An Easter To Learn From....

This was our first attempt at a kid-type Easter holiday. It was a bit of a flop but I think I am learning ways to improve for the future!

Ben and I decided that now that Sadie is getting older we should probably do some traditional type activities for her. So, we boiled eggs and bought a basket, candy, and little toys. However, we never found the time to color the eggs and the 'Easter Bunny' was going to come after church because we were running a little late in the morning. But tithing took over three and a half hours to count and we had to get down to the 'Homestead' (aka: my parent's house), so we never did any of these traditional events.

Luckily, they had an Easter Egg hunt for the little kids at church. I don't think Sadie understood the concept because she kept picking up the leaves and twigs instead of the eggs. Once I showed her there was chocolate inside of the eggs though, she caught on quick!

(Sadie says: Hmm...chocolate!)

Once we arrived at the Homestead things slowed down and became more fun. We ate a delicious dinner - Fillet Mignon, Almond/Parmesan broccoli, scalloped potatoes, amazing salad and chocolate covered strawberries for dessert. Afterward we went to the Agricultural Farm which is just a block away and fed the animals. It was Easter for them, too! They had stale bread and palm frawns for dinner. YUM!

(Sadie shown here telling us how old she is.
Her only problem she always points her finger at us instead of up in the air)

(Sadie shown above eating the stale bread and refusing to share it with the cow)

We also went for a walk around Walsingham park for sunset. The weather was beautiful!





Here's what I learned from this Easter:

1. Holidays use to mean sleeping in and long naps, but I can't expect that any more. Now it means staying up late the night before to prep and getting up early in the morning to celebrate. But it makes it so much more fun and it's definitely worth the investment of time!!
   
2. We need to decide what traditions we want to establish and then make those a priority. Anyone have any fun traditions?
   
3. Also, I want to understand the reasons behind traditions and remind ourselves of how they tie back into the real meaning of the celebration and reflect on that meaning throughout the day.
4. Lastly, I need to learn to just be happy even when things do not go exactly as planned. Sadie was fussy all through church, Ben was expectantly gone for several hours after church, and it wasn't until 5 o'clock that I finally took a deep breath and started having fun. I really need to learn to loosen up a bit and role with the punches!
   

I know we're amateurs at this, but hopefully we'll learn from our mistakes and improve for next year when Sadie really starts to catch on to what's going on.

Even though it started off a little rocky, by the end of the day I was in heaven. A walk through a peaceful park at sunset with the people I love most! Does it get better than this? I don't think so.