SPRING BREAK

We are on Spring Break this week! I know Holden is only in preschool but it was time to have some fun. To make the week special, I planned something for each day and gave Holden a book of coupons to "cash" in throughout the week. I explained that he can only use one a day but he gets to choose which to "cash in" as he wants. They really are not anything big but fun things he likes to do such as McDonald's Happy Meal, Ice cream at the Cone and so on. Next year I will have to do the same for Rylan. Today, Holden cashed in his Happy Meal coupon, Go figure!

Day 1 of Spring Break: We visited the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery in Dayton, OH. Dayton is about 30 minutes away and I had read that our Cincinnati Museum Center passes allowed us free admission, and it was true! I thought this museum catered its exhibits towards science,geology, and biology. To my surprise Holden and Rylan LOVED it! So much so that neither one wanted to leave. I think I may need to visit the Nature Store for some home projects for them. Here are some of the boys favorite discoveries:

Verdict: Day 1 of Spring Break-Thumbs Up!

Happy Easter!!!

Happy Easter!!!

Our morning started off with the Easter Bunny leaving a trail of carrot eggs that led to the boys baskets. The difference with the boys is that Holden was eager to see where the trail ended whereas Rylan wanted to open each carrot to see what was inside.Once they ended at their baskets they were both thrilled!!

And you can not have Easter without a special breakfast and decorations.

After all the early morning festivities we headed off to church. Surprisingly we made it for the 9:30 service, with time to spare! Shocking, I know!

After church we hunted for Easter eggs. Don't my boys look handsome! Then we ended the day with Easter dinner and one of my favorites...banana pudding.What a wonderful Easter!!

Bunny Express

All Aboard the Bunny Express Train! Kevin was off work today and we surprised the boys with a trip to Lebanon to ride the Bunny Express. After a 30 minute train ride we stopped for an egg hunt, pictures with the Easter bunny, games and balloon swords. You know because every Easter you have to have one. When we returned back to the station it was time for lunch.

Lebanon is such a cute town with lots of charm. Back in December we attended their horse drawn Christmas parade. The streets are cobblestone, the store fronts still have the small town look, and are lined with antique shops and restaurants. I just love this town! I was told by a friend that when we go we must eat at Village Ice Cream. That is just what we did. It is an old fashion soda shop with hamburgers and milk shakes. We could not have lunch without a coke float and you know little Rylan had to have a taste too. Yum Yum!

What a fun day! Trust me will be making it back to Lebanon really soon.

Eggs & Cupcakes

Luckily the weather was gorgeous and we were able to dye eggs outside. And that is a good thing. This was Rylan's first time and I was expecting a HUGE mess with this little one! He had a great time, however, there were several fatalities caused by him. Some were dropped, some were smashed, some were thrown like basketballs into the dye, and some just did not make out of his little hands. I think out of 3 dozen we had a little less than 2 dozen survive. Yes, I know he is young but I thought it would be fun for all of us to do. And, it was so much fun. It was a good thing Kevin was out of town. I had plenty of time to clean up the mess we made!

After we cleaned up and ate lunch it was time to decorate cupcakes.

Somehow the cup of jelly beans ended up empty. Funny how this always seems to happen with these two! Here are the boys final creations. I can not take credit for the idea, I found these cute treats in Family Fun magazine. They turned out great and tasted even better. More Easter fun tomorrow.

Mr. Crafty!

This week I had several Easter crafts planned for us but my original plan was not as good as Holden's. I gave him some felt stickers and asked him to make a picture for me. He looked at the stickers and then surprisingly asked for a popsicle stick. (I really thought he was going to throw a fit and say he did not want to do anything,) And look at what he created...Cute! And then we added several more, grass, and a jar. Two sets of flowers! He enjoyed this so much that he said he wanted to make more tomorrow. Well, thankfully my sweet Aunt Becky keeps me supplied and we had butterflies to use. This time Rylan was awake and ready to create too. And here is what we came up with...Butterfly banners for their doors.

Not too bad from the creative mind of a 4 year old. Sometimes he really does surprise me.