Happy Easter, everyone! I hope you had a great holiday. We did here. It gets more fun every year as the kids get into the holidays and enjoy our traditions more and more.
This year we started out the season with decorating the house. The kids loved getting out their baskets that Grammy got for them and have been playing with them ever since (it’s going to be tough to put them away). Grandma and Papo came for a visit, and continued their tradition of dying eggs and buying new outfits for Easter day.
Last weekend, we went to an Easter egg hunt at a local park. It was crazy! There were at least 500 people there. They split up the kids by age and put half on each side. They threw a bunch of eggs all over an open field and set the kids all off to meet in the middle. It was a 2 minute hunt, but afterwards the kids got to have their pictures taken with the Easter bunny. Alyssa also ended up having her picture in the newspaper, too! Here’s a quick glimpse of the madness. (I found out today our camera has a wind filter, so next time it will be better, I promise!)
(If you can’t see the video, click here.)
To get ready for the big day this weekend, the kids picked daffodils and placed them in a vase for a centerpiece. I had planned to make cupcakes with the kids on Saturday. But alas, there had to be a complication, right? Alyssa was sick and had to be checked out. She has strep throat again.
Sunday morning, Dave made some cinnamon rolls for breakfast, we read about the true meaning of Easter, and then the kids found their Easter baskets, which were hidden in the basement. They were also excited to wear their new outfits for church. That made it picture taking time and we let Alyssa dress up, too, so she wouldn’t feel left out. Once everyone else left for church, she helped me make the cupcakes and frosting. She was quite the little helper in the kitchen. The math she is learning in kindergarten came in handy, too!
When the rest of our crew returned home from church, something was amiss. It turns out Lauren thought it would be a good idea to write all over her hands and through the hole over the knee in her new tights. She got a new flower pen in her Easter basket, so why not, right? And guess where some of the ink ended up? Yep, on her brand new dress. Lucky for me, my mom is the Stainmaster of laundry. I put in an SOS call, Mom did some research, and blotting with rubbing alcohol did the trick and saved the day. She was quite remorseful when she was caught, though.
This was one of many glitches and distractions that happened throughout out the day that lead to some last minute changes to simplify the menu. It also cut into the cute bunny cupcake project (adapted from this idea from All You Magazine) I thought I was going to do with the kids. I ended up doing most of it, due to time constraints, but each kid seemed happy with decorating the face of their own bunny (and later eating it after dinner).
In the afternoon, the kids also got to play some baseball, and we had a much longer Easter egg hunt in our backyard. See if you can figure out from the video why the girls ended up with twice as many eggs as the boys).
(If you can’t see the video, click here.)
Then we enjoyed a simple, yet traditional ham dinner. I think that everyone came had a really good time and we did, too! We were blessed to share the day with my parents and some friends from church.
But more than having a good time, I want to celebrate what this holiday means. We truly believe that if Jesus hadn’t defeated death, to pay for our mistakes, there is no way we could go to Heaven. Isn’t that amazing? Please know, that it is my prayer for each and every one of you to see Easter as the celebration of our ticket to eternal life in Heaven. I feel with all my heart, there is no greater decision for you to make than what you believe about Jesus. If you want to talk to me or ask questions, please know that I am here for you. I want you all to be with me in Heaven someday, and I’ll do whatever I can to bring you with me!
I’ll close with another little slideshow of our Easter festivities highlights. I hope you enjoy it. I am so grateful that we are so truly blessed.
(If you can’t see the video, click here.)
God bless,
Amanda
