Easter Weekend Part 2

Today was actually Easter although it was more like "Sloppy Rainy Seconds" for us since yesterday was our "real" celebration in the sunshine with the egg hunt and barbecue. But, we still had unfinished business to attend to!

Before it started raining this morning, I bribed forced encouraged the kids to go outside and get a quick round of Easter pictures done. 

Note: usually a week or so before Calen's birthday, I punch out the annual Spring/Easter/Birthday photos all in one shebang. But, NO thanks to the late winter (they call is "spring". It is most definitely NOT spring), the grass isn't green and the trees/flowers aren't even blooming. So I've been waiting impatiently to do spring/birthday pictures. Which at this rate will be done by June.

Once that was over we did Easter baskets. Apparently Easter was violent this year, because both boys got a new Ninja Turtle and a Ninja Turtle dress up kit (along with some sandbox toys, matchbox cars and bubble guns and other random things. And of course, no less than 3 tons of candy). 

How Camden eats Peeps

Regarding Ninja Turtle dress up kits: I didn't really think Camden would get into it. But he snatched up the Leonardo katana and started whacking every family member with it yelling "YAH!!!! YAH!!!!" 

Apparently we watch too much Ninja Turtles in this house. 

Calen's got the ninja stance down

 

Ninjas in action.

After we disarmed the ninjas and took them to church, they had lunch in an egg carton (something new and different I found on Pinterest) and then Skype with grandparents while they "opened" another set of Easter baskets from them.  And then more sugar eating and eating barbecue leftovers with friends. 

Lunch in an egg carton

I think Easter was a big success this year. Of course anytime you can take a one day holiday and stretch it into two it's a big success. Especially when there's chocolate involved.     

Easter Weekend, Part 1

I didn't blog last night because I was spending all evening filling no less than 3 thousand of these:

 
That was the preparation for today's day-early Easter celebrations (no thanks to impending weather doom that's being predicted tomorrow). 

It also happened to be the absolute most beautiful day yet this year today, reaching probably 60 degrees with little to no wind. My kids were in shorts, people. Shorts. So we spent a good part of the pre-Easter afternoon playing outside. 

We ("We" being our neighbors the Durans and us) did a massive Easter egg hunt that completely surrounded our five-family townhome. Completely. More eggs than five baskets could hold. We hid them in the playground, in the big tree, the tire swing, what few grass tufts have finally started to pop up, and tons and tons and tons just tossed out in the grass. 

Ready to hunt. The Duran girls (Hailey, Chloe and Sydney) and my Hansen boys

It was cute and the kids had a blast. Camden and Chloe (the youngest two) picked up like five eggs each and then were completely over it and did their own thing. Especially Camden, who once found out that there was chocolate inside these eggs, was more happy sitting on the grass shoving entire peanut butter cups into his mouth than going to search for stupid plastic eggs. 

The only time he actually collected eggs.

And done. He'd rather eat.

Calen even got to a point where he said "My basket is full. I'm done. Leave the rest the eggs for the babies."

 

Pulling himself off the ground to reach an egg.

With their stash (and Cam's chocolate face)

His face.

And then we had part 1 of a two day barbecue-fest. Ribs, pulled pork, sausage, brisket. Oh and potato salad and beans. 

Yeah. No vegetarians around here. 

More Easter awesomeness tomorrow. 

  

  

The Things You Say

Calen's had all sorts of Calenisms the last couple days. 

First he told the waitress at Red Robin that he loved her when we left (I think he was on the phone too much yesterday with family). 

Then today in the car:

"I SMELL something."

Me: "What does it smell like?"

Calen: "....Poop.......or food."

(because it's easy to mistake one from the other).

Later today I was laying on the couch with my hoodie completely covering my head to nurse a headache. 

Calen: "Mom? Where's your face?"

Good question kid. 

------------ 

Also, today he built a really long track out of his new train set all by himself. And put every single road sign and street light on the same corner or track. Clearly, it's a dangerous area (and well lit).

      

The Day You Turned Four

So Calen turned four today. 

:sobs: :wails:: ::oozes snot:: ::grabs tissue:: ::gets over it::

Okay. 

Actually this birthday was more of a shock to Brad (who is usually the nonchalant one) that he was turning four than me. I ease myself into birthdays by starting to say that they're a year old a couple weeks before their actual birthday. Kind of like easing into a hot tub. It's more comfortable and you don't get second degree burns. 

In his Pinterest inspired birthday shirt

We started with the usual birthday pancakes (complete with whipped cream, sprinkles, a cherry) with a birthday candle of course. 

Then he brought cookies to school to share with his friends, and came home with a birthday crown that he refused to take off the rest of the day. He got to eat lunch on his couch while watching Cars (and not take a nap). 

