Easter Weekend 2009

It's a bit late, but in case anyone was wondering, this is how we spent out Easter weekend. On Saturday we went to the park to feed ducks. It was really fun to watch Nate. He was really stingy and would rip off these tiny crumbs and throw them at the ducks. The pieces were so small that the ducks didn't even try to eat them sometimes. Robert and I had to step in and help the poor animals. Otherwise they wouldn't eat and we'd have been there all day trying to get through all the bread we brought with us.
Of course, after all the bread was consumed Nate had to chase the ducks around for a few minutes. He'd find a duck he really liked and chase that one specifically. At one point he was running around them in a circle and had kind of corralled them. Robert thought he'd be a good duck herder.
For the last six weeks Nate has been signed up at the local Rec Center for a program called Short Sports. It's on Saturdays for a half and hour and each week they do a different activity. They've done parachute games, tag, soccer, floor hockey, etc. On the last week, which happened to be Easter weekend, it was the water week. They had all these cute water games and toys for the kids to play with. There were about seven kids about age three in the water with only one instructor to watch them all. Like any paranoid mother I brought my own suit just in case I needed to get in the water. When I got there I realized I would just be a pain to the instructor if I got in so I sat on the bleachers with the rest of the parents.
Do any of you have children that are fearless when they are near the water? Nate is. I can't tell you how many times I jumped up and almost went in after him. He would keep going deeper and deeper and the instructor would have his back turned working with the other kids. Nate would be up to his chin just bouncing to stay above water. Yikes! There was another mom next to Robert and I that was going through the same thing with her son. We made quite a pair. I like to think that I'm so jumpy because of all the lifeguarding, swimming teacher, and water aerobics instructor training I did during high school and college but I'm pretty sure the truth is I'm just an over protective mother.

My mom also got Nate his swimming trunks and shirt at Costco just a few days before and Nate was so excited to wear them. It's Nemo trunks and his shirt has a giant Bruce in the middle with all the other characters of the movie around him. Pretty cute.

We spent Saturday night out at my parents' house because we were going to church with them on Sunday. Mom and Dad surprised Robert and I with an offer to watch Nate so we could have a date that night. We were so happy and excited. We decided to go to the batting cages and then out to dinner. By the time we packed up for the weekend and got to my parents' we were too tired and just did dinner. How lame are we? We got home before 11 pm and just went to bed.

In the morning I set out Nate's Easter basket. I'm not a huge fan of candy but I did get him a little. He had a handful of eggs, sidewalk chalk, jelly beans and a toy microphone in his basket. He loved it all. The microphone is the favorite though because it actually amplifies his voice. He walks around singing into it all the time.

Of course after church was the big Easter Egg Hunt. Liz and Jason were out at Mom and Dad's too so Sydney and Maggie got in on the fun. This was Nate's first Easter Egg Hunt and he caught right on. My parent's have a great backyard for hiding eggs and I had a great time hiding.
Nate filled up his basket in no time and basically tripled his Easter haul.
We all threw eggs out into the middle of the grass for Maggie. She wasn't really interested. She's just hold on to one egg and bite at it. She's teething again. It was so fun for Nate to share his first hunt with his cousins.
I had to give Nate little hints as we ran around the yard. Now I know why my mom got so into holidays when I was growing up. It's so fun to watch your kid's eyes light up and the smiles, oh the smiles!
Jason eventually gave up with Maggie and collected all the eggs for her.
My mom and dad just sat on the patio and watched their kids and grandkids having a great time. I love that we've been closer to them this year. They've been so generous and willing to help us with anything from babysitting to giving us a plot in their garden so we can grow some of our own vegetables. Robert's thrilled about the veggies! :P
Once Nate learned that the eggs weren't just eggs but there were treats inside he wanted to crack them all at once and go on a candy binge. He gets that from his dad because I would keep my Easter eggs in my sock drawer and totally forget about them and find them months down the road still filled with candy. Anyway, I limited his intake (he'd had a lot from his basket in the morning and church was a nightmare because he was so hyper). Nate will have memories of me depriving him for many years to come, but something tells me he'll survive.

I hope Easter was as fun and eventful for everyone else as it was for us. I love the fun side of the holiday for my son, but I am forever grateful for what it means to me religiously. I am so thankful for my Savior, for His sacrifice for us and for His example. We have been so blessed and we continue to be blessed everyday because of Him. I know He lives, that He loves us all and He is the way to eternal happiness.