Easter 2012 (Part 2)

My 2 favorite days of the year:  Good Friday and Easter Saturday.

I wish I could say it was my favorite because of Jesus sacrifice on the cross for us, but that would not be entirely true.  It's my favorite because of my DeDeaux family reunion.  I'm not sure why Easter weekend was picked, but I'm grateful.  There's nothing like being around family...and a lot of it!

Friday morning breakfast was made by Auntie Dawn and my dad.  Biscuits and gravy...yum!  I think my children ate cereal because Grandmalupe spoiled them.  We spent most of the day outside.  I made it a rule that the kids could not go inside unless to use the restroom.  I found a tree outside that Abe used and it was his 'pee tree' all weekend.  The morning was spent getting ready for the crawfish boil, running errands, and playing basketball and volleyball.  Lloyd would scoot around on his roller crutches watching everyone else.  Here are a few pictures from the morning outside.

 After lunch, the kids went down for their nap and I got a little alone time.  It was spent mostly sitting in the sun with Heather just talking.  I'm so glad Heather made the trip down even though Chris couldn't come.  Chris, like B, had to stay back to work and hated missing the weekend.  I doubt he'll miss another one.  I'm not sure where he came up with the idea, but my dad wanted to take all the 'kids' bowling after nap time.  My kids don't really bowl, but he wanted them to tag alone so we went.  My dad, Heather and I, Ashley, Ryan, Conner, Riley, Stoney, Rin, and Abe all went to the bowling alley only to discover that league night started in 30 minutes.  We just played in the arcade instead.  It was a lot of fun though.  R & A found a duck game that was on their level and Ashley hit the jackpot and got like 500 something tickets!  My dad even found time to play a game so even though bowling was out, I'd say the arcade was a huge success.

 

Post arcade was a trip to BR31 for ice cream.  Tata treated everyone to a sweet treat which was awesome.  A got some sour sherbet and R a chocolate scoop in a cone.  She's never had a cone before and it was interesting.  I'm not sure how she did it, but she had ice cream on her forehead!  Needless to say, it was hilarious and nasty at the same time.

I left W back at the house with Lloyd in charge.  When we got home, it was time for dinner and then the bon fire.  I let R & A stay up a little late to roast marshmallows and make smores.  A just likes to eat the mallows and R just likes to cook them but not eat them.  She makes me a smore with her marshmallow:) R & A hit the sack after their bath around 9:30pm.  It was an exciting and fun-filled day for their little bodies and they needed rest.

Saturday can best be described with few words and mostly pictures.  Grandamlupe made her beneits for breakfast and then festivities started around 11 am.  I think Uncle Charles took the first batch of crawfish out around 11:30 and people started eating.  Guests started showing up around 10am to help get things underway.  My family was outside again and not allowed back in unless R needed to use the restroom.  Here are pictures to summarize our day.

Breakfast

Grandma cooking breakfast

 Sacks of crawfish about to be cooked

 R being a brave girl

Live crawfish about to be cooked

 Uncle Charles getting ready

 The first batch!

 I love this guy!

 Family picture with Lloyd's daughter, Paige Miller

 cutting wedding cake

 watching softball

 Ryan teaching R how to hit

 No afternoon nap = exhausted boy

 Big Family Picture

I love my family!

After getting the kids bathed and in bed, I went with Ashley and Heather to find a bite to eat other than seafood.  We found a sonic so we ordered and were just sitting, talking.  After about an hour, I said that I probably needed to head home so I could finish packing since I was leaving the next morning.  Ashley went to start the car and the battery was dead.  I guess even though the car was off, something inside was on and made the battery die. Heather asked four different people at sonic and no one had jumper cables with them.  Strange!  We had to wait for someone to come rescue us and we didn't know who was well enough to drive.  But very soon, Uncle Charles came to our rescue.  He jumped us off and we were on our way home.  The rest of the night consisted of a small amount of spades, packing, showering, and more packing.

Sunday morning, 6:15 am came early.  Dad took us all to the airport and got the kids breakfast.  We got to spend about 45 minutes with him before going through security.  Heather was with me to help get the kids through and to our gate.  We were on the same flight to Atlanta, but we did not sit near each other.  The flight home was good again.  Wes slept for the first leg to Atlanta and the kids played.  I found a family bathroom in Atlanta and all three decided it was time to poop.  Better there than on the plane is for sure!  The flight to Raleigh was great also and while in the air, R laid her head on A's lap and he rubbed her back.  One of the cutest  things I've ever seen. We were so excited to see B and get home.  Easter day ended with dinner at Golden Corral with J/K/L/B as our annual Easter meal tradition continues.

