Easter with the family down South!

We had a great day with Aunt Chippy, Uncle Sonny, Grandma, Grandpa, Sis, Mike, Chris, Sarah, Melissa, Jimmy & Alicen. We don't get down to Colonial Beach as much as we would like. The kids had a great time riding bikes, taking out the paddle boat, fishing, and hunting eggs.

Easter Morning

The Easter Bunny found us at 5706 Wooden Hawk Lane!

We hope he found you, too!!

Cross Cake

David saw the cross cake pan I bought years ago and wanted to make a cake like Mommy's necklace. I told him Easter was the best time to do this cake, and so we did. Mommy baked the cake and David was going to decorate. After some debate, David decided to let Harry assist. Harry did the yellow section and David the green. I believe it is a beautiful fresco, something you might see in Rome at this time of the year! Okay, so I'm their Mom and I love whatever they do! David made my year when he said, "Mom, you are so cool!" I want the boys to know the true meaning of Easter and not just the candy and bunny. This was a fun way to discuss the Cross and its significance to our lives and Easter.

Easter Eggs 2009

We love dying Easter Eggs! Everyone gets involved, even Grandma and Grandpa this year! The pictures say it all!

Shrooms...

I walked out the front door to get in the car and I could hear the scramble of little feet and snickers of little voices... No, seriously, I didn't hear any Gnomes, but I saw these awesome looking mushrooms and for just a moment wondered...

Rex!

Two weeks! Rex has now been with us for two weeks. Harry's first fish, Rainbow (RIP), didn't even make a week. Say your prayers that we have Rex for a long time! The Chaklader's get attached very quickly.

Caverns, Mountains & Dinosaurs - Spring Break with the Chaklader's

We had a fabulous Spring Break weekend!! With Subir's new job and my lack of PTO, we knew we couldn't take time off during Harry's Spring Break from school, BUT we knew we all needed a change of pace and venue. What better place than to head out to the mountains of Virginia! I knew the boys would probably like going down into Luray Caverns, and I heard about this place called Dinosaur Land near Front Royal, so this was the basis for our adventure. I found an awesome hotel through Traveladvisor.com, Front Royal Blueridge Shadows Holiday Inn. Yes, a Holiday Inn! It's only a few years old, has an indoor pool, a Houlihan's and a beautiful golf course, which we had an awesome view of and the mountain. Just a wonderful place to stay, and not expensive!! Enough about the hotel... The Caverns were awesome! Something new since the last time I was there about 14 years ago with the Jaycees, is they have stopped "live" tours and they give you a headset with numbered locations to punch in and listen. They have two tours, one for adults and one for children. David was free, and therefore no headset. I gave him mine, as he was feeling quite left out. When we first started down the steps David froze and didn't want to go. But, Subir picked him up and once at the bottom was excited and ready to explore. The Ranger at the bottom of the steps quickly pointed out the Scooby Doo looking formation and this really pleased Davy, as we had watched a new Scooby movie on the way there. About half-way though the tour Harry turned to me and said, "Mom this is totally awesome!" Made the whole trip for me. After the caverns, we went to see the Car Museum that has been there forever, and then lunch at the cafe where I had fried pickles. I tried fried pickles a few years ago on a business trip to Jacksonville and love them. Thanks, Patrice! Next, we went to the new Garden Maze. Talk about an adventure. There's a goal for every one to get 4 stamps and find the theme of the maze. We took turns taking the lead with Harry starting off and Davy bringing us home! The theme is Maze's Around the World. We then had an ice cream, and headed over to hear the bell recital at the tower across the way. There was also a park there to run and play in. We met up with another family and the kids ran and got out some of their energy.

Then Subir suggested we take a drive on Skyline Drive. It was great, not very crowded at all, but a bit windy. Harry bought a pocket knife at Luray, and decided to whittle a bit while we stopped to enjoy the view. We drove for a while and before I knew it all three boys were sleeping. I enjoyed the view and the peace and drove back to the hotel. We all rested for a bit and Subir then took the boys to the indoor pool. Mom decided to take a nap and really enjoyed it! We ended the day with a great meal at Houlihan's. We were all tired from our adventures and watched a little TV before turning in for the night.

Sunday brought the second day of fresh air and mountain views. Dinosaur Land was about 7 miles up Rt 340 from our hotel. It was not exactly what we had thought it might be, but we enjoyed walking through the park and taking a few pictures. Harry tried to take one of Mom & Dad, but with my new heavy lens he had a more difficult time. I really need to get another point and shoot for the boys to use. They had a blast taking pictures with the Sony this Summer before I dropped it in the lazy river at Frontier Town. Anyway, I wish Dinosaur Land had had more interactive things to do, or at least a few dinosaurs they could climb on. We bought a few dinosaur items in the gift shop and headed home. None of us were excited to end our quick FUN family weekend! Harry in particular was unhappy about heading home, and it reminded me of how I was when my Mom & Dad, Grandma and Unc would take me on trips. Good memories!