Friday

Easter 2016!!


This year, we headed to Salisbury for Easter weekend.

We stayed with Mee-maw and Grandpa, but spent the weekend with the entire family.

On Saturday morning, Lauren and Charlie had fun at the Rockawalkin United Methodist Church's Easter Egg Hunt.  Neither kid was too worried about getting a lot of eggs, and just had fun walking around with their baskets.



Afterwards, everyone went into the community hall to open up the eggs and listen to the Easter Story.  Grumpa came down to join us, as well as Aunt Sarah, Uncle Kevin, and Mary Quinn.  Lauren had fun seeing her family, and Charlie was excited to see that the eggs opened up.  And had candy inside!!!





That afternoon, after the kids took a nap, we dyed eggs.  We tried a new tie-dye technique, which was really cool, but time consuming.  After a few eggs, we switched to the traditional technique and quickly finished the rest.  





That evening, we went over to Grammy and Grumpa's house for another Easter Egg hunt and dinner.  Lauren even got to hold Mary Quinn, and was so excited!!





The next morning, the kids came downstairs to see if the Easter Bunny stopped by.  And boy, they must have been really good kids this year.  He left them a bunch of fun stuff!!



After church, Grandpa and I put out some more Easter eggs and the front yard was covered.  We might have gone a little overboard.  But Charlie had fun.  Lauren was not feeling well.  She put forth a good effort, but ended up going inside and up to bed for the rest of the day.  Poor girl!

The rest of us opened the eggs, and got things ready for Easter Dinner.  Later that evening, Lauren felt a little better and came down to try her hand at a new Magic Kit she got.  Then it was time for everyone to crash!


On Monday, before leaving, Mee-maw, Grandpa and I took the kids to Ben's Red Swings for some outside fun.  Aunt Sarah and Mary Quinn joined us.  After running around the playground and taking a turn on the swings, the kids finished off the day with some time in the sandbox.  They were covered in sand, but they had a great time.


It was a wonderful Easter.  I only wish we had more time to spend with all of our family and friends.  We have been spoiled to be able to enjoy long weekends in Salisbury, and I know that will no longer be an option once Lauren begins Kindergarten.  So until this fall, I plan to take advantage of it as much as possible!!

Lauren at 5 Years Old!



Lauren is now

3 feet, 8 inches tall
and weighs 39 pounds

She loves:
  • Playing dress up
  • Anything Lion Guard related
  • Pretending to be an animal (and hunting prey, which is usually Chad or me)
  • Running around the house
  • Driving her John Deere Power Wheels toy
  • Bath-time
  • Playing soccer
  • Swimming
  • Ice skating
  • Bossing her brother around
  • Riding her balance bike
  • Playing with her legos
  • Coloring


Her favorite Shows/Movies Are:
  • The Lion Guard (She is also obsessed with the soundtrack)
  • Sofia The First
  • Sheriff Callie
  • Doc McStuffins
  • Daniel Tiger
  • Star Wars
  • Zootopia




Her favorite foods are:
  • Chicken nuggets and french fries
  • Spaghetti
  • Chicken (with no sauce)
  • Toast with Nutella
  • Dry cereal
  • Pop Tarts
  • Apple Sauce
  • Bananas
  • Broccoli/Cheddar Soup
  • Ice cream/cake
  • Popcorn



Her typical day looks like:

8:30 -   Wake Up
9:00 -   Drop off at school
12:00 - Pick up from school
12:15 - Lunchtime
1:00 -   Quiet time in her room (usually with music or the iPad)
3:30 -   Wake up time
4:00 -   Snack time
6:30 -   Dinner time
7:30 -   Bedtime

She only has pre-school on Tuesday and Thursday mornings.  Otherwise she is at home with me.  Also, she has different classes, at different times throughout the week.

On Monday nights, she has ice skating class from 6:40 - 7:10
On Wednesday nights, she has swim class from 4:00 - 4:30
On Thursday nights, she has soccer practice from 5:30 - 6:00.

She is quite the busy girl!!!

But perhaps the thing Lauren loves the most right now, is her new cousin Mary Quinn.  She loves to look at her, hold her, and always talks about her.  


Tuesday

Lauren's Birthday Party!



Wow!  Lauren turned 5 this year, and I cannot believe it!!  She wanted a Star Wars party and an ice skating party, so we combined the two and had her party at Kettler Ice Plex.

We invited a lot of family and friends and met there at 11:15.  We enjoyed some pizza and cake, and then got everyone ready to go out on the ice at 12:15.  Lauren was very excited about this party and really loved getting to go out on the ice with everyone.




















It is hard to believe that five years have passed since we welcomed Lauren Marie into the world.  She has grown so much and I know that we haven't seen anything yet.  Happy Birthday Lauren Bear!!

Mary Quinn Arrives!



After a long week of working, Lauren, Charlie & I quickly headed to Salisbury to wait out the arrival of my niece, Mary Quinn!  We spent some time on Friday, March 4th, with Aunt Sarah and Uncle Kevin.  There was quite a bit of dancing, some spicy food, and plenty of begging Quinnie to come out.  They went home and the next morning we woke up to a text message that read "I think my water broke".  We had breakfast with Aut Sarah and Uncle Kevin and wished them good luck before they drove the hour to Easton, where they were delivering.

Mee-Maw, Grandpa, and I finished up a few things that afternoon, dropped Lauren and Charlie off with Grammy and Grumpa, and drove up to the hospital.  We ate a quick dinner and joined Aunt Sarah and Uncle Kevin for the wait.  By midnight, we were exhausted, so we got a hotel room, in Easton and slept until they called.  That call came in at 3:45, and by 6:04 am, Mary Quinn had arrived.  She was perfect and so beautiful.










After our first meeting, Mee-Maw, Grandpa, and I drove home to get some sleep.  Oh, and to let Aunt Sarah and Uncle Kevin get some much needed sleep as well  When we came back up, later that afternoon, we were also able to spend some time with Uncle Kevin's brother, Patrick!  It was fun to watch him with his new niece.






A few days later, the Meadowcroft family was released from the hospital and we all invaded their home to spend more time with Quinnie!  Grumpa, Grammy, Lauren and Charlie were also there to meet her.









It has been such a joy to watch the first few days of Mary Quinn's life.  She has already brought so much joy to our family and I cannot wait to watch my little niece grow up into a wonderful young woman.  The world is ahead of her and I can't wait to be a part of the journey!!