Stephen and I hadn't really done Easter celebrations in the past because 1. the kids were too small or 2. the Gates were out of town doing Easter in Plano. But, this year was a great year to begin the fun traditions since Miles is big enough to understand it all.
We got both Carson and Miles cutie Easter baskets and filled each basket with fun Easter goodies. Thanks to quarantine, a lot of my Easter fillers didn't come in time or weren't available. But, Denise to the rescue with her early Easter box of goodness. Thanks Denise!
Carson found the flashy ball
Miles found the candy.... Not pictured: The lolli-pop he's already opened and eating simultaneously
We planned brunch with the Gates for Todd's famous eggs benedict with homemade hollandaise sauce and mimosas. yum!
Cowboy egg for me since I'm not a huge benedict fan
LOVE this!
We opted to do the hunt after Miles napped in hopes of him actually napping. Candy in the eggs + trying to get a kid to sleep didn't really seem like it would mesh well. So, Todd took the girls on a bike ride and Becky and I used Miles' nap time to hide the eggs.
Egg hunt 2020 - 3 Stages
Stage 1: Gates Backyard
LET THE HUNT BEGIN!
The girls did so great making sure Miles was able to get some eggs too. "Take 2, leave 1 for Miles!"
Stage 2: Park behind our houses
Me: "I see an egg! Look up!"
Halle: "All I see is sky and leaves!"
Halle: "OH!"
- Basket dump before stage 3 to make more space - Stage 3: Short's Backyard
The girls were still very much into it. Miles lost interest when he realized the eggs were filled with treats. ha!
The hunt was a mad success and to top things off, we managed to grab some group shots before the kids went inside to examine their loot.
We need to work on Miles' "cheeeeese" face
Erin seeking refuge from Miles on the chair
Realized we're missing someone? Don't worry, Carson was blissfully asleep during the entire hunt. He joined the party soon after.
Such a great day for a egg hunt. So pretty and the kids had a blast!
Happy Birthday Babe!! While in quarantine, there's not much to do but stay home and celebrate. So, we started Stephen's birthday festivities early with a Friday evening barbecue with the Gates.
Lia's way of helping Miles up the slide -ha!
"ready?!..."
"Gooo!!!"
*giggle giggle giggle*
Facetime with Gramma and Grampa
Stephen spent the evening having an impromptu college reunion with a ton of his friends via ZOOM. He had a blast! They all chatted, toasted and took turns updating everyone on their life/telling funny stories. Stephen was just all cackles since he hasn't seen a lot of these people in a long while.
The next morning, I set up fun birthday decor and once Stephen woke up, we opened gifts. The boys made Stephen these super cute cards with hand prints and footprints. I have to say... they came out better than Pinterest *shoulder brush* :P
The girls spent the day before making this amazing banner to wish Bob-o a happy birthday. I wasn't sure what to expect, but they blew me away! This banner is insanely cool. We had the Gates over for a big brunch and the girls were pumped to see it already hanging up.
Showing off their work:
Lia: "Bob-o, this is you fishing (pointing to the guy on top of the "T"). You caught a fish. But... not the big one at the bottom of the pond. You also have a snake about to bite your BUTT!!"
Erin: "Bob-o I drew you hitting a ball off the H!"
Halle: "How OLD are you?!"
bahaha
Stephen's birthday panCAKE
After breakfast, my parents stopped by to wish Stephen and happy birthday. We all hung out in the front yard playing with the new bubble blowers I bought the kids and doing sidewalk chalk. Everyone kept their distance and it was fun to catch up.
The rest of the afternoon, Stephen was at the pond (trying to catch the big fish...no luck...) relaxing.
Miles went out to say Hi and perfect timing - he got to join in on the canoe!
We had a quiet and dinner and ended the night with some social distancing driveway sitting with the Devlins. Such a great time. Such a great birthday.
When COVID-19 became a real thing, we headed out to stock up on meat and produce thinking we've entered into some sort of Apocalypse. In the midst of this, Todd bought a turkey. A legit, huge, turkey. Looking back, it may not have been absolutely necessary as we have an inordinate amount of food now. But hey, what the heck. It's April. It's .... uh .... a day. Not sure what day. So let's do this. Thanksgiving in April amist a wide spread pandemic to which we re-named "Cov-urkey Day"
Turkey dance compliments of Stephen. Miles didn't quite understand what was happening. ha!
While the turkey was frying, the guys decided they wanted to capitalize on the recent rain and setup a make-shift water pump to try and fill the pond. Todd heard a rumor from a friend that he'd seen a rattlesnake back there, so our eyes were peeled. But, in the back of our minds, we're thinking "it's been 3 years and no terrifying snake. A rattler? nah"
.....
Yup. That is a dead 5-6ft rattlesnake. Why it's hanging from a tree? Ask Todd...
Meanwhile, the kids were outside playing. Happily playing.
