All Dressed Up

What a nice day we had, the only thing that would have made it nicer...would have been to have Stan home with us and not at work- but we made the best of it.

Suprisingly, Anthony was the first one up! This is our child that would easily sleep as the house burned down around him, to awake...SLOWLY...groggily and ask where the TV disappeared to. :D He tells me that he awoke at 7:30am (which is possible...but I'm thinking that it wasn't more like 8:30) I think that he relished his time up alone, to scout out the hiding spots for all the eggs. He came in our room at one point and sat next to me; talking. To be honest, his words sounded as if they were off in the distance in my semi-dream state...I was inclined to reach for the snooze button to get another 8 minutes of sleep escape...but it was my eldest son, still caught up in the excitement of the day, long, lean and lanky-cuddled by his Mom.
My real alarm went off at 9:30. I opened my eyes reluctantly. Anthony was with me again, chatting...I could see his lips moving but couldn't make out the words...then I heard the sound of bare feet slapping down the newly floored hallway. It was our Cameron...gleefully jumping up on the bed. He was GEEKED! He was a little concerned that the Easter Bunny was still in the house...but Anthony assured him that he was NOT. Phew...that was a close call!
Now, almost completely awake...I am listening to hear for Dominic...surely I would hear him beating his drum or playing cars...heck, knocking on his door to be let out (Knob cover on the inside of his door keeps him from escaping the house during the night and taking my car for a spin around the block) - but nothing. That was strange.
As I made my way to the edge of the bed...Anthony headed to Dom's room to take a look. That boy was actually still sleeping at 9:55am!! (Runing him in the backyard, like a puppy tuckered him out the day before!) He sensed the 3 sets of familial eyeballs staring at him and popped up with a smile, "Gooooood Morning!" he said emphatically. Amazing. I was bitter that the Rabbit didn't start the coffee for me! I could learn something from my youngest. :)
The 3 of them ventured into the hallway to collect the foil wrapped eggs and jelly beans. It didn't take long for Dominic to bee line straight to his Easter basket and start cramming chocolate into his mouth...it took a great deal of convincing to get him to allow me to take the foil off the eggs before he chewed them! Stubborn will he has...
They found all 18 eggs...and had a good time doing it. I'm pretty sure that Anthony saw to it that one egg, the last egg, got put in a place that only he would find it...(takes an oldest sibling to know an oldest sibling!) he looked like the hero...with the xray vision and all (It was stuffed into the couch). I'm most amused that he thought I didn't know.
We put Dom's new Barney DVD in and when that was over- we watched Mrs. Doubtfire. Anthony loved it. Cam wouldn't watch it. He said it was because is was PG-13 and he shouldn't watch those movies - but trust me, if the Turtles or Star Wars had the same rating- it would take duct tape and a telephone pole to keep him from it! I put the green bean casserole in, ironed the boys clothes and assembled the menagerie of items that we would need to bring on the trip to Monica and Dan's.
Once we were all dressed, my little men looked so cute with their dress shirts and ties - we headed out. Got to M&D's at 4. Had a wonderful meal. My sister is like Martha Stewart on steroids. Her desserts were in served in tiers for Pete's sake. (The only tiers in my house are actually tears and they are brought on by having to repeat myself 10 times before I am listened to!!) The boys looked great. They behaved well and were thrilled to get some cash and outdoor stuff.
Anthony ate 7 rolls (Uncle Dan still can't fathom where he put them) and polished off a nice plate of non-chocolate delacasies. (Ham, cheesy potatos, green bean casserole, a really delicious salad, rolls and this fancy stuffing) Yum! We visited with Nanny, Nana, Jackie, Juan, Alex, Julia, Chris, Beth, Matt, Julie and later with Jan and Paul too. We stayed til nearly 10pm and the boys stayed awake for the whole ride home. They were VERY happy to see that Dad was home waiting for us :0)
Overall, such a wonderful day. I am very grateful that my boys know that Easter is not just about a rabbit and candy. They know and understand that it is a celebration of the love that God and Jesus has for us. They are happily building their relationship with Him each day... as their mother, I am very proud.
He is risen! Make a new start, invite Him in...you won't be sorry you did.