Easter in Texas

My in-laws treated our family to a trip to visit my mother-in-law's family in Texas. When we visit, we normally stay in the Austin area. This time, we met them at their new vacation condo on Padre Island. A blog of our travels can be found here: http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/WhirledPeas/Trips/18721

Oliver loved the beach! Uncle Gene showed him how to find all sorts of sea life. He also built sand castles and splashed around a bit. It was the perfect vacation for him. We also celebrated Easter while we were there, and here are some Easter photos from Texas.

The Easter Bunny came! The Easter Bunny brought bunny ears, pinwheels, bubbles, a toy rabbit for Jo, an egg full of candy for Oliver, and the buckle toy that I'd made for Oliver. The toy bunny was actually sent to Jo from my cousins Missy and Jana. However, I thought they'd understand why the Bunny put it in the basket. Jo is too little to care about much, so the Bunny probably didn't want to spend money on new stuff that wouldn't have made a difference. The Easter Bunny actually didn't come for Oliver's first Easter at all. He came for Jo's because that just makes more sense for Oliver.

The Easter Bunny almost always brings a pinwheel.

Seriously, I love these stinkers.

You might recognize Jo's Easter dress from a previous post. It was the first outfit I bought for her, back when I was pregnant and suffering pregnancy complications. I am so happy that she is here today, wearing the dress.

A Kushy Weekend

For my Grandma Jo's memorial weekend, we had aunts, uncles, cousins, and so many others here in town. Aunt Gerry and Wayne flew in from Maine, Tina and Aunt Linda flew in from Boston, Uncle Mark came from Ohio, Uncle Matt came from Missouri, Julie came from Nebraska, Aunt Jackie came from California, Jana and Ian (who I met for the first time) came from Portland, and Aunt Carol, Uncle Mike, Missy, Mia, Glen, Jo and Jack all drove in from Iowa.

Tina stayed at my apartment. I was so stoked to have my first house guest! Andrew and I totally bleached the shower and toilets and vacuumed and had fun grocery shopping. I'm telling you, we're ready to be a regular bed & breakfast now. Tina was the best house guest, ever (and I'm not just saying that because she's my only house guest). She totally let me give her a tour and just generally showed an interest in everything, right down to the bagels. Hurray for her! Next time, I'll make her try Rock Band. Also next time, we won't be so exhausted from socializing so we can go for runs!

Having Julie in town was a hoot, too. I spent a lot of my time with her and Tina, just generally laughing it up and throwing our opinions out about everyone and every thing. Good times.

Uncle Mark and I talked a lot about the Disney World Half Marathon we're running in January. Turns out, in addition to us and my mom, his daughters Dina and Amber are planning on running in it. This'll be too much fun!

Andrew enjoyed meeting people and demonstrating his magic skills. At some point, he even had Jana and Ian practicing the disappearing coin trick. Too cute.

The most difficult part of the weekend was, of course, the memorial itself. We went up to Andrew's parents' land near Fairplay and sang and talked of our memories. I started to get upset about scattering Grandma's ashes. Not that I thought it was a bad idea; I knew it's what she'd wanted. It just is hard to say goodbye, I guess. I felt angry about not having her with us, and I hated thinking about everything she doesn't get to see. I know I'll move past those feelings and be able to enjoy her memories, but it's just so hard sometimes, and I feel so mad that I don't get to have her around anymore. I wish I could say more, but I'm so emotionally drained! It was a toughie, for sure.

And now... now things have quieted down. Some family is leaving already tomorrow morning. This means I'll sleep in, wake up slowly, and then reach out and connect with those that are still hanging out in town. I'm wiped, and I think it's time to cuddle up with a book and then head to sleep.

Goodnight!

Everything is Beautiful

I check in on my cousin Missy's blog regularly (http://huggingthemidline.typepad.com/). It helps me stay connected to some of my extended family (Thanks to facebook.com for that, too!). That's not always an easy thing when you have a family as big as ours!

Today, I read about her thoughts on staying positive and grateful. It motivated me a bit to reflect on the positive things I have in my life.

For starters, I'm so happy to have our parents live close by. I get homesick sometimes, and it's nice to go see my parents whenever I want and get some Wii Golf time in. Furthermore, I'm glad to have Andrew as my husband. Today, for example, he came home for lunch, and we ate a delicious meal and snuggled with Bailey until he had to go. Having to go to work isn't the greatest feeling in the world, but I'm really glad we both have jobs during this recession. There are many families who have to worry about money and food and their homes every day, and I'm so, so grateful that Andrew and I aren't one of them. I'm also very glad that I have today off. I'm grateful to have these hours to myself to read, do the dishes, catch up on laundry, and add to my blog.

Today, I also felt really content when I took Bailey for a little stroll. She seemed to be doing much better after a few days of acting sick. It drizzled a bit on us, and we walked by two ducks sleeping in the pond under a tree. I love that feeling being out in "nature" causes in me; the feeling that everything is OK, and everything is beautiful.