On Your Mark, Get Set...HUNT!

So here's one of the most anticipated posts...besides the birth of my nephew (and I promise that one is coming!)...our annual Smith family egg hunt!  Every year, I have people asking to see the recap of our hunt.  In case you are new to the blog, let me rewind and give you a chance to see the progress of our egg hunts from 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013.  About three years ago, I had egg hunt uniforms made for us.  I forgot to pack mine this year, but since Kristin was hauling around a full grown baby in her tummy and not able to risk the intensity of the hunt, I was able to borrow hers.

On your mark, get set...

Practicing her "On your mark" stance for her own egg hunt.  Learning from the best.

One might think that grown men wouldn't be into an Easter egg hunt carrying pastel colored baskets around the yard searching for brightly colored eggs.  Wrong.  Let me just say, as the only female participant this year, it is a fight for your life kind of race.  I knew it would be.  It always is.  Although I didn't expect for my own husband to nearly kill me as we both raced toward the same egg.  I won in that instance, for the record.  Ha!

Kristin and Sheila helped hide the eggs this year with Mama Bunny.  And it's just now occurring to me that this may have something to do with the results.  Hmmm... 

Me trying to get a head start on the boys

Russ and Dustin in the zone

Lee taking over the other side of the yard while he can.

To fill you newbies in, there may or may not be an extra incentive to keep all these grown kids fighting and running around like crazies for Easter eggs.  Ummm...there's money inside.  My dad jokes that it's the only way to get us all home for Easter.  Ha!  I remember hunting hard boiled eggs that we dyed and decorated ourselves when we were younger.  The Easter Bunny hid them the night before Easter, and we would hunt them before church on Easter.  Eventually, we graduated to plastic eggs with candy.  Then, one year it happened.  Dimes and nickels in our eggs!  As we grew, the "prizes" grew.  Now that we are grown, having our kids, paying for dinner dates with a girlfriend, and adopting...we all have a little extra pep in our step.  Meaning - it's dangerous y'all.

And serious stuff.

Russ and me counting our eggs for the big tally

Dustin...before Sheila came over to help

Millie Janalee gave Lee a hard time knocking his eggs off the deck

While we count, Mama Bunny begins taking a tally to ensure all the eggs have been found.  In the case that one or two are still left...watch out!  It's a free for all.

Mama Bunny taking tally

Sheila has probably been making her own strategy for the future.  Ha!

Kristin had to help Lee take control of the egg situation...or guard them from Millie Janalee

For those of you taking note, I lost.  Kristin and I pretty much stay in the bottom two.  The King of our egg hunts for many many years (except the one tragic year Lee beat him), Dustin, won.  Lee came in second by $1.  And Russ came in third.  I'll take a loss here.  It's much better than any other loss I've ever had.  Ha!

Once again, I realize people will have their own opinions about how we celebrate.  And that's okay.  I know the heart of my family better than others do.  It's not about the money or the prizes.  It's not about the baskets or the bunnies.  It is all about family.  Making memories that we enjoy.  Being able to do something memorable for each other.  We are blessed, and we know it.  You don't have to celebrate the same way we do, and we don't have to do it like you.  Every family can choose their own ways to make memories.  I just encourage you to make them!  Make memories a priority in your family.  Make laughter and smiles and fun a part of your family.  Make coming home something to look forward to!  And keep the traditions going for the next generation.

Blowing bubbles with Nana while the grown ups hunt

When Russ and I spent the years we did discussing what we wanted for our own family, making family memories was a top priority...just under raising our children to love the Lord.  There is no price that can ever be paid for the memories I have growing up with my family.  Vacations, daily life, holiday get-togethers, and church events.  Even down to our family potato sack race and croquet game in our front yard one Fourth of July.  My parents were and still are the best at making sure our family is making memories together to last a lifetime.  And they learned it from their parents.  You get the idea?

The older Millie Janalee gets, the more excited I become as we are able to begin making memories for her.  This was the first year she was actually able to hunt eggs.  She doesn't understand the whole big idea just yet, but we have made a good start.

After the grown-ups hunted, I placed about 10 eggs around the yard in one small area for her to "hunt".  It took some coaxing at first, but she caught on quickly.  She enjoyed hunting her little "ehhhs" and listening to them as the plopped into her Easter bucked Aunt KayKay made.  (By the way, Auntie Kristin changed her name to "Aunt KayKay" so that Millie Janalee could say her name.  Ha!)

She found about four eggs before she did exactly what we knew she would do.  Dump them all out!

And it was fun.  Every bit of that 3 minutes was fun.  Every day Russ and I are forever thankful for our sweet girl.  And some days it hits us harder than others, and it hurts.  You love so much you think your heart will just burst.  Oh, how I wish I could freeze time most days!

I know in the blink of an eye, Millie Janalee will be "coming home for the holidays" from school or her own family.  And, OH how I hope that she looks forward to coming home to her family!  May she always look back on her life and remember how much we loved her, how much we loved our God, and how much fun we had together!

On your mark, get set...GO make some memories!