Sugar Overload Pt. 2

Bradley found an Easter egg!

Bradley loved his jellybeans!

Rachel loves her stuff!

Look what the Easter Bunny brought!

Watch out! Rachel & Bradley are driving Papa's tractor!

Pretty girl...funny expression!

Happy Easter from our family!

Today was a very Happy Easter! Rachel and Bradley were so excited to see what the Easter bunny brought them in their Easter baskets. They, again, got a little bit of candy and immediately wanted to start eating it. Bradley was enjoying his Starburst jellybeans and would NOT give them up. Unfortunately, we didn't get up early enough to get our rears in gear in time to make it to church. So, we took some pictures here of our family and then headed over to Gege and Papa's house for lunch. We had such a good time playing, flying our new kites (from Nana and Pop), eating a fantastic meal, having an Easter egg hunt and fishing. The kids, again, got candy from Gege and Papa and Uncle Stacy. Rachel did eat a great, healthy lunch, but Bradley only ate a little bit of steak and strawberries for his lunch. So, the majority of their (lack of ) nutrition today was SUGAR! I think we'll be de-toxing from all the sugar we ate this weekend for the next week! We had a very fun day and were VERY tired this evening! Both kids went to bed early and will hopefully sleep well all night long!!

Sugar Overload Pt. 1

Rachel & Wylie

Bradley braving Wylie's slide

The adorable birthday girl...Ashley!

Rachel & Wylie playing with Ashley's new kitchen

Nana, Pop, Rachel & Bradley

Me and my sweet little explorer

Hunting for eggs...they were so hard to find!

Future Equestrienne!

Visiting the Easter Bunny

Sweet bub and sis

Well, Saturday was lots of fun! Nana and Pop went with us to the Easter Egg Hunt at Heritage Park in Oconee. There were lots of kids there and lots of things to do. Rachel had a blast jumping on the spacewalk, riding a pony, petting animals at the petting zoo, saying "hi" to the Easter bunny and hunting for eggs at the Easter egg hunt. There were also several other things that we didn't get to do, because we ran out of time. They offered face painting, giant bubbles, visiting a fire truck, a mini-choo choo train ride, etc... Rachel loved it all and also enjoyed a giant wand of cotton candy, a bag of popcorn and a rice krispie treat. She had a blue beard when she got through with the cotton candy. Bradley had a blast too, but not from doing any of the offered activities. He wanted to walk around and observe all the things that were going on. He didn't care to participate, but loved walking to each thing. Luckily, Nana and Pop took turns following him and allowing him to explore. He did "gum" on a rice krispie treat for a good hour and then ate some cheetos. When we left, everyone was happy and "sugared" up for the day.

That evening, we went to Rachel and Bradley's friend, Ashley's 2nd birthday party. She had a princess party and invited lots of her little friends. Rachel and Bradley had a blast playing on their playground and then finding eggs at the mini-Easter egg hunt that Ashley's mommy organized. Again, we had an abundance of sugar...candy, cake, ice cream...Rachel and Bradley would NOT eat their sandwich or anything that was halfway decent food. So, we had the most sugar-y day of the year! I think that beat Halloween! But, we had a great time and Ashley looked adorable in her Princess attire.

