Easter Morning...

Easter morning was a bit hectic at our house to say the least! It was our first Sunday back to church and trying to get everyone fed and dressed on top of enjoying what the Easter Bunny brought was enough to stress anyone out. However, we did make it to Sunday School and church....we were just 30 minutes late!=) ha

Olivia loved waking up to a basket full of goodies and was so sweet to help Ella Grace see what was in her basket too! Unfortunately, due to the chaos of getting out the door we have not one picture of the family dressed up for Easter Sunday! =( We will have to try again at a later date! However, we did get to accomplish the most important thing....worshipping and praising God for the resurection of His Son! Truly a special day to celebrate!

Easter Play Date!

Sweet love!

Ready to go to the party!=)

Olivia's favorite thing to do....JUMP!

Ella Grace has lots of sweet big sisters!!=)

Hysterical!! Maury with her "hat".

Lots of eggs to be found....

The crew!

Olivia hunting eggs!

Maury on the hunt...

Picnic lunch on the deck!

Ella Grace and Brooks....chillin out, taking it all in! Won't be long until they are running around too!!

Today our sweet friend Henry(and especially his mommy!) was nice enough to invite us over for an Easter Party/Play Date at his house! There were 11 kiddos all together!! Despite how chaotic that may sound, it was really super fun. They jumped outside, had an Easter egg hunt, played in the backyard, and ate a yummy lunch!! The best part for me of course is getting to catch up with some of my favorite girlfriends in the midst of chasing kids!
Thank you Mrs.Brooke for having us over!! It was such a fun day!!!

A little glimpse of sunshine from my world today....

Sweet smiles from my baby girl!
Precious kisses from big sis!

Olivia loving the chance to hold her baby sister!

Olivia's pink toenails....all ready for sandal wearing weather!

"Cinderella" dancing with her daddy after being inspired by the dancers on Dancing with the Stars!=)

Dear friends.....

Some of our dearest friends, Wayne and Mary, came over for dinner last weekend! We ate pizza in the midst of good conversation, good company, watching basketball, entertaining Olivia, and nursing babies. Wow, how our dinner dates are different these days!!!=) Gone are the days of staying up until the early hours(literally) playing card games and having great conversations with some of our favorite people....oh, but those memories will be forever cherished! Now, we have new memories to make with extra little blessings involved!!

Mary had her sweet baby boy, Webb, about a week after I had Ella Grace. We had so much fun taking their pictures and comparing notes on how they were doing so far in this great big world! It's so great to have someone with a baby so close in age to be able to call and ask questions, compare schedules, etc with. Even though this is my second child I have totally forgotten almost everything from Olivia's first year of life and what I haven't forgotten has been totally different for Ella Grace than with Olivia. I'm so excited for Ella Grace and Webb to grow up together! I'm pretty sure Webb is the only boy Rush would approve of being in Ella Grace's life at this point!ha Enjoy the pics below of these two precious babies!

A Visit to the Easter Bunny...

Last week I took Olivia and Ella Grace to see the Easter Bunny and have their picture made. I just knew it would most likely be a disaster being that Olivia has hated these dreadful visits to the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus all of her little life! HOWEVER, much to my surprise, she was such a big girl! Another reason why Ella Grace has blessed our lives so much these last 8 weeks!!=) She has sure helped her big sister grow up and overcome her fears in more ways than I can count! It was as though Olivia knew she needed to act big and in control since Ella Grace would be watching and taking part in this too. All of that to say...we got some pretty cute pics with the Easter Bunny this year!!

Spring Break....

Sweet friends!!!

Dora!!!! Olivia looooves Dora, but didn't want to get too close!

Eating a picnic lunch at Caroline's house!

Enjoying some St.Patty's Day treats!

Sweet Ella Grace along for the ride....she was such a trooper!

Olivia's MDO program had spring break a couple of weeks ago. I think we managed to get out and do something entertaining every single day! I was either really brave or just crazy!(ha...maybe a little of both!) It's not easy being cooped up inside with a toddler and an infant all day so it really was easier to get out in the mornings for at least a little bit to ensure a long afternoon nap for both girls! We went to the McWane Center and saw Dora, the library, park, and a St.Patty's Day party at our friend Caroline's. It was a fun week....I think I'll be able to survive the summer.=)

Whatever works....

It amazes me how two babies from the same parents can be so different! I remember packing away my books about newborns during this last pregnancy thinking I had it all figured out and wouldn't need anything to refer to for guidance. Ha! Was I wrong or what??!!! Ella Grace has proved to be a very different baby than Olivia and it didn't take long for me to begin the frantic search for those "What to Expect the First Year" and "Baby Wise" books! One of the ways Ella Grace is very different from Olivia is in her sleeping habits. She is a much lighter sleeper and tends to take cat naps instead of the looooong naps Olivia took. I'm sure there are many reasons for this...number 1 being that there is a toddler running around our house at all times who hasn't quite learned the difference between an inside voice and an outside voice. There is no doubt Ella Grace will adapt at some point to the chaos, but for now she sleeps in between all our running to and fro and the echos of Olivia's sweet voice all over our house.

Ella Grace has also proved to be pretty picky about where she lays her head to rest at night. She loooves to be held but clearly that is not an option for loooots of reasons!! So, after trying maaaaany different things for Ella Grace to sleep in at night (since it would just be to easy for her to sleep in the cradle) we have found the carseat works the best....and this being my second child....guess what??!!!....she is sleeping in the carseat! I know I"m starting a bad habit that will soon have to be broken but for now I need sleep and so does she! So, the carseat it is!!