ahhh...spring break...

Unfortunately, it's already over, but the week-long break from reality was really a nice one for our little family this year. We spent a couple of days just hanging around home, headed to the Asheboro zoo for a day, and headed to Ray's Splash Planet for a day. Jesse's mom was in town for the majority of the week so it was really good to spend some time with her and have a couple of extra hands around. She also gave us a date night while she was here which was super nice! Eli loved spending time with his Grandma Cindy and missed her once she left...he doesn't see her near enough! Being at home with Eli for the week made me really look forward to spending so much time with him this summer. One thing he started doing more of during the break was telling us that he loves us without us saying anything. I'm sure he got sick of me practically attacking him with hugs and kisses when he did this...I just couldn't resist!

Jesse and E also camped out one night in the living room. We set up the tent, turned on the sound machine with crickets chirping, and projected stars on the ceiling. E thought it was the coolest thing ever!

Another highlight of the week for E was the cool new four-wheeler that Grandma Cindy got him...complete with "chromed-out" wheels! He loves it. I, on the other hand, have not decided how I feel about it. He looks WAY too grown up riding it!

On Sunday evening, we wrapped up our break with a hike through the woods with our church's children's group. Mrs. Margo, our children's director, did a great job organizing and brought snacks and drinks for the kids to enjoy at the half-way point. I was really proud of E. He did such a good job riding in the van and hung in there pretty well on the trail. It was a lot of fun and a great way to end the week!

Notice his face in his seat on the van :-) For the first half of the ride to the trail, he was frozen. But, half-way through, he turned around, grinned, waved at me (I was seated a couple of rows back from him), and turned right back around like a little man...It was my favorite moment of the whole week!

easter number three for e...

I don't know that I've ever experienced a more beautiful Easter weekend than this one. The sun was bright and the cool breeze was amazing. It was the perfect setting for celebrating such a special day! After some eye-dying fun with Eli, Jesse and I enjoyed the evening of Good Friday on the water in the moonlight~ a moonlight kayaking trip on Lake Wylie. Being on the calm water under the huge moon was something unlike anything I've done before. It was a nice, relaxing evening. On Saturday, we spent some time playing outside and took Eli to the McA egg hunt. It's always a fun time for the kids in town, but I must say that the Easter bunnies were a bit creepy this year (and, notice I said bunnies...who knew that there were two?) On Saturday night, Jesse and I went with my Dad and a couple of other family members for Elevation Church's Easter service. It was a great service and presented the resurrection message in a way that I've never heard, which was great. If you haven't heard any of Pastor Steven Furtick's messages, you should check them out here... www.elevationchurch.org. On Sunday, we woke up to special treats left by the Easter Bunny and headed to church. At church, we had our annual egg hunt and then headed to Maw-maws. There, we enjoyed good eats...more egg hunting...and more good eats :)

He really wanted to slam dunk the eggs...

Serious hunter...

See what I mean?

First glimpse of his treats~ so sweet :)

Bedhead...

Silly Daddy...

On a mission...

I love this one :)

On your mark, get set, whistle...

sweet talk...

Tonight, Eli had his first real telephone coversation...it was with his Pop (my Daddy). It was the sweetest thing to hear him talking back and forth with his Pop about things that matter the most...you know...trucks, windshield wipers, and fixing sinks :-) This time, unlike every other time, I didn't have to tell him anything to say...I just sat back, drove and enjoyed. If I hadn't been behind the wheel, I would have grabbed my phone and recorded every bit of it so that I could listen to it over and over again! The conversation went something like this...

Hey Pop...whatcha' doin, Pop? Uh-huh...uh-huh...yep. Put new flowers on stage (for grave) day (today)...and water. Uh-huh...uh-huh. Not raining here...uh-huh. Be careful drivin', Pop...turn wipers on. Uh-huh. What color wipers, Pop? Back (black). Driving...mall with Mommy. Uh-huh...yep. You know car with top that go up and down? Boke (broke). Uh-huh. Sink boke too. Eli and Daddy fix it like this, Pop (puts phone down and demonstrates with hands)...See, Pop?


Had to type it out...don't want to ever forget it ;-)