Easter Wrap-up

It seems like keeping the kids eating healthy is a daily battle. So often they come home with candy from school or a birthday party. At home, we try to keep it as natural and unprocessed as possible, which is especially difficult around holidays like Easter. Last year I bought a natural Easter egg dye kit (Pottery Barn usually has them) but this year I procrastinated and they were sold out. So we made our own dye, using these instructions. Turmeric powder makes yellow, beets make red, and I used blackberries for a nice purple. Green comes from chlorophyll capsules, which we skipped because I couldn't find them. I'm sure they are at Whole Foods, but honestly, I didn't look very hard. And since they didn't jump off the shelf and into my cart by themselves, we didn't have any green eggs this year. Still, the final product turned out pretty good, especially the yellow.

 

On Saturday, we loaded up our basket for the traditional Polish blessing of the baskets. We had bread, sausage, and cheese. A baby food for Noah. Andrew threw in a chocolate bunny and a tomato. A little bit of everything made it in the basket!

Usually the kids have an Easter egg hunt after the blessing, but the weather was horrible - rain all day long. They skipped the hunt and just gave out the eggs to the kids. Andrew started in on a chocolate bunny, the first of many consumed over the weekend.

The Easter Bunny delivered more tasty treats and by Sunday the weather had improved enough for a little egg hunting in the front yard. Noah was more interested in throwing eggs out of his basket, actually.

 

More Easter treats before church! You need to wear shades to eat this much chocolate.

Noah is not a big fan of candy or chocolate, but he is a big fan of Andrew. He loves watching his big brother.

 Taylor and I have our own Easter tradition - watching Chocolat. It's one of my favorites.

Easter weekend was rainy and cold, but the following weekend was great for working in the yard. And nothing makes Andrew happier than yard work, especially if it involves the truck, a shovel, and a wheelbarrow. He worked hard all day long and spread two truckloads of mulch. His reward was a nice dinner at Chick-fil-a and a bath.

Noah was doing his own heavy lifting...in the house. One of his favorite games is pulling all the clothes out of his drawers. This is almost as fun as pulling all of the DVDs out of the TV cabinet. Coincidentally, both of these are my least favorite games. (Look at him bending those knees! His physical therapist would be so proud.)

In an attempt at distraction, and to keep the house reasonably clean, we went outside to enjoy the sunshine. .

Spring is here and Midtown has got some great views right now...

Irish Luck

For the first time ever, we decided to check out the Beale Street St. Patrick's Day Parade. The day was beautiful - perfect for short sleeves and sunglasses. So we put on our green and headed downtown. (Well almost all of us had on green. Taylor had to wear a U of M shirt, in support of the Tigers.) I had heard good things about the parade, and it didn't disappoint! Maybe it was the pretty weather. Maybe it was the promise of lots of beads and candy. Whatever the reason (maybe the green beer), the place was packed and everyone was having a great time. Including Andrew and Noah.

  

Andrew scored loads of beads, and even Noah, despite a slight lack of interest in beads, managed to get some too. Hunger got the best of us and we left before the parade was over to grab a patio table at Aldo's Pizza Pies. The pizza was good, but I don't think it lived up to the hype. Regardless, the warm weather and people watching more than made up for the underwhelming pizza. The afternoon was a great success!

Since the weather was still nice the following day, we made the most of it by cleaning out the front flowerbeds. A few years ago, I planted a several rose bushes and some cannas, which have both grown out of control. So every spring we have to do major surgery with the shears and loppers. Andrew was very excited and promised to be careful with the cutting. He did a decent job, in between taking breaks to go inside and watch TV. Noah supervised from the car, then got bored with the whole thing and went inside too. So much for getting some help! Taylor and I were left to finish the job ourselves. The little ones are big on talk, little on action.

Super Andrew

Andrew turned five last week. Some years it has snowed on his birthday and some years it has been warm enough to wear short sleeves. This was one of the colder years. We got a little bit of snow - not much, just a few flurries but still fun for two little boys...

Andrew wanted his party at Pump-it-Up. It basically has a bunch of inflatable slides and bouncy houses. Perfect if you are five. Actually, he really wanted a water slide for his birthday, but I told him that is never going to happen (see pictures of snow, above). So his second choice was Pump-it-Up. We opted for a superhero theme. Captain America and Batman came to entertain the children. It was a great time.

After playing hard, the boys got their superhero capes and it was time for cupcakes and presents.

 

The grown-ups decided to pass on the kids party (wise choice!), so we had dinner and cake on Andrew's actual birthday. He was excited about the telescope from Nana! We may get to see some stars soon, if Taylor can get through the giant instruction manual :)

Birthday Questions

He's a year older, and some of his favorite things have changed, but some have actually stayed the same. 

Favorite Food:  Ice cream (Absolutely true!)

Favorite Sport: Soccer ball 

Favorite TV Show: Scooby Doo

Favorite Person: Preston (This is one of Andrew's best buds at school. They can be quite a handful together!)

Favorite Thing to Learn at School: Paint

The Thing I Do Best: Stay at home (I can relate - I like to be home too!)

If I Could Go Anywhere, It Would Be: Beach (I promise I did not feed him this answer. He is definitely my child!)

My Favorite Color: Blue (No surprise here)

When I Grow Up, I Am Going to Be: a Builder (I can see this - the kid loves a project)

My Favorite Song Is: Scooby Doo songs (His music choices continue to be somewhat baffling

My Favorite Book: All kinds (This is true, he's not picky. Lately we are into reading books on the ipad and transitioning to chapter books with fewer pictures. He seems to like it, but sometimes loses interest if he's tired)

My Favorite Snack: Cake (I have to call BS on this this one. Maybe apples or chips, or ice cream)

One Food I Really Dislike: Rice (Yep, no rice for him.)

Favorite Place to Eat: Chick-fil-a (It's still mostly about the playground. He's also a fan of Lenny's, Las Delicias, pizza, hot dogs)

Favorite Movie: Prince Caspian (Seriously, still? He rarely watches it now, but didn't hesitate with this answer.)

Favorite Toy: Puzzles (loves them right now. He got a superhero puzzle for this birthday that was 3-D. It was pretty tough, so Taylor and I had to help out. By the time we finished, I was dizzy and my eyes were crossed. 3-D puzzles are a challenge!)

It was a nice birthday week. 5 is going to be super!