Easter

Today was a triumph for many reasons.   But I will get to that.   Check out what was in my Easter basket!!!!

Because the Easter Bunny knew that I needed more cars.    Yeah.

Funny, KitKats and Peeps are things that Mom and Dad like to eat too?   Coincidence? 

Off we went after a great Sunday at church to Grandma and Grandpa's house.   Church was great because Mom says the talks were awesome, Daddy taught a great 5th Sunday lesson in RS/Priesthood meeting, and I DIDN'T CRY WHEN I WENT TO NURSERY.      Yes, you heard me correctly.    A banner day all around for the Barnes family.

Riding on Grandpa's golf cart.

Dyeing eggs with the cousins.   I lost interest after the 3rd one, and really just wanted to play in the sandbox. It's sort of my thing lately....  

The cousins are taking this much more seriously than I am.

 Pondering on the pier with cousin Alexis....

And finally, MORE Easter egg hunting.    Again, lost interest  pretty quickly.

Playing basketball with Dad was way more fun.

Happy Easter Everyone!  

Love,
Jack

The Perfect Day! (Almost!)

Today, Mom had grand stuff planned for us.  She started the day by letting me have a doughnut.  That doesn't happen very often.   Like, EVER.

Then, Mom registered me for the "Wee Walkers" Easter Egg hunt through the Raleigh Parks and Rec.   It was only for ages 1-4, so I was guaranteed that I could at least hold my own against the 1 years olds.  As it turned out, I'm sharper than your average 1-4 year old, and I got plenty of eggs.   But we're getting to that..

 I was too young to remember last years Easter Egg hunt at Grandma and Grandpa Barnes' house, so Mom and I did a little practice run at our house before we left.   A refresher course is always good.   (*see my note about needing to hold my own against the 4 years olds.  Mom likes to see me prepared.)

We met our good friends the Carliles there at the park.  I don't look too enthusiastic here, but it was a little chilly, and they were taking their sweet time getting started.  Don't they know that a 1-4 year old has a 12 second attention span?

Off we went!   I've got this!!   Find and egg, grab an egg.   Stop to open egg?   No, must press on to find another egg!

Surveying the booty.    I was disappointed to find nothing of a chocolate nature, or even a single solitary jelly bean.   They were filled with stickers and fruit snacks.   A smug triumph for Mom's everywhere.  Humph.

Ok, so this photo is hard for Mom to even help me blog about.    (Back story time:   Mom is deathly, irrationally, mind-bendingly terrified of snakes.  She can't even see one on TV, or Dad has to change the channel.   This is tough, because Dad is a wildlife biologist, and we watch a LOT of nature shows.  Snakes just happen.   She can pick up spiders, deal with bugs, and loves creatures of all kinds.   But snakes are a no-go.)    So for her to even take this picture, she had to stand WAYYYYY back, and ZOOOOM in.   Mom's friend Kim had to hold me up to look at the snake.   I like that Mom doesn't try to pass her prejudices on to me.   She's cool like that.    Anyone else think that it was wayyyy random to have snakes (and a turtle) on display for us to look at?   Snakes?   At an Easter egg hunt?   Yeah, Mom didn't get it either.

 ....On to a safe activity like coloring.   Phewww.  

 We finished up our egg hunt around 11:30, so it was off to McDonald's for my favorite lunch.   French Fries and apples!   Chocolate milk is awesome too.  (Mom ate my hamburger)

 I had so much fun, I fell asleep on the way home.   Mom was able to transfer me to my bed, and we both took a nice little nap.    We spent the afternoon playing sandbox, and other fun things.   Mom says she loves spending the day with me, and I couldn't agree more.  We're the perfect team.

(** Note on why it was almost the perfect day:    Grandpa Huffman was in the hospital getting some stents put in, and Mom was a little edgy about that.  She didn't like not being there.   Also, Daddy got something called a speeding ticket, and he's the GOOD driver in the family!   Mom deserves one, Dad does not.   And then our garage door broke.  Bad things happen in threes?   Phoooey on that.)

Sand, sand, everywhere....

