H Family Easter

We hosted Easter at our home this year. (Most of) my siblings and their families came to spend the night Saturday night. The kids played and played, took baths, then went to bed. B was exhausted the next morning and we had to actually wake him up to make it to church on time. (Check out all that hair coming out of the crib. I think it may be time for another hair cut....)

After church Sunday morning we headed home to get brunch ready. In between prepping, we had an Easter egg hunt. We placed the toddler friendly eggs (filled with stickers, gummies, goldfish, animal crackers, etc.) on one side of the yard and the bigger kids' eggs on the other. Uncle Todd hid the big kids' eggs and some of them were pretty tough to find. (He dug up grass and buried them. Seriously!) B had been practicing hunting for eggs all week so he knew what to do. He had fun running around the yard but once he spotted the little car in the big kid section, he had to go check it out! (Todd randomly put some 'props' in the yard so there were more places to hide things.)

Once the egg hunt was over, we headed in for brunch. (I made this french toast casserole again along with breakfast burritos and bacon wrapped smokies. We also had fruit, lemon bars, cinnamon rolls and Scratch cupcakes.)

Since it was Dakota's special birthday (he's FIVE now!), he even got a Scratch cupcake all to himself. He was in doggie heaven.

After filling our bellies and counting the loot in the eggs and baskets, we played some Easter games with the decorated hard boiled eggs. Our favorite was Egg Jarping. I could have won every round but I didn't want to hurt everyone else's feelings. :) I wanted to hunt down a sling shot so they could do some target practice with their leftover eggs but we settled for throwing them instead.

Once all the excitement was over and most of our guests had gone home for the day, I realized we hadn't taken a family picture. I had already changed into my sweatshirt and B wasn't really in the picture mood but we snapped the shot anyway. I haven't been doing great on my quest to 'get in the shot' lately so I'm glad we got one quick.

How was your family's Easter? Do you have any fun or unusual traditions?

365 week 7

12 (Tuesday)- B is getting really good at picking up his toys... but you wouldn't guess it by this picture.

13 (Wednesday)- Date night!

14 (Thursday)- Valentine's Day!

15 (Friday)- Mo came to stay with us and she and B had an awesome time swimming. (More on this day to come.)

16 (Saturday)- It's still too cold to be outside too much. We had big plans of going to the skating rink but their hours don't really work for B so Mo got to skate at the gym instead. B had fun chasing and throwing balls while Mo did a little of everything. (I know it looks like he shoved her down but I promise he didn't.) :)

17 (Sunday)- B always dresses dapper to go see his church friends. And apparently to ride scooters as well. :)

18 (Monday)- B was pretty worn out from the weekend and begged for nap time then begged for bed time. Poor buddy! 

Center Grove Orchard 2011

I haven't been posting many posts about stuff we've been doing. I didn't even mention in my 10 on Tuesday this week that R & I went to the orchard just for apple cider donuts this week. And I haven't even been pulling photos off my camera, pretty much at all lately.
So this morning, one of my friends mentioned on facebook about maybe having her little girl's birthday party at the fire station. Which reminded me that Madd's party was at the fire station. And that I took pictures of it. But had no idea where they were....  I found my camera and pulled up the photos. Along with lots and lots of other photos. And you guessed it, a trip from the orchard was on there. How is it possible that I even forget stuff like this?!? It seriously was not that long ago. Why is it so easy for me to document other people's lives and forget about saving photos from our own?

Anyway.... here's some photos from our orchard trip. The kids loved it! If we still live in the area when our children are older, we'll definitely be buying season passes.

Both Mo & Madd said the hayride was one of their favorite parts and I didn't even get pictures of it! There was just so much to do there! We'll definitely have to go again next year.

Papa Tractor and Papa Hollie

This is Mr. Maddox and Miss Mo with "Papa Tractor" at Papa Hollie's funeral today.

My dad's dad passed away last week.

May I suggest that the next time you have a funeral to go to, take a four year old. He was such a good boy during the service but he definitely provided some comic relief before and after. (He was very sad all day though and kept saying, "I miss Papa Hollie. Papa Hollie was a good grandpa.")

I also wish I had some of the other photos from the day that I could post on here. There were photos of us with Papa Hollie and some great ones from when we were all little. Todd was rocking the skinny jeans (long before they were 'in' and I'm not even sure they should be 'in' anyway). Amy had the sweetest hair (think big perm). And grandma used to make us all MC Hammer pants in the craziest of fabrics. We were all so cool.....

I'm thankful for this day we had to reflect on some good memories and to observe the littles learning to say goodbye.

Happy 6th Birthday, Morgan!

Dear Morgan,

I feel like I was JUST saying I couldn't believe you were already five and now you are SIX! How did that happen??!?!

You had another big year. A really big one with kindergarten under your belt now. I loved listening to your school stories and the picture you had your favorite substitute, Mr. Clark, send me of you in the locker. You goof!

