Easter

Easter this year lasted two weekends. On actual Easter Sunday, we went to an Easter Egg Hunt that is held each year by the American Society. It was fun, and the kids really enjoyed hunting the eggs. Although for Cayden, it was a somewhat ruthless crowd. Beckham got to enjoy the "baby" egg hunt. 

And really, they just wanted to jump in the bounce house. 

There were some ducks and bunnies for the kids to pet. Cayden was fine just watching. Beckham really wanted to get his hands on one. I picked up a little black one for him to pet, and then set it back down. I turn around and he has picked one up by the fur on the back. Poor little guy.

When they said "Go!" all the kids ran like banshees. Cayden was lucky that Heath was with him, so he got like five eggs. Beckham just wanted to run!

Cayden and his friend Hunter. They live in the same complex and go to the same school!

The weekend before was the school Easter party.  Getting these kids to pose, well. I'm sure you can imagine.

There were lots of activities for the kids to do at the school. Making bunny masks, dying eggs, making noodle necklaces, etc.

Beckham has really enjoyed school. He loves his teachers, which is why he let her paint his face. Cayden wouldn't have anything to do with it, until he saw Beckham.

They are hard to see, but the kids school photos always crack me up. I can't wait to get their individual shots back.

And in a picture that sums up the kids - Cayden's eggs died blue and red/orange. And Beckham's  - one unfortunate casualty, and the other I did.

My mom brought plastic eggs with her on her visit, so we had a few practice rounds to hunt. Easter in Brasil is full of large chocolate eggs, not really plastic ones filled with goodies!

Buenos Aires

My mom came to visit a couple of weeks ago, and just left this evening. We were able to plan a weekend trip to Buenos Aires while she was here. 

The plane ride down was horrible. Cayden is pretty easy to travel with, but Beckham? Woah, Nelly. He was tired and screamed for at least 2 hours of the 2. 5 hour trip. We were never so grateful to get to the hotel. And I won't lie, I may or may not have had thoughts about not traveling ever again with kids. It was rough. 

But C'est la Vie - Jumping on the bed always makes any trip more fun, right?

It was a short trip - two nights. We took a city tour one morning that provided a few pit stops.

I know Beckham won't remember any of this life in Brasil, and I can only hope that Cayden will remember some of it.

The architecture of the city is so gorgeous. Very European, and so lovely.

We went to the church of the current Pope. Beautiful. Italian mosaic floors, stained glass, art...

Poor Beck. He did have a good time, although he looks lethargic.

 I'm always swayed by tree lined streets. Love them.

 Here is the "Pink House." This is where the President of Argentina works. They say she's friends with the President of Brasil. And we'll leave it at that.

The Russian Orthodox Church.

We spent quite a bit of time in the Recoleta Cemetery.  I had never been to a cemetery like this made entirely of mausoleums. They were so beautiful. Each different than the next. Some very opulent, some so old. Many in need of repair. I felt even a little disrespectful looking in through the glass at coffins stacked on one another, some even unprotected because the glass was missing from the doors. It was odd to be that close to the dead.

And of course, we had to visit Eva Peron.

Later that night, my mom watched the boys while Heath and I went to dinner and a tango. I loved the tango show. It was in a very small (only room enough for 10 tables). I loved watching this guy play the accordion. What a lost art!

Sorry for the blurry picture. This was the best I could do. They were lovely, and I even got a small dance lesson toward the end of our night.

After lots of prayers in the air, the flight home went very smoothly. Beckham slept most of the time. We were glad to be home, and I just might consider traveling again with the kids by plane...just not in the very near future.

Same Story, Different Day

School is back into swing. Cayden loves it! We really are blessed that he is so easy going when it comes to school. He never cries, and would rather I left him there well past time to pick up. Beckham started going from 8-11, 5 days a week. It seems like a lot, but really it's not. Beckham isn't quite as laid back as Cayden. He cries each time I drop him off, but it's only for a few minutes. He is easily distracted by toys, the playground, and snack time. The teachers say he does well. 

I use my new free time to clean. Super exciting, huh. We no longer have an embregada (housekeeper) so, it's back to just me. Boo hoo, right? Anyway, I'm actually really enjoying the time. It's so much easier to clean without two little boys following me around "helping." And I may or may not, sneak in some sewing time. 

Our days are pretty much the same. The kids are in school, once Cayden is home it's either to the pool or stay at home because it's raining. They eat a lot of ice cream. But what are you going to do? There are worse things in life. Cayden has become a really good swimmer. He is still not confident enough to just swim out to the middle of the pool, but as long as someone is in there, he is fine. Beckham is our Evil Knievel. Thank goodness we have two types of floaties on him, because he just goes balls to the wall in the pool. I think he is going to swim a lot quicker than Cayden did. 

Beckham is also a chatter box. While he isn't quite putting phrases together. He has A LOT of words. Bacon. Shoes. Go. Sit. Snack. Drink. Night-Night. Cereal (this one was new today). Blank (short for Blanket)

Taking pictures is hard. Cayden is usually pretty cooperative. Beckham. Ha!

