It was wonderful to have something to look forward to on our calendar!  Easter wasn't cancelled.  The Easter Bunny still found the kids, and there was a small bit of normalcy for a little while Easter morning. 

On a typical Easter morning, we would be rushing around getting fed, dressed, and loaded for a trip to Corinth for church at my home church.  However, since churches are still closed...we were able to spend a little time playing with toys from the Easter Bunny, enjoy cinnamon rolls as a family, and I was able to continue the preparations for Easter lunch.

There are a few things southern mamas take seriously.  One of those is Easter frocks and family photos.  So, we did get everyone cleaned up and dressed in the Easter clothes I ordered specifically for Easter.  Thankfully, there weren't too many complaints and the kids looks precious all dressed up!  It was a nice change from the pajamas and play clothes we wear every day these days.

Even Russ cooperated.  Easter Sunday was filled with the threat of tornadoes.  The weather was yucky, but there was a break in the rain!  And I saw a chance to snap that ever so important Easter family photo.  What you should know is that Russ is the only one with shoes on!  Ha!  I managed to keep my slippers on and the kids had on flip flops.  We call it business on the top and party on the bottom.

After our photo, we gathered together in the living room for our Easter service - a VERY different Easter service than we have ever had.  Snuggled together on the couch.

After church, we joined the rest of the family on a Zoom call!  Susu wanted a family Easter photo, so we got dressed up for it.  The second the picture was over, people started shedding clothes. Haha!  Happy Easter...quarantine style!

Then it was time for the big event - the big Easter lunch!  The moment I realized the big family Easter wasn't going to happen, I panicked.  All of a sudden, I was in charge of Easter!  I started gathering the recipes I needed and making the menu, trying to make this a special memory for Russ and me...and the kids. 

Our Easter menu included my mom's roast with potatoes and carrots, smothered green beans, cauliflower rice, cream corn, rolls, and strawberry pretzel salad.  I burned the roast.  But aside from that, it was a delicious meal!  Thankfully there were plenty of sides to make up for it.

We spent the rest of our Easter Sunday napping, laying around watching Matt Lauban and the weather expecting a tornado.  Thankfully, it was a false warning for us. 

Happy Easter, Covid-19!

Pre-Easter Fun

Easter proved to be a problem for this family.  If you've been around long enough, you know that Easter is our holiday. Here are some of the highlights from previous years.

So many of us mamas were disappointed to miss sweet Easter egg hunts and parties, the frilly Easter frocks, and church photos.

Smith's preschool teachers did a great job providing fun Easter activities that we all were able to enjoy together! Easter egg numbers match, alphabet carrots to feed the bunny, and more!  We also decorated eggs together.  Easter has always been such a busy time, and there were some perks of slowing down and really remembering the reason we celebrate.

We had some fun surprises pop up!  Buck and She She surprised the kids with a fun egg hunt.  They stopped by and hid 10 eggs filled with messages for the kids to find.  We had "been egged!"  The kids loved it and thought the notes were the best thing ever.  Not one question about candy!  We decided it was such a fun idea that we egged some of our favorite friends too!

Kay Kay called to let us know the Easter Bunny may be riding through her neighborhood.  So we ventured off to our very first social gathering since the quarantine began.  The kids weren't really sure what to do.  They just looked at each other for a little while.  I brought an egg hunt exercise activity and had them hunt one egg at a time so no one was touching.  Ha!  Then we sectioned off parts of the driveway for sidewalk chalk drawings.

The Saturday before Easter, Buck and She She told us the Easter Bunny was coming down their street too!  As it turned out, this was the real deal!  The kids spread out and waved as the bunny drove past.  He even stopped for a photo opp.

We decided to hang around a while, so we moved to the back yard.  Then, Susu and Pawpaw surprised us!  The Annual Smith Egg Hunt is serious.  It was a near devastating blow to forego the hunt altogether.  I won't lie...I was pouting internally.  Haha!  Susu and Pawpaw had arranged for the egg hunt to continue...one couple at a time.  So that's what we did.  We hunted our eggs...3 different egg hunts in a row.  Russ FINALLY won after 15 years of trying.  We decided it was because I was his only competition.  But a win is a win!

