Easter Sunday

She has been a Daddy's girl lately!

We were blessed with a beautiful day to celebrate Easter, hunt Easter eggs, and spend time with family as we awaited the arrival of our new niece!  Adley was so excited to hunt eggs after church, and kept saying "More eggs, more eggs," as we awaited the signal that it was time to start the hunt!  She quickly found 3 eggs for her basket, and then was distracted by the playground slide & spent the rest of the time sliding!  She was also very proud of her Easter dress, and was sure to show anyone who told her she looked pretty the flower and ribbons on her dress!  The Easter Bunny (aka Mawmaw & Papa) also brought her a bucket full of goodies, and then she got more presents later in the day from Meme & Punkie, and Aunt Jen!  She was definitely excited about all her new treats!

Ready for the hunt!

"Seriously, Mom, are they ever going to let us pick up all those eggs?"

Forget the eggs…sliding with friends is more fun!

 And just for comparison…here's our Easter photo from last year!

Although Easter this year was several weeks later than it was last year, I feel like Easter now marks an "anniversary" of sorts for our family.  It was last year on the day after Easter that we moved into our house.  We also placed membership at our church congregation last year on the week after Easter.  One of the many contributing factors in choosing that congregation was our preacher's Easter sermon.  Although I missed some of it while I was feeding Adley in the nursery, Matt was particularly touched by David Duncan's words that day.  As we were leaving worship that morning, he told me that David's sermon had sealed the deal in his mind & that's where he thought we should place membership.  We have been so blessed over the past year by the friends we have made there, and the wonderful worship services, Bible classes, and Bible studies we have been part of…and this year's Easter sermon was just as powerful as last year's!  Easter weekend 2013 was when Houston really started to feel like "home" to us, and I am so thankful that we have settled in and established "roots" over the past year!

Emilia Maria

Our new niece was born yesterday, and she couldn't be any cuter!  Her name is Emilia Maria Escobar, and she was 7 lbs. 2 oz, and 20 inches long.  The nurse said she is "perfect," and I would have to agree!  Adley was in love with her, and kept asking to say "Hi, Baby."  We tried to get her to say "Emilia," but she would say, "NO, Baby!", so I guess Emilia has a nickname already!

One proud Papa!

Miss Personality

Adley is certainly not lacking in personality!  She keeps us laughing most of the time, and loves to make us laugh…although sometimes her "personality" shows through in the fits she throws!  Here are a few pictures of what she's been up to lately!

She was so happy at the strawberry patch!

She chose her accessories…and she calls this shirt her "Da-da shirt"

Saturday morning donuts at Shipley's is a favorite tradition already!

Strawberry Picking

 Adley and I had a fun morning at Frogberg's Farm picking strawberries!  Our Mommy & Me playgroup from church headed down to Alvin, TX to pick as many strawberries as we could fit in our buckets.  Adley seemed to think the goal was to EAT as many strawberries as she could fit in her belly!  She had strawberry juice from her forehead to her toes, and even some dripping off her elbows.  The weather was perfect, and we even picked up some homemade strawberry preserves that were made right there on the farm!