{The Rainy}

Easter was fashionably late this year which would make one believe that we would have gorgeous weather. Sun, heat, blue skies, green and dry grass and lots of flowers. Not in Cincinnati! It has been a never ending rainy April and Easter Sunday was no exception. Luckily there was a break in the weather that was long enough for the little kids of the Ottopal family to collect Easter eggs. But then the rain picked right back up and it continued to pour from late afternoon all through the night. Oh and guess what, there was rain again this morning….awesome!

{The Busy}

My family is the kind of family that gets together (I mean ALL together) all the time. Its great, its what I grew up with and of course all that I’m pretty much used to. George also comes from a family that gets together a lot so he is used to the busy holidays too. Every holiday George and I are rushing around from one side of the family to the next but at Easter it is a bit more hectic. Why? Because my mom’s side of the family likes to get together two times in one day. We have breakfast at my Grandma’s house at 10:30am where we all stuff our face with bacon (6lbs were made this year), eggs, sausage, biscuits & gravy, Grandma’s famous coffee cakes (I think I counted 4 flavors), fruit, and breakfast pizza. Am I missing anything? There is also orange juice and then mimosas for those who need to a little bit of alcohol to get through the madness (I’m in that category).

Then George and I left Grandma’s house to head home for literally 30 minutes to let the pups out and take a minor breather, this is a marathon NOT a race. Next we got back in the car and headed to George’s Aunt and Uncle’s house for snacks and a visit before heading off to our final destination for the day. Hanging out with the Kiesewetter family is so nice. There is no yelling across the room for one particular person, no hustle and bustle of everyone scurrying around each other because there were only 7 of us total. The visit was a few hours long which included great conversation and yummy snacks.

We got back in the car around 4:15pm and headed out to my Uncle Scrooge’s house for our dinner, did I mention we had to go to the West side? George and I arrived at Scrooge’s early so we could relax and hang out on the couch talking with Scrooge before the masses started to arrive. God love my family, we are LOUD and crazy! I’d love to be a fly on the wall actually watching all the interactions and conversations unfolding. The little kids normally hang out in one room and every now and then you will hear one of them come out crying but for the most part they are pretty good about hanging out with themselves. Shortage of food is NEVER a problem and Easter dinner was just as filling as Easter breakfast only a short 7 hours earlier.

My mother had of course spoiled all of us kids rotten and Matt, Jami, Mason, Brian, George and I all had these enormous baskets FILLED with spring goodies. Aunt Jesy and Unlce George gave Mason a Cardinals hat and socks to help root on the Butler County Challenger Cardinals – NOT MLB Cardinals – for our upcoming season. He looked ADORABLE in the hat and the guy holding him is super cute too! {Side note: Mason is becoming the cutest little boy with all the smiling he does with EVERYONE. He goes to anybody without fussing and smiles so much that you can’t help but constantly have a smile on your face the entire time you are around him. I love being his Aunt Jes}

Mom through out a little tear jerker yesterday when I opened a little wind chime she bought for both Jami and myself. Jami’s was a tiered wind chime with pretty spring colors and mine had the letters H-O-P-E hanging vertically. I was slightly dense at first but mom recalled when she made the purchase and it was the day that I called her to tell her George and I created our bear with Baby Herron’s heartbeat and that we named the bear Hope. Mom said that the wind chime was at that store and she was looking at it when I called her…yep, that started the tears! I love my momma!

{The Clumsy}

If you know me pretty well then you know I’m some what of a clutz. I’m quite shocked that I can chew gum and walk at the same time without tripping over myself. I am constantly tripping and yesterday I really scared myself and George when I tripped in my Uncle’s driveway in the pouring down rain as we were leaving his house. It sucked! I started to trip and because my hands were full I could not regain my balance causing me to fall smack down on my right knee and skidding my toes on the concrete. There went the pants and the pedicure! Big hole in the knee and I was a bleeder, so now I’m going to have this wonderful-looking scab to show my battle scars with the driveway. I wasn’t the only casualty of the driveway, apparently my little cousin took a fall and skinned up her knees and also got holes in her Easter tights.

Needless to say I’m absolutely exhausted from yesterday but I’m so glad we had lots of time with family, next year will be different because George and I will be in Florida. Hopefully it will be a sunny Easter!