Easter Cheer

Happy Easter! I know this is a few days late, but here it is anyway. We woke up Easter morning and the mini was very excited to hunt for the basket that the Easter Bunny left. He was very generous this year and she was totally excited. We had left out a plate of carrots and apples the night before so that he would know we appreciated him dropping by, and he had actually eaten some by the next morning!


Her basket had candy-filled eggs, a new 4-in-1 puzzle, a new spring outfit, a lady bug, and a hanging mesh container for all of her stuffed animals. B.A. & L.A. sent her a pair of polka-dot rain boots that she immediately insisted upon putting on. She wanted to wear them to church with her new Easter dress, too, but was persuaded that her church shoes would look better with her new dressy socks.

Here she's hugging the stuffed lady bug that was in her basket. She's been insisting on taking the lady bug with her whenever we go somewhere and has been talking about it non-stop. It was definitely a big hit. It's name is "Lady Bug." Totally original, I know, but what can you do?

MMMMMM! Blueberry muffins are the perfect breakfast for Easter. With a side of jelly beans, of course!









This is the beautiful dress that B.A. & L.A. gave her for Christmas this year. We decided to save it for Easter. It was a perfect fit! And it was a heavy enough fabric that it helped keep her warm during the somewhat chilly day.

At church, I've taken a picture of her on the velvet sofa in the parlor for the last two years. I'm hoping to do this every year for an "age-progression" shot. If she's always sitting on the same piece of furniture, we'll get to see how she changes over her lifetime. I hope that sofa stays forever!



Later in the afternoon, we went to the "parade" down in one of the historic districts of town. It's a little street festival that is held every year to celebrate Easter. They have food vendors, live bands, arts and crafts, and lots of people wear fun Easter bonnets. There are always tons of dog-lovers out with their 4-legged children on leashes, in carry-alls or being pushed around in doggie strollers. Many of them are dressed up for Easter, too. It's a fun little festival that we try to go to every year.

The mini and almost every other child there absolutely loved the petting zoo. The opportunity to get up close and personal with animals that they don't get to see every day. Of course, it was pretty crowded, so the kids all had to stand in line. We were very proud of the way the mini calmly took turns with the other children. In fact, all of the kids in the petting zoo area were amazingly well-behaved. I guess they were more interested in the animals than they were in the other people around them. And there were enough different animals that if one was surrounded by too many other children, there were always several more that were available.



We took the stroller with us since we weren't sure if she'd be able to keep up with us for the whole day. At one point she decided to crawl in for a rest. She loves to pull the umbrella shade over her head and lay down for a while if she gets the chance. We haven't used this stroller since last summer, but it was definitely a good idea today. We were glad we took it with us!




The mini loves to ride on Daddy's shoulders whenever he'll let her. And she loves to bend over to give him kisses and talk to him while she's up there.







One fun thing they had at the festival was a hair-coloring "booth." We were surprised when the mini actually sat there calmly and let the guy spray her. She chose pink and purple stripes with sparkles. She looked too cute! And the color was almost completely gone by bedtime that night, so there was really no mess to deal with.



Here she got her very own purple blow-up Easter bunny. Every girl should have one!








One of the best parts of this festival is that you're very likely to run into people that you know but don't necessarily see all the time. As we were making our final pass down the street before heading home, we found one of the mini's friends from school (with her family, of course) and the two of them had a grand time. It was great watching them holding hands, skipping, jumping, giggling and just generally having a grand time together. I think that topped off the afternoon very nicely.











And last, but not least, we came home late in the afternoon and had a fabulous egg hunt in the back yard. I tell you what, that Easter Bunny can be pretty devious when it comes to hiding eggs, but the mini eventually found them all - all 45 of them! And she had a wonderful time doing it, too! We definitely had a fun-filled day.