Celebrating Easter

Easter was on Sunday, April 24th.  The girls did some activities at home before Easter to celebrate the holiday.  One of the things they look forward to doing each year is coloring eggs. 

Olivia's hard-boiled eggs sitting in cups of dye.

Sophia and Olivia each dyed six eggs.

The girls also made Resurrection Buns.  They each had eight triangles of crescent roll dough.  They rolled a marshmallow in dairy-free butter and then in sugar/cinnamon mix.  Next, they wrapped the dough around the marshmallow and made sure there were no holes.  They baked them and when they came out of the oven, the marshmallow had melted leaving a gooey mess of melted marshmallow, butter, cinnamon, and sugar. 

The Resurrection Buns have no nutritional value and are very unhealthy.  Yet, they tie in with the Easter story...that's the justification for making and enjoying them!

Sophia making her batch of Resurrection buns.

A new thing we made this year were Italian Easter Egg Baskets.  They are called Pupa Cu L'ova and basically they are dough wrapped around a dyed, hard-boiled egg.

Olivia with the baked (but undecorated) Pupa Cu L'ova.

After the dough-basket is cool, it is frosted and decorated with sprinkles.

The idea came from a recent issue of Living Crafts magazine.  They didn't have a name for it in the magazine, only an explanation that the magazine editor's daughter received one of these pastries from her teacher at her Waldorf school. 

Sophia's and Olivia's Italian Easter Egg Baskets.

They want to do them again next year.

For breakfast, one of the recipes I tried this year was from a past issue of Family Fun magazine.  Basically, it is making scrambled eggs and putting them in hash-brown baskets/nests that were baked in the oven. 

After breakfast, the girls sang in the children's choir.  They both did a nice job singing.

We went over my parents' home to have Easter dinner and to celebrate my mom's 81st birthday which falls directly on Easter this year.  In her 81 years, she said that this was the first time that Easter was ever on her birthday.  "It's been on the 23rd, but never on the 24th," she said.

Olivia holding the Easter lamb cake that she helped make and decorate.

For many years now, she has wanted to help make this cake.

Having Easter lunch at my mom and dad's home.

We all brought food so that my mom

didn't have to do any cooking.

We enjoyed dessert, the children played outside on the deck, and then headed down to the dock to play in the lake.  They played games outside and had fun spending time together.

Inside, my mom opened birthday gifts and she handed out Easter baskets that she made for each of the children. 

My mom opening a present from my dad.

My dad wasn't able to get a card and gifts this year

since he no longer can drive (due to Alzheimer's Disease).

So my sister and I got some gifts for him to give to my mom. 

Needless to say, she was very surprised and teary as she opened each gift.