Easter

Bonnets, Baskets, & Bunnies: An Easter 2020 Linkup

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Bonnets, Baskets & Bunnies

Amid the odd circumstances of this Easter, we’ve tried to keep our traditions. Streaming religious services isn’t the same as being there, but I’m grateful we’re at least able to do that.

We prayed a modified Stations of the Cross that became part scavenger hunt when the 7-year-old hung the fourteen photos randomly around the house. We made Resurrection eggs (search Pinterest for examples), baked Hot Cross Muffins (found here) and Paska bread, dyed eggs, and in place of the Easter flowers we usually buy, my daughter picked us a bouquet of violets. We’ll re-read a new favorite Easter book, The Other Side of Easter by Beth Gully.

It’s all lovely. But there’s a subtle undercurrent that something’s not right.

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Bonnets, Baskets, & Bunnies: An Easter 2018 Link-Up

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Bonnets, Baskets & Bunnies

If you’re expecting a charming and witty run-down of Easter festivities, you many want to keep moving. If, on the other hand, you have about two minutes to glimpse a REAL Easter, scroll on.

Holy Week started with one sick kid at home and my slicing open my pinky on a tin can, so let’s just set the bar accordingly, shall we? LOW.

As I adapted to life with a pinky splint and multiple sick kids, a silver lining did emerge. I could not manage washing dishes with said splint and therefore am enjoying a week-long dishwashing reprieve. Continue reading →

An Open Book

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An Open Book

Before I dive into what’s being read in our household this month, I have some exciting news to share! Starting in May, An Open Book will be hosted at this site AND at CatholicMom.com! So, when  you add your link here, it will appear there as well. You may see a little CatholicMom logo added to the post and image, but everything will operate in the same way. Now, on to the books.

My husband is still slogging through the Star Wars novel he’s been reading. In addition, when he stopped by a local author festival I attended Saturday, he snagged a couple more Star Wars novels for cheap. Now that Disney owns Star Wars, apparently many books have fallen from the official canon and are now merely legends. Either which way, the books by Joe Schreiber that he picked up look more promising than what he’s currently reading.

No Lifeguard on DutyThis week, I’m reading A Black Horse Campground Mystery Book 2: No Lifeguard on Duty by Amy Bennett. I picked it up on the heels of Book 1, End of the Road. It seems unlikely I’ll be able to stop there. Two more books in the series await, and I’ve grown so attached to the characters, I may need to read straight through! Amy Bennett’s writing is crisp and polished, which makes it a pleasure to read. In addition to the central mystery, there’s a gently simmering love triangle involving campground owner  Corrie and two law enforcement officers: her former boyfriend Sheriff Rick Sutton and former narcotics agent J.D. Wilder. I don’t read mysteries often, but I find myself wondering why.

Game OverThe GiantMy seventh-grader also snagged one of Joe Schreiber’s books at the author festival. Game Over, Pete Watson reminded him of a couple series he’s enjoyed: the Origami Yoda and Jedi Academy series. He zipped through the book in a day. He’s also reading The Giant and How He Humbugged America by Jim Murphy. It tells the story of the Cardiff Giant, a 19th century hoax that became a big attraction. (Apparently, the apple does not fall far from the tree, since this is right up my crypto-lovin’ husband’s alley. )

The Third WheelThe second-grader in the household discovered her older brother’s Wimpy Kid books. She’s currently reading The Third Wheel (Diary of a Wimpy Kid Book 7) by Jeff Kinney. This from the kid who experienced inexplicable terror at the sight of the infamous playground cheese slice responsible for “the cheese touch.” Apparently, she’s over that.

Easter Bunny's Amazing DayMy preschoolers were pretty engrossed by the free book about animal pets that they got with their chicken nuggets at Chick-Fil-A last week. (God bless you, Chick-Fil-A, for giving kids books instead of more crappy toys.) Since it’s still Easter season, we’ve also been reading Easter stories at bedtime. The picture book Easter Bunny’s Amazing Day by Carol Benoist and Cathy Gilmore is the newest Easter book in our collection, and the kids are enjoying the simple story of a fearful rabbit who ends up as witness to the greatest miracle.

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Alleluia! An Easter 2016 Link-Up

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Bonnets, Baskets & Bunnies

Best wishes for a happy and blessed Easter!

Here are a few of my favorite Easter things:

Christ Is Risen From the Dead HymnEaster Hymn

Apparently, my favorite Easter hymn, “Christ Is Risen From the Dead,” stopped appearing in hymnals decades before I was even born. I guess that explains why it was always printed on a separate sheet of paper in the pew. To me, this hymn is synonymous with Easter. It contains just enough Latin to make it extra special. Resurrexit sicut dixit, Alleluia!

Bunny Tales coverBunny Tales

Somewhere in his travels, my husband picked up the hardcover version of this now out-of-print book, The Hutchinson Book of Bunny Tales (tales, not tails, get it?). It contains ten illustrated bunny stories, including “The Easter Bunny,” that make great read-alouds for children. My favorite is “Carrot Tops and Cottontails,” which culminates with this frightful carnage: “And when the carrots were slain, the rabbits turned upon the radishes and the beetroots, the cabbages and lettuces and the earthy turnips who had gathered round to watch. When night fell, the garden was laid waste.” Shudder.

Sarris Chocolate EggChocolate

To prove not everything I love about Easter is out of date, take a gander at this Sarris chocolate. Made in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania (hometown of singers Perry Como and Bobby Vinton), this is by far our favorite chocolate. Yes, I live near Hershey, and I like its chocolate well enough, but Sarris is my favorite.

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Bonnets, Baskets, and Bunnies: An Easter Linkup

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Bonnets, Baskets & Bunnies

Resurrexit Sicut Dixet, Alleluia! Alleluia!

To celebrate Easter, let’s share our Easter-ly things. Post some pics of your family surrounded by Easter flowers on the church altar, cute kiddies in their Easter outfits, what the Easter Bunny used to fill your baskets, or bunnies – of the chocolate or live variety. Let’s share them here and celebrate the end of what was for many a very long winter, and best of all – our risen Lord!

Don’t have a blog? That’s okay. Let’s hear about your Easter in ten words. [Use the comment box.] (For example, Jelly bean overload, Easter grass in hair, too much chocolate. Or, Mass at dawn, decorated eggs, live chicks, Alleluia! He’s risen!)

Easter blessings to you and yours!

Easter Sunday, 2015

After twice being woken by our oldest daughter wondering if it was time to get up, we let the kids loose to find their baskets.

The three youngest with their baskets.

The three youngest with their baskets.

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You’re Invited to an Easter Blog Party!

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Bonnets, Baskets & Bunnies

It’s been a long winter for many of us. Extreme cold. Loads of snow. Lots of sickness. Let’s celebrate Our Risen Lord and the return of spring by sharing our Easter celebrations!

Let’s see the carpet covered in Easter grass. Remnants of half-eaten marshmallow Peeps. Fistfuls of jelly beans and chocolate rabbits with their ears gnawed off. Does your family take a picture of everyone in their Easter finery in front of the beautifully-decorated altar on Easter morning? Or maybe your crocuses, hyacinths, and daffodils are in full bloom.

Just come back to this site on Easter Sunday and link-up your blog.Don’t have a blog? That’s okay. Let’s hear about your Easter in ten words. [Use the comment box.] (For example, Jelly bean overload, Easter grass in hair, too much chocolate. Or, Mass at dawn, decorated eggs, live chicks, Alleluia! He’s risen!)

The party starts on Easter Sunday and runs through the following Sunday, April 12.