easter sunday

we had a great easter this year. the kids were so excited. friday we went to my sister's house to paint eggs and have a sleepover. this was lots of fun but the kids stayed up way too late. it was almost midnight before they fell asleep. we had five dozen eggs to paint.

easter morning was super busy. mason, dahlia, and connor woke up super early to check their easter baskets that were left by the kitchen door. sure enough they were filled with lots of treats. they all said they got exactly what they wanted. how did the bunny know? we didn't have much time to play before we had to rush off to church. we always go to my mother's church on easter sunday and it takes an hour to get there. much like last year we were five minutes late. after church they had an egg hunt for the kids where each kid finds four eggs with a particular number on it and turns them in for a bag of candy. the bag of candy was huge. really too much if you ask me. a small piece of candy would be just fine. the whole day seemed to be one big sugar rush. candy, candy, candy!

after the egg hunt we went back to my sister's house for brunch and our own egg hunt. christina did not go crazy this year with the eggs. we had 94 eggs to hide. much less than last year's 175 eggs. zena was the big winner having collected 26 eggs. brunch was good. christina made breakfast pizza's that were yummy and my mom made a delicious cobb salad. around four we left to go home and spent the evening playing clue and building connor's lego set. it was so nice to have a holiday and actually spend some fun time as a family.

pajama tea party

dahlia is sick so we stayed home today and had a tea party in our pajamas. it was fun. i made some sun tea and we filled a little plate with animal cookies for the party. mason, dahlia, and connor all loved the tea. of course i think they put a little bit too much sugar in it for my taste. it was not the most elaborate tea party we have had but it was such a nice way to spend a sick day.

coloring eggs

the kids could not wait any longer so we decided to color some eggs today. we didn't get too fancy this year. i think it is best to keep it simple with the little ones. maybe if miles was helping we could have tried some new techniques. we did sprinkle a little glitter on them. it was fun. we colored about 2 dozen eggs and the kids promptly ate six of them when we were done. i don't think it is going to take us long to eat them. we plan on coloring more next week.

science center

mason is on spring break this week. yay. i am so excited to have a week off from homework. homework is almost as much work for me as it is for mason. to start the week off with something fun we met jen, bodhi, and kira at the discovery science center in orange county. the kids love that place and it has been quite a while since we have been there.

they have a cool bob the builder exhibit going on now. the kids can sketch their house plans and then use pretend tools to start building. there was also a wall that the kids could build with magnetic rocks they collected with a wheel barrel. they also had fun playing in the wind tunnel and sorting trash in the recycle game. there was a grocery store exhibit where the kids have to buy groceries that are friendly to the environment.

they had a blast. we stayed until it closed at five and then met my mom and sister christina for dinner at the soup plantation. the best part is that after all this fun we don't have to wake up early for school tomorrow.

camping party

jen and ray had a birthday party for kira and bodhi at our house yesterday. kira is turning two in april and bodhi turned five yesterday. they decided to have a combo party and make it easier for them. of course we were running around like crazy people the two hours before the party started. there is always more to do than we think.

they did a camping theme. i thought it was a really clever idea for a boy/girl party. of course jen had lots of adorable details that made the party really unique. outside we set up a small tent, fake fire pit, and camping chairs. she also had a bounce house and a pinata shaped like an owl to entertain the kids. inside we had a teepee set up that jen and i sewed the previous week. we put floor pillows on the inside so the kids could go in and read books or relax.

for food they served hamburgers, coleslaw, potato salad, and fruit skewers. they had a make your own trail mix bar with all the favorite dried fruits and nuts. there were s'more pops made by dipping marshmallows in chocolate and then graham cracker crumbs. the food was served with wooden forks and spoons that they stamped with the words "i love camping." such a cute detail.

for dessert there were camping theme sugar cookies, a bowl of cuties, and two separate cakes for the birthday boy and girl. poor kira missed the happy birthday song. she was taking a nap.

at the end of the party they handed out little battery powered lanterns as favors along with a make your own s'more package. it was a wonderful party and everyone had fun. happy birthday to my cute little niece and nephew.

balloon animals and magic

we went to a super fun birthday party for my friend kimberly's daughter maya. she is turning four. her parents had the party at her preschool. the preschool rents out their space on weekends. it was so nice. i loved it. there was a huge play-set and everything was enclosed so i didn't have to worry about the kids running off. i could just let them play while i chatted with the grownups. that almost never happens.

she had hired the most amazingly talented guy to make balloon animals for the kids. they were all so detailed. dahlia wanted a little doggy on a leash and connor wanted ariel the mermaid. the ariel was really good. he also made a spiderman for this other little boy that was so cool i almost asked for one for me. when he was done with special requests he made crazy hats for some of the kids and adults. so funny. he also did a short but funny magic show. the kids loved it. i was surprised to see them sit and be fully engaged for so long.

there was lots of good food. they had mediterranean cuisine for the adults and pizza for the kids. my kids didn't eat anything. they were too busy playing on the play-set with the other kids. we ended up driving to orange county for dinner with my sister at our favorite soup plantation after the party ended. i loved that the kids played outside all day. it was so nice to have them all tired when it was time to drive home.

rainy day

it rained today for about ten minutes but that did not keep connor and dahlia from grabbing their umbrellas and galoshes. these poor deprived kids rarely get to play in the rain here in sunny los angeles.

i think we have all finally recovered from the flu. dahlia was out of school for over a week. we all got it this time. thanks kids! at least we are all well now and are looking forward to a fun weekend.

western round up

dahlia's preschool had a fundraising event this weekend. they call it the western round up. i was dreading going but it was actually really fun. i was impressed. they had a petting zoo, large inflated slide, pony rides, carnival games and barbeque food. everything was super cute. they did a great job.

mason and dahlia are just getting over the flu and are finally feeling good but still tired. we figured one hour there would be enough. sure enough after an hour dahlia was ready to go home. i had to work a booth for an hour to fulfill my obligation so miles took the kids around. they all loved the petting zoo and the boys had a great time riding the ponies. mason didn't want to go on the big slide but connor loved it.

next year i think we will go earlier and have more time to play.