The Dyeing of the Easter Eggs has Commenced!!!

     Today was THE DAY Folks!! Easter is ONLY 3 Days away so I thought, now is as good a time as any to DYE EASTER EGGS!! It's always been an activity I have looked forward to doing! And this year was no exception, although I will say that everyone woke up a bit too early this morning, and so I was SUPER happy that Ethan decided to go down for a morning nap right before we began!! Or else, this project could have been SOMETHING ELSE:)

      Anyway, the girls had a BLAST all the way from watching the eggs in the colored dye, to getting them out, to waiting for them to dry...okay so maybe that wasn't such a fun part! But they did THOROUGHLY enjoy our little photo shoot we took after the eggs were completed which included MANY different expressions:) And EVEN MORE they enjoyed the near 50 Easter Egg hunts we have done inside today since they eggs finished drying! Needless to say, we have now gone from 12 to about 3 eggs, but fun still outweighed the "egg loss":)

       All in all 2013 was another successful Easter Egg Dyeing Year at the Gray House!!!

 

 

Waiting for the Eggs to Change Color!!

 

Emily was more than happy to get the eggs out of the cups and Haley was equally as happy to hold the carton!!



The expression photos begin!!!    PROUD!!

HAPPY!

 

TOGETHERNESS!

SILLINESS!!!

SCARED!

LOVE!

SADNESS!



MADNESS!

 



PRIDE!

HUNGER!!

CUTENESS!

"ROOOOAR!! "Lion ness!!"

Pure and Utter SILLINESS!

And last, but certainly NOT least, SHARING!

To Grandpa Gray's We Go!

      It seems like FOREVER since we have gotten ourselves together enough to be able to make a trip down to Southern Virginia to visit with Grandpa Gray!! FINALLY Micah and I decided it had been FAR TOO LONG so we loaded up the van last Saturday morning and headed down!!

      It is about a  2 and a half hour trip each way, but overall the kiddos did really great with the traveling! The girls had their travel bags with snacks and activities to keep them busy and Ethan enjoyed being able to nap whenever he wanted to:)

      We had a really nice visit with Grandpa Gray! He treated us to lunch at our favorite restaurant down there, Hale's, the food is always so yummy!! Down home good cookin!!! Love it!! Then we came back and let the kiddos explore his apartments a little more while we chatted and then we were off!!

       We wanted to do something with the kids so that they could get some energy out and since it was such a pretty day, we didn't want to waste it! We decided to check out Dixie Caverns which is not too far from Grandpa's house at all. Although it was DEFINITELY a memorable trip, the lesson that we learned was DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES TAKE CHILDREN TO CAVERNS UNTIL THEY ARE VERY PROFICIENT AT WALKING ON THEIR OWN!  It was a very trying trip as Micah and I had to switch off with Ethan the entire time and of course the fact that the tour guide told us that we would be climbing (either up or down) approximately 400 steps during the tour, should have been a sign for us to turn around right there, but it wasn't and we completed the tour!!!

        It was cool however, and we got to see tiny bats that were hibernating, lots of stalactites and stalagmites, water, we even got to touch some formations that felt like clay!! Perhaps the craziest thing to me was that people actually get MARRIED down there!! They had one spot that was a wedding bell, CRAZY!!!!

      Anyway, overall great trip, and hopefully we won't let it be so long before coming back, to Grandpa's house that is, NOT the caverns!!

 



 

 Our 3 Musketeers on Grandpa's Chair!

 An Adorable Family Shot!

 Micah and Grandpa!

 Our Little Cowgirl!

 The Girls were fascinated with Grandpa's Hats!! So they were excited to have their picture taken!

 And Ethan was fascinated with the Sweeper!

Living Proof that we SURVIVED the caverns!! By a small stream where we got to throw rocks!



Haley's FIRST Dentist Visit!!!!

     A Little Behind on this post, but better late than never right? Last Wednesday Haley got to go to her very FIRST Dentist Appointment!! And since Emily has been talking so fondly about the dentist for over a year now and how you get to go when you are THREE Haley was VERY happy when her turn finally came!!!

     She was so brave! She let them count her teeth, take pictures, rinse and use the "spit sucker", floss and apply fluoride! The only part she was a bit apprehensive about was the actual brushing, she was a bit afraid of the electric tooth brush! When it got to that part she clenched her mouth closed as tight as she could and gave the hygienist a look like "don't think you are getting into my mouth with that loud thing!". So finally the hygienist asked if she could brush her teeth with a regular tooth brush and tooth paste and Haley quickly agreed!

     She was such a star!! And we already made her next check up in 6 months!! Who knows maybe next time she may even sit in the chair by herself and not in my lap:)

 

 



 Taking Pictures of her Teeth! They were very beautiful!!



 Counting of the Teeth.....She has 20! LOVE the glasses too!



The spit sucker!!



Out goes the spit, as she watches!!!



Freshly cleaned teeth!!!

And what visit to the dentist office would be complete without a stop by the Treasure Chest??

Spring Time Art and Mixed Veggie Smoothies!!!

