Matthew's 1st Easter

I know I'm VERY late with this post. I have had a hard time finding the time to blog lately, but I want to remember Matthew's first Easter!! So here is my late Easter post :-)

The night before Easter, after bathtime, Caroline got her Easter basket ready to go:

 She put her basket and Matthew's basket (since he was sleeping) outside their doors for the Easter bunny:

Then we got in bed and read the Easter story out of Caroline's bible and talked about the TRUE meaning of this special holiday: 

I happened to get a picture of the baskets after the Easter bunny had hopped on by our house ;-) Poor Matthew...I didn't order his basket liner in time. It's so different with second kids. I had ordered Caroline's before she was born but completely forgot about Matthew's. I hope he will forgive me someday, ha

Happy Easter morning! The Easter bunny came! (love Matthew's face in this pic while he's looking at Caroline btw) 

Matthew is thinking..."Could someone PLEASE tell me WHAT is going on here?!?" 

"Oh, toys...I get it now...fun stuff!!" 

The Easter Bunny thought Matthew's bald, white head needed a hat this summer: 

Caroline loves patting Matthew!

 

 

 Caroline wanted to go dig in the dirt (shocking, I know) with her new bucket and shovel. No way was I letting her do that before church. So she dug in rice instead.

 

Caroline picked pancakes for breakfast so she got to eat a cross for Jesus dying for our sins, a flower to symbolize Jesus is alive, and a bunny just because: 

My two favorite guys on the planet. I made a comment about how tan Matt was after I took this pic. But Matt said, "I'm not tan, that's just how pale Matthew is". He was right! Poor kid...got his momma's complexion! 

We headed to church after breakfast and had a wonderful time of worship and listening to our pastor's sermon. Then we went over to my mom's house for Easter lunch and an Easter egg hunt.

This pic is an interesting one. Caroline is making some weird stink-eye face and Matthew looks very scared:

 

"Mommy, if you take ONE more picture, I'm going to go CRRRRRAZY!!!" (and that's a direct quote :-)

 

 My sweet Aunt Jean gave Mimi an Easter basket full of things she will need on her mission trip to Africa (which she is on right now!!)

Pretty Easter tulips: 

The boys table: 

The girl's table: 

Playing hide-and-go-seek in the curtains 

 

 

Time to hunt some eggs!

"Where is it, I don't see it, does anybody see it???"

"Oh"

Matthew had a grand ole' time cuddling with Mimi during the Easter egg hunt. I can't wait until next year when Matthew is hopefully able to join in the fun!

It was very special to celebrate Easter as a family of four and with our wonderful families. Caroline understood the Easter story really well this year, and I look forward to the years ahead when she (and Matthew) will be able to fully grasp the meaning of Christ dying on the cross for them and rising again.

Jesus is Alive!

DEATH COULD NOT STOP HIM AND THE GRAVE COULD NOT HOLD HIM. HE IS RISEN...JESUS IS ALIVE!!!

HAPPY EASTER!

LOVE,

THE KRAUSS FAMILY

 

LOOK WHO'S SITTIN' SO TALL AND PROUD!!

OF COURSE, THE LITTLE MISS HAD TO JUMP IN SOME PICS WITH BROTHER AFTER NAPTIME TODAY

ALL ABOUT ME AT 3

***3 Year Stats:

Height: 37 1/2 inches (60th%)

Weight: 30 pounds, 8 ounces (50th%)

***At three years old, Caroline is: joyful, happy, caring, sassy, silly, giggles a lot, smiley, feisty, cuddly when she has her lovie blanket, cautious, timid, creative, funny/makes us laugh a lot, kind-hearted, a natural helper, quite the conversationalist/talker, stubborn, practical, independent and loving

***Caroline LOVES: her baby brother, her dolls, any kind of arts & crafts, drawing and "writing", going to school, Minnie Mouse, Miss Pattycake, dressing up like a princess, reading books/going to the library, helping mommy, jumping on mommy & daddy's bed, playing Candyland & HiHo Cheerio, riding her tricycle & scooter, playing at the park, play dates with friends, Chick-Fil-A, blowing bubbles, listening to music & singing, making up silly songs, ballet & dancing, bubble baths, going over to her Yaya and Mimi's houses, talking and playing on my phone, lollipops & fruit snacks (and anything sweet!), and doing things all by herself

***Caroline DISLIKES: getting messy, going to sleep, being told "no" especially when she wants her lovie blanket (which is reserved for bedtimes only), going to unfamiliar places/meeting unfamiliar people, having to change out of her pajamas (I'm with her on this one :-), leaving places when we're out and about, time-out, eating (she's quite picky), thunder, covers on her bed...she only likes a sheet, bugs, and loud noises One of Caroline's greatest loves right now is Matthew. I haven't blogged about her relationship with him much because I keep waiting for the "ball to drop" so to speak. Since Matthew has been born, Caroline hasn't once been angry with him, jealous, or annoyed/frustrated that he is around and taking up a lot of my time. She has never been mean to him...only loving, helpful, sweet, gentle and caring. The first words out of Caroline's mouth everyday when she wakes up are "where's Matthew?"

Words don't really do Caroline's love for Matthew justice. And the feeling is mutual. Matthew looks at Caroline with the most adoring eyes. It melts my heart everyday. We never imagined Caroline would adjust so easily to having a new baby around. And we know we have many years ahead of us that will be filled with sibling fights, rivalry, etc...etc... So right now we are soaking up and enjoying the love and peace :-) We are so proud of Caroline and the way she loves and cares for Matthew. He is one lucky little guy to have such an incredible big sis!!! We pray for their relationship everyday and hope that they will be the best of friends!!!

