This year we were invited over to Grandma and Grandpa McWhorter's house to celebrate Easter with them. Easter always reminds me of my Papa McWhorter. 
He would send all four of us girls the most elaborate easter baskets every year. Not as in super expensive and filled with tons of gifts. As in all kinds of unique and ornate candies and chocolates. My favorite every year was a giant sugar egg sitting horizontally in its box. It had an oval window cut out in its side and when you looked in there was some sort of Easter seen that had been created with sugar and frosting inside. Maybe it was a chick hatching out of an egg or a rabbit in a field. I always thought they were so pretty. It was too sugary too even eat but it was so pretty to look at. The bunny usually brings our kids a good mixture of sweets and little fun things to play with. Deke must have an understanding with him that he will always bring the kids PEEPS every year since they all love them and I am not so much a fan. 
Even though the kids were super excited Easter morning they didn't get up until 7:30 so everyone was well rested and ready to hunt. They first went around the house finding all the eggs they could.
Some were filled with candy and some even had quarters in them, or "monies" as Avery calls them. Once they had searched every nook and crany they still could find the baskets. "Remember the bunny hid them outside last year" Avery reminded Hunter. Out the back door they headed searching the back yard. 
Avery found her basket first behind a bush. It was filled with lots of yummy treats and of course some flavor blasted goldfish to balance out the sweet with some salt. She got her very own hairbrush for her and her baby dolls and a cute Tinkerbell surf/paddle board for the pool. 
Then she looked up higher into the bush and started jumping up and down excitedly. She had gotten a purple hula hoop! This was obviously her favorite gift and she spent most of the afternoon perfecting her skills on her waist, arm and even neck. Mom and Dad both tried it out and realized that we are quite rusty and definitely in need of practice. Hunter found his basket behind the air conditioning unit. He had also recieved plentiful amounts of sugar and a Spiderman surf/paddle board like Ave's. He also got some Scooby Doo body wash and his favorite thing, some green silly string. Once we found Emma's by the edge of the pool we moved it over to where she could investigate it. It was so fun to have her taking steps so she could sort of walk over to her basket. First thing she went to was some fun little colored balls with holes in them so she can hang onto them better. 
She also got a cute little pink pig puppet, a new butterfly book and instead of candy a bag of baby goldfish and some Gerber's fruit bars. As soon as she saw the fruit bars she grabbed it out and kept handing it to me and then looking at me like, "okay...anytime." 
The rest of the day the kids played with their basket stuff, jumped on the tramp and we all visited. 
Lisa made a very yummy chicken parmesan for linner with asparagus (which happens to be my favorite vegetable) which we all devoured. It was a really relaxing, fun Easter.
For family night we decided it was time to dye Easter eggs. It was nice and cool outside so I pulled a card table out back and we started when Deke got home. It did not surprise me to see that Bug grabbed an egg with his fingers ignoring the dippers and spoons readily available to him and plopped it down into the green dye. "I want this one to be slime green like a science experiment" he told me. Meanwhile Avery, dipper in hand was slowly lowering her chosen egg into the pink water. 
Emma sitting in her highchair sat looking around reaching out and pointing at the eggs and dye on the table. Knowing that she would be wishing to take part in the process I handed her a small assortment of plastic eggs for her to play with. I love dyeing Easter eggs. 
I love leaving an egg in a color for a long time in the vinegar water and letting it get really bright and vibrant. I love to watch what combinations the kids come up with. 
By the time Hunter was finished his fingers were dyed an assortment of every available color. He dyed them half one color and half another going horizontal and then vertical.
He tried to make the green leave drip marks again like slime. Tried to make one egg turn purple and had each of her eggs go through quite a lengthy process. Avery continued to use the dipper sticking to solid colors with her eggs. 
Repeatedly telling Deke and I that "this was fun, she loved coloring the eggs." Emma now thoroughly aware that she was missing out on something had thrown all the plastic eggs overboard and wanting nothing to do with them. She kept pointing at the colored eggs and crying for them. 
I tried explaining to her that she could hold one when it was dry but lets face it she is only one so you can guess how that conversation went. 
Finally I handed her a plain egg and that kept her entertained for awhile until she clocked it on her tray and cracked it open. I gave her a quick second to investigate what had happened and then took it away, to her devastation. "Alright Em" I told her "I guess if you can't dye um, you might as well eat um." I removed the remaining shell and broke up the egg for her.