 Last picture with Grandmalupe at 6:45am

Sweet siblings flying from Atlanta to Raleigh

Birthday Parties Galore

Saturday April 14th was a popular day for birthday parties.  We had 2, but I know the Caldwells had 3 parties that day.  Crazy that it's already starting and our kids are only three and two.

Our goddaughter, Bree, turned one on April 3rd but was having her party on the 14th.  The party was a 'milk and cookies' party and was great.  Jenni and Keith had everyone to their house with snacks to eat.  The cake was awesome and specially made for the occasion.  The guests that attended were the Foss family, O'Janpa family, the Caldwells, and their friend Megan.  Bree did not open her gifts while everyone was there but no one minded.  The party started at 10:30 and I think everyone was gone by 12:45 except for us.  We stayed and played tetris until 2:30.  It's a secret passion that we adults have:)  Here are some pictures from this fun filled morning.

Since we left at 2:30, our kids only napped for an hour instead of 2-3 hours like they normally do.  No rest for the weary because we had another birthday party at 3:30 for Landon.  Landon Daniel is in our small group.  Andrew and Sara have become good friends and they even took R & A to church for us the weekend we were in Oklahoma.  We've become close with this family and were looking forward to celebrating with them.  Sara's parents hosted the birthday party at the home in Heritage.  They had a nice back yard with a bounce house, a slide, and a bubble machine.  R took a liking to the bubbles and spent a long time trying to catch them.  A found favor with the bounce house and enjoyed playing basketball inside.  The only guests we knew at this party were the Caldwells and the Gillams.  Totally cool though because this party was spread out enough, it gave all our kids a chance to work out their sugar highs from before.  Landon was o'fish'ally one with a fish cake and goldfish snacks.  All the decorations were very cute.  Landon opened his presents and Sara loved the outfit.  I have a feeling Logan will like the musical sock monkey more than Landon though:)  As party favors, we took home three little fish with us to add to our clan.  R named her fish Celia (from Monster's Inc), A named his fish Lightening McQueen, and W named his fish Goldie.  When we got home we put the three fish together in some water and fed them.  Unfortunately, they didn't make it through the night:(  R & A wanted to see their fish first thing and that was a tough conversation to have.  They took the news like champs though and prayed for their fish.  We have sweet kids. We slacked on pictures from Landon's party.  I think since it was much more spread out, both B and I were on kid duty and neither one of us took the time take pictures.  The party was a lot of fun and when it was time to go, both R & A wanted to stay and play.  Signs of a good birthday party!

Easter 2012 (Part 1)

A DeDeaux Family Reunion happens every year at Easter time.  It starts usually Good Friday and lasts through Easter Sunday.  Easter is my favorite holiday simply because of this family get together.

We love family!  One thing B and I noticed from the beginning is how much we BOTH valued family.  Our families are very important and precious to us.  We always look at pictures of family to make sure our kids know names and faces.  We also skype was much as we can with family.  Family sticks together.

Last year we did not make it to the crawfish boil because I was pregnant with W.  It was too close to the end of my pregnancy to travel.  I was heartbroken.  We skyped on Saturday and I wept while talked to Uncle Charles.  I missed everyone so much but especially Uncle Charles.  He really is the sweetest man I know.  He helped find me the flights for our trip this year.  Even though Easter was at the end of my spring break, we had to fly because it was me alone.  B had class the week of Easter so I flew down south with all three kids.  I know, I'm crazy.  The kids were actually really well behaved.  Here are a few pictures from our flight down to New Orleans.

 Tata picked us up from the airport and we had breakfast at Waffle House.  It's been a long time since I'd been to a Waffle House.  The kids shared a waffle and A had some bacon.  W enjoyed some of Tata's raisin toast and grits.  After breakfast, we stopped at Tata's house to change and then headed out to the beach.  The kids LOVED the beach and I'm so mad at myself that I didn't have my camera to take any pictures.  All 3 kids played in the water and the sand.  W was like a fish and we had to pull him out of the water.  I didn't have a swim diaper so he pretty much went naked.  After a hour at the beach, the kids were beat and all three slept while I drove to Hattiesburg.
We arrived at my mom's house around 5:30pm.  The evening was spent playing, eating dinner, getting baths, and then bedtime.  All four of us were sleeping in the middle bedroom.  The kids were exhausted and went to sleep no problem.  I was pretty tired too, but stay up chatting with my mom and AC for a while.  B called me after he got out of class and then I hit the sack.

Wednesday morning started with gifts from Gram and Granddad for Easter.  R got a new Minnie Mouse outfit, A got a Cars personalized jacket, and W got a soccer outfit.  My plans for the day included getting R some new shoes that fit, W a haircut, and pictures with the Easter Bunny.  My parents wanted to take us out to lunch, color eggs, and then we had church at 6pm in honor of Grandpa Hantla.  We managed to accomplish everything except W's haircut.  Here are a few pictures from the morning.

