Easter 2016

We had such a nice Easter this year! We took advantage of a lot of Easter events around Jacksonville (read: we did ALL THE EGG HUNTS), so we really stretched out our celebration. As it has been with recent holidays past, Ellie helped make everything more fun because she was just so into it. As soon as Valentine's Day was over, she was looking for the Easter decorations and shouting "HAPPY EASTER!" every time we left her presence. The kid loves a good holiday.

Anyway, we started things off with an egg hunt at Ellie's preschool church. It was supposed to be out on the lawn but rain forced things indoors, so the "hunt" consisted of kids pulling eggs out of baskets set on chairs and putting them in their own baskets. The kids loved it, but let's be honest, we're really playing it pretty fast and loose with the term "hunt," here! It was really more of a "gather." After the egg-gathering they had a potluck dinner and appearances by the Easter Bunny, which just thrilled the kids. They also loved dancing and running around like crazies.

E.J. gathering eggs

Easter Bunny!

We also went to "Tea Time with the Easter Bunny" at the mall. It was a pretty fun event, with crafts, games, food (and by food, I mean sweets exclusively), storytime and another "hunt."

Ellie listening to an Easter story with the Chick-Fil-A cow, as one does.

Hunting and gathering

Bucket full of eggs!

That same weekend, we went to the Easter egg hunt in Hemming Park. We had such a great time at this event last year, but this year it really blew up and was PACKED. It was pandemonium during the "hunts," and the event's Facebook page was filled with complaints from parents about kids leaving empty handed (to be fair, it sounded like much of the blame for that fell on the parents who were also pretty egg-greedy, and not just on the event organizers). Personally, we had a good time regardless of the heavy crowds! Each of our kids got a few eggs (Ellie got all pink, just like she wanted), and then we headed over to Sweet Pete's to meet the Easter Bunny. The line was loooooooooong, but we ended up with a nice photo for the year!

E.J. checking out his eggs after the hunt for his age group

MESS.

Happy egg-hunter!

Easter Bunny at Sweet Pete's!

On Good Friday, we went to church at the church where I go to Moms' Group. I thought they were going to have a nursery available for E.J. at least, but they did not, so I spent much of the service running around with him in the lobby. Ah well, I tried. That evening, Eric and I continued what has become a nice Good Friday tradition in our house:

Wine, Reese's in their optimal form, and a little Ted Neeley.

The Saturday before Easter we went to the zoo for another egg hunt, though this one did not require baskets. This year, the zoo set up a scavenger hunt. Each guest was given a paper with clues, and you had to find the animal in question and fill in a letter from an egg sign posted nearby. (All the animals you were looking for, of course, lay eggs.) When you completed your form, you took it to the Great Lawn to redeem it for a bag of eggs. The Great Lawn also had lots of fun activities: crafts, food, bounce houses, and the Easter Bunny. (That guy is everywhere!)

Ellie rocking a toddler smile by one of the egg signs

Ellie helped me fill in a couple letters on our form!

Easter Bunny at the zoo!

That evening, we colored our Easter eggs. I'm going to toot my own horn a little bit and talk about what a genius I was in devising a plan for un-dumpable cups of dye: I hot-glued styrofoam cups to a big piece of cardboard. The kids still splashed a bit (I'm looking at you, E.J.), but everything stayed upright!

Coloring eggs

Just go for it, E.J.

Pink eggs for Ellie!

Our finished eggs!

Playing peek-a-boo in his down time!

After the kids went to bed that night, the Easter Bunny came!

Busted!

The kids' Easter baskets!

On Easter morning, the kids woke up and dug into their baskets!

Here they come!

Ellie checking out her palm pet

E.J. playing with his new Millennium Falcon and Chewbacca PEZ dispenser

Then, we got dressed and ready for church.

They're killing me.

We went to church at Ellie's preschool church, and the service was very nice. E.J. hung out in the nursery the whole time, while Ellie came to church with us. When the time came, she went right up front for the children's sermon and then marched off with the other kids to children's church for the rest of the service. She's so grown up!

That evening, we had an Easter feast of ham, potato casserole, peas and rolls.

Easter dinner

Easter 2016 was a great one!

Easter 2016

Ellie's Easter Program

On Ellie's last day of school before spring break (St. Patrick's Day!), the preschool held a little Easter celebration that included a concert, parade and egg hunt.

