Weekend at Mimi's

It was a beautiful weekend and we got to spend it at Mimi's house! We started out at the Galleria mall in Birmingham on Friday afternoon. First stop, the "riding" toys! Mimi is so much nicer than Mommy, she actually puts money in them to make them go :-)

"Hot Dogs, Hot Dogs"

"Vroommmmm"

Next stop, a ride on the train

After a little bit of shopping...which included Ethan's first pair of Spiderman light-up shoes, courtesy of Mimi and much to Mommy's dismay, we headed to Mimi's house. 

On Saturday, we had a picnic at the park.

Caden chasing the birds

 Sweet boy stomping around in his favorite new shoes

 

 Next, LOTS of time on the slides...

 

 

 This was a second before Caden went "plop" and slid right onto the ground

 After naps, we had a practice Easter egg hunt. 

Caden had to open up each egg to check it out before putting it in his "Easter basket."

 Love Ethan's excited jump!

 Then, a little exercise :-) 

Caden thought this was the funniest thing in the world and 

Ethan kept purposefully sliding back into Caden trying to knock him down. 

Should I be surprised???

 After that, some relaxing

 While Ethan and Mimi relaxed, 

Caden proudly tried to find every toy and put them on top of their feet. 

What a nut!

 And finally, some sweet giggles!

It was a wonderful weekend and we had such a great time getting spoiled by our Mimi. 

Can't wait to do it again!

Shadowbrook Art Show

This week was Shadowbrook's annual Art Show. The children work all year long on cute pieces to exhibit in the show. We had quite a dramatic day so I didn't know until the last minute whether or not we would make it, but I am so glad we did even if it was just for 15 minutes. In my mind, I pictured being able to get pictures of each boy with both of their teachers but the reality of the day struck and I was lucky to get what I did. Ethan wasn't sick but he kept complaining of stomach cramping so I kept going back and forth about whether or not we should go. Ultimately, his stomach settled down in the evening so we decided to make a quick trip down there.

By the time we were halfway there, Ethan had already begun complaining about not feeling well again, so I ran in with Caden while Ben sat with him in the car. When I got ready to take the first picture, I realized the battery on the camera was dead. Just my luck. So I ran back out to the car to grab the little camera(which I had thankfully thrown in the car as well), but by that time Caden was no longer interested in posing for pictures :-) Again, just my luck.

Even if he wouldn't look at me, 

he did at least stand next to his footprint Cat in the Hat.

 

 Sweet penguin feet!

 

Itsy, Bitsy Spider

He had several other cute projects, but Mommy guilt overcame me thinking of my oldest sitting out in the car with a stomachache and we ran out after saying a quick "Hi" to his teachers.

As I buckle Caden back in and we get ready to head home, Ethan says that he wants to go in. So, I quickly grab him and we run back in to see his projects. 

I was able to get a picture with Ms. Marsha, who is one of his teachers. 

Ethan's "cheese" face, I promise that is not stomach pain :-)

What a neat way to do a sunset picture! I hope I remember the cute things that the boys have done when I return to the classroom one day.

 Ribbit, Ribbit

 Ethan also had several more great projects that I didn't get pictures of, including an adorable turtle made from a painted terracotta pot. But, we quickly said "Hi" and "Goodbye" to everyone and jumped back in the car to head home before he had any meltdowns from his stomach hurting. 

By that time, I was sweating! 

We got back home and Ethan and I wound down watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse before I put him to bed. Thankfully, the cramping had passed(due to some Mylicon) and he was able to rest. For the life of me, I cannot figure out what caused Ethan's gas pain. He ate absolutely nothing out of the ordinary and had a completely routine day, but whatever it was I hope we never have to experience it again. He was absolutely miserable and other than a few doses of Mylicon, I was helpless in making him feel better. Not a good Mommy day.

Bumps and Bruises

Boys will be boys. Period. 

And no matter what Mommy tells them, they will still do what they want to do. 

For example, the result of running through the house and hitting the corner of the banister at the bottom of the stairs...