Thursday morning we were able to get W a haircut at the barber shop that Granddad goes to.  The guy's name is Dell and he was a nice man.  Wes did great.  I think he was a little nervous, but never cried at all.  R & A were very encouraging and cheered W on while he was sitting in the big chair.  Around lunch time, Julie came to visit.  Julie and I are college friends. We played soccer together at MC for four years.  Julie is married to Chris but Chris is deployed to Afghanistan for a year. Julie has 2 kids.  Reese is 20 months and Remy is 10 weeks.  Erin Bishop Taylor was suppose to come down, but had car trouble so she couldn't.  We all had lunch and visited.  It was so good to see Julie and catch up.  She lives in Meridian while Chris is gone and they will settle down somewhere when he gets back.

Julie, Remy(10 weeks), Reese (20 months), Abe (2.5), Rin(3.5), Katie, Wes (11 months)

I drove back to Pass Christian to pick up my dad and then we had to pick Heather up from the airport. Before leaving my dad's house, we took some pictures on his motorcycle.  R & A wanted to ride it, but we didn't have enough time.  Maybe sometime this summer when they spend a few days down on the coast.  

After picking up Heather from the New Orleans Airport, we drove to Hammond and were greeted by all the family that I'd missed for 2 years.  It was so good to receive hugs from uncles and cousins and my new Aunt.  I don't have any pictures of that first night, but this is the start to my favorite 2 days of the entire year.  Good Friday and Easter Saturday.

Four

I think I've decided I want another kid.  I just don't feel complete.  When we sit down at the table for meals (usually dinner) we have one empty chair and I just feel that we are supposed to have 6 in our family.

There are definitely times when I'm good with 3.  Especially when B is working or in class and I'm by myself.  Even so, the urge to have 4 kids is stronger and that's always been our number.  I can't exactly put my finger on it, but I just have this gut feeling.
Here's the deal though.  I want another baby born in May/June.  I loved being out the end of school and not having to go back.  I loved having the entire summer with W and him being 3 months when I had to send him to daycare.  I loved having the flexibility with the other kids since it was summer and the activities that were planned.  I would do that again and we will try.
B and I decided that our window is anywhere from Aug-Oct to get pregnant again.  We conceived W in August so I believe September would be the perfect month.  W would turn 2 when we'd be ready to have another baby and R will start Kindergarten August 2013 so we would still have 3 in daycare.  It's the best situation.  If by November 2012 we aren't pregnant, I'm not sure if we'll take that as our sign from the Lord that we are done or will we keep trying?  I guess the Lord only knows.

What gender would we want?  I go back and forth.  A girl would be nice because she could share a room with R.  It would be nice to reuse all the clothes that we had for R that have only been worn a few times.  It would be nice to have another girl around so R & I wouldn't be outnumbered.  Pink is just so pretty.  A boy would be great because that's what I'm used to.  My grandma had one girl and then 3 boys just like Bryce's mom.  It would be fun to have 3 boys around the house to help with yard work, bringing in groceries, and watching out for R in school.  It would be nice to only have to pay for 1 wedding!  It would be great for W to have a little brother to play.  Blue is just so cute.

We'd be happy with either and only time will tell.

Whirlwind Weekend

Bryce got the call that Grandpa Hantla wasn't doing very well and the decision was made to put him in Hospice Care.  Most of the family traveled to Edmond to be with Grandpa for his last days.  Being out in NC, it's harder for us to just pick up and travel.  We always have to make lots of plans for our traveling.  But on Wednesday after B talked to his siblings, we prayed and got a clear word from God that we needed to go out there.  We weren't quite sure who was actually going to go.  Should all 5 of us go?  Or just B and W?  What if we flew out there and he died right after we left.  We wouldn't be able to fly back for the funeral...Just a lot of uncertainty.

B and I both had a peace about the timing we believed God was in control.  We decided, after talking to MP, that we would both go and take W with us.  MP agreed to stay at our house and watch R & A for us over the weekend.  Our flight left Friday (March 16, 2012) at 6:55 am and we returned home Monday (March 19,2012) at 2:30 pm.  The tickets were expensive, but that's why we have a credit card I guess.  We flew southwest so there was no luggage fee, but the tickets were still expensive. 