And why wouldn't they be? Literal mud trucks. Miles was in HEAVEN.
Facetime with the Devlins
We made sure all the kids got to say hi
We pulled out all the stops. Fried turkey, stuffing, roasted broccoli, fried sweet potatoes, homemade potato chips, pasta, wine (essential) - YUM -
Gas prices $1.44 per gal. School cancelled - yes cancelled until further notice. Self-distancing measures on the rise. Tape on the floors at grocery stores and others to help distance shoppers (6ft) from each other. Limited number of people inside stores, therefore, lineups outside the store doors. Non-essential stores and businesses mandated to close.
Business still in operation only offering curb-side pickup to protect workers and patrons.
Unemployment rates increasing by the day. Parks, trails, entire cities locked up. Entire sports seasons cancelled - all sports at all levels. Concerts, tours, festivals, entertainment events - cancelled. Weddings, family celebrations, holiday gatherings - cancelled. No masses, churches are closed. No gatherings of 50 or more, then 20 or more, now 5 or more. Don't socialize with anyone outside of your home. Children's outdoor play parks are closed. We are to distance from each other. Shortage of masks, gowns, gloves for our front-line workers. Shortage of ventilators for the critically ill. Parts are being made by 3D printers and developers to outfit one ventilator to be used for multiple patients. Panic buying sets in and we have no toilet paper, no disinfecting supplies, no paper towel no laundry soap, no hand sanitizer. Shelves are bare. Manufacturers, distilleries and other businesses switch their lines to help make visors, masks, hand sanitizer and PPE. Government closes the border to all non-essential travel. Fines are established for breaking the rules. Stadiums and recreation facilities open up for the overflow of Covid-19 patients. Press conferences daily from the President. Daily updates on new cases, recoveries, and deaths. Government incentives to stay home. Barely anyone on the roads. People wearing masks and gloves outside. Essential service workers are terrified to go to work. Medical field workers are afraid to go home to their families.
People are lysoling boxes and mail before bringing it home.
The constant hand washing and cracking skin.
Learning NOT to touch your face - so much harder than it sounds.
Knowing we're living in history. A worldly outbreak.
This is the Novel Coronavirus (Covid-19) Pandemic, declared March 11th, 2020.
One day we will read back in our photo book to remember these times. The good, the bad, the paranoid and the bored.
Be kind to each other - love one another - support everyone. And above all. Stay home! #flattenthecurve
After the much anticipated wait, I give you our baby boy. Now 11.5 months old. Can you believe it?! Insane.
I had seen this Calvin and Hobbes comic and was so excited to get Carson out by the pond. The issue with that is we had to wait for decent weather.
When I saw this comic, my original idea (and what we had set out to do) was this:
Adorable. However, the close up shot tipped the scale on sweetness, so the official photo was selected. And the overalls. Did you see the overalls?! In.Love. (credit to Becky on that idea) #worththewait
This little booger @ 11.5 months:
- He's on his feet! This has been a recent accomplishment and he's SO proud. He's still trying to figure out how to get down. We've have a couple naps where he starts to cry, we go in there and realize he's stuck. Stuck standing up
- He is getting better with his solid foods. It's a slow go, but we're getting better.
- The transition to the cup has been...well...pretty non existent. We've tried a ton of different styles and he just doesn't seem interested. We'll keep plugging away here...
- He's gotten close to escaping through the dog door but hasn't taken the full leap (thankfully)
- Loves ice, strings, balls, shoes, going on walks, being outside. Hates grass, shoes on HIS feet
- Has graduated to the big tub and loves to crawl around and splash in the water.
- His current favorite activity is taking toys and putting them places. On the table, in the bin, in the tub, through the slats of the gate. All the things. I think cause and effect is super interesting to him.
- Not a big book buff. He'll look at them but reading doesn't keep his attention for as long as compared to Miles
- Can climb up on things. But doesn't know how to get down.
- Wearing 12 & 18 month clothes. Will likely be into mainly 18 month by the summer.
- We're on a solid schedule! Wake up around 7-8am. Nap at 10am and 2pm and bedtime at 7:30-45pm. It's been amazing.
- He can sign milk and all done. The "milk" is not as consistent, but his "all done" is so cute. Waves his hands in the air and seems to say "a du!" I've been trying to get it on camera, but no luck so far.
- Sucks on the neck of his snuggies.
- His curls are coming in and I'm so excited :)
- Has 6 teeth!
- Has a cackly, gurgly laugh. It's so funny
- super wiggly on the changing table making thing quite interesting.
- If you sit on the floor, there's a 99% chance Carson will think of you as a jungle gym and crawl/climb all over you
Sweet little squinty smile
One thing that's great about this whole quarantine thing is watching these boys learn and grow. Carson is just a sweetie and Miles is this determined little dude. Watching Miles figure things out - you can just see his brain working. It's amazing. Stephen and I are just beyond thankful for these little boys.
