Easter Weekend

Angela here!  Hope everyone had a great Easter weekend!  We had 72 hours of nonstop fun, hanging with friends and family.  I took off work last Friday so Hudson could partake in the annual egg hunt at the neighbor's house.  If I counted correctly, there were almost 30 youngsters on a mission to find eggs, which is what I like to call organized chaos!  There was even a bounce house afterwards to exhaust any remaining energy.  Hudson was one of the younger kids and did his best to keep up with the big kids.  And he was most excited to find erasers in some of his eggs.  Who knew?!

Saturday morning we headed to Egg Hunt #2 at the YMCA.  This hunt was divided into age groups, so Hud was able to dominate all those small two year olds. They didn't stand a chance with my little man; his basket was full this time.  He even got more erasers! 

Miss Adley was awake for about 10 minutes, then she slept though the chaos...

 After nap time on Saturday, Mimi and Pop Wilson stopped by for a visit.  Hudson got more goodies to play with...clothes, candy, bubbles, trains and more.  Bubbles are definitely his favorite at the moment (along with erasers).

Then came Easter morning.  Hudson is starting to understand what a "holiday" is and was excited to find a basket waiting for him.  He's getting better at opening gifts as well.  He used to destroy his presents...thrashing open a bag or box in milliseconds and then tossing everything off to the side.  Now he takes out each object one by one and will hold it in the air for all to see.  Great progress.  Adley sported cute bunny ears, the same bunny ears that Hudson has been deathly afraid for the past two years.  She didn't even notice anything was on her head.  And yes, we still call her Perfect Adley (but I do know my days are limited with that nickname).

Next we got gussied up for brunch at Heatherwoode Country Club with the Springboro crew.  My blue-eyed babies were looking ever so cute...

Cousins Claire and Anderson were looking just as adorable.

After brunch, we headed to the Bockelman house for another round of Easter baskets.  Not only does the Easter Bunny stop at our house, but he also drops off baskets at LollyPops house.  The kids got clothes, toys, wayyyy too much candy and even some cool sunglasses.

We ended the afternoon playing outside all day.  The sun was shining, the weather was warm and the kids were on their best behavior...minus the moment Hudson shot Pop with a water gun...but those are minor details.  Adley was in awe with the swing and the wind blowing though her "hair."  It was a great weekend!

 

Have a great week!

YMCA, UK and Pull-ups

Angela here!  Hope everyone had a great week.  The kiddos have been busy the past couple weeks.  The Kemps finally became members of the YMCA and I think I found a new addiction...Zumba!  Who knew?!  But it's fun for everyone and the kids enjoy the playroom.  We signed Hud up for soccer as well.  The starting age is three (which he won't be till July), but I did a little weaseling to get him on the team.  AKA, I volunteered Chris to be a coach and it worked!  We start practice in a couple weeks.  Should be interesting....since Chris himself has never played soccer before.  Good thing these kids are only three years old.

All the cousins playing at the Y

Miss Adley keeps growing and growing.  She's finally sitting up sturdy and the teething is in full-force.  Drool is everywhere!  But she's just too cute, so we overlook all the slobber.  She's a bottomless pit as well.  She will eat lima beans, peas, squash and any fruit you put in front of her.  Making her baby food has become a second job.  And she's sleeping 12 hours straight through the night, which has made my life oh so pleasant.  So no complaints here.

We were ready for the big basketball game last week and it didn't end too well for the Kentucky Wildcats.  But Adley still sported her mama's alma mater.  She would have supported daddy's school, but oh wait...they didn't make it to the playoffs.  Not boasting at all here :)

Hudson has been busy astonishing us with his knowledge.  It seems like everyday he amazes us with something new.  He is currently all about matching games and puzzles.  When he finds a matching set, he'll scream "It fits, it fits!"  And if he's not ready to do something....eat, wake up, play, whatever....his new phrase is: "Not quite mama. Not quite ready."

