Happy Easter to all

First of all I can't believe a year ago we were counting down the days until Brian returned from deployment.  What a great feeling it was to be at the tail end of that #@%&! year.  What a difference a year makes, and insane how fast it went.  I think it's fair to say everything is back to normal, no more post-deployment adjustment, ups and downs, lovey la la land...it's just regular old family now.  I'll take it.

Easter weekend kicked off with the annual city-wide egg hunt which I fear is no longer just city-wide.  I'd venture to say it is now state-wide, or at least word is out that it's open to one and all.  Let's just say mad house and who the heck were those people?  Kate made it out alive thanks to Brian escorting her to find her one egg.  Why on earth do 4, 5 and 6 year olds need their parents to help them find eggs?  In Kate's case Brian was her bodyguard as it seems egg hunting is a competitive sport among parents, much like many other sports sadly.  The boys fared a bit better as I stuck Sam in with the 7 and 8 year olds (who would know the difference) and parents, while still out there, sat back a bit.  They seemed happy and that's all that matters.

We had a nice Easter, started with the kids attacking their baskets with the limited amount of candy...Easter Bunny just isn't into sugar so much anymore.  Don't worry...they had their fair share and were most pleased with their tiny Lego sets and little mini Polly Pocket who no doubt has already lost her only pair of microscopic shoes.

For a minute I thought "how did I get a Christmas picture in here?"

For the first time ever, all three seemed to be on an equal playing field when it came to the hunt.  We gave Kate a head start only because she was dressed well before the rest, (ok, and she's the littlest but don't tell her that).

sweet brothers

The Golden Egg.  

We had Easter brunch on post.  This is officially our Easter tradition now.  No cooking or clean up and gives us a chance to dress the kids up a bit.  As luck would have it our table overlooked the lake and was in a room with only a few other tables...the rest of the crowd was crammed into a huge room with no windows.  I need to find out what I did or said to rate that table to be sure to do it again.  The food was plentiful and the kids were thrilled with the sausage (Sam) and chocolate fountain (Matthew and Kate).  Unfortunately I only got photos post brunch so you can see someone wearing the chocolate fountain on his beautiful new shirt.  Thank you stain stick.  

                                  

                                    Not sure what kind of move Sam is doing or why Matthew is thinking he's so cool, but here they are, all full and happy.  Sam just told me, "Mommy, I loved that brunch".  Good!

We moved the party outside to play around the lake for a few, it was a typical dreary April day but I think Kate brightened it up a bit. 

                            

                                          

                    

Happy Spring!