went to pick them up, they were both still playing and happy. I am so proud of the kiddos for doing so well.

After church we went to lunch and then came home to see what the Easter bunny had left for the kids. Jack was pleasantly surprised to find a baseball bat and ball- something he'd been asking for for weeks, and Harper struck gold with a Doc McStuffins doctor's kit. Harper then spent the remainder of the afternoon giving everyone check ups. The shot in the doctor's kit has been a source of humor at our house- I suppose our kids don't really know what a shot is yet because both of them picked up the toy shot and put it in their mouth...then I realized that we give them medicine in a syringe, so they don't think that thing is a shot; they think it's a medicine dispenser.

We did end the weekend on a rough note though. Harper and Jack had both had a cold this past week and were still feeling a little under the weather this weekend- both had a cough that lingered. Harper was acting particularly lethargic and cranky Sunday when we got home, so Tony took her to the emergency clinic where she got some oral steroids and some breathing treatments. Poor little one still has those preemie lungs that need a little extra help.

Overall, though, Easter weekend was fun and it gave us a glimpse of the fun this spring holds playing outside and being with family and friends. Happy Easter everyone!

Tired Toddlers and Full Hearts

We have some funny pictures this weekend and some great moments that we captured on film- I was excited to write our blog this weekend, so I hope you enjoy reading it.

Our weekend was busier than normal with some exciting goings on that we took part in, but it started with a low key Friday night. I got home from work and we decided to take the kids out for Mexican food (something that is becoming a bit of a tradition at our house). We enjoyed eating dinner, but the kids had the most fun waiting for the table. We found a little nook and let the kids play- here's a sneak peek into their laugh-fest.

 I also managed to snap a picture of Harper and her daddy while we were waiting for the bill.

Saturday morning I went to the gym to finish out a competition I'd been doing each week for the last few weeks. Tony brought the kids up to watch me do a simple, but exhausting workout; I felt like I was working hard but not making much headway, and then I looked up and saw Harper clapping for me and smiling at me, and I couldn't help but smile back and get to work. It was wonderful to have my family there cheering me on. I didn't take any pictures of the kids this week, but here are some pictures from the kids playing at the gym two weeks ago after the competition- these are the pictures that Tony took and sorted through. 

Saturday afternoon we had a celebratory lunch after the competition and Jack and Harper got to tag along as the only kids at a table of 15 adults. H & J  were so well behaved and I was impressed with their patience while we waited on our food. In fact, the kids did so well at lunch that we decided a trip to the park was in store for the kiddos. So, after our "rest time" (I say rest because they did not take a nap) we had snacks and headed to meet friends at a new park we'd never been to. The weather was beautiful and the kids were clad in shorts and t-shirts as they explored the play structure and climbed up and down stairs, slid down slides, and ran all over the park. While we had a good time, the heat was a factor (I can't imagine what the 100 plus degrees this summer will feel like), and the kids would sit down at the top of a slide and declare "too hot" and then walk back down the steps. When did they get to be so big and express so much?

Sunday morning we woke up to two happy kiddos singing and playing in their beds. Harper immediately asked for pancakes for breakfast, so I set out to make breakfast while the kids played with Tony. We ran errands in the morning and wore the kids out enough to take a good nap before hitting up the most exciting event of the weekend, the Easter egg hunt at a local church. The kids had never hunted eggs before, but they picked it up quickly were thrilled to find that the eggs had prizes in them. 

After hunting eggs, we stopped off at the bounce house. Jack was so excited to jump that he didn't even mind the bigger kids jumping around him. Harper was not as confident, and she stayed in the bounce house for only a few minutes before bailing out to look through her Easter egg prizes one more time. Meanwhile, I had to coax Jack out of the bounce house after Tony and Harper had gotten in line for the petting zoo.

The petting zoo turned out to be fun for all four of us. The kids got to pet goats, ducks, guinea pigs, piglets, bunny rabbits, and chicks. Each time Jack would pet an animal, he would squeal with delight and grin so wide that you could see all this teeth. Harper got to do two things that we bright spots: she got to hold a chicken, and she got to brush a piglet. I'm not sure she was 100% sold on the chicken or the piglet, but she did have a good time while she was in the petting zoo.

Needless to say, the kids were ready to head to bed on Sunday night and they slept well. Tony and I both rolled into bed early as well; we were tired, but our hearts were so full that it made the busy pace of the weekend well worth it...totally worth it.