Happy Easter!

Easter is one of those times of the year that the meaning behind it sometimes gets overshadowed by the secular celebrations. I hope that when Brinley and Landon get older they know that Jesus died on the cross to save us from all our sins and that he was raised again 3 days later. With that being said, I also know how difficult it is to refrain from participating in the activities that are a part of Easter. We plan to participate in both traditions, but put stronger emphasis on the true meaning when the children are at an age where they understand more.

Our celebrations took place many different times because we kept having people visit and we ended up doing different things with them. Grandma and Grandpa came up to visit and we decided to dye eggs.

We gave Landon a crayon to draw on the egg, but that didn't last long. The kid just wants to eat anything that is within his reach.

Brinley showing off her egg. Brinley really enjoyed coloring eggs.

Grandma and Grandpa helping color some eggs.

Brinley seemed like she was a pro. I couldn't believe how gentle she was with the eggs.

Landon was trying to eat his eggs and he dropped one on himself and we discovered that they weren't completely hard boiled. So after getting cleaned up we let him hang onto plastic eggs.

Grandma and Grandpa also brought some things for the kids to celebrate Easter.

Last year Jennifer and I took Brinley to the PICU Easter Egg Hunt. This year it happened to fall on a Sunday, which is a day that I work and it also happened to be a day that Grandma and Grandpa were here in Lexington. So, we all loaded up in the car and headed out to Versailles to the PICU egg hunt. Brinley really enjoyed running around and playing with all the other kids. She also really liked hunting for Easter eggs.

Landon finding some hidden eggs in the bushes with Grandpa.

Grandma and Grandpa with Landon.

This was a very proud daddy moment for me. There were a bunch of eggs on the ledge of the play set and Brinley chose an egg that was designed as a football first! That's my girl!

We also made a trip to Lexington Green to get some pictures with a real bunny and also with the "Easter Bunny". Landon took a little while to warm up, but then he started to give us a few smiles. Brinley however was being very difficult and wouldn't smile at anything. 

The Heflin kids and the Easter Bunny. Brinley of course is pointing at an egg, which is one of her new favorite words.

Brinley then got to play with the egg.

Landon with the real bunny.  He didn't realize it was real at this moment.

Now he found out that it was real.

Brinley with the live bunny. She ended up really liking it and rubbing its back.

Landon is a happy little man. Brinley is just content petting the rabbit.

Now Landon decided that petting the rabbit might be fun.

I worked the night before Easter, so we had a pretty hectic and fast paced Easter morning. After I got home from work I made pancakes for everyone and then we gave the kids their Easter baskets. We quickly got dressed and took a few family photos and then headed to church for the 9:30 service. Surprisingly we made it to church and dropped both kids off in the nursery and then found some seats with about 5 minutes to spare.

The kids on Easter morning. Surprisingly both kids liked wearing their bunny ears. You can't see it well, but they have bunny pancakes for breakfast.

The kids with there Easter bunny pancakes. The eyes are blackberries, marshmallow noses and chocolate chips pieces for the mouth.

We were able to get a family picture before heading to church on Sunday morning. Brinley refuses to wear anything in her hair and it usually looks all crazy, so a trip to get a haircut might be in our near future.

We had a little Easter egg hunt with the kids in the backyard. Brinley really enjoyed hunting for eggs, but it was so funny to see her run right past eggs on the ground to pick up ones that were sitting on objects.

Landon enjoyed finding some eggs too.

He is such a happy little guy!

Our Easter egg hunting champ!

Brinley found an egg.

Brinley was excited to find an egg. Her favorite word now is egg.

The kids with their Easter egg collection.

I asked Brinley to give her brother a hug so Jennifer could get a picture. You might say she is a really good BIG sister and loves her little brother - most of the time.

That hug turned into a full out tackle. She better get her torture in while she can because it won't be long until Landon is bigger than her and probably won't tolerate her actions as well. Now he just thinks everything Brinley does is funny.

Aunt Sarah and Nick came to visit the kids for Easter too. They brought baskets of goodies for both Landon and Brinley. They enjoyed hunting eggs in the back yard with the kids as well. For some reason nobody took any pictures of them with the kids. 

Our last Easter surprises came when MiMi came to visit. She brought the kids baskets full of things the kids loved. She brought Brinley her very first pair of rain boots and the best part about the boots are that they light up with every step. I might just get a pair for myself.

I hope that you were able to spend some time with the ones that you love this Easter. I also hope that through all the secular things of this season you were able to remember the true meaning of Easter. Thanks for reading and God Bless!