Easter Dinner

This brings us to Easter dinner.  Gabby looked so cute in her new purple outfit that she picked out.  She was ready for a beautiful spring day, too bad it was so cold outside.

Daddy couldn't stand it..... he just had to smother her with kisses!!

The kids were so happy when everyone began to arrive.  Nicholas was playing a little piano to keep everyone entertained and then Cameron followed suit with his own tunes.

A cute shot of the cousins.... I love Nicholas's hat and tie.

Emmersyn looking cute as usual!  So cute.... that Gabby had to change out of her purple Easter dress and put on the same pink dress that Emmersyn was wearing.  Those girls just love to dress like twins!

Adorable!  Such a great shot of Laura and Melia!

Checking to make sure Melia was in fact a BABY.... yep.... Emmersyn confirmed that there was a diaper underneath all that tulle... no princess underwear yet.... so she was not a big girl!Melia found it funny that all the crawling and drooling didn't just give it away.....

Tyler and Bradley hanging out... or waking up..... or warming up to the rest of us....

A rare photo of the 2 of us...

Then it was time to pass out some fun Easter gifts from Grammie and Grampie....

Gabby and Emmersyn were sooooo happy..... MATCHING Minnie Mouse nightgowns.  Not only do these 2 like to wear matching dresses.... but matching jammies come in a close second....

Can you tell that we are related? 

The rest of the guests.... what is everyone watching on t.v.?  Must have been some interesting sporting event....  Do they golf or play baseball or basketball on Easter?

Some more cute cousins!

After dinner the kids got out this silly game about zoo animals that get loose... You have to play hide and seek with crazy masks on.  The kids love this game.

There was a lion, a giraffe, a panda, and a pig....

They had fun running around and finding one another on a sugar high!

So that officially ends all the photos associated with Easter.  One day later we were packing and on our way to the airport for a vacation in Florida.  We had a fun time and I'll share those photos soon.  (Preferably before May.)  Until later....

The Bunny was HERE!

The kids were up very early on Easter morning... If I remember correctly the clock said 6:30ish.  Steve told them to go back to bed until at least 7:00.  I think we held them off to around 7:15.  Here they are ready to hunt for eggs and check out their baskets.  They look wide awake and ready to go!

Nicholas was thrilled with his basket. He got a new tennis racket, a bathing suit, and the dvd Home Alone..... not to mention lots of candy

Gabby loved with her new Minnie Mouse nightgown because it resembled a dress.  Check out her outfit.  A PJ top with a fancy dress underneath.  The appropriate attire for an Easter Egg Hunt at 7:00 in the morning. 

Let the hunting begin... Gabby really had fun finding eggs.  She would squeal and find one, then run to the next hiding spot and squeal again.  Her basket was full in no time.

Nicholas found LOTS of eggs.... I heard some complaints from the rest of the kids about Nick hogging them all.  I was thinking... how do you hog 94 eggs?  That was a lot of  eggs to search out.

Gabby found a good amount of them....

Amanda found lots too!

This is just after they finished hunting.... As usual there were a few straggler eggs that no one could find...

Ah Ha..... Amanda found the last egg.  (Or so we thought because Gabby and I found 3 more, 2 weeks after we returned home from our trip to Florida.  Like I said...94 eggs is a lot of eggs to find!)

Another fun filled Easter morning.... Next it was off to church and then we were eagerly awaiting everyones arrival for Easter dinner.  I hope to have those photos up soon.  Until later....

Dyeing Easter Eggs

So this bring us to March and Easter weekend.  The kids always have a great time dyeing Easter eggs.  Gabby was very excited this year and couldn't wait to get started.   The pictures are pretty self-explanatory and look similar to the ones I took last year and the years before.  The only thing that changes is that the kids looks older and the number of colored eggs keeps increasing.

 Gabby wanted to dip the eggs all by herself and she did a great job....after realizing that the eggs crack when you dump/drop them in the cup.  She soon refined her technique and looked like a pro.

 A beautiful, bright, blue Easter egg!

 Amanda was a seasoned veteran and patiently waited for her eggs to turn brightly colored...

We tried to swirl the eggs and then rubber band them.... but they didn't work.  Instead we had solid colored eggs this year without glitter or designs.  They were fun to make and the kids had a good time.  I will be back soon with photos from Easter Day.  Until later....

Backtracking......to February???

Has it been over a month since I last posted..... I guess I have a lot of catching up to do!  So with that said I'll have to back track to the month of February.... Amanda's birthday.   Unfortunately I didn't take many photos because there was a lot of excitement occurring during the party.  Here is what I DID capture:

Amanda's zebra striped cake as requested...

 I tried to get a shot of the kids before rounding up everyone for a rendition of "Happy Birthday."  Tyler refused to come over on this side of the table and the other cousins were home sick... so these were the only camera ready guests....

I hope all of Amanda's wishes come true this year... and maybe Gabby will even be granted her wish too!  (Can birthday wishes come true if it's not your birthday???)

 Opening presents and reading cards.... Check out Cameron's handiwork....

The rest of the party was really about the carnival that Amanda, Nick, and Hailey had set up in the basement.  Here the guests were being corralled in the staircase, behind layers of crepe paper streamers, to keep the masses out of the carnival area.  Everyone couldn't wait to attend....

 After being let downstairs and given the rules and directions... everyone was off to play games.  Aunt Mo Mo took the quiz all about Amanda....

 Uncle Justin tried his hand at cup stacking.... I don't think he fared very well....

 Aunt Mo Mo was AWESOME.... no one said you couldn't hold the stack of growing cups... She built a large tower with a steady base.  Good thinking Mo.... no wonder she is a PhD..... she uses more of her brain capacity!

 Cameron throwing at the target against the wall.... What form.... Maybe baseball will be his thing!(On a side note...Wow is my basement messy! )

 Bradley doing the "Pole Hang."  I'm not sure that was the best technique... he obviously is not a PhD... and did not get the best timed score.

 This was a very popular event.  Nearly everyone tried the pole hang.  Amanda is demonstrating the appropriate technique.

A crazy game of Zip-Zap-Zop.... don't ask.... everyone in the background got out very quickly... The 2 most competitive people in the room made it to the finals!

 

 Finally, the staring competition....

 Justin and Crystal trying to act normal.....

 When in actuality they are really pretty GOOFY people.  I think they were trying to reference a photo Crystal took in the summer where she was banned from ever using my camera again!

Finally, what is up with this crazy weather?  Is it really April?   Because it sure feels like this....

 

Like the middle of February!!!!!

So there you have it... Amanda's 11th Birthday party.  Hope to be back soon.  Until later.....