easter weekend {we outgrew a house}

Back before my generation on my mom's side of the family had kids, my mom and her sister would alternate hosting Easter dinner between their houses every other year.  Once my three cousins, my sister and I were either married or had significant others to bring along, space at the table started getting really tight, but we always managed to get one more chair around the table for us to share a meal.

Then the grandchildren started coming.  By the time Caleb was home (and he would be followed by four more additions ~ DQ, my niece and nephew and then Daniel), we pretty much had outgrown a house.  A few years ago my aunt had the idea to rent a shelter at one of the big parks in the area.  

And now it's become part of our Easter weekend tradition...

The day could pretty much be summed up with the following words:

extended playtime.

 

little monkey decided to start swinging on the bars (5 feet off the ground) and THEN call for help ~ by the time i got to him he had swung back to the platform.
he thought it was hilarious.

tag team back scratching...

good eats.

the grill master (my brother-in-law adam) and the supervisor (my uncle mike)

some couldn't wait until the asian burgers came off the grill to eat and took matters ~ and the container of "q-bongers" into their own hands

the kids table

most of the grown-ups

kids and grown-ups overflow ~ told ya we've outgrown a house

celebrating.

our cook out doubled as a baby shower

chad and caroline (if you've been around a while, this is the couple who rode their motorcycles across the Americas a few years back) are expecting a little boy in july.
and yes, the baby bump is there...

cousin monica's cake pops were quite the hit!

dq chose to enjoy hers away from the rest to avoid risk of losing a bite to her brothers.

egg hunting.

i love my honey's blue eyes AND the fact that daniel is totally scouting the eggs as they are being hidden

easter bunny or easter bird placing eggs in the tree?

bunny or bird, maylin gets a lift to retrieve one of the higher ones

i was shocked he broke concentration to glance at the camera ~ and with a pleasant look on his face at that

i don't think she found that many, but she smiled anyway!

his first extended family hunt ~ trying to figure out why the eggs are empty...

critter hunting.

the prize for having fun in the egg hunt?  a magnifying glass and a small net

and the hunt for critters began

daniel captured and observed several ants

caterpillars were included

and minnows ~ can't forget the minnows!

before long we were all down by the water with nets in hand

swimmers.

six boys (eight if you count the other family that was nearby) at the water's edge and TWO fell in.
i don't have a picture of the other swimmer, but i'll bet you can guess...

The theme that tied the entire day together?

conversation laced with love and laughter.


I so enjoyed my time with extended family.  If only Easter weekend came more than once a year...