dyeing eggs

 papa always gets to head up the task of dyeing easter eggs.  i love how they look, but to be honest i don't have the patience for the dyeing.  with the most patient papa on the planet, these kids have the perfect partner for this job. 

good friday

we enjoyed Good Friday with our friends the Nawroths.  First, we had them over for a playdate and easter egg lunch.  Janet and I filled plastic eggs with lunch food (cheese, crackers, fruit, nuts, etc) and then hid the eggs for the kids to find.  it was super fun!  the kids really enjoyed finding their lunch and thought it was hilarious that they were eating out of eggs (or from a big pile on the table) rather than a plate.  later in the day, we met up with the Nawroths again at Holy Cross Church in Mt Adams for their Good Friday fish fry.  this has become a tradition for our families the past few years (we took greta and ella when they were just 5/6 months old and have gone every year since) and i hope it continues each year!

does this make my face look fat?

otto thought he'd try on our "earmuffs" in anticipation for all the live music shows we'll see in austin for sxsw.

how otto "plays"

anyone else's kids do this?  the laying out....the lining up....
i mean, look at the post it notes, even. 
love our otto boy.

otto builds a zoo

sliding back home

we're back from vacation in michigan. we had a blast and will post more pics from our trip soon!

bubble bath!

i think ellie's got the right idea!

three's a crowd

my mom took the day off today to accompany the kids and me to the zoo. i wasn't sure i could manage the outing on my own with all three kids, and boy was i right. the zoo is just so much....in and out of the stroller, holding kids up to see animals, snacks, etc. i am SO thankful my mom was able to go. and that our kids are such troopers. maybe i could take them to the zoo on my own, but i can't really wrap my mind around how that would go.
we got there right when they opened, which was great because it wasn't yet too crowded or too hot. fast forward 2 and a half hours later and we were all pretty toasty and ready to head home. but we got to see a ton of great animals. usually i avoid the children's zoo because it always gets so crowded, but we were able to get in there no problem.

selma had her first ride in the stroller, and let's just say she was less than thrilled. i guess she really just wanted to be pressed against my sweaty body in the baby bjorn.
all three kids went right down at naptime and all three slept for 3 hours!! and even grandma joan took a nap.

otto's 2nd birthday

otto's birthday is may 8th, and this year it coincided with mother's day. we held his birthday party at ERPSC clubhouse, or as the kids call it, the "birthday house". the day could not have been more wonderful. it turned out to be a beautiful warm day, so the kids were able to spend most of the party playing outside. otto got some fantastic gifts, including a gapper doll (that he loves) and raingear like greta (that he REALLY loves).

check out the slideshow above for pictures from the day.

otto you are such a delight in our lives. you are so sweet and so hilarious....you say the funniest things and you definitely keep us on our toes. happy 2nd birthday!

otto turns 2

we've got a bunch of pictures to post from otto's second birthday bash. heck, i think we still have easter photos to post. having 3 kids keeps us pretty busy.

snow white

i think someone needs a brother.

me lucky charms

kitchen

so i guess the kids do play with a few toys. they also like to constantly play kitchen.
for the record, most of their playing consists of the following things: cover up (see previous post), playing babies (see previous post), legos, kitchen, or "gabba guys" (where they divvy up the little yo gabba gabba figures and lay them out or line them up). sometimes these games morph into one big game, like when they decide to make food for the gabba guys and then cover them up.

here's otto hard at work in the kitchen. mostly he likes to "make oatmeal" and wear the oven mitts.

who me?

like being caught with your hand in the cookie jar.....

cupcakes

we had our friends the nawroths over for dinner tonight. we provided dinner and they brought dessert. and between us, we chose probably some of the messiest foods possible for 2 three year olds, a one and a half year old, and an almost one year old to eat. we're talkin' chili spaghetti with cornbread muffins and chocolate cupcakes. what a mess! but what a fun time we had hanging out with our friends!

firefighter......

we got a boatload of new dress up clothes for christmas, including a firefighter outfit. here is otto trying it out......

otto's favorite new game

this is otto's new favorite pasttime. we call it the, "stand by your bed and suck your thumb" game. he's been doing this a lot the past few days when we are in his room playing. he'll just go over, reach his left arm between the bars to rub his hand on the sheet while he sucks on his right thumb. hope it doesn't throw him too much when we move him to a new bed (and new room) to make way for the baby.....

otto and the chair

while greta was creating at her easel, otto was busy getting himself stuck in this chair. greta likes to sit down while she draws at the easel, often pulling up a chair or a stepstool. otto has followed suit, which usually means that drawing at the easel turns into a power struggle of whose chair is where and who has more room. sibling rivalry already. otto had enough of the struggle, so just gave up on coloring and focused on his chair. little stinker.

bingo bottles

here's otto enjoying some of the art supplies that greta got for her birthday. these have been a big hit with both kids!

big boy seat

in preparation for the arrival of baby #3, we moved otto from the highchair to a booster seat at the table. both kids thought this was pretty fun. we also realized that once this new baby outgrows the highchair, we will need a bigger table with more chairs!!