 This could definitely have been worse, but we still ended up with a nice goose egg and a cut down the middle. 

Ironically, Ethan sported the exact same goose egg when he was Caden's age on the opposite side of his forehead. And guess what, he was doing the exact same thing.
Hence, boys will be boys.

This was the best picture that I could find of Ethan's injury (you'll have to click on the picture to get a better view). Probably because he was our first child and I was mortified that we could have let something like that happen to him so I shielded him from pictures until it started to heal. Ha! How things change from the first child to the second!

A Day with Aunt Wanda

This weekend Ethan got some wonderful one-on-one, undivided, devoted, positive attention from Aunt Wanda. We began hyping up his slumber party a few days before but he kept expressing some apprehension about spending the night without Mommy and Daddy staying, too. Well, we drove down Saturday after naps and the minute we pulled into the driveway he began to kick his feet and giggle excitedly. What a turkey! We ate dinner and played for a bit before it was time for Mommy, Daddy, and Caden to go. He didn't even notice that we left and when we came back Sunday afternoon to pick him up he asked why we were there. We missed you, too, son :-)

Caden wanted to sit like a big boy with 

Aunt Wanda at the bar for dinner

 Once Mommy, Daddy, & Caden left,

 it was time to wind down for bed

The next day was cold, but he bundled up because there was "work" to do! 

First, a little digging...

 

 Then some measuring...

 

 And some wheelbarrowing...

 Finally, tilling...

What a special time for him! 

He had a blast and "worked" so hard that as soon as we got home and had a bath, he crawled straight into bed, pulled the bedcover up over himself, and fell right asleep. 

We love you, Aunt Wanda! Thank you for an awesome day!

INK

We had a blast at INK. The INteractive Kids museum is in Gainesville about 20 minutes away. Ben took the day off and we took the boys and our little friend Sadie. While we started out together, it didn't stay that way for long. Which ended up working out perfectly because Ben was able to tag along with Ethan at his pace and I was able to hang out with Caden and Sadie at move at their pace. We both took tons of pictures and I was finally able to narrow it down to these. 

Enjoy the picture overload :-)

In the middle of the museum was an enclosed miniature city with double train tracks around it. There were buttons all the way around the outside that would turn on whatever the picture was in front of it. It also played music that Caden danced to but I couldn't catch it with my camera. Of course, Ethan was not into cheesing it up for the camera.

Trucks...the first thing Caden saw when we walked in. He carried them around the first 3 rooms that we visited before he finally decided that there were other neat things to play with. 

LOVE the grin on his face!!!

Oh my! All 3 kiddos had a blast in the grocery store! They each filled up their shopping cart and took it over to the cashier to scan their items on the conveyor belt. They loved hearing the beep every time something was scanned.

 

There were several train tables set up throughout the building and of course we had to play at all of them!

 

Another favorite! A real airplane where they each got to be pilot.

 All passengers boarding now...

 Fasten your seatbelts, it's time for take off...

 Sweet Girl!

 Love him!!!

Next stop...watch out. Ethan's off-roading. Vroom, Vroom.

We spent lots of time driving the fire truck, too. The boys loved this! They even had a dalmatian riding along. Sadie walked right past it. It was so funny to see the difference in the boys' interests vs her interests.

 

And here's Sheriff Ethan

 ...Along with Sheriff Caden

Neither of the boys were the least bit interested in the Dr.'s office, but Sadie probably spent most of her time here. She was the sweetest little doctor putting kisses on the babies heads and giving them medicine.

 

Caden, working hard at the bank. It was such a cute room, complete with a drive through window.

 Last stop was the play area. Caden and Sadie loved climbing through the tunnels and sliding but it was a little too closed in for Ethan. He went back to the Vet clinic while we played :-)

While we hit several other rooms on our journey through the museum, these were their favorites. Mommy really enjoyed the 50's style soda shop/diner but the kiddos weren't into it. 

To each their own :-)

What a wonderful day, we can't wait to visit again!