You may be a goof, but you have the biggest heart of any silly goof I know. You were the first one in our family that we told we were going to be welcoming a new little one. We told you what a big secret it was and you kept it so safe (for a little while!). Your face lit up at the news and you nearly had tears in your eyes over it. It was the sweetest reaction anyone that we told gave us and I was so glad we told you first. You've been very curious about your new baby cousin. You've been checking in with me to make sure I've been taking good care of him. And you love on him all the time. ALSO, you were the first (other than me) to get to feel him kick! You were able to feel him kick on your birthday party day. It was so exciting! (Except for your uncle R who was just a tad jealous but got over it as soon as he was able to feel the kicks too!)

You play together so well with Maddox and the two of you have been practicing playing babies getting ready for Baby H. I'm excited to see the three of you together!

You are so sweet to Maddox. For your birthday, you wanted fish and told him he could pick one out (even though it was your big day). You are such a lover.

We love you so much, Mo. You always brighten our days! I hope you have a great year of being SIX! And hopefully it wont seem like another year has gone so fast by the time you turn seven (seven?! yikes!).

Love you bunches,

Uncle R & Aunt H (and one of your very best pals, Dakota, too!)

How To Make A Stunt Man Shirt

Today's HOW TO is one that's too cute not to share. It comes from Ashley at Under the Sycamore. As you can see, we adapted Morgan's. She clearly did not want her's to say STUNT MAN. Or girl. So she stood on her head to see what words she could think of and as she started to tumble over she said "WHOA!" Go check out Ashley's page for more great DIYs!

Morganisms

"I'm already beautiful but a little make-up is okay if you want. It makes you extra really beautiful. Then you put your arms in the air like this and shout woooo hooo cause you look so pretty!"

-Morgan, age 5

Found!

The lost pictures from Mo's party. :)

I told you about the amazing cake she and Maddox decorated.

And what a great photographer she is.

But I forgot to tell you how incredibly cute she is.

Especially when she had several false alarms and attempted to blow the candles out on her cake sooo many times during that long 'Happy Birthday' song. She'd catch herself and stop herself from doing it each time and was a little shy about it. But oh so happy when she finally got to blow them out at the (almost) end of the song. :)

I love this little girl soooo much.

Mo's Party

I had been procrastinating on posting Mo's party pics because I couldn't find them..... I have no idea where the memory card is with her party pictures on it. So these couple that I pulled for 365 will have to do.

Morgan requested chocolate cake. Pink and purple balloons. And Taylor Swift.

The first two were easy peasy.

Taylor Swift. Well. Turns out she's pretty busy and hard to get for a 5 year old's birthday party.

We improvised with microphone cakes (she had a Hannah Montana guitar last year so we couldn't redo the guitar cake) and a Taylor Swift dance party. Morgan and Maddox decorated the microphone cupcakes 98% on their own. I decorated a little purple cake for Mo, we put a microphone on it. And Mo & Maddman got to decorate their very own cake. I have some awesome pictures of it and as soon as I find them I'll post them. The cake was pretty amazing! :)

We grilled out, did cake and presents, then Mo had a swimming lesson. It was fun to watch her with the kids in her group. (I got pictures there too I want to post! Ugh, memory card!)

After lessons it was back to grandma's house to check out some of the birthday presents. She is already very good at the camera we got her. (Ah. I bet SHE has some great birthday party pictures!) And she got her very own real guitar. She's already gone through 3 (4?) Hannah Montana guitars.

She's definitely a rockstar.

And she's crafty too. Those birthday hats? Made by Morgan! (And she so lovingly handed them out and made sure everyone had the chance to wear a birthday hat.)

I love this little girl!

Happy 5th Birthday, Morgan!

Yikes. Didn't I just post this post the other day?!?!

How is she already FIVE?

Dear Morgan,

Happy 5th Birthday! I can't believe it was FIVE years ago that you were born. Five years ago I was working for I-JAG and came to the hospital after work to await your arrival. Five years ago I excitedly brought your baby pictures to work to show Rusty. Five years ago I became an aunt for the first time. Five years ago I saw your teeny tiny little face and I loved you right away. Just because you are you.

I try to tell you to stop growing so fast, but it isn't working. Every time I see you, you have grown up more and more.

You are a people pleaser. Whenever you come to our house you are a big helper. You love Dakota. We rarely have a conversation that you don't ask about him. You follow me around and want to do what I'm doing. You LOVE taking pictures. You don't know it yet, but at your birthday party Friday you'll get a present from Rusty, Dakota and me that will help with that. :) You like Taylor Swift and Hannah Montana (still) and are quite the little rockstar. While I'm not sure I knew what a computer was when I was your age, you are quite savvy on it. You love your cousin Maddox. You swim like a fish. You requested a Taylor Swift birthday party with pink and purple balloons and chocolate cake. This year you graduated from pre-school and gave yourself a haircut. It was scary at first but you rock it pretty well. You pose perfectly for pictures, but I have to be quick, because when you are ready to be finished times up. You have an extraordinary fashion sense. I like your style. I like your smile. I love you.

Happy FITH Birthday!

Love you soooo much!

-R, H, & Dakota

Show Us: Children's Birthday Parties

Kelly's "Show Us" this week: Children's Birthday Parties

R & I hosted our first "Child's Birthday Party" last weekend. (Don't worry, it was for our niece, not our furry child, Dakota).