Then Daddy came home an hour early and we opened presents. And he loved ALL of them, even clothes (because they were cool clothes). 

 

Calen's new Mickey hat from buddy Cameron!

After presents was a drive to Calen's favorite restaurant (other than Mcdonald's): Red Robin for his favorite meal: a cheeseburger, two helpings of mandarin oranges and steak fries. They sang to him and gave him a sundae which really tickled him to death. 

On to Toys R Us where he gets to pick out any birthday present he wants from Daddy and I. Of course Daddy (and mostly me) are suckers so we let him get more than one thing. 

Calen's choices at Toys R Us. Note that the train box is empty. He went to bed with those.

And that was his birthday, in a nutshell. About ten minutes from home the imminent past-bedtime, post-birthday excitement, sugar crashing meltdown struck, and he threw a rare tantrum the rest of the drive and all the way through the shortened bedtime routine. 

It's his birthday, he can cry if he wants to. 

But other than that catastrophic meltdown, which luckily was not in a public setting, the day was as perfect as any four year old could have asked for. 

And we had fun too.    
    
 
   

Hipster in the Waiting Room

I had to take Camden to Calen's speech therapy today, which usually means that I have to pack no less than 30 fruit snack packs, multiple toys, charge my phone so that he can play his kid apps, and take a couple Excederin myself to prepare for the onslaught of Angry Baby since the last thing he enjoys on this earth is holding still in a chair, for anyone, for any length of time (and thirty minutes? Ha!). 

But actually, he was quite the hipster. He lounged in that oversized chair and ate an entire back of animal crackers (and two fruit snack packs, and an applesauce pouch. And milk) and just glanced around the room trying to look cool. Or something. 

I did have to pull out the phone though and let him play totally rad apps like Zoo Flashcards, the animal noise piano, doodle pad and bubble pop. Dude. Where were we without smart phones?

  

Call Me A Quitter

Today was not Potty Training Day #1. Today was a social experiment to see if certain small individuals in our house were ready to surrender the diaper. 

But in order to determine whether certain small individuals are ready for such endeavors, you have to go about it as though it were a full blown head dive into potty training. That means, in order: no diaper, no clothes. A never ending  supply of apple juice, milk, and Squeeze-Its. Oven timer set to 5 minutes. Towels on the floor to prevent disaster. Go. 

So I forced fluids down his throat (not really. Squeeze-Its are a rare treat in this house and he was more than willing to take three off my hands in the course of an hour) and every five minutes we'd march to the bathroom to see what would happen. 

Five minutes turned into three after 653 accidents including one incredibly sophisticated accident in which he peed INTO the cracks of a closed drawer of the entertainment center. 

Camden did not appreciate this new regiment. Actually, he doesn't appreciate anything that isn't his idea. And this wasn't his idea. He'd scream, kick yell whatever every time we'd run to the potty. Then we'd stand there for a while and he'd yell, and then after ten minutes of him not peeing we'd leave the bathroom and he'd ceremoniously pee all over the floor. 

Rinse, repeat. For five hours. 

Did I mention how much I hate potty training? Hate. Rage. Worst thing ever. Would pay anyone any sum of money to do it for me. 

We tried Cheerios. We tried sitting. We tried standing. We tried the little potty, and the big throne. We tried fruit snack bribery. He wasn't going to have it.   

And once one particular screaming fit over me interrupting his happy little naked life to try to pee turned into a half-hour tantrum extravaganza, I made an Executive Mommy Decision. 

And quit. 

Okay so before you say "you gotta give it a couple days" and all your other unwanted advice, know this. I have successfully potty trained my older son. By myself, thank you. I can tell when they are ready. The first time we tried with Calen at exactly 2, it took all of two hours for me to know he wasn't ready. I gave up, tried again six months later, took four days. 

Same with Camden. 

He doesn't "get" it. He would pee on the floor, but not even notice that he's doing it. He'd clap the three times he peed in the toilet, but you could tell he had no idea when he was going to go. 

And, I wasn't interested in dealing with his rage. 

So call me a quitter. 

Actually, I'm not even quitting. I'm being a good mom and letting my kid win a round. See? I'm generous and caring and let my kids win once in a while.

This apparently isn't happening.

Endnote: I slapped a diaper on the victorious Camden and sent the kids upstairs to play. Ten minutes later as I'm cooking dinner I hear this from the top of the stairs:

"MOM!!!!! BROTHER POOPED! IT'S ON HIS BLANKET YOU HAVE TO SEE IT!"

And he had. And it was all over his blanket and all over his legs and required an emergency bath.

Apparently, Camden took a victory lap.  

I need a drink.