Easter Recap

This picture was from last year's festivities. I didn't think that much about Easter preparations this year, because I wasn't going to be in charge of anything, being out of town and such. When plans changed and we ended up at home sweet home I sort of wished I'd paid more attention to all the great blog posts on Easter (looking back it seems as if Nancy Wilson had some delightful suggestions on her blog, many of them in the form of comments when she asked the readers what was on their menu). What I should do is print out some of the best ideas and file them under "Easter" in my home notebook. And then remember I put them there (which is where the system has broken down in the past...I forget I even have a home notebook).

We spent a lot of time over the weekend discussing Easter: to celebrate or not to celebrate, what should be our emphasis, traditions, etc. I had a whole post written out in my head about all that but decided to refrain because 1) I am really not that knowledgeable about these issues and we haven't figured it all out yet (check back when I'm dead), 2) it's not my goal to offend here (I'll do that in person, when you can see my loving face) :), and 3) I forgot most of what I'd written in my head and so the post would have been short and not very cohesive.

We did make cookies to take to eight of our neighbors, and decided it was the best possible thing we could have done to make friends here. Most of our neighbors are strong women pushing eighty, and all of them seem to love cookies and little children, of which we have both (had...we ate the last of them today). Here are my very favorite ever iced butter cookies:
I love them so much that I even made them for my own wedding (not in the shape of an egg, although that would have been pretty funny considering our fertility rate...). Didn't eat a single one at our wedding, but that's another story, for a time when you want to hear about my naivety...to think I would eat FOOD at my wedding!! But I'm not bitter. I heard they were delicious.

We had my brother-in-law and his wife and three boys over for roast beef, carrots, mashed potatoes, salad, and homemade french bread. My sister-in-law brought one of her fabulous cherry pies and WH made cappuccinos for all the adults (mine with rice milk...don't waste your rice milk). It was a festive little afternoon, with the only drama being the stone casserole dish someone had JUST given me (a hand-me-down, but it was nice) decided to play it's own role and mimic the veil of the temple being torn in two. I was baking a nice eye of round in the pan, and when I added the wine (which was not cold) the pan immediately cracked. It was a nice clean cut and didn't get into the meat and the wine evaporated so fast that very little spilled into the oven. But it was sad...anyone want to give me a stonewear tutorial?

We did haul our children to church, coughs and colds and all, and this picture reflects how they were feeling...it was the best we could get of them:
Obviously not at the top of their game (or looks) but that's how it is sometimes. We still felt like the day was a joyful celebration, one to be remembered each and every Sunday as we delight in the resurrection.