Pre-Easter Festivities

Easter isn't a big deal holiday for me and so things like bunny rabbits and egg hunts don't occur to me.  I'm going to have to fix that before next year so I don't miss out on egg dyeing.  Luckily, Auntie Lee Ann invited us to eat ham and hunt eggs at Grandma and Grandpa's, so this year is taken care of.

Our Easter festivities this week kicked off when the kids received a package from my friend Margaret.  Margaret has given them an Easter gift each year, and this year was no different.  There was an adorable card with three little chicks, which Caroline instantly took possession of.

"Mommy! I got mail!"

Inside the envelope were three little bags, each with a bunny finger puppet.  The boys got matching ones, but Caroline liked Max's, so they traded.  They were all excited, and Daniel started chanting, "bunnywabbit!" and then "kayat?"  Took me a while to realize he wanted a carrot to feed his bunny!

Um, Daniel, you missed his mouth.

Max giving his bunny a nose tickle

Once Daniel got a carrot, everyone's bunny got hungry.  Note that Caroline put her carrot on the table and let the bunny go at it himself.

Then, on Friday, our friend Rick stopped by for a visit.  The kids know Rick, but they didn't recognize him this time since he was dressed in his Easter Bunny costume (he plays the part for his Homeowners' Association's Easter party).   We tried to get each kid to take a picture with the bunny, but much like encountering Santa, they seemed really excited at first and then terrified.

(especially Max)

Daniel and Caroline started to warm to the bunny slowly.  We thought it'd be a quick visit, but then Daniel started waving and saying, "Hello, Bunnywabbit" and Caroline smiled and waved.  Max turned his back and focused on Thomas the Train on teebee.

Daniel obviously didn't want the bunny to go, so he offered him an apple (we'll ignore that it was Caroline's apple).

As the bunny tried to return the apple, Daniel put his hand out to him and said, "Come on, bunny, sit down couch!"

which gave Caroline an opportunity to get a little closer.

Daniel and Caroline played a while pointing out different bunny face and body parts.

"Nose!"

"Tummy"

"Ears"

Max was still not impressed, though he was pleased to have inherited the apple.

Caroline brought the bunny a series of stuffed animals to play with, and Daniel wanted the bunny to meet Monkey, since they should obviously be friends.

And once Monkey accepted the Easter Bunny, Daniel knew it was ok to sit with him on the couch.

Caroline got to sit on the bunny's lap for a bit.

She introduced him to Murphy the Dog

 Then Daniel enticed him into a game of catch.

"Red tongue!" 

Max finally relented to shake EB's hand as he got ready to leave.

And Caroline wanted to make sure he didn't forget his bag!

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Surprisingly, the kids let him get all the way out the door and onto the steps before they slammed the door.  As they ran from the door to the couch, Joe and I realized with terror that they wanted to watch him walk away.  I assumed Rick would've taken his costume head off to walk down the stairs and the kids would see a headless bunny appear on the sidewalk and be scarred for life.  But he walked out with the head on, turned and looked up at the window to wave, and then crossed the street to his (incredibly in-character) white, egg-shaped VW Bug.  A bus drove by and he stood and waved and the few perplexed passengers who remained.  As he got to the door of his car, he bent to take off the head and put his glasses on, and the kids burst out laughing.

"Mommy!" Caroline said, "Bunny Rabbit's head fall off in car!"

The rest of the night, Daniel couldn't stop talking about the Easter Bunny.  Pretty cool friends we have.

Back to the Dentist - First Cleaning

Six months ago when the Teenies made their first appearance in the dentists' office they were a little crazy and the decision was made by everyone involved that it would be best to just examine their teeth and leave the cleaning for the next visit.

Tuesday was the next visit.

We arrived right on time and took up most of the waiting room.  One of the practice's dogs was there, along with a bunch of toys and a "teebee" (as Max would say), so there was plenty to distract them.  I sat on a seat by the window.  Caroline found a butterfly Barbie doll and brought it over.  I thought she wanted to show it to me, but she really wanted to give it to the ten year old girl sitting next to me.  She then went back and got another toy, walked over to us and climbed up onto the seat inbetween us.  The girl seemed flattered that Caroline wanted to play with her, but also relieved when her name was called.  Caroline followed her to the reception desk only to be told she had to wait for her own name to be called.  She took it in stride.

