An Easter weekend we'll never forget

Due to the horrific tornado in Mena on Thursday night, this Easter weekend was nothing like what we had planned. No egg hunt at the park, no Easter Sunday church service. But we did have a very memorable time with family and friends and got to the see the very strong community of Mena pull together in an amazing way. We left for Mena Friday morning and Chris spent all day Friday helping clear out what remained of his Nanny's house which was tragically lost in the tornado. Nothing could have prepared us for what we saw when we got to Mena. The center of town is literally wiped out. The "heart" of Mena that we have known and loved for so many years is practically unrecognizable. Sadly, 3 people lost their lives in the storm, but after seeing the damage, it is amazing that more people weren't killed or seriously injured. Chris' Nanny and her friend were in their house when the roof was completely blown off and amazingly were not seriously injured. Amidst the chaos, we managed to have a fun and memorable weekend with Ayden and all our families. Ayden got 3 Easter baskets. I told Chris that most children get one basket, spoiled children get 2 baskets, and ROTTEN children get 3. That's Ayden! We dyed eggs and made a hideous mess but had a blast doing it! Ayden got to spend lots of time playing with his cousins and had SO much fun!!

Unfortunately, Ayden starting running fever last night and we just returned from the doctor where we found out he has Hand, Foot, and Mouth Disease Yikes. There's not a specific treatment for the illness. The doctor told us to keep him away from other kids for a week, treat the fever with Tylenol, and keep him hydrated. She said the first 24-48 hours are the worst for the fever and crankiness. As of right now, he has the ulcers in the back of his throat but none on his hands or feet. Poor little guy!!

Here are a ton of pics from our weekend...starting with the sad ones :(

The neighborhood where Chris' nanny lives

What was left of Nanny's house...

Playing with EJ and G at Mimi's house!

Easter basket from Grandma and Pappaw-

complete with ELMO eggs!!

Digging in!

Showing Uncle Nick and Aunt Brandy his treats

Dyeing eggs! And skin! :)

My hands are stained too... LOL

Sweet boy

Not so sweet boy!

Ayden's finished Sesame Street decorated eggs!

Basket from Mommy and Daddy

Being silly with Pappaw!
And Grandma too!

Family pic in our Easter duds!
Visiting Great Grammie and Papa

More Easter candy from Pappaw and Memaw!

Uncle Josh, EJ and G

Sweet cousins

Cuties!

Hanging out with Memaw
Tickles from Pappaw!

Our future pianist :)