Easter 2008

Nick and I awoke Easter Sunday to, "MOMMY! DADDY! There's an EGG in my ROOM!" Ben wouldn't even get out of bed because the Easter Bunny had left a single egg in the middle of his floor, and I guess it kind of freaked him out. hehe. After the initial shock wore off, he was happy to find there was a jelly bean in the egg, and that the Easter Bunny had hidden countless others, which he continued to find into the next day :-)
Ben followed the bunny trail down our steps and to his basket. He was also kind enough to help Xavier find his.

Ben's 3 Spider Man eggs each contained the infamous "Peep". Background: Nick and I hate Peeps. BUT, the Easter Bunny is an equal opportunity candy supplier and wanted to give Ben a chance to form his own opinion. Here he is inspecting:

He asked me: "What is this, Mommy?" I said, "Its candy, Ben. Its called a Peep. You can take bite, if you want."(Nevermind it was only 8am at the time ;-) So Ben tentatively took the Peep to his mouth, and didn't even make it all the way through the bite before spitting it out and saying, "YUCK! What?! This not food! I not gonna eat this!" Exactly, Ben! Huh. Dislike of the Peep is apparently a familial trait.

Ben with his new friends for Thomas the Train: Annie and Clarabel passenger cars (he'd been asking for weeks!)

Xavier and his new iPod. This might just be the greatest invention ever, as far as Nick and I are concerned - happiness delivered in a tiny, infinitely portable package. Xavier has been having lots of melt downs lately, full blown tantrums with breaks in routine, or just simply not getting his way (i.e. Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on the tv)...BUT! when he starts into a screaming tirade, music almost instant switches him from an angry little troll to a happy camper.

Ben set the table for Easter dinner.

And then waited patiently for the feast...(notice our new banquet seating area, not quite finished yet, but useable for our dinner!)

Papa Paul giving Ben his Easter basket - Ben was delighted with his treat!

Remember what I said about Xavier filling our ears with lots of noise lately (that's the polite way of saying 'screaming his head off'), well, the poor guy was so out of sorts about the fact his usual routine was broken, that he yelled for all but about 30 min of our family gathering. And that time he spent with his iPod. Evidence of music soothing the savage beast:

Nick and niece Kathryn resting with full bellies :-)