Pre-Easter Festivities

We enjoyed some pre-Easter activities this week.  We dyed eggs on Friday.  Parker is still working on understanding the concept, but he had fun playing with the stickers.  I was hoping to make deviled eggs, but they ended up a little undercooked.  I had them perfected at the old house, but will have to tweak things on our electric range.  They were still edible, just not how iId hoped.

 We got several inches of snow leading in to the weekend.  We had planned a trip to Two Harbors to celebrate some family birthdays and Easter, but there was close to a foot of snow a couple hours north of us that was causing major road issues on the highway, so we stayed close to home.

 The annual Easter Egg hunt in my parent's town was changed to a drive-thru experience.

 Parker was a bit timid with the Easter bunny, but didn't freak out.  When I ask him to say "hi", he kind of squealed and kindly said "bye".  The person in the costume did great and kind of hid behind the door, but still waved and was really sweet.

 We stopped at my parents' house to check out the haul, then headed to lunch with my nephew, Jayden, as an early birthday celebration.

 Both kids did really well at the restaurant.  Parker had fun rolling the crayons across the table to Grandpa and Jayden.  We had a tough run when Esme was a baby and we stopped eating out a restaurants for a while, but we may be able to try again since we've had a couple successful trips.

Happy early birthday Jayden!

Celebrating 9 Years with Family Fun

I had a few days off this week for spring break.  Jimmy couldn't get the whole week off, but Wednesday was his normal day off.  It was also our 9th anniversary, so we spent some time as a family.  We headed over to the children's museum, which was busier than I expected, but there were a lot of field trip groups.  They have a newer Daniel Tiger exhibit that both kids loved.

 Parker's favorite part was the music area.  It was a bunch of unconventional items made in to instruments.

Our second stop was in Our World.  Parker hung out in the hardware store as usual and Esme held down the taco stand.

She was adding things to her pan, stirring, and taste testing.

 Parker joined her and they both had fun spinning the bowls.

 I made some tasty brunch burgers for dinner with candied bacon and a fried egg.

Things have changed a bit in the last 9 years, but I wouldn't trade our little life and family for anything!  Happy Anniversary Jimmy!

Esme June - Twenty-Three Months Old

Esme June is 23 months old today.  It was about time for an uncooperative photo shoot, so we got what we got.  Not a whole lot changed this month, so I won't go through that all again.  She is becoming more independent with each passing day and is quickly embracing toddlerhood. She loves dolls, snuggling with Parker at bedtime, and giving mom kisses.  31 short days until she's two!  We also celebrated Pi day with a Cutie "Pi" shirt that I made her with some new glitter heat transfer vinyl I am trying out.  She is the cutest, even when she cries.

Girl Scout Cookie Showdown

It's Girl Scout Cookie season!  I love cookies of all kinds, but have a soft spot for Girl Scout Cookies.  I was a girl scout growing up and always did really well selling them.  Back then you actually took advance orders and payment, then delivered them several weeks later.  Things are done a bit different now and troops just order them before knowing how many they will sell.  The only thing I don't love about them is the price.  In recent years I have found myself just giving girls a $5 bill because I want to support them, but can't justify the expense.  It also helps that Aldi has their own line of knock-off cookies at less than half the price (and with more cookies.)  This situation called for some super scientific science!  I bit the bullet and bought 3 boxes from my manager's daughter for our taste test.  I had 7 people do blind tastings of each option and pick a favorite.

Round 1: Caramel Coconut Fudge vs. Caramel deLights

Girl Scouts ran away with this one 5-2.  Tasters preferred the softer cookie a coconut flavor the GS had to offer.

 Round 2: Peanut Butter Filled Cookies vs. Peanut Butter Patties

Aldi's Benton's brand took this round 4-3.  They came with a bigger punch of peanut butter which led to the victory.

Round 3: Fudge Mint Cookies vs Thin Mints

This was the most difficult battle.  Two tasters could not discern a difference between the two options, so I gave a point to each side.  Girl Scouts barely edged Aldi in a 4-3 vote.

The Girl Scout cookies came out on top, but if you take in to account the cost difference it would be hard not to choose Aldi.  Happy snacking!

Oklahoma Road Trip: Part 2

The main reason for our trip was to attend the senior night game for the Oklahoma State Cowgirls.  I made Esme a onesie with Kaylee's name and number and added it to my shirt as well.

We started sitting in the second deck, then moved to the lower level to sit with other family members.  Esme really enjoyed watching warm-ups.

They had a brief ceremony for the seniors before the game.

We tried to keep Esme entertained and fed, but it was also getting late.  I put her in the carrier for the second half hoping she would fall asleep, but it didn't work.  At least it kept her contained.

Kaylee had another great game with 18 points and 13 rebounds to finish the regular season with 518 points  and 303 rebounds, averaging a double-double.

It's off to the Big 12 tournament from here, hopefully the NCAA tournament, and a possible WNBA prospect.  Good luck Kaylee, we are watching a cheering!

We got back to the hotel late, Esme got one last glimpse of the pool and we hit the hay for an early morning departure.

We grabbed breakfast for the road and were driving by 6:15.

Esme did great until about 15 minutes before our lunch stop in Kansas City.  She got super agitated, started crying, and nothing would sooth her until she out of her car seat.  We tried stopping at Joe's Kansas City BBQ when were were here a few years ago, but it was too long of a wait.

The rest of the trip was uneventful.  Esme did a great job playing and staying entertained.

She was determined to get the little fuzz between her toes!

13 hours later we made it home.  Such a fun girl's trip, can't wait for the next one!