     Last night it snowed about 2 inches. Not enough to cause any damage, just enough to make today a bit yucky to go out into. So, we decided against it and snuggled up at home! The kids watched some Sesame Street and Curious George, then onto breakfast! After breakfast everyone got dressed and we did some school time followed up by art time:) In honor of spring being "just around the corner" we did Hand print flowers! The girls had a blast with them! I love how they really get into arts and crafts projects! And today was No Exception! Emily even traced her own hand prints!!! They were so happy to be using scissors, glue and crayons they barely knew what to do with themselves:) And the finished products were AWESOME!!!

      After they both finished up their art projects for the day, I asked them if they wanted to have a smoothie! Both girls agreed very quickly that they did!! So I went to work:) I am still trying to sneak more veggies into our kiddos (especially Miss Haley) so today, I thought I would try mixing in a half can of mixed veggies into their chocolate banana smoothies!! And do you know what?? It WORKED!!! All 3 of them gulped them down:) Haley even said "I like the taste of this smoothie Mommy!". That is progress right there, my friends!! However, as is life with little kiddos, things can change in an instant, so just because she ate her "choco/veggie" smoothie today, doesn't mean she will tomorrow, but we can always hope!!!

 



 

 Emily and Her Handprint Flower!

 



 And then later with her Smoothie Mustache!



 Haley was VERY HAPPY with her art work too!!

 



 Ethan's Smiles, post choco veggie smoothie!!

 

Haley's contented excitement with her choco smoothie mustache too!

Haley Turns THREE and is gifted....DOUBLE PINK EYE:(

....And needless to say, that is why it has taken SO LONG for me to sit down to share these pictures and Birthday Moments! On Friday evening Mimmi set up a birthday dinner for Haley at Mema's House. Mimmi and Mema even made a HUGE Pot of Potato Soup just for Haley! However, Haley did not touch it:( Should have been our first sign.......and then later on in the evening and DEFINITELY once we got home I noticed her eyes were just sagging and looking really droopy.

      But we continued on with out regular routine and got all the kiddos to bed. And when Haley woke up the next morning she was EVEN WORSE. Her eyes looked TERRIBLE and she was just moving slow and being sluggish:(  WE then began debating whether she should go to her birthday party at the Little Gym or not.......Mummis and Rachel were on their way down to celebrate her birthday with her and take us to IHOP, Haley, however really protested and said she wanted Daddy to make pancakes at home! And that is what we did, Rachel and Mummis just came here instead:)

       All was going border line well, and then during breakfast Haley was eating some of a freezable yogurt and then she started gagging and then she threw up A LOT:( And that was the moment that the decision was made NOT to go to her Little Gym Party. She wasn't as disappointed as I thought she would be, I think I was probably more disappointed than her. After Mummis left we got all ready and watched TANGLED, her birthday movie from Mummis and Rachel! I think that swept away everyone's cares:) LOVE that movie!!

       A little while later Mimmi and Dooders picked up Emily to take her to Eliza's party, while Micah and I stayed home with Haley and Ethan! But that was okay, because we put them down for a nap and enjoyed a good snooze too:) When we got up, we decorated Haley's Candyland Cake, and when Mimmi and Dooders and Emily came back they brought a pizza and we ate pizza and cake for Haley's birthday dinner! And although she was sick, she got to enjoy some yummy candy from her cake!!

       So....even though plans changed and she didn't get to go to her Little Gym Party, I think it was still a pretty great day for her! Happy 3rd Birthday Haley Boo!!!

 

 

 

Ethan with his Great Aunt Tede at Mema's House!

 



The Girls both really enjoyed reading books with their Great Aunt Debra too!

 

 



I just LOVE this picture of Ethan and Mema!! Love Everything about it!



Haley loves her Great Aunt Debra!

 



Another thing this girls LOVES is Birthday Cake!

 

 



Checking Out All the Birthday Singers!

 

 



Best Part of a Birthday.....Blowing Out the Candles!



 

 



Following By Opening Presents!

 

 





And of course every little sister needs their big sister's help!

 

 

And Can't forget the Verbal Cues!

 



Her Star Wars Moment!





And She LOVES her princess Papasan from Mimmi and Dooders!



And Every Potty Training Girl LOVES to get new panties!

Spending a moment with her Second Cousin Sam!

Ethan takes his unwrapping SERIOUSLY!!

Home from her Mema's House and Starting to look a little more sick:(

But totally in LOVE with her new papasan and new night gown!



The Birthday Princess on her Actual Birthday Morning Unwrapping a few gifts from Mummis and Rachel!

And her Older Sister, the Royal Princess!

Beads, Beads and More Beads!

 

Love Haley's Tongue Action!

A New Movie for Haley from Mummis and Rachel!! Can't Go Wrong There, Especially when the movie is TANGLED!!!

Even though Haley was sick and had to miss her Little Gym Birthday Bash she still got her Candy Land Cake!!!

And she loved it!

Blowing Out her #3 Candle while trying to decide which piece she would start with!!

Look at those pitiful eyes, at least she got to enjoy a candy cane!

Mimmi and Emily enjoying some cake together too!

And of course, we can't forget about E Buddy!

 



And lastly, Dooders a Couple of his Favorite Girls! (We tried this shot so many times, and poor Haley just couldn't keep her eyes all the way open, she was still a trooper though!!!)