Easter Weekend 2016

We had a very busy Easter week/weekend this year. It all started Wednesday night, when Ellie, Emma, and I attended "The Promise" which is a play/musical of the Passion that our church puts on for a few days during Lent. Everyone involved is a member of the church and a volunteer, actor/singer/musician/technician/director/etc.,  and it has been going on for 39 years!!! It is unbelievably good! If you are ever in Valdosta a week or two before Easter, you have to swing by Park Avenue United Methodist Church and watch "The Promise."

Thursday, I had Mack and Emma's school Easter parties. Thankfully, Worth was off work Thursday and was able to attend Mack's party, while I went to Emma's party. It is so hard to be in 2-3 places at one time!!

Good Friday was Ellie's last day of school before spring break, but was also FIELD DAY!! This is Ellie's absolute favorite day of the school year. She is so pumped for this day of outdoor competitions. I was able to go for the morning, and then the torrential rains hit Valdosta. They had to call Field Day at 11:30, so I just checked her out of school and brought her home. Her teacher didn't look to thrilled about having to fill time for the rest of the afternoon, so I at least took one kid off of her hands! We came home and the kids had a movie afternoon just hanging out because that's about all we could do in the terrible weather.

Saturday, we travelled to Tifton to see the Bowers crew. I actually had waited until the last possible minute to look for Easter dresses for the girls and myself, so we had to drop Mack and Worth off, then head to find us a dress, which we ended up being successful! After shopping, we had lunch at Mia and E.W.'s and the kids played in the rain all afternoon. Mack has boot burns on his legs from running around in shorts and his rain boots for so long.

Sunday, in luring rain, we headed back up to Tifton to attend St. Anne's with my parents. We then went back out to the Bowers' home and had a big lunch with lots of family. The kids enjoyed an indoor easter egg hunt and expended all of their energy playing, fighting over toys and candy, and eating sugar.

Last night, we were all worn out!! Despite all of the rain, it was a great week/weekend to celebrate the Risen Lord!


(Sorry these pictures are all out of order. It took so long to download them, I'm too lazy to go back and redo the order. Not sure why iPhoto did that! Just read the captions!)

Ellie flying down the stairs Easter morning to see what the Easter bunny brought. 

Emma's run to the baskets. One big blur. 

Mack wasn't as sure about the situation. I think he was nervous that a big bunny may still be in our house somewhere. 

New dance bags for the girls, and big boy underwear for Mack. The Easter bunny has high hopes that he soon will want to use them!!

Mack really just liked to eat the candy in the eggs. 

Ellie's favorite gift. A growing bunny. If you put it in water it grows. It is getting bigger, but it takes 72 hours - and we aren't there yet. 

So excited about Easter. 

Sunglasses!!!

Mack. Still eating candy. 

Before leaving to go to Tifton to attend church with Grandma and Papa. 

Sweet Banks Easter sunday morning. Something about a remote that little kids just love!

The cousin playing in E.W.'s office:  Scotty, Emma, Banks, Bo, and Mack

Ellie and Banks, who became big buddies this weekend. 

Indoor Easter egg hunt

Mack wasn't all about the hunt. Until the candy in the eggs he had was gone, then he'd hunt another egg for candy. 

Emma ended up with the golden egg (which held $5) Ellie was not very happy about it. 

Eating candy, again.

Bo was a great egg hunter this year. 

Ellie racked up!

Banks wasn't sure what to think about all the chaos. 

Emma's sweet preschool class before their egg hunt Thursday. 

It was at her friend Rob's cabin - which is on their land near their house. The weather was beautiful and the  cabin/ tree house/trampoliine/swings/country air couldn't have been better for the kids. 

Read to hunt. 

This family's land is beautiful. And we only saw a small area of it. 

This was the tree house. Equipped with a curvy slide, bunk beds, t.v., and a refrigerator stocked with juice boxes and capri suns. This little boy is the baby of 4 kids. So, everything out there was kid friendly. 

The kids had to hunt for the eggs with their names. 

Singing the blessing. So sweet!

The mothers that put together this party outdid themselves. They also served a brunch for all the parents in attendance. 

The kids ate so much on their plates, no one even touched the bunny cupcake cake!

Thursday afternoon. Had not started raining yet. That is just water that the kids splashed from the pool. They are dying to swim!