Given how Ellie's Christmas program went:

Oh my.

...we went into this performance with much lowered expectations. A couple of weeks before the performance I was talking to Ellie about it and, operating on a hunch that she only sulks like that when I'm around, I asked her if she wanted me to come watch her sing on stage. She answered "no," and I lied through my teeth and told her okay, I won't come. LIES.

I went. We all did. Eric left work early, Grammy came to visit, E.J. rode in the baby carrier on my back. But, we snuck in at the very last second, found seats in the back, and literally spent the entire show hunched down to stay hidden behind the people in front of us so Ellie wouldn't spot us. We must have looked absolutely ridiculous.

The glamorous world of motherhood, my friends.

BUT IT WORKED. She still didn't sing, but I didn't expect her to given that in addition to seeing her prior performance, her teacher specifically mentioned at our parent-teacher conference that they can't get Ellie to sing. So I didn't expect singing; I was just hoping for at least a neutral expression on her face. Not only did she rock a neutral expression, but she DID THE HAND MOTIONS. To every song! She actually did it! It was so great.

GO ELLIE!

Look at her doing it!

Here's a little snippet of the closing number so you can see for yourself:

VIDEO: Ellie's Easter program

(pardon the shaky camera work - I was hiding and just holding my camera up, plus had an antsy E.J. strapped to my back!

After the performance, the parents were invited out to the walkway alongside the church building to watch the kids in a little Easter parade, led by the Easter Bunny himself. They were all so cute - each class made their own Easter bonnets and looked adorable!

E.J. waiting for the parade to start

Here they come!

E.J. was so excited to see the Easter Bunny!

Ellie on parade!

When the parade reached the front of the church, each class posed for photos with the bunny.

The cutest.

Then, they went into the garden for an egg hunt!

They're off!

Ellie on the hunt

I don't think he was supposed to, but E.J. couldn't resist lending a helping hand!

Ellie gave him a soccer ball egg!

Ellie had so much fun playing with her friends, even after all the eggs had been found.

Playing with her best friend

It was such a nice morning! I'm so pleased with how it went. We're so proud of our Ellie!

Way to go, Ellie!

And you better believe that we're going to be hiding behind people in the audience at Ellie's ballet recital this month!

He is Risen!

Happy Easter, friends!

We are enjoying a lovely day as a family, as we near the end of an excellent spring break week. I hope that the day is treating you just as well!

Easter blessings to all of you from all of us! Christ is risen, indeed!

Easter Sunday 2015

Our actual Easter Sunday was a pretty quiet but very nice little family day. First things first, the kids got their Easter baskets. (Well, actual first things first, Ellie put on an Elsa dress, because priorities.)

Easter!

E.J.'s first Easter basket contained a stuffed stegosaurus, a "Jesus Loves Me" book, sunglasses, Puffs and pouches of baby food. Ellie's Easter basket contained a stuffed brontosaurus, sunglasses, slippers, hair clips, egg-shaped sidewalk chalk, a little straw purse, a hooded Elsa bath towel and her very first chocolate bunny.

Easter baskets!

They both seemed quite pleased with their basket loot.

I think the chocolate bunny was Ellie's favorite thing of all.

Checking out her Elsa towel

E.J. digging in

Reading his new book

E.J. napped while the rest of us ate breakfast (and painted Ellie's fingernails), and then we got ready for church. When E.J. woke up, we snapped some family pictures.

My Easter sweethearts

Kisses from big sister

Our little family

Then it was off to church!

Eric and the kiddos before church

Me with the kids (yes, Ellie wore her Elsa crown to church. It's the "Easter bonnet" of 2015, FYI.)

The kids were really pretty good in church. Ellie went up front for the children's sermon (with me) and then fidgeted her way through the rest of the service. She did have a very sweet moment after the opening hymn when she clapped and cried out, "Yay! That's good music!" E.J. spent a good bit of the service charming the people in the pew behind us before excusing himself to the great outdoors (with Eric chaperoning).

Family after church

That afternoon was quiet, and we concluded our celebration with an Easter dinner of ham, potato casserole and peas. E.J. even got in on the pea action, and loved them! An Easter miracle!

He's making his "eating face," but trust me, he loves them.

And that was it! I think we really had a great holiday, and did one E.J.'s last first major holiday justice. I am so blessed with this little family of mine!