One of those days

Dyeing Easter eggs

Serious business

My sweet little girl

Today was one of those days. I truly enjoy staying home and not rushing out the door to be somewhere every day. But, I swear, I think staying home all day is sometimes harder than getting us ready and getting out the door. Maybe I was just a little more tired today or something, but I seemed to have a much shorter fuse than usual. We started fine...a little housework and then we went outside to play. All I wanted to do was throw away some garbage that was in the garage. It would have taken me about 5 minutes, if I had been able to do it without stopping. But, I had to stop every 5 seconds to see where my little explorer, Bradley, had gone. For some reason, he's obsessed with a small tree/bush (?) in the front pine island. He'll stand next to it for 15 or 2o minutes and just pull old buds off it. I guess he likes the crunchy feel of the dead bud. ?? Anyway, that's the first place he went. I had to get him, because I certainly can't see him from the garage if he's at the front porch. So, I went to get him and he started running and giggling because he thought it was a game. I chased for a minute then scooped him up and headed back to the garage. I pulled out some cool toys for him and showed him what to do, in case he had forgotten, and then tried again to get a few more pieces of trash out of my car. One minute later, he was gone again! This time, I headed for the backyard, since that's where his golf club and ball were discarded. He was all the way at the back deck when I found him. This time, I scooped him up and spoke sternly to him. I know he's doing what's natural to him, but it sure does get frustrating (and tiring) when I want to accomplish a simple task! In the meantime, my poor, sweet, obedient Rachel is playing where she's supposed to and trying to keep up with me and Bradley. I finally let both kids play in the car and finished cleaning things out of it and they thought it was the coolest thing ever. We played on the playground for awhile after that and then came in to make lunch. Everything was going smoothly until I put lunch on the table. Bradley lost it and started fussing and crying and demanding that I hold him. Poor Rachel was eating her lunch and holding her hands over her ears. Bradley finally settled down while I held him, rocked him and watched Teletubbies with him. We sat there for about 45 minutes in the rocker and Rachel joined us. We all covered up with the kid's favorite blankets and snuggled together. Anyway, that was a nice end to an unpleasant little fit. I think poor Bradley was having a stomachache, so he was extra-needy today. Unfortunately, I didn't have the patience that he deserved. It was just one of those days.











Also, Rachel and I dyed our Easter eggs today since we have such a busy day tomorrow. So, we boiled the eggs and I let Rachel have her fun. We had all the different colors in all the little containers and Rachel loved dipping and re-dipping. Unfortunately, she dropped several of the eggs and cracked them. I told her it didn't matter, we would decorate them anyway. Anyway, while I was on the phone, I noticed that she only had 2 eggs on the table. We had started with 6. I asked her where they were and she said they were cracked so she threw them in the trashcan. For some reason, I overreacted and got mad that she threw them away. Poor little thing told me she didn't like me anymore and ran to her room crying. I felt terrible. I know she shouldn't have thrown away the eggs, but she's only 3 and it was supposed to be a fun activity!! So, I hugged her and kissed her and told her it was okay and that we would boil more eggs. But, I told her that even if those eggs got cracks in them, we would still decorate them and leave them for the Easter bunny. So, we boiled 4 more, she decorated them beautifully and we had a great time.







I feel sad now that the kids are in bed and the house is quiet and I can think about the day's events. I don't know why I didn't have the patience I needed today. But, I don't think it was my precious children's fault. They acted their age and did the things that come very naturally to them...heck, maybe I did too! I just hope and pray that I develop more patience and remember that they're my sweet little babies and that I'm blessed to have them, so enjoy them and be thankful!

Chicks, ducks and bunnies...oh my!

Welcome to Boss Brothers!

Rachel & Bradley with the special bunny

Bradley checking out the baby chicks

Rachel and the beautiful white bunny

Bradley...scooting away from the bunny




Rachel with a baby duckie

Rachel showing the duckie the baby chicks in the cage below

Today, Gege took us to Boss Brothers Country Store to see their baby chicks, ducks and rabbits. Rachel could hardly contain her excitement knowing she was going to get to hold a baby bunny. Bradley didn't want to pet or touch the animals, but did try to lift the top off the baby chick's cage several times. The store itself is so cute and has so many neat items that Bradley would rather explore and mess with things that are for sale rather than look at the animals. Rachel, however, was THRILLED to hold and pet the bunny. She thought it was the neatest thing. She also tried to pick up the bunny and hold him, but he got scared and scratched her arm pretty good. So, that ended her fascination with the bunnies. She was ready to leave after that. Prior to the scratching incident, she also got to hold a baby duck and she thought that was so fun. She's such a little animal lover...never scared of any animals and always wanting to hold them. I guess that's good and bad since it could get her into trouble if we're not careful! Anyway, we had so much fun petting the little Easter animals and then ended up at "chick-il-a" as Rachel calls it. We played on the playground, ate a great lunch and had a blast!

Nice weather for being outdoors!

Rachel's ladybug...can you see it?

Rachel...expert tricyclist!

