Easter

It has taken me a while to recoup from Easter. Hence, the delay of the pictures and post. We had a brunch at our house on the Saturday before Easter Sunday. Thirteen adults and four children attended, which was a much smaller crowd than I had originally planned for. We had a great time and it did seem a little less stressful than years past when more people were packed in our small home.

On Sunday, we attended an awesome Easter service at our church. My mom, stepdad and stepbrother joined us, which made it even more special. Our church has now added a fourth service time due to the phenomenal growth we've experienced. Justin and I decided to serve during the new service time because there was a need for voluteers in that time slot. In order to do that, we have to attend a later service than usual. It may take us a while to adjust to the Sunday schedule change. After church, we went to Justin's parents for an early dinner. We all had a great time.

My children enjoyed all the Easter festivities. Anagrace was so excited about her Easter basket. She was especially fond of the chocolate rabbit. So much so that it was a struggle for her to actually eat him. She saved him for several days after opening the package. She would look at him, contemplate biting his ears, then put him back. She told me "Mama, I want to eat him, but I don't think I should". She has more willpower than me...if it's chocolate I'm going to eat it no matter how cute it is staring back at me! Anderson enjoyed digging through his very first Easter basket, too. He did not have any issues with eating the treats inside, even the ones that were not edible went straight to his mouth!

The best part of it all for me was hearing the Easter story retold by my 4 year-old...not the one about the bunny delivering baskets to children, the one about Jesus dying on the cross and rising again!

Here are some pictures for you to enjoy!

My cuties all dressed up on Easter Sunday

Anagrace eating her bunny hesitantly

Anderson as an Easter Bunny


Anderson and his 1st Easter basket

The A Team

Justin and I have been discussing names since discovering we are expecting another boy. We first had to decide if this baby's name would begin with an "A". We did not purposely choose for Anagrace and Anderson's names to begin with the same letter. It just happened that way. Anagrace is a family name, (found in 5 generations) it was my grandmother and great-grandmother's name. Anderson is also a family name. It is Justin's grandmother's maiden name. So, we were unsure if we should just pick a name that we like even if it didn't begin with "A". Would this child feel left out if we didn't? We decided to go ahead and go with an "A" name. So, I'll have an A Team now. My friend, Dawn, has a J Crew because all of her children's names begin with "J"....so, I thought I'd think of a cute name for my bunch. It works, especially now that I have a van. I doubt that I'll start wearing tons of gold necklaces, but I might have to use Mr. T's catch phrase "Quit that jibba jabba" if it gets too rowdy on our road trips!

Oh, by the way, Justin and I have decided on a name...but I'm not sure we're ready to share it with the world. Sorry...but "Don't give me no back talk, sucka!" (Mr. T just cracks me up!!)

I Need to Be Cleaning My House Right Now

I must pry myself away from this computer. I have set this day aside, in my own mind, as a day of cleaning. I need to be cleaning my house right now. The children are at their Grandma Prevette's, so I cannot use them as an excuse. My only distractions are the ones I create myself. I will use one excuse, though...I get "winded" so easily. I have to do some cleaning and then take a break. This extra baby weight is wearing me out. And to think I still have 18-20 more weeks...YIKES! Mental Note: do not sit down at the computer when taking a breather.
I need to be cleaning my house right now. Justin had a stomach bug the past 2 days, which means deep cleaning is in order for the contaminated portions of the house. I Lysol-ed everything (sometimes while he was still in the area!), but I want to scrub those germs away before my children return.
I need to be cleaning my house right now. In 2 weeks we will have about 30 adults and 9 children over for an Easter Brunch. I know that in 2 weeks my house will be dirty again. But, maybe if I do some deep cleaning (which I am not good at) then a little tidying and straightening (which I am better at) will suffice before the gathering.
Okay, I am going to go clean my house now!

Our First Glimpse of Our Third Child

Here are the 4D ultrasound pictures that I promised. Isn't it amazing?!