Let me recap the trip:
Friday morning MP came over at 4am so B & I could get to the airport.  We left her the van for the weekend and she even agreed to take care of Cooper.  B & I flew from RDU to Chicago to OKC.  Vicki and Christopher picked us up and we met the rest of the family for lunch.  After lunch, we went to Grace Living Facility to visit Gpa.  He was lying in the bed breathing but that's about it.  The room was nice and roomy.  It's a good thing because there were a lot of us.  Both B's parents, all of Anna's family, Chris's family, and us.  Layla and W were crawling around on the floor (even though it was probably really dirty) and the big kids were watching them.  Vicki wanted everyone to sing hymns to Gpa so much of the time was spent trying to think of a song to sing.  Our visit lasted about 2 hours and then we headed home.  Since B and I had been up since 3am Eastern Time, we were exhausted.  So was little W.  Back at B's parents house, we fed W, bathed him, and put him to bed early.  After dinner, B & I decided to go back and visit Gpa alone to have some quiet time with him.  We thought about reading to him or just watching a movie, but after about an hour, we both were falling asleep.  After getting back home, we decided to go to bed instead of staying up and talking with the siblings like we usually do.
Around 4:30am I woke up because I heard noises and people talking.  I eventually woke B up and told him that something was happening and he needed to get up.  He talked to his parents and they decided to go back to Grace and be with Gpa.  I stayed to help Anna with the kids.  Paul, Vicki, Bryce and Paul Marsh left around 5:00am.  A little later I had a dream that Gpa passed away and it woke me up.  I text B to see if everything was okay and he called me back to let me know that Gpa was gone.  His official time of death was 5:30 and I sent B the text at 5:33.  Gpa kissed me on his way up:)
The rest of Saturday was mostly spent completing tasks like setting up arrangements, the obituary, ordering the casket, burial plans and letting family and friends know.  We had pancakes for breakfast and sandwiches for lunch.  Dinner plans at Teds was what Paul Marsh was looking forward to.  B loves to eat at Teds too and we always make a trip while in Edmond.  We finished the evening with a movie and of course, I fell asleep.
Sunday we did not make it to church, but rather had a relaxing morning at the house.  The Gibson's brought us lunch from Olive Garden and we had a nice visit.  After lunch Anna and her family had to leave to drive back to Katy, TX.  Anna had gone through all the old pictures of Gpa to put together a slide show.  She's really good at those sorts of things.  When W woke up from his afternoon nap, we took a little drive to Oklahoma City with Paul and Vicki.  On our way home, we stopped for a sweet treat and then headed home for bed.
Our flight was at 7:15am leaving OKC to Baltimore to RDU.  When we landed, we immediately went to pick up R&A.  We missed them so much!  It was so nice to be back and have our family back together again.  I do not like it when we are separated.  MP said R & A were good and they had a great time.
My day back to school on Tuesday was a little crazy.  I'm not usually absent, but when I am, I leave really really detailed plans.  I didn't have very good sub plans because we left in such short notice. My substitute teacher was a drama teacher so she was good at impromptu:)
Funeral plans were made for the following Saturday, March 24, 2012.  That would have been Grandpa Hantla's 95th birthday.  The ceremony will be in Kansas and he'll be buried next to Grandma Hantla.  Back together again.

 Uncle Mark and Mr. Paul at lunch

 Cousin Avery is so good with Wesley

 Gran and Papaw with the grand-kids waiting for a table at Ted's

 My love waiting for a table at Ted's.  He loves this place and doesn't get to eat Mexican very often.

 Aunt Mo and Micah decked out in their green! 

 Wes crawling around on the plan while we flew back to NC

Almost home!

Easter Bunny Time

One of our family traditions is to take a picture with the Easter Bunny every year.   The first 2 pictures were taken in Hattiesburg, and last year was taken in Raleigh.  2009 was just R, 2010 & 2011 were R & A, and 2012 R, A, and W.  The kids did great.  I was a little worried about how A would react.  He wasn't 'scared' of Santa, but was definitely weary.  I figured he would be hesitant and we might only get a picture with R & W.  They all did great though.

R of course, took charge and ran up to him with a big smile.  She was super excited and loved all the Easter decorations.  A followed behind, a little nervous, but was fine.  He gave the bunny a high five and then climbed on the bench.  W wasn't really sure of what was going on, and instead of letting the bunny hold him, I placed W on the bench as well.  The kids are in order by age and it's cute. 

Since we normally tavel for Easter, we haven't established a tradition of waking up to an Easter Basket or anything.  My parents and AC both got the kids an Easter gift that the kids opened today.  R got a Minney Mouse outfit and princess Go Fish cards.  A got a McQueen personalize jacket and Cars Memory game.  W got a cute soccer outfit. 

Here is the progression of Easter Bunny pictures from the past 4 years.

Easter 2009

 Easter 2010

 Easter 2011

 Easter 2012