Easter Eggstravanza!

Last weekend the family hit 1-40 East to visit my Mother and to attend the annual Buena Vista Easter Egg Hunt. Buena Vista is the family home of one of my best friends, and our whole family loves visiting there; the location plus the laid-back style instantly relaxes you!

Landon loved every second of our Easter weekend. When he woke up, he received his Easter baskets and gifts - including his very first scooter. He loved the scooter so much that he wouldn't leave the house without it...

Once we arrived at the Easter Egg Hunt, Landon instantly set to work exploring the grounds, playing with the dogs, playing with his friends, drinking pink lemonade, and eating goodies. He didn't enjoy searching out Easter eggs nearly as much as he enjoyed looking for an icy cold beverage and a sweet kiss from his bestie Josi!

I'm Back!

So, I didn't share this with the virtual world in advance (didn't want to jinx the trip!) , but Phillip and I just celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary...in London and Paris! It was marvelous, darling. Imagine traipsing around museums, gardens, theatres, cafes, monuments, river boats, then throw in some shopping and a lot of good food and wine and champagne and beer and more food, and that was basically our trip. Plus, this all took place in sunny 65 degree weather for the most part. Ahh, just pinch me.

I guess I should have asked my Mother to be a guest blogger for the week, as she entertained Landon at her home while we where gone. But, I'm sure that Landon will give me lots of material this week - the Buena Vista Easter Egg Hunt is this weekend (if the weather holds!).

I can tell you that my sweet boy greeted me in the airport with a rose, and apparently was very taken with a fancy red motorcycle in the airport parking lot...he stopped to stare, then turned to my Mother and said "oooooouuuuuuooooooo - I likey!

Sir, Please Step Out of the Car

Today Landon and I met my Mother for a day of lunch, playing, and shopping - such a nice day!

We wrapped up our day and headed to the car, where Landon wanted to drive of course. Since I had to load the car, and I wanted to get the A/C going, I cranked the car for Landon, then Mom sat up front with him so that he could "drive". After I loaded up the car and put away his stroller, and he had changed all of the settings on the dash, I walked up to his window to watch him firsthand.

The front window was cracked several inches, so I leaned in and jokingly pretended to be a State Trooper pulling him over. I told him that he was speeding, then pretended to notice how young he was, and asked to see his id. I told him that if he wanted to get out of a ticket, his best shot was to speed away right then, because I was pretty sure that he wasn't old enough to drive, and I really needed to check his license. He started chuckling at my joke, which Mom and I thought was cute.

This is where it gets funny though.

Landon reached down to the center console, found a business card, and shoved it out the window towards me - all the while, doubling over with laughter. I pretended to read it, then told him it looked like a fake id, so he broke into even more laughter, then pushed another piece of paper out the window at me!

Lucky for him, his "second license" seemed legit; but the little guy wanted his first "fake id" back. When I asked him if he wanted his first fake id back so that he could pretend to be 21 and buy beer, he laughed hysterically again!

Who knew that a fake traffic stop could provide so much laughter for three generations?

You Have Learned Well, Grasshopper

The other day Landon and I were eating lunch together and chatting about our day. I got up from the table to refill his sippy cup, and I laughing sang out "Ice, Ice Baby" as I added more ice to his sippy cup. Landon promptly responded by breaking into the cabbage patch dance.

Ah...your sensai (Aunt Andrea) is very wise. She has taught you all you need to know in life...

...umm, maybe we will continue with other life lessons, just in case!

Reflecting....

For those of you who didn't know that Landon was capable of sitting still and peacefully reflecting...photographic proof...he did it once...for about 10 seconds.

At Falls Lake with his friend Leo.

New Point of View

Today when Landon and I ran an errand at Target, he was very much in need of an energy release. After a torrential downpour the night before, our yard and the park were too wet for playtime, so I let Landon run loose in the store. I might regret this the next time we are in a store and he wants to walk on his own, but for today, it was fun!

My favorite part of letting Landon wander wherever he wanted was to see what caught his eye. At first I had a cart with me, but after he started loading it up with his finds, I had to abandon it so I could keep up with him and curtail any messes.

These were a few of his favorite things: a two-tiered Easter egg display tray, a navy bean bag, a Disney cars toddler luggage set, about 17 assorted sports balls, a lawn mower and two dump trucks.

My favorite part of our outing occurred when he wowed a Target employee with one of his new skills - throwing a ball backwards between his legs. He found a toy football, immediately squatted down on the ground, and hiked the ball through his legs like a baby quarterback! I guess all those times I yelled "blue 42" while we were playing with his football have paid off!

I Come From A Family Where Gravy Is Considered A Beverage

This statement isn't entirely off base. Phillip and I both come from good country folk who enjoy sweet tea, biscuits, fried chicken, and gravy. But despite all of this, I rarely fry anything, and rarely make gravy.

Last night was an exception.

Yesterday was cool and blustery, so I thought we needed to enjoy one last winter meal before spring kicked in and we ventured more towards grilling and eating salads during the warm weather. I made pot roast with carrots, celery and onions, mashed potatoes and gravy, and swiss chard. Landon also had fresh fruit. I happily set the table and called the boys to eat, but Landon refused to climb into his chair and kept trying to sit in our chairs instead.

I couldn't figure it out, then looked at the plates and noticed that Phillip and I had gravy on our potatoes, whereas Landon did not. I remedied the gravy situation, and the little guy climbed right up. And proceeded to dip a strawberry into the gravy!

After eating all of his potatoes and gravy, Landon started on mine. Finished in record time! Phillip got up to refill my plate so we could give Landon some more, and after he served the potatoes, he walked back to the table with the gravy pan, at which point Landon said, "Oh, good, good, good, good, good!". (To hear this in your head, imagine when he uses his "gully-gully" voice...if you've ever heard Landon talk for more than brief periods, you are probably familiar with his interesting style!)

How funny is that? I guess gravy does make everything better, huh? Landon was so happy after dinner that he laughed more than he has ever laughed in his entire life. I didn't want to stop the spontaneous fun that all of us were having in his playroom, so I don't have any video of the apparently hysterical easter egg game I made up, but I do have some pictures of Landon chowing down...