Easter in Pictures

Good Friday

Matt & Connor tested out the position of the camera while I finished getting Cam ready to go.

(This was the first take - pretty good if you ask me!)

Saturday

While Cameron took his morning nap I got out the eggs to prep Connor for what he needed to do during the Easter egg hunt. I made him sit still & smile as long as I could & I got quite a few cute pics, I think!

"Okay Mom, I'm up. Now let's party!"

Church Block Party & Easter Egg Hunt

waiting for the hunt to begin...

"Connor, give Cameron a kiss..."

Connor had some issues during the hunt - it was a little overwhelming for him.

Food always makes it better though.

Easter Sunday Morning

Easter Baskets once Daddy got home from church.

Cameron ate the foam blades off of his fan within about 10 seconds.

Easter Dinner & Egg Hunt with Friends

(We didn't get many pictures of the egg hunting but if you check Lauras blog I'm sure she'll have more in a few days.)

Trying to catch bubbles!

Connor loves his new bubble gun - thanks Mimi!

Connor was practically beating down the door to get to the eggs.

Cam was not interested in hunting eggs. He was done before it all began.

Even the Kitchen Sink

We had a leak in our kitchen faucet and we decided to replace the whole darn sink. Matt did it all himself. I am so impressed with his growing desire and ability to repair things and improve our house.

The old sink & faucet.

Going to work on the removal.

Oh what a mess!

Looking down through the counter.

The new faucet.

So it's not just Connor who likes to help!

Hi Mom!

The finished product!

So there was a major glitch in the whole thing. Connor, who loves to help with anything, was in the kitchen during all this mess. He was not responding to instruction so I was scolding him (while I was also on the phone with a friend). As he walked toward me he was looking behind him and whimpering because he was in trouble. He stepped onto the edge of the old metal sink (possibly one of the broken metal clips that hold the sink in place) and immediately turned and sliced his big toe open. I guess the cold metal startled him and as he turned the metal just opened his little toe right up. I didn't realize right away that he was hurt because he was already whining. I ended my call, got up and picked him up to take him to the other room. As I picked him up I realized that he was hurt and rushed him to the bathroom where I began rinsing his foot. There was so much blood gushing and I couldn't tell if all his toes were cut or if it was his foot. Once Matt came in with me we determined it was the big toe and that it was very deep. I wrapped his foot up in a towel and sat with him in the rocking chair. I was pretty sure we needed stitches but since Matt's mom (who is a nurse) was visiting I decided to wait until she returned from picking up dinner to check it out. I also told myself that I needed to wait to see if it would stop bleeding in a reasonable amount of time with some pressure & elevation. So we rocked. He got his pacis and we just cuddled and prayed and sang a couple of songs. Julie got back not too long after that and immediately checked out the wound. The bleeding had stopped much sooner than I expected and she was fairly confident that it couldn't be stitched due to the angle of the cut into the toe. She agreed that it was pretty deep though. We had butterfly bandages, gauze and tape on hand as well as antibiotic ointment, hydrogen peroxide and band-aids. Nurse/Grandma Julie went to work on the toe while Connor and I cuddled in his bed and read books. He amazed all of us. This boy has an incredible pain tolerance. He would occasionally fuss or flinch while she worked on him but he never cried or pitched a fit. The next morning I still had a pit in my stomach that we needed to see a doctor so I called the weekend clinic at our pedi's office and luckily she was available to see him that morning! We really love and appreciate our pediatrician and I was so grateful to get to have her look at it. She was very reassuring that stitches were likely not possible in spite of how deep the cut went. She cleaned it again and re-bandaged him. She told me to watch for signs of infection but mostly just to allow time for it to heal. We tried to carry Connor as much as possible on Saturday and when he did walk, he rolled his foot to walk on the outside of it. It kills me to see my kids in pain and there is nothing like seeing them bleed. My stomach is in knots now retelling the story. I might just go sneak into his room and give him another kiss! WARNING! Some of the following pictures might be a little graphic.

The cut wraps from between the big toe and his 2nd toe and goes at a diagonal about 3/4 of the way around.

Yes, I got into his crib. Matt was kind enough to remind me that there is a weight limit on those things and that I exceeded it.

After we got him all cleaned up and bandaged we made the mistake of putting him in his regular seat to eat dinner. With all the downward pressure of his dangling feet, the bleeding began again. After that we were more careful to keep it elevated.

Resting on the couch - watching Buzz & Woody!

Big Boy Bed

We decided it was time to change Connor's crib into the toddler bed. I was a little nervous about having to train him to stay in it and not get up and play or come find us. Much to my amazement he has done beautifully! He has not gotten up once without permission (it's been 6 days)! He is such a pacifier addict but he is only allowed to have them in bed so he begs to go "night night" because he knows he can have his paci. Lately he has even been going back to bed for about 15 minutes after breakfast which is just fine with me.

I had him lay down for these pictures which is why he has shoes on in bed. This was last Sunday after church so he was pretty tired & ready to go to bed anyway.

King Ranch Chicken Casserole

4-6 chicken breasts

chopped onion & bell peppers

tortilla chips (or corn tortillas if you prefer)

2-3 C grated cheese

1 tsp chili powder, garlic powder & ground cumin

1 can RoTel

1 can Cream of Chicken soup

6 oz. chicken broth

Cook your chicken and shred. I like to cook mine in the crock pot with the RoTel and seasonings for about 6 hours and then I am able to shred it simply by stirring it.

After I remove the chicken from the Crockpot I put my chicken broth and cream soup in and mix it with the remaining juices and RoTel.

Next spray your large baking pan with non-stick spray. Line the bottom of the pan with the chips (crunched up if you prefer.) Layer the shredded chicken on top of the chips.

I like to saute my peppers and onions before adding them but that step is optional.

After the peppers and onions, layer half of your freshly shredded cheese.

Now grab your soup & salsa mixture from the Crockpot and pour it over the casserole.

Top it off with the remaining cheese.

Bake for 45 minutes at 350°

Serve with sour cream, rice & beans!

(Sorry I meant to get a picture before we cut into it but I forgot!)