Easter: 2012

I can't believe that 1 year ago my little man was MUCH littler!

In one short year, he's changed SO much!!

This was our first Easter away from the family. I was a little sad thinking about how we wouldn't have a big family dinner and get to spend the day with family or friends, but our neighbors invited us over for a nice BBQ, so we weren't all alone after all :)

We didn't do any of the traditional things for Brady this year: dying eggs, hunting for eggs, easter basket, etc., but we did get him a new toy to enjoy and he really seems to love it! Ryan picked it out and I think he did a great job.

After church and lunch, we spent some time playing together before Brady and I went down for a nap to rest up for the BBQ. Brady and Ryan are working on walking and Brady just has so much fun with it...he laughs constantly!

This might be one of my favorite pictures of the two of them, EVER. The way Brady is just looking up to his dad melts my heart!! He's taking a few steps at a time right now, so I'm thinking that maybe in the next few weeks he'll really be walking. I know I shouldn't look forward to it, but I AM. I think it's so exciting and fun.

This is a taste of what me and Brady do every day. If I'm on the couch and he's playing with toys, he'll come over to me every few minutes and want up. He used to whine until I picked him up, but now he can just climb up onto the couch. He'll sit with me and play for a while, give me kisses, eat my necklace, eat my nose, try to put his fingers in my mouth, try to take my glasses, bonk my head (or nose, or lip - OUCH!), play peek-a-boo, etc. Then he'll get bored and climb down to his toys...then 5 minutes later, he'll come back for more play with mom.

Anyway, after some playing, Brady and I went down for naps and then woke up, made a strawberry trifle, and headed next door for the evening. It was great to get to know the neighbors and some of their friends and family. Everyone was very nice and the food was good. The trifle was a big hit too!

We ended the night by skyping with both of our families and then after Brady went down for bed, we headed back outside with sweatshirts and blankets and chatted with the neighbors until bedtime. It ended up being a really fun day. We got quality family time and still got to go be sociable and celebrate with others...and get to know the neighbors a little more!