Easter (Long) Weekend 2012

Our Easter weekend started with an Easter egg hunt.

I'm not even going to pretend I was excited about this because it was planned right in the middle of the day, which meant Brendan skipped his nap.  But sometimes I just need to let go of routine and let him have some fun.

Fun was definitely had by all of us.

Those kids are eyeing their competition.

We weren't entirely sure what to expect where the Easter Bunny was concerned.

He loved him.

He followed him around for the rest of the party.  I'm sure the treat bag the Easter Bunny was carrying had nothing to do with it.



Taking a break for a "pip" of juice.

He slept a little late Easter morning and I had to wake him up if we were going to make it to church.

Each time we pulled something out he said, "Open it!"

The boys played outside while I cooked dinner, and then Brendan and I went out to play while Dad did the dishes.

The red wagon reappeared.



Thomas movies play on our DVD player pretty much continuously.  Brendan won't sit down to watch it for more than a few minutes, but he to know that it's on.  We don't own any so I keep renting them from the shoppette, and Lord help me if I forget.  The other day I asked him who this is.

He said, "Daddy!"  And I laughed so hard my stomach hurt.

Monday we had the day off of work.  We originally intended to take a day trip, but Tom wasn't feeling great so we decided to stick close to home.  Brendan and I took him to see the big roller slide we found while he was in Guam.

We looked up and he was halfway up this wall.  He scaled the entire thing on his own.

Roller slides are faster if you sit on cardboard.

Brendan wanted a turn on this slide, but I wouldn't let him.

They disappeared at the top of the hill and when I saw them again they had a big can of apple tea.

He's serious about his apple tea.



Month of the Military Child

April is Month of the Military Child.  Brendan's CDC has an activity of some sort planned for most days of this month.  Friday was "Bring a Parent to the CDC Day."  So at 2:00, I showed up.

I spent some time reading books and playing with the kids.  Brendan didn't pay much attention to me until he saw another little boy sitting on my lap.  Daddy showed up just in time for us to go outside.

I stop by a lot to peek at him through the window, but it was fun to get to hang out for a while and see what things are usually like in his room.  When it's time to go outside, they all sit on the carpet next to the door.  The teacher opens the door and tells each child individually that he or she can go outside.  When each name is called, it's like that kid has been shot out of a cannon, and Brendan was no exception.

There were only a handful of parents on the playground, and a lot of kids were interested in us.

Can you tell?

They bring kids from each class out to the playground so they get to interact with other children.  I don't know the boy on the left, but the one next to Brendan is in his class.  He tells everything he knows.  If he spots me peeking through the window he taps Brendan, points at the door and says, "Brendan! Your mommy!"  He gives me away on a regular basis.

Happy Weekend!  It's off to an Easter egg hunt for us!

Daddy Took Us To the Zoo

This weekend we headed to the Koza Zoo, which is one of our favorite places.  I've mentioned before that the animal enclosures are very small and it makes me sad.  So we skip that part and just treat it like a big park.  This time we basically went so that Brendan could ride the "choo choo."

But look what he found first.

Once we got him off of Thomas, we headed over to the real deal.

TOOT TOOT!!

We had to ride this car.

And this fire truck.

And this "meow."

And he took off in Hello Kitty by himself.

We rode the carousel, although he refused to ride one of the animals.

Such a thrill seeker.

We always love feeding the fish.

Hat Parade: Then and Now

Last year....

This year....

As soon as he realized there were parents there, he started scanning the crowd.

Technically, he's wearing a crown.  Because he's my prince.

The cute little blonde behind him is his girlfriend, "RoRo."

What a difference a year makes!



Catch Up

I've been using all my computer time to finish Brendan's photo book that I had good intentions to finish by his birthday.  I missed that deadline by a couple of months.  So here are some play time photos from the past couple of weeks.  And in a few days I'll post the pics from this weekend. 

He is no longer afraid of this thing.

In fact, he's quite fearless.

Picking a flower for his mommy.

Daddy is a bad influence.

Keep checking back.  In a couple of days I'll post photos from this year's hat parade.  Any one remember last year's?

Happy Monday!