Easter Egg Hunt

LOOK OUT, all you in-experienced egg hunting toddlers! Lucas is on an egg hunt!


























We took Lucas to an Easter Egg Hunt last Saturday, and he definitely did just fine! There is nothing more hilarious than watching toddlers (1-2 year olds) aimlessly wandering around an egg hunt wondering WHAT TO DO!! The parents stand to the side cheering their little ones on, and the toddlers...well, they just sort of stare at their parents wondering what in the heck they are supposed to be doing!! This was our Egg Hunting experience last year! Lucas was like, "Ok ,what's the big deal here?" But this year, we trained...Like a great athlete going for the Olympics! He and I had been doing "dry runs" all week in preparation for the BIG HUNT! His new favorite thing is to hide the eggs around the house and go find them! Yeah, I've trained him well. So this year, he scored WELL-above the average toddler in securing a large number of eggs!! He even shook the eggs before placing them in his basket. Rattling eggs seemed more valuable to him than quiet eggs that might contain soft stuffed animals. I guess he made the assumption that noisy eggs meant CANDY, which is nectar for our toddler!! He was an EGG ACQUIRING MACHINE!! I guess you could say he did an egg-cellent job!! (Sorry I couldn't resist)

Our FIRST Time

Well, it has happened...my dreaded first trip to the Emergency Room with Lucas. I received a call from his school yesterday in the a.m. from the director. She said that Lucas had fallen and hurt his head. I rushed to the school, not really thinking that it would be that bad. When I got there, his teacher was holding him in her arms, holding ice to his forehead. When he looked up, the poor thing's right eye was almost swollen shut, and he had a nasty looking cut right above his eye! He fell on a plastic handle of a play kitchen cabinet. I immediately called our 24 hour medical advice line with our insurance company. (I LOVE our insurance company by the way. They are amazing and ALWAYS available 24/7). Anyway, the nurse suggested I go ahead and take him to our local doctor's office just to be safe. She didnt think it was anything critical since he had not lost consciousness or thrown up or any of the other signs of danger in head trauma cases; however, because he was bleeding a good bit and there was a lot of swelling, we all thought it was a good idea!!

Of course Lucas was a trooper up until that point. He had not cried that much and actually ate his lunch after the incident happened at school. (He is definitely a Thomas. We don't lose our appetites over anything!) Once we got to the doctor's office, his pediatrician thought they could do a melding glue-type suture that was not invasive and would be quick. It just looked like glue. He wasn't too happy with the nurses who had to hold him down while they applied the glue. Because the laceration was right above his right eye, there was a concern that they would get the glue IN his eye if he didn't stay still. Well, this little guy (strong as anything) fought them the whole time! He just kept saying "I'm better now, I'm better now" As if that was going to get them to LEAVE HIM ALONE!! Poor thing...He got so hysterical, we had to stop the procedure so I could walk him down the hall and just get him calmed down!! Ugh...they finally got the procedure finished and unfortunately it was NOT stopping the bleeding. UGH...so the pedi said, "I hate to tell you this, but you're going to have to take him to the ER for real stiches." Ugh...so here I was driving down the freeway IN ATLANTA trying to apply pressure to Lucas's face, WHO WAS SITTING IN THE BACKSEAT. It was crazy! We finally got to the ER at Scotish Rite in Atlanta. This place was amazing and the doctors/nurses were impeccable! Everyone was so kind and sweet towards Lucas, it really eased our anxiety! Unfortunately, we had a long wait ahead of us so we just waited. Luckily "Finding Nemo" and "A Bug's Life" were playing on the TV. Lucas even took a little cat nap (Thank goodness!). They finally determined that the little sticky strip-like sutures would be better than actually putting Lucas to sleep for REAL stitches. I was really glad to hear that. By the time we left the hospital, it was afternoon rush hour, so we sat in traffic for over an hour trying to get back home. What a day!! He is already doing better now, although he is very sore. He and I have had a relaxed day full of coloring pictures, dying easter eggs, and watching favorite TV shows. He is definitely back to his old self, because this morning he was wanting chocolate cookies (AKA brownies) for breakfast! Oh bother!!

Toying with Our Emotions

Lucas and I have been talking about emotions. I think it is important to think about our ability to identify our own emotions as well as those of others. Doing this will hopefully instill a sense of empathy in Lucas. His ability to recognize certain emotions in others can maybe help him to identify with them and hopefully help him to be sensitive to those around him. With all the over-indulged kids in this world, I desperately hope I will NOT add mine to the ranks. I could be crazy in these thoughts. However, nevertheless, it was hilarious to watch Lucas interpret and attempt to mock certain emotions with his face. So of course, me being the scrapbooking mom that I am, I was there with camera to capture it as best I could!!

First Emotion: HAPPY--this one was easy for Lucas, since he is USUALLY in this state! One aside--it is AMAZING how much he looks like my sister in this pic!! Whoa!

























Second Emotion: SAD--Lucas is pretty good at this face too...not because he is sad alot, but because he knows that this face can sometimes get him what he wants from daddy. I have taught him that daddy will give him almost anything he asks for if he uses this face. ah come on, could YOU resist this face?? haha


























Third Emotion: SURPRISE--This one is just cute!! Lucas thought it was SO fun to make this face, he would usually just start giggling!!


























Fourth Emotion: ANGRY--This one is just hilarious. Lucas would try to make an angry face, however he would be smiling while he did it? This pic was the most interesting because instead of ANGRY, he looks kind of scared...either that or he just saw a pink elephant driving a convertible outside on the rainbow colored highway... and in that case, this would be his "WHAT THE #%$&*?" face!! My boy is hilarious!