Happy Easter!

This year has had a bit of a sadness hanging over it since the loss of Heidi. Last year we lost Onyx the bunny right before Easter and this year we lost Heidi. We are almost scared for Easter to come next year. Maybe it will bring new life instead of the loss of life (in the form of a pet only!). We decided to make the holiday as special and as happy as we could. Luke and Olivia haven't really asked about Heidi too much (thank goodness) so we tried to keep things as normal as possible (and avoided any outdoor picnics for now). We kicked off the celebration of Easter by going to church on Palm Sunday. We have just started going to a church near us and we really like it so far. Luke and Olivia do great in the nursery and Dan and I get to actually listen to the sermon! Later that week, on Wednesday, we went to an egg hunt that was sponsored by the city of Mount Holly. A lot of kids from our neighborhood went and it was so much fun! They had the fire truck there (which Olivia sat in) and an Easter Bunny (which once again Olivia loved and Luke was skeptical). I can't say I blame him; it was a questionable looking bunny!!!

Luke and Olivia are so funny hunting Easter eggs. They don't quite get the concept, other than "more eggs, more treats." Olivia would pick up an egg she deemed "hers" and would walk around with it as content as could be. She could have cared less about any other eggs once she found her special egg. Meanwhile, Luke caught on pretty quickly and would fill up his basket and immediately open them for "treats." He wasn't too excited about the quarters, but he will be eventually! We showed them how to put the money in their piggy bank and explained about what money means. They totally don't get it, but you can never teach them too early to save a little! On Saturday, we went to the neighborhood egg hunt followed by dying eggs at home with Oma and Opa. We also hunted a few more eggs in the yard. I wonder if Luke and Olivia will start looking for eggs every time we go outside now! On Sunday, we decided not to go to church but to go to our neighbor's huge Easter brunch instead. Our friend Lori had about 40 families at her house for the biggest egg hunt I have ever seen, complete with over 1,100 eggs! There was a massive spread of food and desserts as well as lots of toys for the kids to play with. It was a great family morning and a perfect way to spend the day. That afternoon, Grandma, MauMaw and PauPaw came over for Easter dinner and to spend some time together as a family. We also did one last egg hunt once they woke up from naps. It's fun to see how excited L and O get when doing fun things now.

Luke wore a cute little tie with skulls on it as well as the most adorable fedora (which he wore the ENTIRE time). Olivia wore a beautiful dress MauMaw had crocheted last year. I'm so glad she was able to wear it two years in a row. They were so darn cute all dressed up and looked so grown up!

Happy Easter to all. We hope the rest of your year is filled with many blessings.

A sad loss

On April 2, we lost a special part of our family-Heidi Kitty. I haven't been able to post a blog entry until now as I would just get too upset. It was about 10:30pm and there was a knock on our door. I was upstairs and I asked Dan if everything was ok. He told me something happened to Heidi and to not come outside. Of course, I didn't listen and followed Dan outside. Our neighbor (whom we have never met before but later found out was named Tessi) had seen Heidi outside of our house before and knew she lived here.

Sadly, Heidi had been hit by a car and left in the middle of the street. I know it was an accident, but I'm still really upset that she was left there to be hit again and again. While it was apparent her neck was broken and probably couldn't have been saved, we'll never know. Tessi said she didn't hit her but is an animal lover and just couldn't leave her in the street. Thank goodness she told us so we could bury her properly. She even gave us a towel so we could carry her home.

Dan and I just sat on the front porch and cried our eyes out. We talked to Heidi about what a great kitty she was and how much we will miss her. She was GREAT with Luke and Olivia, and Luke especially loved to play with her. He is our little animal lover. We knew we had to bury her before the morning, but it was just so hard. Finally around midnight, we put her in her kitty bed and buried her next to Onyx the bunny (whom we lost around Easter last year).

Heidi came into our lives as a stray when Dan and I lived in Atlanta. She was the sweetest, most loving cat from day one and would make even the most anti-cat person fall in love with her. She would always keep us company when we were out in the yard, would greet us at the door with her tiny little "meow", and joined us for picnics in the yard with Luke and Olivia (that is what I might just miss the most). There will never be another cat like her.

Heidi, we love you so much and will miss you forever. You have left a hole in our hearts and you'll never be replaced. We know you are bringing lots of joy to everyone in Heaven.