Basketball

Beginner vs pro:

Happy Easter

This year we had his and hers Easter baskets. Ellie got some pj's and I think she'll be sharing pretty much all of her goodies with mom. The boys got a couple pieces of candy, but the Easter bunny must have heard their requests for a basketball hoop because we just happened to wake up to one in our dining room!

We caved and let them have candy before church.
I've been waiting for 4 months for Ellie to finally be big enough to wear this dress!
After church we headed to Gram and Paps house. The boys followed in dads olive on the fingers tradition:
Aunt Corrie is so comfy!
How do you get 7 kids to smile at once? You don't!

Wordless Wednesday: Hiding out

A perfect Sam size hiding spot!

Happy retirement

My step dad is retiring at the end of the week. His office had a dinner for him Saturday night to celebrate his 42years in the aviation industry and 17 of those years at Parker Hannifin. It was a nice night complete with a slide show, speeches, a mini roast, silly gifts (and a really nice one), family and friends.

Tonys boss was nice enough to get him an "old man hat and sunglasses" in preparation for those sunny North Carolina days.
It was great to see a company recognize someone so special. Its clear he's going to be missed.

Egg coloring

I'm a little behind on my posts, but thought I'd start the catch up process with Easter egg coloring. The boys loved coloring eggs last year so we gave them each a dozen this year. Anyone want some eggs?

I don't know if we got dud colors or if the boys weren't very patient, but we ended up with a lot of pastel eggs.

Saturday part 2

After the Easter egg hunt, we headed home to wait for Papa. He was going to take Ben to his last swim class while Jon went to the doctor. I haven't been going to this round of classes so I was excited to see how much more confident Ben has become.

I don't think Sam and Ellie shared in my excitement. Sam was hot and mad he didn't get to swim with Papa and Ellie was just tired.

Heres Ben showing off some of his skills:

Saturday part 1

We woke up Saturday morning and were relieved to see the rain had stopped. It was Cross Points first annual Easter egg hunt and we were all excited to check it out. It was windy and cold, but the boys were ready.

They gave the little kids a head start. Sam knew just what to do and went to work. The boys are not fans of people dressed up in animal costumes, but they made an exception since it was Miss Lindsey. Sam refused to smile though. They both left with full baskets and Sam even got a "golden ticket" which won him an extra prize. They both have had a lot of fun going through the eggs and finding prizes. Sam learned real quick that when you shake them, you have to open the ones that rattle first. Those have the candy inside! The hunt was a huge success and the boys are even more excited about Easter next week.

Warm weather

I think the boys are done with being inside. They have been asking to go outside to play for a while now--usually when its pouring down rain or we have a negative wind chill! Yesterday was just what they needed. By the end of the day they were covered in sweat and dirt and loved every second! They are excited to have all the doors open today. Unfortunately, every time we walk out the door it starts sprinkling.

Crib time

Ellie has been sleeping in her car seat since about week one. I think she has some reflux and she's done great in it. However, now that she can roll over, this is how we found her: No more sleeping in the car seat!

The roll

Ellie has been thinking about rolling over for a while now. She would kick a leg up, but didn't seem to know where to put it. After a little coaching last night she's got it and has been going non stop!

Boring

I think I win the title for most boring mom recently. We were just getting into a routine with three kids. We were going out, we went on play dates, we were having fun. Then I found out I was pregnant. Then the nausea started, like the very next day, and it got a little worse each day. My OB gave me medicine that only helps some days. I haven't felt like myself in weeks. The thought of doing most anything sounds miserable. Unfortunately, the kids are stuck. We've spent more time at home the past few weeks than I'd like. They've watched more tv/movies than I'd like to admit. Video games have become an important part of Bens life.

Luckily, they are still smiling. They don't appear to be too damaged.... yet. Even better, its starting to get warm so I see a lot of back yard time in our future. I think I'm slowly going from miserable to tolerable so I hope to be heading out more. I hope to give the kids a little bit of normal before we turn things up side down again.