She started chowing down happily. "I want to eat one" Ave piped up looking over her colored eggs. She was bummed when we told her she would have to wait until later after they were all dried. 
This post is sort of behind the power curve but that's okay. Emma took her first two steps on April 9th actually to Hunter. He had a play cellphone in his hands and was telling her he would give it to her if she came and got it. She kept reaching for it and squealing in protest and he just kept telling her to "come to brother" we were all in the room watching when all of a sudden she took two completely sturdy steps to Hunter took the phone, sat down and put it to her ear and said, "eh?" trying to mimick hello. We all were so excited I of course cried daddy did a little too. She continued to take a few steps here and there for a couple weeks and on the 19th she got brave and took eight steps to me. Now she is walking anywhere from eight to ten steps at a time off and on throughout the day. She still prefers to crawl if she really needs to get somewhere but she seems to like the walking. Deke and I can't believe how sturdy she walks completely controlled it is amazing. Also a lot of the time she is walking with stuff in her hands usually a baby doll that is half the size she is. Which is precious. That moment when they walk for the first time is so amazing it is such an accomplishment. I can't believe how fast it goes. It is so exciting but it is also such a big reminder of her growing up. Yay Miss E!!! 
Anyways now about her egg hunt. The whole time the kids were dying their eggs Emma was going crazy wanting to hold one. I tried explaining to her that she could play with them when they dried but lets face it she is a one year old so you can guess how well that conversation went. She loved watching Hunter and Ave hide them for each other around the house but was frusterated that I wouldn't let her intervene in the process. Finally the next day we took her over to the park with a basket to let her take a turn finding some eggs. Ave insisted that she would "hide" them for her. 
Avery laid them around on the grass in a small area and handed her the basket. Without any prompting she took off for the first bright blue one she saw by the tree. 
Obviously watching her older siblings had helped her prepare. She sat and held it for awhile, held it up in the air for me to see and clapped for herself. I told her to put it in the basket which she did for a second and then promptly took it out again and tucked it into herself like a football and did a one handed crawl to another blue egg that she had spotted.
She kept holding it out to me smiling as if to say, "Look I finally got to hold one!" Then she would furrow her eyebrows and look down at it wondering what to do with it. Eventually Avery starting pointing out where the eggs were in the grass and she walk/crawled over to find the rest of them. Once they were all gathered she sat down on her bum and played with them for about twenty minutes. 
In the basket, out of the basket, in again. All in the basket now dump the basket. Even taking them and putting them off and on her lap. It was really cute. 
Then she got the idea to take two and smack them together which cracked them opened to her delight. Then it was drop the camera and run over and take them before she tried putting the shells in her mouth. She had a lot of fun, Avery and I had a lot of fun laughing watching her "find" them and listen to the little squeals of delight when she picked up a new one. She is adorable, I am enjoying her sooooooo much. 
Hunter our LEGO master and I were playing legos together one night and challenged each other to make a unique Easter bunny creation out of legos. After much hard work and thinking this is what we came up with: 
my bunny was a Harry Potter bunny, hence the glasses and scar up by his ears. Also notice while he is holding a carrot in one hand the other hand is donning a wand. Props mom, good job. "Good Job Mom" Hunter praised me and then held his up for me to see. Man he is so good. Seriously the kid schools me every time we build together. "This is DJ Bunny" he told me grinning from ear to ear. I couldn't stop smiling. See the baseball hat turned to the side? How about the microphone going down from his ear to his mouth for him to sing and talk? 
Or my favorite part the orange turn table with his bunny paw ready to "mix it up."
I about died laughing when Hunter showed me that it could actually spin and started saying, "Hip hop, a hip hip hop" like he was rapping. I love this kid. I LOVE his brain. I love his ingenuity ability to constantly think outside the box. Hunter, you are awesome. Avery of course saw all the fun and wanted to make a bunny creation and came up with this: 
She told me that it is a bunny purse. I love that she used one of the lego rings covered with fangs as a decorative flower for the bunny's ear. What a girl.
How she has grown, can't believe all the changes a year brings. Or how about last year when she could fit inside this pink Easter basket which now holds all of her diapers inside her changing table. 
What about these three. Here they are last year looking down at their brand new baby sister so lovingly. 
Now this year all three of them looking so much bigger to me. Sort makes me want to have a good cry. 