We didn't completely neglect the children.  Kay Kay brought their own giant Easter egg hunt for each family of children to do.  And they also assisted Russ during our egg hunt.  So I have determined his win wasn't really fair.

Although it wasn't our typical Smith Easter Egg Hunt...it was a fun variation.  No hugging.  No touching.  Six feet apart social distancing.  But the face time was MUCH NEEDED!!  Big thanks to Susu and Pawpaw for making it happen!

 An Easter to remember for sure!

Easter Egg Colors

So, after Easter I realized we didn't even have an egg hunt for the kids.  They just got to watch the adults look like looney toons running around hunting eggs.  Thankfully, they really aren't old enough to realize they missed out.  Oops.

But we DID have some Easter fun for the kids!

KayKay made arrangements for the kids to dye Easter eggs.  I made the executive decision for Smith, and he just continued playing with all the toys.  I envisioned my wild ones having an egg dye fight and Kristin's beautiful kitchen turning into a tie-dye delight.  One child is what I was up for at the moment.

I think the adults had just as much fun as the kids, and as always I was surprised at how much Millie Janalee is capable of doing on her own.  If her mama would just back off!  Ha!

Smith came around from time to time to observe and make his strategy for participating next year...

The kids and mamas did a great job if you ask me!  And we ended up with a carton full of bright colors.  Now, why we didn't hide those and let the kids hunt them...

…is beyond me!  LOL!  Never even thought about it.  Maybe next year.

Get Out The Way

In case you wondered, the annual Smith Easter Egg Hunt did commence.  We moved the location this year and it rained.  It was muddy.  But we did it anyway.  Because you know how the adults in my family feel about this competition!  It's serious.  Dustin was sick and throwing up the night before.  Dr. Russ called in something to help him out, which I'm not sure was a good strategy for us.  But he made it for Easter Sunday morning.  And it was on!

On your mark, get set, GET OUT THE WAY!

I'm not sure if the kids were traumatized or just thought we were completely crazy.  I'm betting on the latter.  I'm quite positive Kristin and Lee's neighbors knew we had lost our minds.  There was running, screaming, yelling, and wheezing!  Not to mention five grown adults - a doctor, a professional, a manager, and two stay at home moms - running around with pastel colored Easter baskets! We're getting old and out of shape over here!  Haha!

And we scattered

Cheating in progress here - no help from the spectators, Kristin!

Teaming up - Team Johnson!  Didn't do any good.  Ha!

Someone forgot their uniform.

Everyone is going pretty slow at this point.

When the wheezing and heavy breathing and pain in the muscles and joints were at an all time high...and there were no more eggs found, the counting began.  There is the counting and documentng of the eggs and the counting and documenting of the cash.  Both of which take us all a little time.  Since we all lose count at least 3-4 times before landing on a final number.  Dustin has his own banker actually.

We canNOT figure out how this happens.  Every year.  With only one exception that I can remember. But Dustin was the big winner.  AGAIN.  By a huge margin!  Lee came in second and Russ third - always consistent.  Kristin and I swap back and forth on last place and next to last.  Every year.  I did come in last with the number of eggs - 38.  But I was not last place on the cash count.  So there's that.

Another egg hunt in the books!  Bragging rights for a year are set.  And Kristin and I will scrimp and pinch our little pennies to buy the most for our money.  Since we don't have quite as much to spare as the others.

It wasn't until the next day that we realized we never even had an egg hunt for the kids!  I'm sure Millie Janalee will notice next year.  Hopefully she will be content with candy!  No kids allowed in the big hunt.

Here Comes Peter Cottontail

Russ and I took the family to my parents' house the night before Easter to spend the night.  We can barely make it to church on time when we are home, so I knew traveling with all the extra Easter morning festivities would prove challenging.