Mom recognizes a true sand connoisseur when she sees one.  The sandbox at Grandma and Grandpa Barnes' house can hold my interest for long stretches, so naturally she would like to recreate this content feeling at our house too.   She bought me a great sandbox on Amazon, and Dad helped me put it together.   I saw the box sitting in the hallway, and maybe manufacturers don't realize this, but I CAN read pictures.  I wouldn't let it rest until everyone dropped everything they were doing and put the darn thing together for me!

*** Note to self:  must remember to put cover back on after each use.   Turn your back for a moment, and NC is trying to rain on you!

Functional AND Fun

What does one do with leftover birthday balloons?  Use them for sitting on, of course....

Happy 2nd Birthday!

 My birthday was awesome!   I celebrated all weekend!

 My Iowa family always comes through for me, and this birthday was no different.  I have the best birthparents and birthgrandparents a boy could ask for!  A talking ladybug from Jesse, a musical puzzle and Mr. Potato head from Kelli, and a puppy from Christy and Dan!   Thank you everyone for loving me, and making my birthday very special!

 My mom and dad decorated the whole downstairs for me!

 I had a big party with a lot of my family and friends.   Mom was sure I'd go straight for the balloons on this cake, but it was the tiny candies that had my interest!

 Why does mom strip me down whenever there is cake involved?  It's like she doesn't trust me or something....

 Sunday night was the party at Grandma and Grandpa Barnes's house.   Mom made this delicious cake for me to share with my Uncle Bryan, who's had the recent misfortune of having to share a party with me from now on.  His recent "stuck in the mud with the Scouts" experience inspired Mom to make a stuck in the mud cake.    Ha!   She's funny.

Dad helping me open presents. 

Most of these folks come through with cash that disappears into some hole called a "credit union", but thanks to cousin Alexis, I got a rockin car to play with.

....Riding on the golf cart that Grandpa bought for us Grandkids (so we would stay off his Mule.)   I even talked Alexis into letting me drive!   If birthdays are this much fun, I wouldn't mind having one more often.    Mom says no, but it was worth a try.

Thanks for all the birthday wishes everyone!!!!!

Love,
Jack

Texas ....for no reason

My mom has some great ideas sometimes.   She really wanted to stick it to the airline one more time before I turned two, and she started having to buy my plane tickets.   We took a trip to Texas for a whole week to hang out with Grandma and Grandpa Huffman.    My Aunt Catherine and Uncle Jared joined us for a day or two (they live there), and I was able to hang out with my awesome cousins.

Grocery cart fun with the lovely Maj-Lis (pronounced "My Lease" for you non-Swedish speakers out there)

Here we are testing the weight limit on Grandma's new porch swing.   Me and Mom and my three cousins Hudson, Tanner, Maj-Lis and Aunt Catherine.   New puppy Gretel and old puppy Woody wish they could join us.

 Grandma and Grandpa had the best intentions when they tried to take me out for pizza.   Unfortunately, I just couldn't make it.   When the nap calls, you answer.

 I look like I'm sad here, but I'm just sleepy.   Mom intentionally left for shopping in Round Rock while I was good and sleepy so I'd nap in the car.   She's pretty sneaky like that.

 Grandpa had the zipline all ready for me.  I really enjoyed it, just like I always do.   I think there's a video rolling around somewhere, but it might be on Grandma's camera.

 Mom knows that Grandma and Grandpa miss out on a lot of "firsts" so they all took me for my first official haircut!   I was NOT cool with this, and the DumDum couldn't persuade me this was ok.   Mom had to hold me while the lady cut my hair.  Of course, I'm not going to let a perfectly good DumDum go to waste.

 During.....

 ....After!    Look out ladies, this level of handsome might catch you un-awares....

A little ice cream treat to celebrate my transition into big-boy haircuts.

Texas was wonderful, and I got to spend a lot of quality time with Grandma and Grandpa.   We spent a lot of time riding the tractor, playing toys, digging in the dirt, and eating yummy food all over town.   I especially loved spending time with my Grandpa, who I lovingly called "Pop-Pop."      "Pop-Pop, where ARE you?"   was frequently heard around the house.   I can't wait till the next time we get to go visit!