Easter Egg Decorating

This post is out of place but I still wanted to get it out there.

Every year I have the family decorate Easter Eggs. We always make great memories which are carefully packed away to be displayed every Easter. Forever.

Daddy's egg:

Maggie's:

Caroline's (with Daddy's help):

And mine:

Field Trip to a Dairy

Maggie's preschool had a field trip to a local dairy. It happened to fall on a VERY cold and windy day. We froze to death!
Maggie with her besty Erin:


Maggie and Erin eating the dairy's ice cream (the perfect treat for freezing kids and parents, no?):

We spent maybe 30 seconds outside with the cows before deciding they were not nearly worth how cold we were!

Caroline's Second Birthday

On May 1st my tiny babe, Caroline, turned two years old.

She would not so much as touch her birthday cake. We kept it around for two days, all the while snacking on it ourselves, until she decided to try it. Low and behold--she loved it.

I let the girls have the "good" mac n cheese for the special day:

She loved her gifts. Mom and dad gave her a jewelry box--the exact same one Maggie has to avoid the fights we already have brewing. Patrick took Maggie out for a special trip to buy Caroline her Ballerina Dora. She loves it! LOVES it:

The girls also got to Skype with their Aunt Julie and cousins Ruby and Meredith. This shot was taken behind my laptop as they stare at Julie and compete for attention.

And, finally, Caroline yells "Happy Birthday to ME!"

We love her and don't know what we'd do without her.

Easter 2011

Holiday's go by so fast these days it's hard to get any great pictures of the event! I could use a live-in photographer just so I can engage with the family, enjoy the moment, and STILL have photographic evidence that it all happened. Before I knew it the girls had ripped into the baskets and were headed down the stairs to hunt for eggs. I caught this one pic of Caroline playing with a pin wheel from her basket at least.

We had to slow Maggie down and have her help Caroline find some eggs. Here she is pointing one out for Caroline to pick up. It was all she could do to let her baby sister have ANY.

Caroline finding an egg all by herself.

Caroline discovers there is actually something inside the eggs.

Maggie celebrates by throwing the grass from their baskets all over the kitchen.

Preschool Easter Hunt

This is Maggie's second year at Cornerstone Preschool and therefore her second time with the Easter candy "hunt". Man what a difference a year can make! She was much more aware and focused on getting candy.

Here she is with her best preschool buddy Erin and her preschool boyfriend Lincoln.

Becoming such a pro she had no problem almost knocking her sister flat in order to reach a chocolate egg.

Siblings are welcome to join in so Caroline did just that. She put about 2 pieces of candy in her bag before finding a sucker and that was all she needed. She then just walked around holding the sucker saying, "My special sucker!" to anyone who would listen. I finally prodded her into grabbing 2-3 more pieces of candy before calling it quits.

Since Maggie will be starting kindergarten in the fall and Caroline is only two we will not be at Cornerstone in the fall and I have to say I'll really miss it. We have loved the program, the teachers, etc. Maggie will sorely miss it as well I'm sure.

March Trip To Utah

Patrick did his yearly pilgrimage to Ohio for basketball and friends in March. I braved my very first solo trip to Utah with the girls.

We were in Utah for my brother Randy's birthday. I was of course using my cell phone for pictures and this is literally the best picture I have of the birthday celebration. Somehow it totally suits Randy though--this is exactly how he looks when happy and laughing.

My sister Julie and I were able to get a little shopping in which was quite a treat. The girls quickly found something to play on.

We were also in Utah for St Patrick's Day. This year I took the girls to a fabric store and made the huge mistake of letting Maggie pick the fabric for a simple green skirt. It was so difficult to sew with and the it was stiff and didn't hang right. But they loved them and that's what counts I guess. Next year I'll just roll with what I want and not even let them have a choice in the matter! I did like the hair clips I made for them at least.

Julie, Brett, and Ruby were fantastic hosts and made sure the girls were happy, comfortable, entertained, and generally spoiled rotten. You can see more super fun photos of our trip on Julie's blog here and here.

The Mall

Our second home is the mall. My husband is rolling his eyes at that statement. But he knows it's true. Sometimes I go just to give the girls something to do. We hit the Disney Store--that's where we get the crowns and usually some sort of craft or video presentation. We hit Nordstrom shoe department--that's where we get the balloons. We hit the play area--that's where we get germs. And tears. But they BEG to go. What's a mom to do??

That is a big bruise on Caroline's cheek. She rammed right into her play table. Hard.

Swimming

We took the girls to the rec center for some swimming.

Maggie is still very nervous about getting too wet or getting splashed or any water at all touching her face. So this picture of her actually going down the slide and risking it all is pretty exciting for me.

She mostly prefers to sit and play quietly with a water spout at the top. See how that little stream of water is so very non-threatening?

Caroline seems to be slightly more daring in the water. I better take advantage and get her signed up for swim lessons before the fear is learned.

This is Caroline mid happy-swimming dance:

I actually put on a suit and was prepared to get wet (I mean beyond my knees) if necessary. Luckily is wasn't necessary. Maggie commented on the way home that I had said I was going to get wet and I didn't. She's starting to notice I'm not the swimming type. I wanted the girls to be strong swimmers before they noticed their mom does NOT like to swim. It's not that I'm afraid or that I'm a terrible swimmer (I am actually a terrible swimmer). It's that I can't stand being....soggy. I'm a read-a-book-while-catching-some-sun-on-a-lounge-chair kinda gal.

Randoms

Dressing up. Nothing new here.

But Caroline plays "dress up" a bit different. She just wants to wear Maggie's Dora underwear. That's it. Almost every day.

And I just had to include a shot of those legs!

What the girls do while I clean. Was it worth it? I'm still debating.

Caroline has been refusing her naps for a good long time now. This makes for a very cranky girl most evenings. Or we walk out of the room for 2 seconds and come back to this:

Patrick and the girls watching Tangled:

And the one picture of Maggie and me at Disney Princesses on Ice. I think she had a good time. She's easily overwhelmed and she mostly just sat on my lap with giant eyes. When it first started and the lights went out and the music began she looked at me and said, "Caroline really should be here!". Melt my heart that she even noticed or cared!

Rare Day With Dad

We had a rare day with Dad at the park. The girls get a lot of time with their dad at home when he gets up with them in the morning and all day as he takes breaks from work and wanders down the stairs but he usually doesn't have time for a trip to the park. This was fun! He even made a picnic lunch.

Canvas and Cocktails

My friend Melissa found this great place called Canvas and Cocktails and invited a group of us to try it out. You pay a small fee to paint a picture and they have a bar there as well for those who want to drink--hence the name Canvas and Cocktails. The instructor walks you through the chosen painting of the night and in between brief explanations the music goes way up and everyone paints, sings, chats, until the next set of instructions. Now, I'm no artist. Not even sorta. I had SO MUCH FUN! This is totally worth doing.

Thank you to Melissa over at All Together Now for inviting me. What a fabulous girls night out!