Easter the way it should be

And by that title, I am referring to the weather. 76 yesterday and 80 today--perfect, sunny weather for an egg hunt, a pool party (no kidding!) and, today, a peaceful Easter.

To recap our weekend for those of you with the stamina to get through it, I spent Saturday morning cooking for an Easter egg hunt and picnic at a friend's home. I made brownies and mini cheesecakes and a pasta salad. The egg hunt was intense! Probably one of the best I've ever been to. There were about 200 eggs, filled with all sorts of fun things besides candy; there were other games too, like pin-the-tail on the bunny, complete with prizes; there was delicious food; and to top it off, there was an Easter bunny!! Wow, what fun. There are more photos on our mac site, so check that out for the full visual adventure.


Another friend had a barbecue and pool party that evening (a birthday party). Being skeptics, we didn't take suits. It will need to be late April before I can mentally accept outdoor swimming in an unheated pool! While the girls took baths that evening, their Easter baskets were magically filled. It was nice to have that out of the way before Sunday. I spent the evening getting things ready for our family Easter breakfast, my talk (I had to speak on the Atonement in sacrament meeting), my choir (we were performing 2 numbers) and my Sunbeams lesson.

Sunday morning we had a nice sit-down breakfast with pecan pull-aparts (aka monkey bread) and a make-the-night-before egg and ham "quiche". It was yummy, easy, and we used paper plates so clean-up was a breeze. While eating, we did the "12 eggs of Easter" devotional where each egg has a symbol of Easter and a scripture leading from the garden of Gethsemane to the Resurrection. Amazingly, it went smoothly and the kids were interested. Church went well (talks, choir numbers, lessons came off without a hitch) and we headed home relieved to be through all of that. We had a family dinner with D's parents and Mark and Elisabeth, then relaxed all day. I put my 2006 photos in sleeves (just printed over $60. worth at Costco) while D and Smidget napped, multitasking by playing Chutes and Ladders with Chatterbox simultaneously. Elisabeth kept me company. I perused her baby gifts (her first child, a daughter, is due in 2 months) and reminisced about my first baby. (Elisabeth has to hear me reminisce far too often; sorry!!!) We had dessert and visited outside until the sun was long gone. D set some gopher traps for me--not really a Sabbath day activity, but pretty necessary. If I ever get around to my gardening post you will know why. Let's just say the gopher count stands at 8-0, and not in my favor.

And that, my friends, is the weekend update. Whew! Tomorrow it's time to put the house back together. Oh, and I'm sure there's some laundry that needs doing, darn it.