Easter 2013

Easter this year was really fun, because this year Miles and Vivienne could really get into the egg hunts and surprises.  We had 4 egg hunts (three with our play group friends and one at Grandma's house).  The kids really enjoyed these - they love their baskets and they love opening their eggs to discover what is inside.

At our playgroup's big egg hunt, the Easter bunny was there.  This was the first time that Miles and Vivienne had ever seen the Easter bunny (or really heard of him, for that matter, because we had never told them about him).  Vivienne was initially worried, but quickly began asking if we could go back and see the "kitty cat" again.

In love with the Easter "kitty"

Ready for the hunt

This is the closest thing we get to a decent family photo these days.  2 out of 3 ain't bad.

Yesterday, we went to Grandma's house to dye eggs and have another egg hunt.  Vivienne was really into the egg dying.  Miles was somewhat interested, but mostly eager to hop on the couch and spend some time with Lightning McQueen.

After the egg dying, we had our egg hunt in the backyard.  The kids really enjoyed being the only ones who were after all the eggs.  They were also really good about sharing them with one another.

Grandma really made them work for some of those eggs.

After the Great Hunt, we had a lovely lunch on Grandma's porch.  The kids even got an extra special treat from Grandma - Easter cupcakes.

Today was a fun day filled with Easter surprises.  The kids were delighted to see their Easter baskets with the fun things the Easter bunny gave them.  The big hit this year was the stomp rocket.

I spent a lot of time before Easter crocheting these adorable bunnies for the kids.  It was really fun for me to put my heart and hard work into making something for them by hand.

And our Easter baby was as beautiful as ever this morning in her pretty white dress.  Unfortunately, I didn't get photos of the big kids in their Easter best.

So, happy Easter, everybody!  Our God is alive.  What a glorious day it is!

Grass Tossing

I was thatching the lawn earlier this week, and I had the old grass in a big, neat pile on the driveway.  The kids decided to dig in it.  Then they decided to start throwing it around.  And it got messy... real messy.  There was grass all over the yard and the driveway and the sidewalk, and there was grass all over the kids (including in Vivienne's hair, which was a total pain to get out).  I get major, major cool mommy points for letting them do this for over an hour.

First Dentist Appointment

In early March, Miles and Vivienne had their first dental appointment.  I was blown away by how cool the pediatric dentist was.  The waiting room looked like an animal safari, with nearly life-sized stuffed tigers and lions and bubble walls and tiny couches perfect for toddlers.  When the kids went back for their exams, each chair already had a toy sitting in it.  Each chair was also equipped with a swivel flat-screen television that the dentist could position right above the kids' heads as they cleaned and examined their teeth.  Miles and Vivienne gladly sat there, watching the movie Cars, while the dentist poked around in their mouths.

We got great reports on Miles and Vivienne's mouths.  We have become much more diligent about brushing since the appointment, and we even floss Miles' teeth every night now.  I would never have dreamed we could floss his teeth before that appointment.  But they showed us ways to work with him that make it pretty painless now.  Vivienne doesn't need any flossing, because she has lots of space between all of her teeth.  They said that these spaces should be useful when her adult teeth start coming in.  Only time will tell!

Grandma & Grandpa Visit

At the very beginning of March, Grandma and Grandpa (Fox) came to visit us for about a week.  It was quite a luxury for the kids to have 24/7 Grandma/Grandpa access, and they enjoyed running into the guest room each morning to wake their grandparents.  We read books, went to playgrounds, attended library story times and just enjoyed our time together.

Goodbye, Noah

A couple months ago, we had to have our gentle giant, Noah, put to sleep.  He was truly one of the world's best cats.  The kids could ride him like a horse, pull his tail or sit on his head and he wouldn't bat an eyelash.  He had all of his claws but never used them (except for one unfortunate event when my brother was sleeping on our couch in California and Noah raced across his face, playing chase with Chloe in the middle of the night). 

For years, Noah was frequently seen lying on his back, spread eagle (showing all his glory, or lack thereof) and soaking up the sun through the windows.  In more recent days, Miles could often be heard chasing Noah up the stairs and screaming at the top of his lungs, "I love you, cat!  I love you!" (More like "I wuv yew!")  Though I'm sure the kids were annoying to him at times, I think he realized that they were a part of his family and that he needed to be gentle with them.

Noah was a great companion for our children, and I am sad that he will not be here for many more years of unwanted snuggles from our kids. 

We planted a Japanese andromeda (pieris) over his grave in the back yard so that we always have something to remember him by.

Goodbye, old friend.  We miss you.

Twin Napping Breakthrough

For the past month or so, Miles and Vivienne's nap times have been a bit of a nightmare (pun intended).  Even though I know they are exhausted after a morning at the museum or the playground, they would sit up in their cribs together, passing toys back and forth.  Sometimes this would eventually lead to arguing (usually Miles pulling away one of Vivienne's blankets or something).  So, I started separating their cribs by a few feet so that they couldn't mess with each other.  Well, this only helped a little.  After coming to my wit's end last week, I finally started putting Miles in a pack n play in a separate room (formerly our exercise room).  All I can say is, "Wow!  What a difference!"  Sometimes one of them will still have a harder time falling asleep, but this is usually just an hour or so of singing (Vivienne) or talking to themselves (Miles).  Overall, this is leading to a much, much more peaceful nap time for all of us.  And, believe me, Mommy needs that time to get a little break.  Now, I have about an hour of overlapping nap time with all three kids asleep together.  It's wonderful.

First Tooth!

Evelyn's first tooth has finally broken through the gum line.  I saw it for the first time yesterday.  There aren't any photos yet, because it's not nearly big enough to capture with a camera.  But soon I will be missing her beautiful gummy smile.

Dahhhling...

Oh, dahhhling... you just look fabulous.

Grandma's house is virtually a toddler spa for Vivienne.

Bond Park

On the weekends, we love to go "hiking" (usually a relatively short walk in the woods, maybe just a mile or so) with the kids.  A couple weeks ago, we were having lovely weather and decided to enjoy the day at Bond Park.  There is a playground that the kids love, and we got to see the lake during sunset.

We also discovered a fallen tree in the forest where the kids could practice their balancing skills with Daddy's help.

And, of course, I enjoyed time with my brown-eyed snuggle bug.

Fingerpaints

We love our fingerpaints around here.

Mohawk

I ♥ this mohawk.