Bradley trying to ride Rachel's scooter

Rachel's sunflower garden

Since the weather's been pretty good for the past few days, we've had a little bit of spring "planting" fever. Nick was on a kick this weekend, transferring plants to new locations around the yard. Rachel is his biggest helper, so she decided she was going to plant some sunflower seeds in the yard that her buddy, Wylie, had given her. Nick helped her pick a spot next to the playground, so they planted the seeds and put some bricks around it to keep from walking all over it. She was so excited to water her new seeds and we have checked on them everyday. I hope they bloom so that she can see how the whole process works!

While we were outside walking in the grass today, the extremely observant Rachel, spotted a ladybug crawling on the ground. She was so excited! And, since I had just taken a couple of pictures of the kids, I let her take a picture of the ladybug. I think she did a great job! We also rode Rachel's scooter, which Bradley wants to be able to ride sooooo badly! And, Rachel rode her tricycle, which she still LOVES, even though she wants a princess bicycle for her birthday! It sure is nice to enjoy being outside!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

We had a great time today celebrating St. Patty's Day with Rachel and Bradley's friends. Emily had a playgroup party at her house and there were 9 moms and 17 kids there to play! It was a large crowd, but her home/yard flowed well and things went surprisingly smooth. There were only 5 girls and the rest were boys! Rachel was definitely outnumbered, but she didn't seem to mind. She did give some of the boys her age some ugly looks because she didn't like how they were playing, but everyone got along pretty well. There were only 2 accidents; one little boy got creamed by his sister when he walked right in front of her swing. The other was when a little boy stood in an ant pile for a couple of minutes and then started screaming in pain. I was relieved that neither Rachel nor Bradley got a boo-boo today...for once! Every mommy brought some yummy goodie to snack on, so we had sausage balls, breakfast pizza, cheese muffins, cupcakes, cookie cake, breakfast pastry and fruit. It was a really fun morning and a nice St. Patrick's Day!
Unfortunately, my batteries died before I took the first picture! So, I don't have a single one to add to today's blog. Hopefully I'll be able to get some of Emily's pics and I'll add them when I do.

Welcome back, Mommy!

Today I decided to run a few errands without the kids. I needed to go more than 2 places (Bradley's limit) and Nick was willing to be Mr. Mom, so I went. It was really fun going into stores without having to get a cool grocery cart, without having to make sure everyone is happy, and without a snack and juice. (I did get myself a bottle of water, though!) I listened to my own music in the car and didn't have to answer a single question or meet anyone else's needs. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE taking my kids with me wherever I go, but it was a nice change of pace, for sure. Anyway, when I got home, it was time for Bradley's nap, so Nick was already putting him to bed. I snuck into the den and whispered to Rachel, "hey, sweetie." Her little face lit up and she said, "mommy!" She followed me around the kitchen as I unloaded groceries and then followed me into the bathroom! She said she missed me and then informed me that Bradley was trying to take a nap, so we needed to be quiet. It made me feel good that she wanted to be around me that much! In the meantime, Nick came out of Bradley's room and we started eating lunch. But, Bradley was having issues falling asleep today, so he was fussing and yelling out, "ma!" (He didn't even know I was home yet, but he called me anyway.) After a few minutes, his yells turned to cries and then he was really upset. So, I went in to check on him. I found his cup on the floor outside of the crib, along with "Bay". He won't go to sleep without Bay, so I knew this was a problem. When he saw me, he got a huge grin on his face and then he started making cute little toddler sounds of joy. I picked him up and he nestled into my arms and wriggled around, clearly happy to see me again. I was overjoyed to have been missed this much from only a 2 hour absence! I couldn't help myself from rocking him for a little while, since I missed him as much as he missed me. Of course, the rocking was not productive, because it made Bradley very excited. He was talking, giggling and doing anything to make me smile or laugh at him. But, it was so cute that I couldn't help myself. So, what is normally a 5 minute routine before naptime, turned out to be about 40 minutes long. But, it's not everyday that I run errands by myself and feel refreshed at naptime. So, it was worth the extra time.

The kids make me feel great everyday, but it was nice to be missed from such a short absence!