We did Easter Branson Style. We chose 3 different egg hunts to go to, each with their own perks (there were several more, but we had plenty of candy!). The first had games, tons of food, and several hunts. We used it as a way to get out of the house inbetween Conference Sessions. Piper and I did the egg spoon walk, which she figured out was much easier when you carried the egg in one hand and the spoon in the other. We also did a cupcake walk with Monte. His chair took up 3 spots, but it still took about 10 minutes to win. Piper loved the big Easter Bunny, I think she thinks it's Rabbit from Winnie the Pooh. Best of all was the cotton candy, we all love it. The second one was just for Piper, and it was at the school. She was so cute, we arrived just in time for the hunt, she just watched everyone else pick up eggs. She ended up with plenty of candy though, and had a great time posing with the bunny again and licking the frosting off the cookies. About 20 min into the party she said "All done. Let's go see Monte." We took a trip to his library, then met him for lunch. She loves to spend time with him at school. She's convinced that she's missing out and she's ready to enroll herself. Good thing she's only 2! I'm not ready to have both of them in school. The final hunt was pretty incredible. They'd roped off the field into huge sections and had a helicopter hover over the fields, dropping thousands of eggs. We were late getting there, and watched the helicopter flying past us on our way, just sure that we'd missed it. But we made it! Monte loved the sound, as I knew he would, and Piper thought the eggs falling out was hilarious. We somehow ended up at the front of the pack. I had Piper pick up about 8 eggs, then said "we have enough, let's let the other kids have them." We noticed a few kids without any eggs, and Piper graciously shared hers. I was impressed with the organizers, they had huge buckets of candy to make sure every child had enough.
On Sunday I wanted to make sure that we were teaching the right message. I asked Piper what Easter was about. She said, "Eggs, and CANDY!!" Oops. So we had a nice lesson about what Easter was really celebrating and showed her lots of pictures of Christ. She seemed to understand, and told it back to me nicely. We were also blessed to participate in a 6 state Stake Conference Broadcast with President Monson. Before the broadcast began, they displayed a large picture of Christ on the screen. Piper watched for a bit, then yelled out, "Mom, Jesus NAKEY!" (Mom, Jesus is naked). Again, oops. I explained that he wasn't naked, he was wearing a robe, a kind of dress that men wear. "Jesus is wearing a dress??!" Time to change the subject. She later held her Easter bonnet by the strap and carried it around saying loudly, "time to go shopping." I hope the other ward members know us well enough to know we don't shop on Sunday, but oh, well.
Doug's mom also surprised us with an Easter box, filled with tons of candy, including Jelly Belly's (reminicent of those served at our wedding reception), a cool tactile egg decorating kit, and a special new Winnie the Pooh DVD. Doug spread it around the room, allowing the kids to do our own hunt (being as the weather was rainy and freezing). Piper was so excited! She squealed and tried to go immediately. She quickly loaded up her basket, than sat down and unwrapped about 6 chocolates before choosing to eat only the peanut butter cups. Monte shook the ones with jelly beans over and over, then ate a big handful as well. We allowed them to eat the ones they chose and watch the movie after we decorated eggs as a family. What a special week!
The first two pictures are Piper in a dress given to Jadee by my mom, then passed by Heidi down to us. So cute! She loves it, especially the matching hat.
So if you were wondering how I've been spending my time lately, here's a few visual explanations. I've been using my resourses and talents (thanks to many Utah Enrichment activities and talented friends who have taught me these skills!!) to make a little extra money. I made the bags with matching magnets and thank-you cards for Monte's assistants at school for "Para-Appreciation Day." They loved them and it hardly cost me anything. I also got a huge order (mostly on comission, but still!) for bracelets, headbands, and bows for a photography studio. It's all on display at Branson Photo, if you live locally. She wanted everything BIG and with BLING BLING!! So, here's what I put together. Hey, if you like it, let me know. My only feedback was from Doug (looks great) and from Piper (I want it, I want to wear it, I'm finished with it). And if you want to buy something...I'm your gal. Baby and toddler bracelets, can be made with real crystal or real pearls priced from $12-$18. Headbands and clips, $4-$8. Custom orders, creative orders, all available.
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