We just returned home from a great trip to Spokane for Easter with some of Mike’s fam. I’m SO happy to say that an Easter miracle really did occur for our crew – ZERO PUKING. I repeat: we were a puke-free people for four days which included 12 hours of driving, a decent amount of Easter candy and Matthew getting a cold (which nearly always leads to vomiting in itself). Jesus is risen; the tomb is empty AND the puke bucket is empty too! Seriously – the road trip could not have gone better. Kayliana was even great about being in the car for that long!

The boys (and Kayli) were thrilled to see Nana (Aunt Dolores), Uncle Harry and Mike’s sister Jamie and hubby Dan. The biggest disaster of the weekend was Matthew, taking Dan’s RC car for a spin and immediately driving it into (REAL) oncoming traffic. Thank God that the only car that got in an accident – sorry, Dan – was the tiny passenger-less car. Dan said that he’d be able to repair it at the auto body shop (er, the hobby shop). But from this experience, we’ve decided that Matthew will never ever EVER get to borrow anyone’s car, including ours.

Staying in a hotel is apparently nearly as exciting as a trip to Disneyland. The kids were so ridiculously excited about it that on Sunday night they were already lamenting that it would be the last night there. Zach said it went too fast and felt like we’d only stayed in the hotel for “ZERO NIGHTS.” The pool was also a fun hotel bonus. Mike took the boys on Saturday while I got Kayli ready for her first EVER dip in a pool (and first time in a swim diaper, bathing suit…) it was all super thrilling until she experienced the pool (which WAS on the cooler side) and decided that she wanted nothing to do with it. After 30 seconds in the pool, she proceeded to cling to me like a tree frog for the next few minutes until I took her back to the room. She did look awfully cute though lounging by the poolside. (Sucking her fingers for emotional support and digging her fingernails into my shoulder lest I even THINK about dipping her toes back into that weird freakishly-enormous, terrifying bathtub place-of-torture).

Playing Easter Bunny in a hotel room is definitely a tricky business for which one must take precautions. It really didn’t help, either, that the boys were so wound up about our first night in the hotel; they were awake for WAY too long. I’d planned ahead for this important mission and had brought my headlamp. I laid in bed reading my book waiting and waiting and waiting for the boys to settle in and go to sleep. Eventually they did but only after I’d dosed off several times and woken up in a panic thinkin that I’d somehow slept all night and missed the Easter Bunny window. Bunny duties were fulfilled and I finally got to go to sleep around 11:30.

(I feel as though this next section does deserve its own title.)

KAYLIANA’S WARDROBE
On Thursday, the mailman delivered a package. It was from my brother Timothy and his wife Rebecca. It was pretty much happy-magic in a box. The contents included a very nice gift card for the boys, a pair of ruffley-topped socks, lacey tights, two flower headbands and not one, not two, but three GORGEOUS frilly-froofy Easter-y dresses for Kayliana. I did seriously consider that Easter Sunday could be like the Oscars and that Kayli would have several outfit changes, but in the end, we did choose one of the dresses. (It was a major discussion, let me tell you). I was a little worried about our choice when I saw a two year old girl in the same exact dress at church. You know, I didn’t want Kayli to have to be in People Magazine’s “Who Wore it Better?” (She totally would’ve won though), and it’s SO awkward to be wearing the same exact dress as another woman – er, girl, er, toddler – but both girls handled it beautifully.

Kayli was an angel during church (as usual). But by the end, I knew that she was in need of a diaper change and a bottle. I wanted a family picture before we got all normalized and spitty-up-y and dirty and stuff. The passing-by Monseigneur decided to join our picture. Unfortunately, Kayli had used up her angelic in church and the second the priest said hi to her she started to howl. So, sadly, that’s her look for our family portrait. We got some better ones of just us girls after she’d eaten. Food makes everything better.

Speaking of food, upon our return from Spokane, we let the boys help Kayli experience her first ever bit of “solids” (ridiculously runny rice cereal). She’s a bit dubious yet, but she’ll be an eating champ in no time.