These last two days have been nothing short of miraculous in the weather department…and it’s finally time to break out all of those cute spring/summer outfits I’ve been holding onto. This one is a hand-me-down Me Too that I just love. I wanted this set back when I saw it at the now defunct City Mouse store (we Chicago moms miss that one!). What a nice surprise when these things find their way back around to you!!

On another note, this particular day Charlie insisted on wearing barrettes in her hair. She had me show her all that she had to choose from and picked out these mushroom ones from another Chicago boutique, Psychobaby. She actually admired herself in the mirror. Ah oh….

Thank the Lawd today is a sunny day!! Charlie and I have been cooped up in the house for way too long, and it was so nice this morning to get out for a walk, even a short one to the Blockbuster. We shared a chocolate croissant in the Square and she enjoyed her lunch out on the back porch for the very first time. We didn’t utilize our patio set enough last summer and I plan on not making that mistake again!!

I’m in the process of washing all of her spring/summer clothes and weeding out the fall/winter, which as you know, is taking it’s sweet time leaving. So, despite her new cute Mini Boden jellyfish tee and terry cloth pants, Charlie insists on wearing her winter hat. Who can blame the kid?? It’s practically part of her body!On another note, I was bummed to find out that I had missed the registration for Chicago’s Park District summer classes. Until now, Charlie has been too young to participate, but I had so hoped to enroll her in a little gymnastics class that starts at 18 months. Park District classes are notoriously hard to get into, as every mom in Chicago sits at her computer on registration day, ready to click her child into as many classes as she can handle. They go fast, as in Ticketmaster fast, so you have to be at the ready. They are cheap, and fun, and include music, gymnastics, sports, and swimming, among many others. After discovering that registration was, oh, MONDAY, I solemnly looked to see if anything was left. Turns out, ONE timeslot for gymnastics had TWO spots left. For $40, Charlie will have 8 weeks of tumbling to look forward to!! (We all know it’s not REALLY gymnastics for 18 month olds…more like a glorified running-around-let’s-get-you-worn-out-before-naps structured activity!) It will start in June and go through August. Success!!

Daddy took Charlie to church solo on Sunday to give Mommy a much-needed break. Here she is in her vintage Gymboree “Grown with Love” jumper, found at a great consignment sale in Wheaton…

Some aerial shots….

The Jernigan boy’s and their egg haul….

Miss Elynor lookin’ fine in her Spring dress….

Ms. Jen and Henry enjoying the brief sunshine….

Lindsay lookin’ pretty in pink….

Charlie and Olivia chattin’ it up….

Lauren hunting for eggs in her Easter finery….

Ethan hoping to score some cupcakes….

It’s taken me a week to post these, but better late than never, right?? Charlie had an Easter egg hunt in our backyard after naps last Sunday. Most of the kids are still too young to really grasp the idea of hunting and gathering eggs, but we thought it’d still be a fun photo op and a chance to get everyone together. I have such fond memories of Easter egg hunt’s at my Aunt Linda’s house in Texas that I think we will carry on this tradition as long as our children enjoy it. It ended up being in the 50’s that day, so a little chilly, but fun nonetheless!

Easter Sunday was a beautiful day!! We started off at Park Community Church, our awesome church home, for some amazing worship and community. To top it off, 4 people were baptized in the sanctuary, which brought everyone to tears. It was the perfect way to celebrate our Risen Savior!

Charlie wore her Janie & Jack “Little Paris” dress, a gem that I’ve had since she was born, over 19 months ago!

Yesterday, we decided to go ahead and have our “Easter”. We have such a busy weekend ahead that I wanted Charlie to be able to enjoy the goodies that the Easter Bunny brought her!! Here’s what was in her “basket”:

She loved taking everything out and putting it back in…in fact, she did that about 50 times…I’m so glad she enjoyed it because I (I mean, ahem, THE EASTER BUNNY) had such a ball finding cute things for her. Happy Easter, everyone!!

In order to preserve our sanity, Ms. Liz and I have started a Thursday swap where we drop our respective child off every other week and go have some “alone time”. It has been great!! Yesterday was my turn to watch Lauren, so we started off the day at the enclosed playlot across the street. It was a little challenging watching after two (good practice for the future!) but after some graham cracker bribing, everyone took to the swings for a photo op.
Afterwards, we strolled around and ended up in our backyard for the majority of the time Lauren was over. I so wish we had some fun outdoor toys, like a swingset, but because we face the alley (even though our backyard is enclosed with a gate) you just never know in the city if things would be safe left unattended…another reason a REAL backyard will be such a nice thing to have in the future. Until then, we’ll enjoy the one we have!!