Easter 2014

He is risen! He is risen, indeed!

We awoke to the best Easter surprise: the birth of our newest goddaughter! Welcome Anne Catherine Gianna!

Jesus' salt dough crown of thorns decorated with sparkles and gems for our Easter centerpiece

First thing in the morning, the children opened their Easter baskets.

Joseph is obsessed with chasing balls,
so this was the perfect gift for him.

By Baby #4, parents really don't have much control left over things like candy.
Here, the three-year-old feeds Joseph candy corn off the carpet. It's all good.

This little one had hoped for a brown scapular in her basket.

Mama reading one of our new Easter books

Nourished with oodles of candy, the children colored some of their new coloring books while Mama and Daddy prepared breakfast.

Breakfast was served!

French toast, bacon, hash browns, fruit, whipped cream

After dressing for the day, the kids enjoyed an egg hunt indoors. The weather was gorgeous today, but the steady rain of all Good Friday and Holy Saturday meant the back yard was a muddy mess.

Getting a lift from Daddy

Candy in their baskets was individual but candy found in the egg hunt was communal

Building a 3-D airplane puzzle with Daddy: so much fun!

Family portrait, Easter 2014

And finally we were off to our 12:30 Mass, with requisite family portraits taken at our parish . . .

Joseph, 15 months old

Mary, showing off her inch worm

Our dinner plans had to be reworked since the guests coming to our house went and had a baby that morning! In actuality, it worked out great: they had made all their portion of food the day before and we had made ours, so instead of getting together, we did a "food exchange," so that each family had a full meal. What was most humorous is that the other family's two grandmothers did virtually all the cooking, so here that family had a newborn today and yet they delivered a feast to us!

We babysat two of the family's children for a few hours and their kids and our kids played so well together that Chris and I decided spontaneously to eat dinner quietly by ourselves, then serve the children later. What a treat!

The Menu: sangria, antipasto, pork tenderloin*, mashed sweet potatoes and apples*, collard greens, macaroni and cheese, green salad, hot cross buns, rolls and butter (molded in the shape of a lamb!), apple pie, and cheesecake. (*the only two dishes I cooked)