Easter Egg Decorating

For our family, Easter is a time to reflect on what Jesus did for us when he died on the cross. This week being Holy Week, we've spent a lot of time discussing, (sometimes in depth with Ethan and Josh who asked very mature questions) The Last Supper, Good Friday, the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus. It amazes me how easy it has been for the kids to talk about all of this when Mike and I sometimes have difficulty wrapping our minds around it.

Mike and I decided a couple of years ago that Easter would always remain a religious celebration for our family. However, we would still keep the kids involved in some of the other Easter traditions...like decorating eggs. They LOVE to hunt for the eggs they've decorated on Sunday morning after diving into the Easter basket that is left for them on the table. We only do one basket, and the kids each get one large chocolate, (Swan chocolate is gluten free and incredibly tasty, so we this year we bought one large chocolate cross, three chocolate bunnies, two chocolate lambs on sticks, and three different filled eggs...raspberry, coconut and marshmallow) we also include a Veggie Tales video and some other religious gift. This year they are getting a children's Catholic Picture Bible, and a Catholic Bible of Saints book.

So, I had my Child Wranglers come over after school yesterday, and together with Jaime and Josie we decorated eggs. It was a blast!


Bekah loved picking colors for her eggs, and letting Nicole add some finishing touches. Her hands were also covered in the same colors of her eggs! :)


Ethan was pretty much Mr. Independent with his eggs this year. He was very intent on how long each egg stayed in the dye so as to achieve the perfect color. However, he was more than happy to have help from Brittany!


The twins were less than thrilled with their position...far, far away from the pretty colors and bite-sized stickers...but they enjoyed a bag of veggie bootie and had fun making faces at us.


Joshua loved every minute of his 12 minute egg decorating! Seriously, the kid had a very difficult time waiting on the egg to "hurry up and get colored", so he could move on to the next egg. Due to his impatience, two of his eggs did not make it as far as the dyes. But he was thrilled with the outcome of what he had accomplished declaring himself "The Winner of Egg Decorating"!


This was Miss. Josie's first year decorating eggs, and in typical girl fashion she was very particular about color and style! She enjoyed "tossing" her eggs into the dye containers, to the point that Jaime got splashed in the eye with pink vinegar. Josie was very upset when the decorating came to end, but very proud of her eggs.