News flash - our house is in potty-training mode!  The teachers mentioned that Hudson wasn't as "excited" about the potty as the other kids were in school.  Apparently the cloth diapers were holding him back.  So he exonerated himself from all cloth and only wears pull-ups now.  He has gone potty twice (actually ON the potty) and tells us when he has to go now.  Great progress for the first week, which has nothing to do with our parenting process (all credit goes to his teachers).  We could not be more grateful for all the teachers at his school.

Hudson is so so excited to be a "big boy" now with his pull-up.  He even has a little dance to prove it....

https://youtu.be/vqqQtYoANvw

Hope everyone has a wonderful Easter weekend.  We already kicked off the holiday fun with one egg hunt today.  The neighbors had a huge hunt and Hudson did his best to keep up with the big kids.  Another egg hunt is scheduled for tomorrow, followed by family gatherings and celebrating the holiday.  Next post will be Easter overload!

Rolling over, Fundraisers and Politics

Angela here!  Hope everyone is having a great week thus far.  Ohio has had some warm weather lately so we are playing outside as much as possible.

Chris and I had a wonderful time in Florida the other week.  We spent time in Tampa and Clearwater before we headed to St. Petersburg, where Chris was recognized as one of the top recruiters in his division.  He received a plaque along with a hefty gift card, so I reaped some benefits as well!  We ate fabulous seafood every evening, relaxed on the beach and soaked up plenty of sun.  So much so that Chris had a fierce sunburn for about a week after we returned home.  He called it a "tan," but when your skin is flaking off, I call it a burn.

Miss Adley continues to get bigger and bigger by the day.  She's just shy of 7 months old and can almost sit up on her own.  Her new "trick" is rolling; she LOVES to roll!  She will end up across the room if you don't watch her closely.  She has even gotten herself stuck under the chairs a few times from all her log-rolling (yup, call us the best parents ever).   Her drool is starting to pick back up as well, so we're expecting some teeth to start cutting soon.

This past weekend we went to a fundraiser for one of my coworkers.  Her oldest son was diagnosed with a brain tumor and had to have surgery.  He has recovered nicely, but will need extensive testing in the upcoming months and possibly another surgery.  The benefit raised almost $10,000 for the family to take care of medical bills!  It was a lovely event for the kids.  Cousin Anderson and their friend Jack joined in on the fun.

Anderson, Jack and Hudson

There was a bounce house, raffles, yummy food and loud music for everyone to dance to.  Even the Ninja Turtle Donatello stopped by to do the Nae Nae and "whip it" with all the kids.  Consequently, I learned that I need to put my boy in dance lessons so he can stay hip with the kids these days.  Hudson tried his best to lay down the dance moves, but fell short when standing next to Jack, who basically performed a routine out on the dance floor by himself.  They were cute to watch.

Hudson continues to rock out in the big brother department.  He is always concerned about Adley and what she is doing.  He wants to help change her diapers and always brings her toys to keep her happy.  He will thoroughly explain how to play with each toy and what sound they make when you press a particular button.  And Adley loves every bit of attention she can get from her brother.  Sometimes I think she would rather hang with him than myself.  But it does make the evenings easier when the two of them can entertain each other.

Lastly, with all the crazy political ranting lately, it behooved Chris and I to teach Hudson about the candidates and their platforms.  We're not brainwashing him by any means, we are simply encouraging him not to vote for anyone in the GOP at the moment, especially for a man named Trump.  This is completely different than brainwashing.  Now I know you're not supposed to discuss religion and politics, but this video makes us laugh.  And even if you're a Trump supporter, you must admit that the guy's had his crazy moments!  So we've been talking a lot about the Democratic Party in our household.  And yes, I am fully aware that my son is 2.5 years old and cannot vote, but it's never too early to start the learning process.  And until the Republicans can get their act together, this is what Hudson has to say about it.  He is allowed to pick Bernie or Hillary (again, not brainwashing), and this is what he decided....

https://youtu.be/bsox12cPRmo

Hope everyone has a great weekend in store!!