This is a keeper. I mean, look at those faces. Thrilled to be laying on a quilt. But check out that green grass! LOVE IT!

And all kidding aside - He looks 12 here. Seriously.

Cayden and Beckham sometimes play well together. Cayden has quite the imagination, so he can create some little scenarios and Beckham just goes right along. He loves playing in the shower in his bathroom. We never use it, and he can't reach the handle to turn it on, so I'm okay with it. He drags towels and blankets in there to play sleepover or campout and then he colors. Gosh. He's getting big. They both are. It's just so crazy how time flies, and really, I'm just trying to enjoy it all. And that is hard too. Especially when they don't listen. Or are constantly fighting. So I try to find Joy in it all, it won't last long.

Christmas Part Deux

Once Christmas actually rolled around, we stayed at my mom's house. She has a wood burning fire place that Heath LOVES. It could be 40 degrees out, and he wants to start a fire. Speaking of cold - It was cold. Very cold while we were in the States. We've grown accustomed to the tropical environment and me likey. A lot. 

The kids were completely spoiled at Christmas. This is the first year that Cayden kind of "got" the Santa Claus gig. We called Santa's special phone line, made lists, and everyday he would find something new he wanted for Christmas and wanted to be sure and let Santa know. Unfortunately, Cayden came down with a stomach bug on Christmas Eve! Poor little guy. He missed out on leaving Santa cookies. And wouldn't you know that Heath came down with it the next day. It was not good. 

I got a new camera for Christmas and what better way to break it in, than to drag the kids out in 10 degree weather to take their pictures. Really, it was like 25. 

My mom has had Bald Eagles at her house before, but they were in FULL force over Christmas.  You could look out and see a few in the trees, and then look over and there would be like 15 in a tree. I couldn't get very close, as much as I tried. But they are just so cool.

Here are some of the cows. They were very curious as to why I was wondering around the fields.

And the goats. They too were curious. But this was after we tied the Christmas tree to the golf cart to drop off in the goat field. There was a story on the news about how much goats liked them. We had a tree, we had some goats. Voila! Anyway, I was trying to teach Cayden the ways of the farm, like holding gates, and Snowflake (I'll let you guess which one that is) was very interested in Cayden. So Cayden ran for the golf cart, and I was left "shooing" goats so that I could get us through the gate, without letting any out. And I'll add it was 3 degrees out. No joke.

Christmas was great. We love getting to see all of our family, and we are very lucky that we only have to go 6 months at a time away from them. But I love me some warm weather! And I was glad to get back to Brasil, and to our routine. It's just easier to let the kids run like crazy in our house!

Let's Play Catch Up

Making the trek home is stressful. Not that are kids are terrible, but it's just the knowing. Knowing that we have to survive 24 hours of car rides, plane rides, waiting for planes, feeding kids, going to the bathroom, getting luggage, etc. We've gotten pretty good at knowing how much the kids can handle. Cayden is a pretty good traveler. Beckham is our loose cannon. On the 10 hour, overnight flight, we give Cayden Dramamine and he will usually fall asleep soon after takeoff. Beckham is usually really mad by the time we take off. It's hours past his bedtime, he's ticked. On the way back to Arkansas, he fought it, but then fell asleep, and slept for like 3-4 hours... but then he got uncomfortable, he wanted to stretch out. Then he would only sleep on us. Thankfully Heath took a shift and we finally landed in Atlanta. And Heath and I NEVER sleep. So we are exhausted. 

This is on the flight from Atlanta to Arkansas. He was out, almost immediately. He's so cute when he sleeps. 

Like I said, Cayden is a pretty good traveler. Give him an iPad, some snacks ... He's usually good to go. 

We were in Arkansas for about 4 weeks. Two before Christmas, which meant we had a lot of running around to do, people to see. BUT, we did something a little different. We stopped in the middle of it all and went to the Great Wolf Lodge with the Kuhlows. Oh boy... Did those kids love that place. Cayden is still talking about it. 

Millie and Cayden kill me. They never miss a beat. Away from each other for months, and they pick up, right where we left them. 

Kristin had the best shirts made for the Fab Four.

I really hope Beckham and Sydney are great friends, too, someday.  They jabbered with each other at dinner, but they are still a little young. Of course, they haven't had the same history that Mills and Cayden have.

Are you surprised that this is how he acts? 48 hours of pure silliness.

On the last night, we went to the story telling. We were all sitting around, and the show started singing, and Millie got up to show us a few moves. Next thing I know, Cayden is up and giving Millie a smooch,... on the lips. I died. Cuteness. I have no idea why he did it. But they just laughed afterwards.

This was the sight every time they left the hotel room. Beckham probably leading the pack. That kid can RUN. Fast. Bow legs and all.

These were taken at the story time.. before the big Lip Smack! We had such a great time. It's definitely a place for kids, adults take a back seat, and that's okay. They loved the water park, and all Cayden wanted to do was go down the slides over and over again. He's getting really good at swimming and holding his breath, so it was nice to not have to hover over him.
I hope we get to do it again next year. Maybe this will be our tradition!

Next Post  - Our Annual Santa Picture.