A blessed Easter weekend

We had a great weekend celebrating Easter here in Chicago with our family of four.  While it was sad to not see our extended families, it was kind of nice to be here and start a few traditions on our home turf.  Also this weekend kicks off Alan's Spring Break so it was great knowing that our fun will continue into next week!

Friday night we worked together to dye Easter eggs.  We didn't do anything fancy but it was appropriate for Andrew's current skill level.  Check out that look of concentration as he dropped the food coloring into the water!  I hope he aces his science labs in the future.

 Andrew anxiously waited as the eggs absorbed the dye.  He kept wanting to spoon them out prematurely so we tried to distract him with books and photos.

Voila!  We are done and no one spilled or drank the dye.  Win for the parents!

Saturday morning our neighborhood held its 16th Annual Egg Hunt.  I was on the event committee and got to  help set up the event.  It was fun to meet other parents in the neighborhood in the process.  The event was a great success with beautiful weather and over a hundred happy parents and hunters.  

Like the sign?  Yep, I made that.  

We let the youngest group in first and Andrew quickly got to work picking up eggs, opening them, dumping the treats in his bucket, and moving on to the next one.  There was a 10 egg limit per kid, but in the end Andrew picked up every orphaned egg in the 0-2 so his bucket was quite full.

Andrew's passion for egg hunting didn't translate to liking the Easter bunny. She said something to the effect of "Mom, just take the picture quickly."  

Daniel had to follow his big brother's lead in protesting the bunny hold.  To be fair, he hadn't eaten for three hours and was ready to go home.  

When I took him back in my arms he made amends with the bunny and started flirting by flashing his dimples.

 

Andrew enjoyed sorting through his spoils when he got home.  He definitely knows the word candy now and enjoys sneaking pieces of chocolate when he can.

 This morning we donned our Easter best and went to church.  We enjoyed a yummy breakfast and then had a beautiful service.  There was a lot of nice music and heartfelt sharing.  We are thankful for our church!

After nap time Andrew went over to our pastor's home to participate in another egg hunt. The other kids who were supposed to join him were napping so he had full run of the backyard.  He got really good at finding eggs that were hiding under and behind things.  We are going to have to keeping playing this game at home.

Do you want some candy? 

We hope you had a wonderful Easter!  

-Rachel

Mom's Eye View

It is time for me to get "back" to blogging and share my take on raising two adorable little guys.  Today I'll mostly do it in pictures but I hope to share more of my heart through words in the days ahead.

Daniel is quickly filling out and getting more adorable everyday.  In a few days he'll be three months, but here's his photo from the beginning of March.  

Andrew spends a good amount of time everyday playing "tracks" and "choo choos."  It is fun to see his imagination and fine motor skills develop more and more each day.  He is also getting good at identifying the trains that pass by our home by both sight and sound.  He can be in the other room and say "Metra!" and be 100% correct (other options include Freight Train and Amtrak). 

He also has a passion for helping us cook.  Maybe he just wants to sneak tastes, but he definitely learns a lot on the process.  This week he correctly identified ginger at the grocery store and commonly asks for cinnamon to be added to our dishes.  It is fun to let him get involved even if it means that the clean up might be a bit more involved.  Can you tell I'm proud of my little boy?

Everyone always asks how the brothers are getting along.  I really think their relationship is better than I ever could have expected.  Sure, Andrew occasionally swats or throws toys his way but there are more sweet moments than sour ones.   

Daniel's smile has definitely emerged and brings joy to my heart everyday!  Check out those dimples.  

I think the best thing about getting to stay home is doing "special" projects with Andrew everyday.  Here he was painting and having a wonderful time.  

 This week Andrew and I put together the double stroller.  He successfully threaded the washers as we put on the wheels.  Then we took a stroll in the basement before going out on the open road!

 When we returned from our walk Andrew found some chalk and started to decorate the ground and our lawn deer.  I kind of hate chalk but it is such fun for Andrew that I am warming up to it.

As big brother stayed outside, Daniel took a nap in the poof ball he was wearing on the walk.  It was probably too warm for the day, but it meant I didn't need to put on more clothes/blankets.

 When Daniel woke up he spent some time being absolutely adorable in the bouncy chair.  He really can get that chair rocking.

Tomorrow I will post pictures of our Easter weekend festivities.  Stay tuned.

Rachel

Busy life with two kids - in photos (by necessity)

Wow, it has been over two months since I blogged about Daniel's birth.  In that time he has grown a ton - he is topping the scales at 13+ pounds nowadays, and is in the 90+ percentile for height and head size.  He is a big baby.  His schedule is getting better, as he is sleeping more at night and is more alert during the day.  Rachel recently decided that he is a "keeper" (though I don't think that Northwestern hospital has a return policy) so he must be getting cuter.

Things are obviously busy around the house - as anyone who has/had multiple kids can attest.  Rachel has to work hard to keep up with the laundry, toy pick-up, shopping, cooking, cleaning, and a thousand other unheralded mommy duties.  I am in a rare mid-winter stretch of 5-day weeks at school, getting up early to prep for classes and coming home to play with the boys in the evening.  We are going to bed tired and the free time is at a minimum - but it is a fulfilling life.

Since our family guests have left, the basement has transformed into a nice play area - Andrew enjoys blocks, balls, and his play kitchen.  He will spend hours "cooking" as he takes out his play food and makes various concoctions for us to try.

His new favorite is to approach us and ask, "Mommy, play?" or "Daddy, play?" as he cocks his head and gives us a cute look.  Very manipulative.

  

Winter has almost gone, but the snow held off to the last few weeks.  Andrew finally donned the snow suit twice recently so that he could play in the snow.

 Rachel got stir crazy last week, so she took the kids out in the wagon despite the elements.  Don't worry, Daniel was sufficiently bundled to sleep the whole time.

In the living room, Andrew has his train tracks to play with - so that he can play with toy trains as he watches the big trains roll by in the window.  Notice the new rug?  A recent purchase, as we are trying to add some decor to the house.  Several things finally went up downstairs in the play/TV room, but more work needs to be done in the living room.  We have some chairs on order to add to the furniture, which should arrive by the end of the month.

As far as home projects, I did fit in a couple of things just to take a break from the everyday chores.  I painted our entry door (the interior only) a bright yellow with brown trim.  It used to be off-white, so this brightened things up a lot.

This weekend, I finished some shelves in the corner of the unfinished part of the basement.  There was a massive pile of junk there, so hopefully this will start a process of organizing down there.

Spring break will be after Easter this year, instead of before (as it traditionally was) so there are still 3 more weeks left.  No plans yet for what we will do.  Any suggestions?

-alan