Happy Easter

We went back to our hometown for Easter and got to see everyone!  We had a busy trip, so I'll just hit the highlights in pictures.

Aunt Lala gave Helen Claire an Easter basket right when she woke up on Saturday.  It was an early treat from the Lala Easter Bunny.  Helen Claire loved the clothes, and especially the shortbread.

We had an impromptu ballet party and softball game.  Anything can happen at Mimi's house, and Helen Claire was part ballerina/part ball player.  

She was not a huge fan of the grass on her feet, so we had to put on her bunny slippers.

Showing us where she was going to hit the ball...

Pausing for a picture break...

HOMERUN!!!!

Kisses for the winners...

Helen Claire went to an Egg Hunt at Nana and Pawpaw's church on Saturday.  Maddy was her helper, and they did a great job finding eggs.

They did a good job sitting still and listening to the Easter story while making Resurrection cookies.  It was weird to see Helen Claire look like such a big girl, sitting at a table with all the other kids.  She definitely did not look like my little baby.

She was a little nervous, but Maddy held her hand.  I snapped this when I figured out what they were doing. It's hard to tell from the picture, but they were so sweet holding hands between their chairs.

Yes, my child knew to stop "baking" long enough to pose for a picture.

After the story, we were ready for the egg hunt.  

Helen Claire got the hang of it pretty quickly.  In her normal fashion, she was reserved and careful and watched for a little bit on her own before joining the crowd.  She's such a dainty little lady and takes her time about things.  

Granny made her precious little outift. 

I love the way she holds onto her basket- so prim and proper. 

Maddy gave her lots of encouragement and was a very good helpler. 

Time to go inside for snacks and games.  Helen Claire was getting a little tired, so Daddy rescued her and carried her the rest of the way inside. 

She looked like such a big girl playing with all the older kids.  She sat in the circle and passed the egg just like she was supposed to. She listened to the teacher and she was so grown up!  I was very proud of her, but it was hard on this mama's heart, too.  

She loved the ball pit and telling us all the different colors.  She would run back and forth with a new color and tell us what she found. 

We dyed eggs at Pa and Granny's house later that night.  It was crazy and ending with us blowing out the eggs like candles and Helen Claire licking off the dye.  Let's hope that stuff is as "safe" as the box claims.

This is a serious job... Helen Claire had to stay hydrated. 

Of course, she wanted the "pinkt" dye.

She was so excited and made the funniest faces... so did Daddy and Aunt T :)

Blowing the eggs dry... or Happy Resurrection Birthday... we're crazy. This was not prompted, by the way. 

Once they were dry, we got out the stickers- Helen Claire LOVES stickers!

And here's where the silliness started... it had been a long day!  The more we laughed, the funnier she thought it was.  Such a funny girl!

All done and time for bed.

On Easter Sunday, we were running.  The Easter Bunny left some treats for Helen Claire, and we enjoyed those for a little bit.  Early morning Helen Claire is my favorite.  She is so still and sweet and wants to be cuddled.  We don't get that much anymore, because she is busy and wants to run and play, so when we have those snuggles, they are so, so sweet.  I love her little groggy face and bedhead-and the way her morning voice sounds.  Just the best.

New jammies and books make our girl happy.

The illustrations in Eloise Wilkins' books remind me so much of Helen Claire.  All of her babies and toddlers have chubby little cheeks and make me think of her. 

She loves playing make-up, so we made some pretend. It worked just OK, not great because it doesn't dry all the way.  So, if you are planning that pinterest project, just be aware of that.  

Fruit snacks and Elmo juice boxes... two favorite treats. 

We love to share

We went church with Nana and Pawpaw.  Mimi, Aunt Vickie and Uncle Chad came with us, too.  Helen Claire was worn out for some reason, and she finally gave it up about 20 minutes before the service ended.

She wore a dress that we got at Ms. Phoebe's shop a while back, and it was so sweet on her.  Ms. Phoebe was at church, so she got to see her dress on Helen Claire.

We went to Uncle Chris and Aunt Brandi's house for lunch and another egg hunt.

Helen Claire missed her nap, but we wanted her to be able to hunt eggs with her cousins.  We throw out all our normal rules since we don't get to see everyone all the time.  It looks like Daddy may have needed one too.  My crew was sleepy.

Helen Claire and Max (the dog) kept an eye out on each other.  She loves that little dog, and he is so gentle. 

Getting some pre-egg hunting advice...

and they're off...

She was getting pretty good about pointing out the eggs all by herself.  By next year, I think we'll have a pro on our hands, especially since she had four hunts this year!  Jonathan might miss his egg hunting days, though.  I think he secretly loved having to help her out, and from the looks of it, she was pretty happy to have him there too.

 

She found eleven eggs, and Bailey, Bryce and Maddy were all worried that she didn't find a money egg, so they each found her one and gave it to her.  They were so sweet and giving and concerned for her. The boys actually took eggs out of her basket to make sure she had special money eggs.

We had one little wardrobe issue... a chocolate candy got on the front of her dress, but it least it was at the end of the picture taking.  

We took a picture with all of the cousins, but the big kids had already been swimming.  I think it's cute anyway, but they were all pretty worn out.

After lunch and egg hunt number 3 for Helen Claire, we went back to Pa and Granny's for one more egg hunt. We had to rock it in a diaper and aviators, though.  Our Easter dress had been on long enough.

We took lots and lots of pictures, then went inside to relax and play.

We probably have a hundred pictures of me just like this, playing in just a diaper, in Granny and Pa's yard, so I love all these shots, especially the one of Granny holding her and waving.  I have one that is almost identical of me and Granny.   

Maeko learned that if he stood near Helen Claire, he might get a boiled egg.  We had to hunt eggs pretty fast, before he found them.  

We hid eggs twice at Granny and Pa's house, and the second time, we made it a little bit harder.  Helen Claire did a great job finding all the eggs, and she seemed to like it better once she caught on to the idea that we would hide them and then she got to pick them all up.  I'm not sure she understood that at the first egg hunt, but by the end of the Easter weekend, she had it down pat.

This one cracks me up... I guess they were getting tired of pictures.

One funny thing happened over Easter, and it kind of stuck.  I guess since Helen Claire saw Ms. Phoebe at church that morning, she decided to name her baby cabbage patch bunny Phoebe.  It is pretty cute how well she can say Phoebe, and she never forgets that baby's name!

It was a full weekend, but we were so happy to spend it celebrating with all of our family.

Happy Easter- He is Risen!