When they were called back, Caroline marched back like she owned the place while Daniel dawdled along behind and Max followed the dog the wrong way down the hall.  By the time I'd corralled Max back into our room(s), Caroline was already up in the exam chair waiting.  Each exam room has a video screen facing the chair with another one on the ceiling synced to it and there is a whole host of kid-friendly animation to choose from.  Caroline got Sesame Street highlights.

The first step of each visit is a present - a new toothbrush.  Hers is peach colored with Eeyore on it.  She calls him "donkey".

Checking out the overhead screen

The next stage is to paint their teeth purple and show how much plaque is around.  Caroline has not been a fan of brushing her teeth, so I was nervous, but it turned out she only had a little patch of pink on the bottom.  Not bad.

Wiping the purple gunk off

Daniel was not nearly as pleased to be at the dentist as his sister.  He fought the hygienist and Daddy had to restrain him so that she could paint his teeth.

Caroline wants to know why everyone is in the other room.  I'm so sad this wasn't in focus - she's so cute!

After seeing how much plaque Daniel had, he got to try to brush it away.  He liked looking in the mirror while he brushed.

Daddy is pointing out where Daniel kicked him during the restraint portion of the event

In Caroline's room, she was preparing for her cleaning.

Checking out that overhead screen!

She was SO good!

Daniel got to choose his cleaning flavors from a little menu with pictures - he opted for orange and strawberry.

But even the flavors didn't make him any happier about the actual procedure.

Max had stolen my phone when we first got into the room, so he was a little more easily distracted / subdued than his brother had been.

But he was still a little wary.

The prognosis on their teeth was not so bad.  Daniel and Max have strong, well spaced teeth that need to be brushed a little bit more thoroughly.  Caroline needs to transition to dropping the paci to see if we can get her horribly bent and wayward teeth back aiming the right direction.  But other than that, her teeth are in good shape.

All in all, we were in and out in less than an hour for around $100 (thank GOODNESS for dental insurance!) and nobody seemed to hate it THAT much.

Here's Daniel dancing while Max endures his cleaning.

Two quick stories that just have to be shared

Every night at bedtime we go through an elaborate series of hugs and kisses.  The other night, Caroline balked at a kiss on the head, insisting for a smooch on the lips.  The only problem being that she keeps pacifier in her mouth.  No problem for her!  She's coined a new phrase, "Kiss my paci!"  Giving Flo a run for her money before the age of 3!

In the bath the other night, Max did something that upset Caroline.  When he realized she was upset, he leaned over and put his finger on her lips in a "shhhh" motion, and then kissed her, first on the cheek, then the temple, and lastly on the top of her head.  And to top it off, he asked, "All better?"  Surprisingly, all was.

Spring Break Begins!

On Saturday, Grandma came over during naptime so that I could run some errands and Grandpa was planning to come over around lunch time.  As I was backing out of the supermarket parking lot, I got a phone call from my dad asking where I was and what was up with the kids.  Apparently, he'd called the house and my mother's cell phone and gotten no response and was now across the street from my house.  He waited the two minutes for me to get home and helped me carry the groceries in.  We walked in to find Grandma asleep in her chair, cell phone in her lap.  We debated putting a mirror under her nose to make sure she was still with us, but after a brief rise and fall of her chest, we let her rest and unloaded the groceries.  She woke up a minute or so later and came in saying, "I was asleep." Umm, yeah, we figured...

Eating apples and checking out the cars on the street

Caroline thinks Mommy is funny

On Sunday, Uncle, Wendy, and I took the kids to the zoo.

Max thought the hippo might want a Nutter Butter

But Daniel knew it didn't belong in his nostril!

All those animals, and all Max cared about was the orange cone!

Everyone's favorite part of the zoo - FRENCH FRIES!

Caroline is training to be European, dipping her fries in mayonnaise

The big highlight (aside from seeing THREE lions in their enclosure and hearing the tiger roar while he paced) was the kids' first right on the Little Puffer Steam Train.

Caroline rode with Uncle and Daniel rode with Wendy

Max loved when the wind whipped through his hair

Then it was off to the petting zoo.  Armed with $3 worth of goat and sheep food, we set off, only to discover that all Max cared about was the ducks.  He and Daniel fed all their food to the ducks, giggling and screeching in excitement when they flapped near or quacked appreciation, while Caroline busied herself brushing the goats and raking the dirt.