I posted about our "twofer" (birthday party AND yard party) here. Here are some details (from both):

I had bought the Yard Party supplies before I knew it was going to be combined with the birthday party (Hannah Montana, of course) so in the breakfast room we used those supplies for the drinks/snacks table.



We had a sign out front, you know, so none of our guests would be confused as to where the party is.... even though all of our guests are often at our house......
I realized I didn't get very many pictures of the "Birthday Party" set up (another reason I'd advise against twofers). She of course had a guitar cake and her own cake table. I love the magnet board in our entry because it was an easy way to put up lots of pictures of her. The chalkboard has the Happy Birthday song on it (you know, in case you forget the words...). Our dining room table was covered in a Hannah Montana table cloth. The party favors were turned into a centerpiece and her gifts/cards were lined up down the middle of the table. Still plenty of room for the kidlins to eat around the table (though most of them ate outside). I completely missed the pinata (and the slip 'n slide). But other than that, it was a great "twofer" party(ies). I guess it was a good crash course in birthday parties for us in case our furry child ever gets siblings.

Check out more @
Kelly's Korner: CHILDREN'S PARTIES!!!!!

Happy Birthday, Morgan!

This year was no bore,
I can't believe you are already FOUR!!

Dear Morgan,
You had an amazing third year of life. You grew up so much this year. You started talking and acting like such a big girl. Uncle Rusty and I (and Dakota) had so much fun with you this year. Some of my favorite memories from your third year are:
-during a car ride home after a day of sledding and eating at "Grandpa Kev's" you said, "That was the BEST birthday party ever! I'm soooooo happy!"
-you are usually the only little girl at our house and when the Peasley & Carson boys & Maddox were all rough housing you said, "What are they talking about, it makes no sense?!" I told you they were playing football and you said, "Sports is a naughty word!" I agree, hunny!
-whenever you spend the night with us, one of the first things you do in the morning is greet Dakota by rubbing his face and talking baby talk to him. When he is naughty you say, "You stop that, Dakota Buckingham!!" Do you have an ornery Buckingham in your preschool class? :)
-and it is much more fun to talk to you on the phone this year. It fills my heart to hear you yell, "I LOVE YOU, AUNT H!" over the phone.

Here are pictures of more of my favorite memories from your third year. Happy Birthday and I am excited to see what changes and fun memories your fourth year bring! Could we just make this year go a little slower though? LOVE YOU!

Love, Uncle R & Aunt H

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Twofer

Twofers are great for all sorts of things; parties not included.

This weekend, we hosted two parties in one at our house. We had planned on having a yard games party (Yard Games Extraordinaire, to be exact) at our house, then with my niece's 4th birthday being so close, decided to combine the birthday party and have them at the same time.

Don't get me wrong, "both" parties were a ton of fun. And I would host birthday parties for my niece, nephews, (or anyone else for that matter) ANY time. I just would not try to combine the party with another party... you know, at the same time!

My sisters and their kiddos came to spend the night Friday night. It was nice to have a little help finishing things up. I thought my little sis was going to decorate the birthday cake that was all ready for her... she informed me she decorated it last year, it was my turn this year. So we were up past midnight decorating a Hannah Montana birthday cake. Thank God my friend Jen was here earlier in the day Friday to do the first frosting layers and to give me a break! :)

The birthday girl, of course, had to rock out in her Hannah Montana pajamas with her momma as she prepared for the big day.

Once the cake was ready (you know, past midnight) we had everything up and ready to go (details pictures to come in Friday's "Show Us" post).

The yard games party was super competitive. With a ton of games planned (did I mention I'm married to a PE teacher?). Things went okay, but I would not suggest organizing games, score keeping said games, getting food on the grill, participating in the games, oh and try to be a good "host" while doing all of this.

I would suggest getting all of the adults to participate in the games though. There are some great pictures of my mom in the gunny sack race! (I did post them on the world wide web, but only in a "private" album for the party guests to see on facebook... sorry!)
Like I said, very competitive (did I mention, I took first in my heat?) :)
Break in the "Yard Games Party" for Birthday party. The birthday girl loved her cake and the boys seemed to as well. Here is my niece with all of my nephews. Okay, two of the boys are not technically my nephews, but they might as well be!
Birthday girl opening presents. This is the Hannah Montana Karaoke she got from Uncle R & Aunt H. She later told me her favorite "present" was the pinata. I completely missed that part of the party (which is why I would strongly discourage anyone from twofer parties!).
After the points from all most of the games were tallied, prizes were awarded for the first place losers (they weren't impressed with the "so sorry for your loss" card and the horseshoes prize (you know, because they were so close but close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades....):
And the champions (what.... just because I won doesn't mean it was rigged.... perhaps you'd like to be the official scorer next year?):

Of course the P families always bring the party and stick around to celebrate until it is way past bedtime. I am so glad they did because we didn't get to enjoy the yard party lights during the day! :)
Thanks everyone for the great weekend, and I promise, if you join us for yard games next year, we'll have the porch finished (finally) and your children will not slice themselves open on the porch "posts."