Caroline's other great obsession at the moment is dancing and her ballet class. Ballet was a great decision for Caroline this year. She has LOVED it and asks almost everyday if it's "ballet day today". Dancing Angels has been a perfect fit for Caroline. It's a small, sweet, nurturing environment, and the children are taught to dance to praise the Lord. Her teacher, Ms. Elizabeth, has been great and Caroline just loves her. We will definitely be signing up for ballet again...I still think there might not be anything cuter than a little girl in a tutu :-) Oh, and speaking of cute, Caroline's 1st EVER dance recital is coming up, and I am so thrilled. I know Caroline will probably just stand on the stage (if she even goes on the stage at all, ha) but I don't care. I can't wait! Their dance is "Bee Humble" and they will be little bees...here is a sneak peek at part of her recital costume:

Caroline's REAL Birthday

Caroline REALLY turned 3 two days after her party (that's quite confusing for a 3 year old :-) last Monday, 4/4/11. Caroline had school that day, but I selfishly kept her home. I just couldn't stand not to be with her on her birthday. Plus, we had lots of surprises in store for her. I apologize in advance for all of the pictures. It's all for the love of the blog book.

The first surprise of the day didn't go quite as I pictured it in my head (does it ever??). We filled Caroline's room with balloons the night before (pink, green, and purple...her three favorite colors at the moment). I imagined hearing her wake up and yelling with excitement when she saw all of the balloons. What REALLY ended up happening was not so much fun. Matt had to leave for work at 8:00 and Caroline was still sleeping. So we woke her up so Matt could watch her open her gift from us (she had to open it in the morning because of one of our surprises later in the day). She was so mad at us for waking her up she could have cared less about the balloons right when she woke up. Bummer.

See, not too excited:

But that soon changed once Matthew joined in the fun: Birthday kisses with brother: Opening her present from Mommy, Daddy and Matthew...excuse the flash in the background and might I just add that my daughter has the best bedhead:

An American Girl Bitty Baby!!

Caroline has been SO into babies and dolls lately that we thought a Bitty Baby was the perfect gift. And we were right! She grabbed her other baby, Ally, and yelled "Yay, I have twins now!!" :-) She named her new baby, Kelly. She thought Ally and Kelly sounded good together, ha.

It was time to get ready for the next birthday surprise after Caroline opened up her present. I got her dressed and ready to go and told her that Aunt Jean (my aunt) was coming to pick her up for a surprise. She is CRAZY about Jean and was super excited.

Here they are (with baby Kelly of course) ready to head out. Jean took her to eat donuts and play at a park. Such fun!!Soon after the birthday excursion with Jean, it was time for a wardrobe change and a surprise from Matt and me...we planned for just the three of us (four, if you count Kelly) to have lunch at the American Girl Bistro (thanks to Jean for watching Matthew for us).

Oh how I wish we had video of Caroline walking into the American Girl Store. Her eyes were so wide and she was saying "Look at that doll, look at that doll" over and over and over while running to all of the displays. It was so fun to watch her. I've never seen her so excited. She was in her element!

She found this double jogger (I mean, really?!? A double jogger?!?) to push Kelly around in:

However, she fell in love with this pink stroller and played with it the entire time we were there:

Pure happiness:

After playing in the store for a little while, it was time to go upstairs to eat.

Caroline enjoyed "reading" the menu:

Matt was the ONLY guy in the whole place and wasn't embarrassed one bit. He was just having fun watching Caroline's excitement. He's such a great daddy...Caroline is a lucky gal. Love this pic of the two of them:

Love the highchair for baby Kelly...Caroline couldn't believe they got to "sit together":

Feeding Kelly her "pink lemonade":

The girls:

Yummo...a hot dog and fruit:

Then came the fun part...the waitresses sang "Happy Birthday" to Caroline and brought her a scoop of ice cream (she picked vanilla) with a candle in it:

Pretending to be embarrassed but secretly loving the singing:

Blowing out the candle:

Deeeelish!

Time to go. Sweet pic:

Matt had to go back to work, but Caroline and I stayed to play in the store.

And then a certain somebody talked me into buying Caroline that pink stroller she fell in love with. I'm a sucker on a birthday! Plus, that's what happens when Daddy leaves :-)

Playing in front of the store:

Caroline took a looooong nap and after she woke up and had dinner, it was time to celebrate her birthday with our family. Everyone came over for cake and presents.

Matt and Matthew hanging out while waiting for our fam to arrive:

Present time!

She got her own real camera. She LOVES it and walks around taking pictures all the time. Then she looks at the pictures on the screen and says "awwwww, so cute" :-)

Caroline was excited about her purple kitty:

This is what happens when you try to convert a Baylor girl into a Dukie:

On that note, Matt and I laugh because Caroline thinks "only girls" go to Baylor and "only boys" go to Duke since that's where mommy and daddy went. So she says she wants to go to Baylor since there are girls there. Whatever works.

A new Miss Patty Cake movie...Caroline's fav!

Pulling out...

...the biggest (and might I add, scariest) Minnie Mouse we've ever seen. Mimi took "Caroline would like a big Minnie" literally. We all busted out laughing:

My mom with the scary Minnie:

Uncle John and Caroline playing with the soccer goal my mom gave her. Caroline really likes it...it says "GOAL" when she kicks the ball in the net. Very cute!

It sure is fun having a big 3 year old in our house!!