And the Easter bunny still found my little chicks...

Each year gets more and more fun as I watch Millie Janalee take in all the festive holidays.  I remember how I used to mourn each stage passed as she was growing up.   I still find myself doing that sometimes, but now I know that every stage is so much fun in its own way.

Smith is getting more and more aware of what's going on.  More than that, he pretty much does everything his big sister does!  She says, "Let's go play in my room" and his feet pitter patter right behind her.  It took a while to get Smith focused on his own baskets...and not his sister's.  But once he did, I think he was pleased.

These sweet moments are the ones I will look back on with tears in my eyes.  Because I know there is no way to soak them in as much as you want to.  You will always wish you held them longer, were more patient, and played Barbie dolls more.  As I write this they are both asleep on the other end of the house.  And it's when they are quiet and asleep that I miss them most and reflect back on my day and how bad I thought it was.  And think to myself, "Was it really that bad?"  Sometimes the answer is "YES!  It was bad!"  Haha!  But most days, it really wasn't as bad as it seemed in the moment.  Maybe they won't be scarred for life.

These are the days.  These are probably the fullest days and the days we will look back on most heartsick for those innocent babies and the time we had to invest in their lives and their play.

Busy Easter Week

Our Easter week felt jammed pack with regular life and all the extra fun activities on our calendar!  That's the thing about holidays.  They fly by because we are so busy celebrating and having fun.

Russ was off the week of Easter, so we started the week by picking up and letting Russ build our first swing set.  I wish I could share the video of Millie Janalee's reaction.  It was priceless!  She was so excited, and she told her daddy "It is perfect.  Thank you to buildin it!"  We have played on it every sunny day since.

Next up was Millie Janalee's class Easter egg hunt. Russ rarely gets to come to daytime school functions, so we were thrilled he could join us!  Plus he was invaluable as he helped watch this wild man...

The moms who put together the party did a wonderful job.  We had the hunt at a local park, and we had it all to ourselves. We had picnic lunches on quilts, read a story about the true meaning of Easter, and the kids played til we drug them out one by one.

We have been so blessed by Millie Janalee's preschool.  The teachers, staff, and parents have been so welcoming and absolutely love our children.  They are thrilled to see Millie Janalee coming (or at least they act like it), and Millie Janalee is ecstatic each morning they open our car door to get her out.  She is learning so much, and more importantly she has grown and learned and shared with us so much about Jesus and His love for us.  You can't put a price tag on that education!

I am so blessed to be able to share these special days with my sweet, sassy, and strong firstborn!

Our family also enjoyed another fun Easter treat when our neighbors invited us to the Easter carnival at our local country club.  Russ has been wanting to join since he's been going to play tennis some up there.  It was such a wonderful event!  We saw the Easter bunny, of course, and it was CLASSIC!  Just like Santa.

The kids had a blast and the adults did too.  At the end, there was an Easter egg hunt for all the children.  It only took Millie Janalee two seconds after arriving to find friends she knew all over the place.  It is always fun to watch three year olds interact and live life as they  know it.  Such sweet friends.

I didn't even bring Smith's Easter basket.  That's what happens with #2.  I'm wondering if #3…we just forget one of them at home altogether!  Hahaha!  He enjoyed looking for eggs and putting them in big sister's basket just as well.

It was great visiting with friends and meeting new people throughout the day. Our little family had such a great time!  This time of year is just so nice!  Mother of year also failed to apply sunscreen to any of my little monkeys…all is well now.  Thankful my babies have better skin tone than their parents!

We went home to rest for an hour before heading off to the annual Johnson family Easter egg hunt.  It's actually just hosted by Russ's brother and his family.  There are lots of friends there along with family.  We always have a great time, and this year was no different.  Afterward, some family and close friends hung around for a birthday supper celebrating Clay's 17th birthday!

By the time Easter Sunday rolled around, this crew was exhausted.  Or at least these parents were.  But SO much FUN and even more fun ahead!