Field day frisbee toss. 

Ellie is still a pro at the bean bag toss. 

The giant slide was a hit with all the kids. 

Tug of war is alway entertaining. 

The other team somehow had way more kids....

So some dads and the high school guys helping jumped in to help Elle's class. 

And she loved the hula hoop

A classmate competition ensued. 

Crashing in front of a movie after field day. The rain had started coming down. 

Saturday afternoon in Tifton. Ellie and the littlest Berryman (so far.)

Easter bunny baskets (sorry WAY out of order)

before church outtakes

All the cousins after the hunt. 

How we all felt Sunday around 4:00pm. Wo out!!!

A few weeks of firsts

Emma is knocking out some milestones lately. In the past 2 months, she not only has mastered the monkey bars, she has learned to snap and to ride her bike without training wheels. I guess she thinks all of this stuff is required to start kindergarten, which I registered her for last week (sniff, sniff.)

The bike actually went very smoothly. She got on, rode, and hasn't looked back. She's only had 1 fall with 1 minor injury in the last 2 weeks. She can stop and start all by herself now as well. She's so tough and stubborn, in a good way. I think she is just constantly trying to keep up with her sister.

She is growing up so much, I can't stand it!!!

This was in the Lowndes  County board of education office, where we registered her for kindergarten. She is BEYOND excited to finally get to go to school with Ellie in the fall (or I should say late summer since school starts in early August.)

She did it!

Emma has finally mastered the monkey bars. I do believe sooner than her sister did??!! She is beyond proud of herself, and I'm proud of her. This is all she's been talking about and working on at recess for the last 2 months.

My Valentines

Worth and his girls before the father/daughter dance. They had a great time, and from what I hear, tore up the dance floor. 

Mack looking cute after church on Valentine's Sunday. He had just eaten a blue sucker that his Sunday school teacher gave him. As you can see, he was proud to show me his blue tongue and mouth. 

Valentine's Day afternoon was so nice outside. We built a fire in the fire pit and watched the kids play all afternoon.

January 2016

It's been a low key month, which is really nice. We've had fun with friends, a few tantrums, some serious bed head, school accomplishments, colder weather, and lots of down time. I've enjoyed every minute of it all!

We had dinner and smores with our friends, the Barrys, a couple  of weeks ago. Mack and Claire had a blast with this toy. They are about 2 months apart in age. 

Ellie and Anna Beth (the Barry's oldest daughter) decided to run around in the drizzle with their umbrellas. I'm not sure where Emma and Maggie were during all of this. 

It finally got cold down here in south GA. Cold for us, at least. There was no snow or ice or anything, but it was cold enough for us to turn the heater on outside for the cats. They were all huddled together in this picture. From the furtherest away to closest in: Dash, Aspen, and of course, Freddie. 

What I deal with on a daily basis with this 2 year old. Major tantrums are a part of life. A part that I don't think I will look back and miss. 

We had trees cut down in our yard and it was, by far, the coolest thing that could have ever happened at our house according to Emma and Mack. They stayed glued to the windows every day. 

Worth decided to put the painting I gave him for Christmas in Mack's room. I think it looks perfect in there. 

Bed head - angle 1

Bed head - angle 2

Bed head with attitude. 

Poor thing, just another melt down for the day. Probably because  he wants to  lick the floor or throw his train against the wall, or pull Freddie's tail,  and I won't let him. I'm such a mean mom. 

"but PLEASE MOMMA!"  

I'm glad I mostly wear old t-shirts in the afternoon when these fits occur.  They don't call them the terrible 2s for nothing!

The girls are enjoying their kindles. Mack especially likes to go back and forth, letting Ellie read to him or watching Emma play sight word games. 

They are growing so fast. 

Ellie received a top reader award for 1st grade in her school. She got invited to a VSU basketball game for her achievements.

We ran into one of Emma's best friends, Julianne, while at the basketball game. These 2 were inseparable.

Jules and Emma posing it up with Blaze - the VSU mascot. 

Emma wanted a solo picture with Blaze. 

At halftime, they had all of the top readers stand when their elementary school was called. This is what Ellie did when they asked the Westside readers to stand. She was so proud of herself and her school! I see possible cheerleading in her future??!!! Her daddy and I are so proud of her!