Happy Easter

Sorry for the delayed post. I was feeling weird about downloading all the photos to my work computer. I got over it. Then I couldn't find the card reader. But I found an alternative solution (obviously). I wish the light were better in Jason's face, but I think it's a good photo. The kids picked out their own outfits. . .

We started the morning by checking out what the Easter Bunny had done:

As you can see from this photo, the Easter Bunny drank the chocolate soy milk, ate most of the carrots, and even ate the two colored, hard-boiled eggs the kids left for him. He was kind enough to leave his egg peel trash in the bowl for easy clean-up. In return, the Bunny left each kid a basket filled with goodies. Fortunately, as I explained to Casey and Marcie in advance, I wrote the Bunny a letter this year and asked him not to bring too much candy. All that sugar just isn't good for their teeth or their moods. So the kids weren't expecting much candy. What they got was better than candy. They each got a pair of shoes (Casey finally got his beloved N shoes, which I've written about before. They are yellow and black "with no ripping," just like Casey said). They both got a monkey cup with matching tumbler and four dry erase markers. They both got two peanut butter eggs (which I ate because they didn't like them!). Marcie got markers and a pad of paper. And Casey got 101 Dalmations. The Bunny obviously thinks our kids our great because he even left them stuff at Grandma and Grandpa's house, too.

After pulling everything out of their baskets, the kids posed for a photo opportunity:

I must admit, this is probably one of my all-time favorite pictures of the kids. Even though it's out of focus and blurry because of their activity. I mean, they are literally posing. How can you not find that funny? After they posed, they ran off to watch the beginning of 101 Dalmations.

Then, we went to church, where the kids were unusually well-behaved.

Marcie insisted on wearing her new, pearl pink Crocs. The kids mainly entertained themselves with Cheerios, and books, which they read out loud. It wasn't too distracting. I had to laugh, though, when they each held up the books teacher-style, as if showing the pictures to the class. The "class" was the row in front of them, the backs of people. But they didn't seem to mind, and their activities were keeping them quiet enough that I could actually hear the priest speak. Too bad what he had to say wasn't so impressive. But that's another story.

After church, we let the kids get some donuts and juice, and we headed home. I threw our ribeye roast in the oven, while the kids finished decorating our traditional Easter Bunny cake. This year, we decided on chocolate cake for a white bunny with a brown bow tie. The ears are a little lopsided. I think this bunny is just tilting its head:

The jelly beans above the bunny's eyes are hair, according to Casey. And if you're wondering, our kids don't actually eat the jelly beans. In fact, this year, they each got one piece and the remaining bunny went to my office so everyone else could enjoy the sweets.

While our roast was, uh, roasting, the kids convinced us to take them to the park. It's at the end of our street, and Casey asked to ride his bike. So we let him give it a try:

He actually did a great job using his brakes. And the most impressive part is that he actually rode the bike all the way home-- even though we live at the top of a hill! It's time to get him a real bike, and I think Marcie will be pleased when she inherits this one.

After about 40 minutes at the park, we returned home for lunch. Mmm. Ribeye roast, mashed potatoes and broccoli. Plus sparking apple cider (which I refer to as "apple soda"). The kids tried lemonade for the first time, which in retrospect was probably a mistake. But I can't undo it now.

The kids were ready to nap right after lunch. Actually, Casey asked to nap during lunch, then returned to the table saying he couldn't sleep. He didn't end up napping; he just read books to himself in bed (and I use the word "read" loosely, of course). After Marcie was finished napping, we completed our family egg hunt. The backyard is undergoing a renovation of sorts, and it's covered in black tarp instead of grass, which is why we conducted the egg hunt in the front yard:

We don't use actual eggs in our hunt, because I have this fear one will be left behind and will stink up the yard. So this year I filled the plastic eggs with dark chocolate almond MnMs (blech) and stickers. Casey got probably two or three times as many as Marcie, but it doesn't matter because we pool the Easter goods. We dumped all the candy into a quart-sized ziplock, and the kids will get 4-5 for dessert each day this week, and then we'll tell them they're all gone. Even though they will either be hidden on top of the fridge or thrown out (in which case I suppose technically they are all gone). Thankfully, they don't really have a concept of portions and amounts, so they will take us at our word and we won't have to fight with them about why we don't want them having so much candy. But I digress.


After our egg hunt, we headed off to Jason's parents, where his dad prepared a delicious ham meal. Marcie's Godmother "Aunty Tiffy" and her fiance were there, which was fun for me because I had someone to chit chat with. Mostly we talked about weddings and Jessica and Jon's baby (that's Jason's other sister and her husband). We're so excited to add another child to the family.


And that was our Easter. It was lovely. Low key. Beautiful weather. Family. What more could you ask for, really?


I hope your weekend was as relaxing and enjoyable as ours. Whether or not you celebrated Easter.

Oh. And to my friend Alison who I know reads my blog, good luck on the interview. I know you'll rock it. And to the rest of you-- please keep my friend Alison in your happy thoughts. She has a job interview Thursday for a position that she really wants. I know she doesn't need our wishes of good luck, but it always feels nice anyway, doesn't it?